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Here is your customized PHYSorg.com Newsletter for November 24, 2010:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Jet-lagged and forgetful? It's no coincidence- The sun steals comets from other stars
- Researchers discover drug resistance mechanisms in most common form of melanoma
- Pulsating star mystery solved
- German physicists create a 'super-photon'
- Dutch study suggests Wi-Fi possibly harmful to trees
- Half of Americans will be diabetic or pre-diabetic by 2020
- Astronomers probe 'sandbar' between islands of galaxies
- Short, on-chip light pulses for ultrafast data transfer within computers
- Finger-trap tension stabilizes cells' chromosome-separating machinery
- Apes unwilling to gamble when odds are uncertain
- Deciphering how CD4 T cells die during HIV infection
- Erythromycin A produced in E. coli for first time
- Study finds that the same face may look male or female depending on where it appears in person's field of view
- New imaging technique accurately finds cancer cells, fast
Space & Earth news
Finding a solution to land disputes in Lebanon
New agricultural techniques have helped settle conflicts over land use in Arsaal, Lebanon. In doing so, they’ve improved soils and increased fruit crops.
New wave of planning for coastal zones
Among the traits they share in common -- proximity to the coast, popularity among tourists, renowned, painterly light -- Venice, Italy, and San Diego also share one all-too-disturbing similarity: They are both in considerable danger if climate change leads to a predicted rise in sea levels.
NASA's sea salt sensor to get cooked, chilled
While most Americans are traveling to family gatherings this week for Thanksgiving, a team of scientists from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., and the Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., are flying down to Brazil to "cook" a salty NASA instrument that's sure to spice up studies of Earth's climate after its launch late next spring.
Upcoming flybys could provide clues to Enceladus interior
What is going on inside Saturn’s moon Enceladus and what powers the icy geysers and jets? A pair of upcoming flybys by the Cassini spacecraft could help answer those questions. Radio instruments on board will measure the gravity field of Enceladus and focus particularly on the very intriguing south polar hot spot.
NASA postpones Discovery launch to mid-December
NASA on Wednesday postponed until mid-December the launch of the space shuttle Discovery on its last trip to the International Space Station after cracks were found in its external fuel tank.
Satellites reveal differences in sea level rises
Glaciers are retreating and parts of the ice sheets on Greenland and Antarctica are melting into the ocean. This must result in a rise in sea level, but by how much? A new measurement of the gravity everywhere around the globe with a pair of orbiting satellites provides the first ever map detailing the rises across different parts of the globe.
Dead zones in Gulf caused, in part, by farm drainage
(PhysOrg.com) -- The tile drainage systems in upper Mississippi farmlands -- from southwest Minnesota to across Iowa, Illinois, Indiana and Ohio -- are the biggest contributors of nitrogen runoff into the Gulf of Mexico, reports a Cornell/University of Illinois-Urbana study.
Massive galaxies formed when universe was young
(PhysOrg.com) -- Some of the universe's most massive galaxies may have formed billions of years earlier than current scientific models predict, according to surprising new research led by Tufts University. The findings appear in the Astrophysical Journal published online Nov. 24 in advance of print publication on Dec. 10, 2010.
The sun steals comets from other stars
The next time you thrill at the sight of a comet blazing across the night sky, consider this: it's a stolen pleasure. You're enjoying the spectacle at the expense of a distant star.
Pulsating star mystery solved
(PhysOrg.com) -- By discovering the first double star where a pulsating Cepheid variable and another star pass in front of one another, an international team of astronomers has solved a decades-old mystery. The rare alignment of the orbits of the two stars in the double star system has allowed a measurement of the Cepheid mass with unprecedented accuracy. The new result shows that the prediction from stellar pulsation theory is spot on, while the prediction from stellar evolution theory is at odds with the new observations.
Astronomers probe 'sandbar' between islands of galaxies
(PhysOrg.com) -- Astronomers have caught sight of an unusual galaxy that has illuminated new details about a celestial "sandbar" connecting two massive islands of galaxies. The research was conducted in part with NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Technology news
India district bans cell phones for unmarried women
A local council in northern India has banned unmarried women from carrying mobile telephones to halt a series of illicit romances between partners from different castes, media reports said Wednesday.
US to modernize 911 emergency service
During the 2007 mass shooting at Virginia Tech, desperate students attempted to text the 911 emergency service.
China restarts rare earth shipments to Japan
(AP) -- China resumed exports to Japan of rare earth minerals crucial in high-tech manufacturing after a two-month de facto ban and a Japanese conglomerate announced a major supply deal with an Australian miner that will reduce dependence on Chinese production.
Heart of glass
What’s the best way to keep track of medicines or luxury goods? Just give them a number, of course. But what if the item you want to keep your eye on is made of glass?
'Tunnel of truth' for air travelers is a long way off
Travelers and transportation screeners alike dream of a day when people will no longer have to spread their legs and lift their arms for intimate pat-downs or see-through body scanners.
Ringing up sales on smartphones
As the holiday season and "Black Friday" approach, consumers will be looking for deals in the still struggling economy. Online shopping has become popular with many customers, and now a new technology enables them to make purchases on their mobile phones. In this Q&A, Gloria Barczak, professor of marketing in the College of Business Administration, looks at the advantages and disadvantages for consumers using these shopping applications.
Facebook moves closer to trademarking 'face'
(AP) -- Facebook has moved a step closer toward trademarking the word "face" - at least in certain contexts.
Branson launching digital magazine for iPad
British tycoon Richard Branson on Tuesday will unveil a digital magazine tailored for viewing on Apple's popular iPad tablet computers, according to press conference invitations.
SAP at a crossroads after losing $1.3B verdict
(AP) -- On the losing end of a $1.3 billion jury verdict for stealing a rival's intellectual property, SAP AG is facing the difficult decision about whether to double down - by appealing - or folding.
Jury orders SAP to pay Oracle 1.3 billion dollars
A US jury has ordered German business software giant SAP to pay US rival Oracle 1.3 billion dollars in damages in a record-setting copyright infringement award.
Cloud computing: The good, the bad, and the ugly
A survey of 31 Cloud computing contracts from 27 different providers has found that many include clauses that could have a significant impact, often negative, on the rights and interests of customers.
Disney's earnings leak sprung from Goofy mistake
(AP) -- The Walt Disney Co.'s early release of its earnings report this month came down to a Dumbo move: The company made the information accessible through an easy-to-guess Web address.
Short, on-chip light pulses for ultrafast data transfer within computers
(PhysOrg.com) -- Electrical engineers generated short, powerful light pulses on a chip -- an important step toward the optical interconnects that will likely replace the copper wires that carry information between chips within today's computers. University of California, San Diego electrical engineers recently developed the first ultra compact, low power pulse compressor on a silicon chip to be described in the scientific literature. Details appeared online in the journal Nature Communications on November 16.
Medicine & Health news
Age restriction on emergency stroke treatment should be lifted, say researchers
Thrombolysis (giving anti-clotting drugs within three hours of an acute stroke) is effective in patients aged 40 to 90 years and should not be restricted in elderly patients, as current guidelines advise, concludes a study published in the British Medical Journal today.
UNL psychologist aims to get to root of 'revictimization' in new study
It's a vicious cycle. Child and adolescent victims of sexual assault are anywhere from two to 11 times more likely to be raped or otherwise sexually assaulted as an adult.
Heavy metals in seafood: Satisfactory results of interlaboratory comparison
Fifty-seven laboratories from 29 countries volunteered to put their measuring competence to the test. Each laboratory received a sample without knowing the levels of heavy metals present, and was asked to measure and report the values back to the JRC.
The most aggressive forms of breast cancer elude cellular control mechanisms in order to expand
Spanish scientists at IRB Barcelona have provided new data on how certain types of aggressive breast cancer bypass tumor suppression mechanisms.
US bans 'fake' marijuana chemicals
US authorities slapped a temporary ban Wednesday on chemicals used to make so-called "fake marijuana" that has been used as a legal alternative to pot.
A decade of refinements in transplantation improves long-term survival of blood cancers
A decade of refinements in marrow and stem cell transplantation to treat blood cancers significantly reduced the risk of treatment-related complications and death, according to an institutional self-analysis of transplant-patient outcomes conducted at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
Binge drinking may lead to higher risk of heart disease
Belfast's binge drinking culture could be behind the country's high rates of heart disease, according to a paper published in the British Medical Journal today.
Retirement reduces tiredness and depression
Retirement leads to a substantial reduction in mental and physical fatigue and depressive symptoms, finds a study published in the British Medical Journal today. However, the research also concludes that retirement does not change the risk of major chronic illnesses such as respiratory disease, diabetes and heart disease.
Anti-AIDS groups hail drug but worry over cost
(AP) -- AIDS prevention advocates are hailing a pill newly shown to protect against HIV as a great tool for disease prevention.
Statins less dangerous than thought for liver patients
Long-term use of statins, a drug widely prescribed to prevent artery-blocking cholesterol, is less risky than thought for patients with a common form of liver disease, according to a study published on Wednesday by The Lancet.
Exercise important for those at risk of Alzheimer's
November is National Alzheimer’s Disease Awareness Month, bringing calls to make this disease a national and personal priority. As the population ages, people are searching for hope in the fight against Alzheimer’s. While evidence does suggest that physical activity is associated with maintenance of cognitive function across the lifespan, most of this research has been done with healthy people, without any consideration of their risk for Alzheimer’s.
New discovery in Parkinson's research
A major lead for potential new treatment for people with Parkinson's Disease has been discovered by a team at Cardiff University.
Diabetes drug could work against Alzheimer's
Scientists from Berlin, Bonn and Dundee show in animal models that the diabetes drug metformin has an effect against one of the main causes of the Alzheimer's disease.
Study uses the patient's tumor to form vaccine
A new process for creating a personalized vaccine may become a crucial tool in helping patients with colorectal cancer develop an immune response against their own tumors. This dendritic cell (DC) vaccine, developed at Dartmouth and described in a research paper published this week in the journal Clinical Cancer Research, was used after surgical resection of metastatic tumors to try to prevent the growth of additional metastases.
Europe mulls ban on baby bottles with Bisphenol-A
Europe could ban baby bottles containing the chemical Bisphenol-A under legislation to be proposed next year over fears that it may harm a child's health, the European Commission said Wednesday.
Chronic high cholesterol diet produces brain damage
Research from the Laboratory of Psychiatry and Experimental Alzheimers Research at the Medical University Innsbruck (Austria) demonstrated that chronic high fat cholesterol diet in rats exhibited pathologies similar to Alzheimer's disease. The results were published in Molecular Cellular Neuroscience (45(4):408-417, 2010) with lead author Dr. Christian Humpel. The study was co-authored by PhD students, Celine Ullrich and Michael Pirchl, from the same Laboratory.
Being a 'good sport' can be critical to maintaining lifelong physical activity
November 24 – It's never fun riding the bench – but could it also make you less likely to be physically active in the future?
Lactate shuttle may fuel the injured brain
The same fundamental biological mechanism that helps athletes develop endurance on a treadmill may someday be tapped into by doctors in intensive care units to save and improve the lives of patients with traumatic brain injuries, according to research being conducted by George Brooks, a professor in UC Berkeley’s Department of Integrative Biology, in collaboration with colleagues in the Department of Neurosurgery at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Researchers shine light on how some melanoma tumors evade drug treatment
The past year has brought to light both the promise and the frustration of developing new drugs to treat melanoma, the most deadly form of skin cancer. Early clinical tests of a candidate drug aimed at a crucial cancer-causing gene revealed impressive results in patients whose cancers resisted all currently available treatments. Unfortunately, those effects proved short-lived, as the tumors invariably returned a few months later, able to withstand the same drug to which they first succumbed. Adding to the disappointment, the reasons behind these relapses were unclear.
Many cancers detected late in US: study
Almost half of cervical and colorectal cancers in the United States are diagnosed in the late stages of the disease when treatment is unlikely to help, a US government survey said Wednesday.
Epilepsy drugs may not affect IQ of breastfed babies, study says
New research from the Emory University School of Medicine offers reassurance for nursing mothers with epilepsy. According to a study published in the November 24 online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, breastfeeding a baby while taking a seizure medication may have no harmful effect on the child's IQ later in life.
Study of 10 other hospitals found no reduction in adverse medical events over 6 years
Despite concerted efforts, no decreases in patient harm were detected at 10 randomly selected North Carolina hospitals between 2002 and 2007, according to a new study from the Stanford University School of Medicine, Harvard Medical School and the Institute for Healthcare Improvement.
Cholera and vaccine experts urge United States to stockpile vaccine
As the cholera epidemic in Haiti continues to rage, public health workers are focusing their efforts on treating the tens of thousands who have already been hospitalized with cholera-like symptoms and providing clean water and adequate sanitation to control the disease's spread.
Danish researchers finally solve the obesity riddle
Researchers at the Faculty of Life Sciences (LIFE), University of Copenhagen, can now unveil the results of the world's largest diet study: If you want to lose weight, you should maintain a diet that is high in proteins with more lean meat, low-fat dairy products and beans and fewer finely refined starch calories such as white bread and white rice. With this diet, you can also eat until you are full without counting calories and without gaining weight. Finally, the extensive study concludes that the official dietary recommendations are not sufficient for preventing obesity.
Proton-pump inhibitors and birth defects -- some reassurances, but more needed warns epidemiologist
Despite the reassurances of Pasternak and Hviid in their study, "Use of Proton-Pump Inhibitors (PPI) in Early Pregnancy and the Risk of Birth Defects," featured in the Nov. 24 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, an epidemiologist from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) believes that further studies are needed.
Best diabetes fitness plan: aerobics plus weights
People with diabetes should mix aerobics with weight training to get the best results in lowering blood sugar, a new study suggests. The combination worked best for weight loss too, compared to aerobics or weight training alone.
Schizophrenia could be revealed by distinctive sleep pattern
When people with schizophrenia sleep, their brain waves show a distinctive pattern that may someday lead to one of the first biological markers for this devastating mental illness.
Sour research, sweet results: How people perceive sour flavors
This Thanksgiving, when you bite into the cranberry sauce and the tartness smacks your tongue as hard as that snide comment from your sister, consider the power of sour. Neurobiology researchers at the University of Southern California have made a surprising discovery about how some cells respond to sour tastes.
Study finds that the same face may look male or female depending on where it appears in person's field of view
(PhysOrg.com) -- Neuroscientists at MIT and Harvard have made the surprising discovery that the brain sees some faces as male when they appear in one area of a person's field of view, but female when they appear in a different location.
New imaging technique accurately finds cancer cells, fast
The long, anxious wait for biopsy results could soon be over, thanks to a tissue-imaging technique developed at the University of Illinois.
Restoring the gene for cancer protein p53 slows spread of advanced tumors
(PhysOrg.com) -- In a new study to be published in the Nov. 25 issue of Nature, MIT cancer biologists show that restoring the protein p53's function in mice with lung cancer has no effect early in tumor development, but restoring the function later on could prevent more advanced tumors from spreading throughout the body.
Half of Americans will be diabetic or pre-diabetic by 2020
(PhysOrg.com) -- A recent study by US health insurance giant UnitedHealth Group Inc. predicts that by 2020 over half of Americans will have either pre-diabetic conditions or type 2 diabetes if current trends continue, and the annual cost will be around $500 billion a year by the end of the decade, or one tenth of all health care spending. The estimate for 2010 is $194 billion.
Researchers discover drug resistance mechanisms in most common form of melanoma
Researchers with UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have found that melanoma patients whose cancers are caused by mutation of the BRAF gene become resistant to a promising targeted treatment through another genetic mutation or the overexpression of a cell surface protein, both driving survival of the cancer and accounting for relapse.
Jet-lagged and forgetful? It's no coincidence
(PhysOrg.com) -- Chronic jet lag alters the brain in ways that cause memory and learning problems long after one's return to a regular 24-hour schedule, according to research by University of California, Berkeley, psychologists.
Biology news
Overseas lab seeks US weed control 'recruits'
The search is on for insects, mites, microbes or nematodes that could be used in a biologically based approach to controlling silverleaf nightshade, an invasive weed from the Americas that has spread to southern Europe, Africa, India, Australia and elsewhere.
Tigers and polar bears are highly vulnerable to environmental change
Large predators are much more vulnerable than smaller species to environmental changes, such as over-hunting and habitat change, because they have to work so hard to find their next meal, according to a new study.
Scientists find psyllid populations in the Americas are genetically distinct
(PhysOrg.com) -- Asian citrus psyllid populations in North and South America are genetically distinct, according to research conducted by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists and cooperators.
Germany's top court upholds restrictive GM crops law
Germany's top court on Wednesday upheld a two-year-old law placing sharp restrictions on the use of genetically modified crops, saying it protected the public from the risks of the technology.
Lynxes from Estonia to repopulate Poland: WWF
The WWF conservation group said Wednesday it planned to transfer lynxes from Estonia, where the wild felines are thriving, to Poland where the species risks disappearing.
Can cacti 'escape' underground in high temperatures?
In the scorching summer heat of the Chihuahuan Desert in southwest Texas, air temperatures can hover around 97°F (36°C) while at the surface of the soil temperatures can exceed 158°F (70°C). Encountering these extreme temperatures, plants must utilize creative methods to not only survive but thrive under these difficult and potentially lethal conditions.
Bizarre squidworm discovered
The bizarre, newly-revealed squidworm -- a free-swimming worm with up to 10 squid-like limbs -- is one of a host of strange discoveries that await scientists in the vast, largely unexplored spaces of the deep ocean.
Why are we getting fatter? Researchers seek a mysterious culprit
So, why are we fat? And getting fatter? Most people would say it's simple: We eat too much and exercise too little. But University of Alabama at Birmingham obesity researcher David B. Allison, Ph.D., says that answer, while valid, may be a little too simple. Allison and colleagues think the more relevant question is this: Why do we eat too much and expend too little energy? And like good detectives, they've set out to identify a suspect, or suspects, that may be contributing to the obesity epidemic. The game, as they say, is afoot.
Future of polar bears likely to be grim
Will polar bears survive in a warmer world? UCLA life scientists present new evidence that their numbers are likely to dwindle.
New technique allows researchers to study cell forces in 3-D
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have created a revolutionary new technique that will allow scientists to accurately measure the forces cells exert as they move through a three-dimensional environment.
Female fish -- and humans? -- lose interest when their male loses a slugfest
You may think of your love for your mate as the noble emotion of a pure heart, but some primitive parts of your brain are taking a decidedly more pragmatic approach to the subject, according to Stanford biologists.
Mildew-resistant and infertile
Two proteins involved in powdery mildew infection in plants also play an important role in fertilization.
Deciphering how CD4 T cells die during HIV infection
Scientists at Gladstone Institute of Virology and Immunology have solved a long-standing mystery about HIV infection–namely how HIV promotes the death of CD4 T cells. It is the loss of this critical subset of immune cells that leads to the development of AIDS. Most immune cells that die during HIV infection are seemingly not infected, a phenomenon formerly described as "bystander cell killing." Now the Gladstone scientists report that these "bystander" cells are actually the victims of a failed or abortive form of viral infection. Their findings are published in today's issue of the journal Cell.
How pathogens hijack host plants
Infestation by bacteria and other pathogens result in global crop losses of over $500 billion annually. A research team led by the Carnegie Institution's Department of Plant Biology developed a novel trick for identifying how pathogens hijack plant nutrients to take over the organism. They discovered a novel family of pores that transport sugar out of the plant. Bacteria and fungi hijack the pores to access the plant sugar for food. The first goal of any pathogen is to access the host's food supply to allow them to reproduce in large numbers. This is the first time scientists have a direct handle on controlling the food supply to pathogens and thus a new means to prevent a wide range of crop diseases and losses.
Apes unwilling to gamble when odds are uncertain
(PhysOrg.com) -- Humans are known to play it safe in a situation when they aren't sure of the odds, or don’t have confidence in their judgments. We don’t like to choose the unknown.
Dutch study suggests Wi-Fi possibly harmful to trees
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new study carried out in the Netherlands suggests radiation from Wi-Fi networks may be damaging trees and affecting the growth of other plants near routers.
Finger-trap tension stabilizes cells' chromosome-separating machinery
Scientists have discovered an amazingly simple way that cells stabilize their machinery for forcing apart chromosomes. Their findings are reported Nov. 25 in Nature.
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