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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for May 25, 2012:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Of mice and mental models: Neuroscientific implications of risk-optimized behavior in the mouse- Researchers demonstrate possible primitive mechanism of chemical info self-replication
- Landmark calculation clears the way to answering how matter is formed
- Computers excel at identifying smiles of frustration (w/ Video)
- MIT researchers devise new means to synchronize a group of robots (w/ Video)
- Dragon arrives at space station in historic 1st (Update 2)
- SKA super telescope to be built in Australia, South Africa (Update 2)
- First study to suggest that the immune system may protect against Alzheimer's changes in humans
- Inherited DNA change explains overactive leukemia gene
- Copy of the genetic makeup travels in a protein suitcase
- Cancer may require simpler genetic mutations than previously thought
- Skp2 activates cancer-promoting, glucose-processing Akt
- Thousands of invisibility cloaks trap a rainbow
- Researchers identify key brain cell in antidepressant action
- Like curry? New biological role identified for compound used in ancient medicine
Space & Earth news
Image: Carpenter's Flight
50 years ago today, Scott Carpenter flew the second American manned orbital flight on May 24, 1962.
Nasa receives widespread concepts for future Mars missions
NASA's call to scientists and engineers to help plan a new strategy to explore Mars has resulted in almost double the amount of expected submissions with unique and bold ideas.
Climate pact process stumbles as countries bicker
Less than six months after the world agreed to craft a new climate pact by 2015, negotiations stumbled at a crucial preparatory phase on Friday as rich and poor countries butted heads.
Subaru telescope pioneers the use of adaptive optics for optical observations
A research team from the University of Tokyo/Kavli IPMU, Ehime University, and the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) has succeeded in conducting the first, full-scale scientific observationswith an adaptive optics (AO) system at optical wavelengths. The team connected the Kyoto Tridimensional Spectrograph II with the Subaru Telescope's Adaptive Optics system and improved the spatial resolution of images by a factor of 2.5 over images taken without AO. Observations using Kyoto3DII coupled with AO 188 are likely to reveal the detailed structures and the formation processes of galaxies.
NamibRand nature reserve becomes Africa's first international Dark Sky reserve
Namibiaʼs NamibRand Nature Reserve, one of Africaʼs largest private nature reserves, has expanded its conservation role to include preserving the star-filled nighttime skies that shine above its dunes and mountains. These efforts in night sky conservation have earned the reserve high honors as the International Dark-Sky Association has just announced that NamibRand Nature Reserve is the worldʼs newest International Dark Sky Reserve.
What's the best irrigation canal liner?
There are an estimated 1.2 million acres of agricultural land in Texas irrigated via canals, and many are in need of renovation, according to a Texas AgriLife Extension Service expert.
ESA: Unveiling Venus
With Venus about to get its day in the Sun — very much literally — the European Space Agency has assembled an excellent video about our planetary neighbor.
Aliens don't want to eat us, says former SETI director
Alien life probably isn’t interested in having us for dinner, enslaving us or laying eggs in our bellies, according to a recent statement by former SETI director Jill Tarter.
NASA offers guidelines to protect historic sites on the Moon
(Phys.org) -- NASA and the X Prize Foundation of Playa Vista, Calif., announced Thursday the Google Lunar X Prize is recognizing guidelines established by NASA to protect lunar historic sites and preserve ongoing and future science on the moon. The foundation will take the guidelines into account as it judges mobility plans submitted by 26 teams vying to be the first privately-funded entity to visit the moon.
A new look at Apollo samples supports ancient impact theory
New investigations of lunar samples collected during the Apollo missions have revealed origins from beyond the Earth-Moon system, supporting a hypothesis of ancient cataclysmic bombardment for both worlds.
Research: Negative leakage could be key to reducing carbon emissions
(Phys.org) -- The unilateral efforts of a single country or region to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases could reduce exports, increase imports and lead to higher emissions elsewhere – what economists call “leakage.” Unilateral efforts could, however, work better if other sources of energy were used as substitutes, thereby creating “negative leakage,” according to research by University of Illinois energy policy experts.
Get ready for the transit of Venus
Scientists and amateur astronomers around the world are preparing to observe the rare occurrence of Venus crossing the face of the Sun on 5-6 June, an event that will not be seen again for over a hundred years.
A pinwheel in many colors
(Phys.org) -- This image of the Pinwheel Galaxy, or also known as M101, combines data in the infrared, visible, ultraviolet and X-rays from four of NASA's space-based telescopes. This multi-spectral view shows that both young and old stars are evenly distributed along M101's tightly-wound spiral arms. Such composite images allow astronomers to see how features in one part of the spectrum match up with those seen in other parts. It is like seeing with a regular camera, an ultraviolet camera, night-vision goggles and X-ray vision, all at the same time.
Sea sponges could act as early warning system
(Phys.org) -- Sea sponges may hold clues to climate change and other impending environmental risks, researchers from Flinders University believe.
SAfrica stops short of being disappointed over SKA verdict
South Africa stopped short of expressing disappointment after it failed to win the bid to single-handily host the world's most powerful radio telescope.
Astronauts capture SpaceX's Dragon for station dock
Astronauts aboard the International Space Station reached out and caught SpaceX's Dragon capsule for docking at the orbiting lab on Friday in a historic first for commercial spaceflight.
Typhoon Sanvu affecting Iwo To, then expected to fade over weekend
Infrared and visible imagery from NASA's Aqua satellite taken on May 25, 2012, showed an impressive Typhoon Sanvu already affecting the islands of Iwo To and Chichi Jima, Japan. The typhoon is expected to run into cooler waters and become extra-tropical over the next several days.
NASA sees Hurricane Bud threaten western Mexico's coast
NASA satellites are providing rainfall, temperature, pressure, visible and infrared data to forecasters as Hurricane Bud is expected to make a quick landfall in western Mexico this weekend before turning back to sea. NASA's TRMM and Aqua satellites have been flying over Bud as it nears the Mexican coast.
SKA super telescope to be built in Australia, South Africa (Update 2)
A long-running joust to host a radio telescope that would give mankind its farthest peek into the Universe ended on Friday with a Solomon-like judgement to split the site between Australia and South Africa.
Dragon arrives at space station in historic 1st (Update 2)
The privately bankrolled Dragon capsule made a historic arrival at the International Space Station on Friday, triumphantly captured by astronauts wielding a giant robot arm.
Technology news
China fund may help Alibaba in Yahoo! bid: report
China Investment Corporation is in advanced talks to add up to $2 billion to the Alibaba Internet Group's efforts to buy back a stake from struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo!, the New York Times reported.
Apple VP: New project is 'most important,' 'best work we've done'
Jonathan Ive, Apple's senior vice president of industrial design, said that despite the iMac, iPhone, iPod or iPad, Apple's current project is its best.
Morgan Stanley may refund some Facebook investors
(AP) -- Morgan Stanley, the lead investment bank in Facebook's troubled initial public offering, will compensate retail investors who overpaid when they bought Facebook's stock in Friday's IPO, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Goldman to plow $40 bn into green energy
Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs plans to invest $40 billion into projects linked to renewable energy over the next decade, a company spokesman said Thursday.
Obama calls for Congress to enact 'green' tax credits
President Barack Obama urged Congress on Thursday to extend tax credits for clean energy companies the White House says are responsible for some 37,000 jobs.
Everyone knows it's windy . . .
... And now they have the data to prove it. The middle of Lake Michigan is a vast, untapped reservoir of wind energy. The next step will be to find out if it can be harvested economically without harming the environment.
Alibaba.com $2.5B privatization bid approved
(AP) -- Chinese e-commerce firm Alibaba Group's $2.5 billion bid to take its Hong Kong-listed unit private was cleared Friday by minority shareholders, easing the way for CEO Jack Ma to gain more control over his company's destiny.
Researchers successfully test solar desalination system for arid land agriculture
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers have created a man-made oasis in the desert with the successful application of a solar-powered desalination system that provides water for irrigation in arid regions. The project was made possible with support from American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (AABGU).
Beyond oil, can Alaska be tapped as a source for renewable energy?
Alaska has massive hydro, wind, geothermal and other renewable resources, but the state's rural villages are chained to diesel and suffer oppressive energy costs they say threaten their existence. Lawmakers, energy experts and Native leaders said Thursday it's a dire problem with elusive solutions.
Apple CEO Cook gives up $75M in stock dividends
(AP) -- Apple CEO Tim Cook is giving up $75 million in dividends on restricted stock that the company is awarding to all of its employees.
Shareholders vote to take China's Alibaba unit private
Minority shareholders of Alibaba.com on Friday voted in favour of a proposal by its parent Alibaba Group Holding to take the Hong Kong-listed online trading unit private, the company said.
Facebook IPO debacle raises investor dander
The spate of complaints and investigations over the Facebook stock offering suggests big institutions had an edge over small investors, raising questions about the process.
Solar plane ends first leg of intercontinental bid
The Swiss sun-powered aircraft Solar Impulse landed safely in Madrid early Friday at the end of the first leg of its attempt at an intercontinental flight without using a drop of fuel.
Computers excel at identifying smiles of frustration (w/ Video)
(Phys.org) -- Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US have trained computers to recognize smiles, and they have turned out to be more adept at recognizing smiles of frustration than humans.
Medicine & Health news
Doctors report rise in kids eating detergent packs
(AP) -- Miniature laundry detergent packets arrived on store shelves in recent months as an alternative to bulky bottles and messy spills. But doctors across the country say children are confusing the tiny, brightly colored packets with candy and swallowing them.
Nonsmoking lung cancer survivor encourages others to consider risk
Carol Seibert had an upper respiratory infection she just couldn’t seem to shake. The timing of her illness was awful, as she had just returned from a trip to Florida for her youngest son’s surgery and was preparing for her eldest son’s wedding in September.
Australia defiant on WTO cigarette challenge
Australia said Friday it would "vigorously defend" itself against complaints about its plan for plain cigarette packaging made by Honduras and Ukraine to the World Trade Organisation.
Chile to cover sex change operations
Chile will soon cover sex change surgeries under its public health plan in order to allow citizens of limited means to "recover their true sexual identity," Health Minister Jaime Manalich said.
Pool access for the disabled sparks controversy
(AP) -- The Obama administration is sidestepping an election-year confrontation with the hotel industry and other pool owners to give them more time to comply with access rules for the disabled.
Better response plans needed for children exposed to domestic violence
(Medical Xpress) -- Each year, millions of children are exposed to domestic violence, a traumatic experience that has been associated with cognitive, behavioral, social and emotional problems in childhood as well as a higher incidence of depression and premature death in adulthood. Numerous studies over the past two decades also have indicated that exposure to domestic violence (EDV) places children at higher risk of abuse and neglect.
Energy levels link sleep control mechanisms
Sleep, or lack of it, can determine level of cognitive performance which is linked with accidents as well as increased risk of serious health problems. Links between cell energy levels, gene transcription and sleep rhythms may uncover answers to sleep disorders and the ill-effects of sleep deprivation.
In Spain, 70 percent of women use contraceptives during their first sexual encounter
Contraceptive use in Spain during the first sexual encounter is similar to other European countries. However, there are some geographical differences between Spanish regions: women in Murcia use contraceptives less (55.8%) whereas women in the Basque Country use them more (76.7%).
World Health Assembly endorses new plan to increase global access to vaccines
Ministers of Health from 194 countries at the Sixty-fifth World Health Assembly today endorsed a landmark Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP), a roadmap to prevent millions of deaths by 2020 through more equitable access to existing vaccines for people in all communities.
P&G to add latches to make detergent packs safer
(AP) -- Procter & Gamble says it will change the design of packaging for its miniature laundry detergent product to deter children from eating the brightly colored packets that look like candy.
Study provides compelling evidence for an effective new treatment for tinnitus
According to new research, a multidisciplinary approach to treating tinnitus that combines cognitive behaviour therapy with sound-based tinnitus retraining therapy is significantly more effective than currently available treatments at reducing symptoms of this common debilitating disorder and improving quality of life. The findings published in this week's Lancet show that the new specialised care programme is beneficial in both mild and severe tinnitus, suggesting it could be implemented widely.
New study should end debate over magnesium treatment for preventing poor outcome after haemorrhagic stroke
An international randomised trial and meta-analysis published Online First in The Lancet should put an end to the debate about the use of intravenous magnesium sulphate to prevent poor outcomes after haemorrhagic stroke. The investigators found no benefit from magnesium treatment compared with placebo.
Autism often not diagnosed until age 5 or older: U.S. report
(HealthDay) -- Even though autism symptoms typically emerge before age 3, most children with autism are diagnosed when they're 5 or older, a new snapshot of autism in America shows.
World 'no tobacco day' puts spotlight on dangers of smoking
It’s not just smokers who are at-risk when it comes to tobacco smoke exposure—and the health concerns of smoking cigarettes are not limited to the most known consequence: lung cancer.
Progestin treatment for polycystic ovarian syndrome may reduce pregnancy chances
(Medical Xpress) -- The hormone progestin, often given as a first step in infertility treatment for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), appears to decrease the odds of conception and of giving birth, according to a study by a National Institutes of Health research network.
Routine care for Crohn's disease in children should include measurement of bone age
(Medical Xpress) -- Measuring bone age should be a standard practice of care for pediatric patients with Crohn’s disease, in order to properly interpret growth status and improve treatment, according to a new study from the UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital.
New prostate cancer screening guidelines face a tough sell, study suggests
(Medical Xpress) -- Recent recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) advising elimination of routine prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer in healthy men are likely to encounter serious pushback from primary care physicians, according to results of a survey by Johns Hopkins investigators.
Questionable research practices surprisingly common
(Medical Xpress) -- Not all scientific misconduct is flat-out fraud. Much falls into the murkier realm of “questionable research practices.” A new study finds that in one field, psychology, these practices are surprisingly common. The survey of more than 2,000 research psychologists, published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, finds that most have engaged in at least one of the questionable practices at some point in their career.
Phone contact with nurses linked with better outcomes for women with gestational diabetes
Among women with gestational diabetes mellitus, referral to a telephone-based nurse management program was associated with lower risk of high baby birth weight and increased postpartum glucose testing, according to Kaiser Permanente researchers.
Physicians definitively links irritable bowel syndrome and bacteria in gut
An overgrowth of bacteria in the gut has been definitively linked to Irritable Bowel Syndrome in the results of a new Cedars-Sinai study which used cultures from the small intestine. This is the first study to use this "gold standard" method of connecting bacteria to the cause of the disease that affects an estimated 30 million people in the United States.
Implantable pain disk may help those with cancer
An estimated 3.5 million cancer patients around the globe are in severe pain from their disease, but many get no relief.
New device allows pacemaker patients to safely undergo MRIs
For many, it's a medical conundrum: The very pacemaker keeping their heart in rhythm prevents them from undergoing an MRI to diagnose other ailments, because interaction between the two devices could prove deadly.
WHO target to cut early chronic illness deaths
The World Health Organization announced on Friday it was set to approve a new target to reduce premature deaths from chronic illnesses such as heart disease by a quarter by 2025.
More mental health care urged for kids who self-harm
(HealthDay) -- Doctors have long known that some kids suffering severe emotional turmoil find relief in physical pain -- cutting or burning or sticking themselves with pins to achieve a form of release.
Neck strength, cervical spine mobility don't predict pain
(HealthDay) -- Neither isometric neck muscle strength nor passive mobility of the cervical spine, two physical capacity parameters found to be associated with neck pain in other studies, predicts later neck pain in pain-free working-age women, according to a study published in the May 20 issue of Spine.
Common therapies for basal cell carcinoma offer similar survival
(HealthDay) -- For patients with superficial basal cell carcinoma (sBCC), treatment with imiquimod or photodynamic therapy (PDT) results in similar long-term tumor-free survival, according to a review published online May 21 in the British Journal of Dermatology.
Pancreatectomy OK without downstaging from therapy
(HealthDay) -- Pancreatectomy improves median survival in pancreatic cancer patients even when presurgical neoadjuvant therapy does not lead to radiographic downstaging of tumors, according to a study published online May 17 in Cancer.
One-fifth of healthy middle-aged men have low-grade murmur
(HealthDay) -- More than one-fifth of healthy middle-aged men have a low-grade systolic heart murmur that confers a nearly five-fold higher risk of future aortic valve replacement (AVR), according to a study published in the June issue of the Journal of Internal Medicine.
Cancer patients share web info with docs for insight, advice
(HealthDay) -- Cancer patients' primary goal in talking with their doctors about information they've found on the Internet is to get more insight and advice on the online information, new research indicates.
Flesh-Eating bacteria no cause for panic, experts say
(HealthDay) -- Despite scary headlines by the score, most people don't have to fear that they'll be the next victim of the so-called flesh-eating bacteria disease, experts say.
Early physical therapist treatment associated with reduced risk of healthcare utilization and reduced overall healthcare
A new study published in Spine shows that early treatment by a physical therapist for low back pain (LBP), as compared to delayed treatment, was associated with reduced risk of subsequent healthcare utilization and lower overall healthcare costs.
Like curry? New biological role identified for compound used in ancient medicine
Scientists have just identified a new reason why some curry dishes, made with spices humans have used for thousands of years, might be good for you.
Rockefeller scientists pioneer new method to determine mechanisms of drug action
(Medical Xpress) -- Knowing that a drug works is great. Knowing how it works is a luxury. And until now, determining a drug’s mechanism of action has been a tedious and difficult process for scientists.
Researchers identify key brain cell in antidepressant action
(Medical Xpress) -- Antidepressant medications such as Prozac have helped improve mood and lessen anxiety in millions of people with major depression. But scientists know surprisingly little about how these drugs work.
First study to suggest that the immune system may protect against Alzheimer's changes in humans
Recent work in mice suggested that the immune system is involved in removing beta-amyloid, the main Alzheimer's-causing substance in the brain. Researchers have now shown for the first time that this may apply in humans.
Inherited DNA change explains overactive leukemia gene
A small inherited change in DNA is largely responsible for overactivating a gene linked to poor treatment response in people with acute leukemia.
Cancer may require simpler genetic mutations than previously thought
Chromosomal deletions in DNA often involve just one of two gene copies inherited from either parent. But scientists haven't known how a deletion in one gene from one parent, called a "hemizygous" deletion, can contribute to cancer.
Skp2 activates cancer-promoting, glucose-processing Akt
HER2 and its epidermal growth factor receptor cousins mobilize a specialized protein to activate a major player in cancer development and sugar metabolism, scientists report in the May 25 issue of Cell.
Of mice and mental models: Neuroscientific implications of risk-optimized behavior in the mouse
(Medical Xpress) -- Regardless of an organism’s biological complexity, every encephalized animal continuously makes under-informed behavioral choices that can have serious consequences. Despite its ubiquity, however, there’s a long-standing question about its neurological basis – namely, whether these choices are made through probabilistic world models constructed by the brain, or by reinforcement of learned associations. Recently, however, scientists in the Department of Psychology at Rutgers University found that reinforcement cannot account for the rapidity with which mice modify their behavior when the chance of a given phenomenon changes. The researchers say this indicates that mice may have primordially-evolved neural capabilities to represent likelihood and perform calculations that optimize their resulting behavior – and therefore that such genetic mechanisms can be investigated and manipulated by genetic and other procedures.
Biology news
Diagnostic labs analyze from bugs to toenails
Found an odd bug in your closet? Rhododendrons inexplicably wilting? Need a toenail analyzed? There's a lab for that.
Uncovering the secret lives of fish in marine national parks
In a research partnership between Deakin University and Parks Victoria, marine scientists have captured rare video footage of fish and other marine creatures living on the seafloor off western Victoria.
Managing biodiversity data from local government
Local governments around the world have a new tool to help share and use vast amounts of biodiversity knowledge collected in the course of their work.
A mating dance with Popeye arms
A research team at Bielefeld University headed by the evolutionary biologist Dr. Holger Schielzeth is now studying how far a comparable mechanism is involved in mate choice among locusts. The male Siberian locust has swollen front legs. The scientists are now studying how far female locusts prefer the male with the most powerful swellings and select their mates accordingly.
Looking out for the Myanmar snub-nosed monkey
A new genetic study has shed light on how the newly discovered Myanmar snub-nosed monkey evolved.
A new invading sea crab reaches the Ebro Delta
Originally endemic to the Atlantic Coast of North America, over the past 30 years Dyspanopeus sayi has been involuntarily introduced in the UK, France, the Netherlands, the Black Sea and the Adriatic Sea. A study shows that in recent years the sea crab has established itself along the Western Mediterranean Coast.
'Transformer' protein makes different sized transport pods
These spheres may look almost identical, but subtle differences between them revealed a molecular version of the robots from Transformers. Each sphere is a vesicle, a pod that cells use to transport materials between different compartments.
Study uncovers secret to speedy burrowing by razor clams
(Phys.org) -- If you look at a razor burrowing clam sitting in a bucket, you’d never guess that it could burrow itself down into the soil, much less do it with any speed. Razor clams look like fat straws, or sawed off tusks; not very exciting. But set one down in the water, and it can burrow down into the sand to about two and a half feet deep in just a couple of minutes. Pretty impressive stuff, especially considering, as a team of researchers has found, that the muscle the clams use for burrowing just isn’t strong enough to accomplish the deed. To manage the speedy descent the team found, the razor burrowing clam causes changes to the sand below it as it descends. They have written a paper on their findings which has been published in the Journal of Experimental Biology.
Copy of the genetic makeup travels in a protein suitcase
Scientists from the Institute for Physical and Theoretical Chemistry at the University of Bonn have succeeded for the first time in the real time filming of the transport of an important information carrier in biological cells that is practically unmodified. This paper has now been published in the highly regarded journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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