Science X Newsletter Friday, Jul 17

Dear Reader ,

Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for July 17, 2015:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- Gaia satellite and amateur astronomers spot one in a billion star
- Bringing back the magic in metamaterials
- Researchers discover web-like structures that may contribute to immune response to atherosclerosis
- Study in mice may identify new ways to treat immune thrombocytopenia
- Marine life cultivates half of the summer cloud droplets over the Southern Ocean
- Centuries-old shipwreck discovered off North Carolina coast
- Imaging glucose uptake activity inside single cells
- Lymphomas tied to metabolic disruption
- Study explains why hemp and marijuana are different
- Researchers find romantic kissing not nearly as universal as thought
- Robots pass 'wise-men puzzle' to show a degree of self-awareness
- How artificial intelligence is changing economic theory
- NIST demonstrates quick testing of organic materials with off-the-shelf technology
- Mysterious mountain revealed in first close-up of Pluto's moon Charon
- New model predicts wind speeds more accurately with three months of data than others do with 12

Astronomy & Space news

	Gaia satellite and amateur astronomers spot one in a billion star An international team of researchers, with the assistance of amateur astronomers, have discovered a unique binary star system: the first known such system where one star completely eclipses the other. It is a type of two-star system known as a Cataclysmic Variable, where one super dense white dwarf star is stealing gas from its companion star, effectively 'cannibalising' it.
	Done with Pluto, New Horizons will drift in endless sea of space The New Horizons spacecraft did what it was meant to do. It explored the unexplored dwarf planet Pluto. So, now what?
	Mysterious mountain revealed in first close-up of Pluto's moon Charon A mysterious mountain in the middle of a moat on Pluto's biggest moon Charon, has captivated and baffled scientists leading NASA's New Horizons mission which made history when it became the first spacecraft to visit our solar system's most distant planet barely two days ago on Tuesday morning, July 14, 2015.
	'Beautiful eye candy': Frozen plains in Pluto's heart Vast frozen plains exist next door to Pluto's big, rugged mountains sculpted of ice, scientists said Friday, three days after humanity's first-ever flyby of the dwarf planet.
	Renowned scientist who helped lead mission to Jupiter dies Claudia Alexander, a brilliant, pioneering scientist who helped direct NASA's Galileo mission to Jupiter and the international Rosetta space-exploration project, has died at age 56.
	Image: STEREO-A spacecraft returns data from the far side of the sun This image of the sun was taken on July 15, 2015, with the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager onboard NASA's Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory Ahead (STEREO-A) spacecraft, which collects images in several wavelengths of light that are invisible to the human eye. This image shows the sun in wavelengths of 171 angstroms, which are typically colorized in blue. STEREO-A has been on the far side of the sun since March 24, where it had to operate in safe mode, collecting and saving data from its radio instrument. The first images in over three months were received from STEREO-A on July 11.
	Despite new information, Pluto will remain a dwarf planet, cosmologist says Back in 1930, it was an easy answer – Pluto was a planet because we couldn't see anything else brighter at a similar distance away from us, says Dejan Stojkovic, an associate professor of physics in the University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences.
	Finding Pluto—the hunt for Planet X Our solar system's shadowy ninth (dwarf) planet was the subject of furious speculation and a frantic search for almost a century before it was finally discovered by Clyde Tombaugh in 1930. And remarkably, Pluto's reality was deduced using a heady array of reasoning, observation and no small amount of imagination.
	Seeing the universe through spectroscopic eyes When you look up on a clear night and see stars, what are you really looking at? A twinkling pinprick of light with a hint of colour?
	New horizons brings Pluto's mysterious moons into play Drifting along at what for decades was regarded as the outer boundary of our solar system, icy Pluto is far from alone. The dwarf planet has moons – at least five of them – which are all fascinating little worlds in their own right. Detailed views of these icy bodies, captured by the New Horizons spacecraft, have now begun to stream back to Earth as data and will reveal much about the chemistry and physics of the outer solar system.
	How could we destroy the moon? In the immortal words of Mr. Burns, "ever since the beginning of time, man has wished to destroy the sun." Your days are numbered, sun.
	Three-tailed Comet Q1 PanSTARRS lights up Southern skies Call it the comet that squeaked by most northern skywatchers. Comet C/2014 Q1 PanSTARRS barely made an appearance at dawn in mid-June when it crept a few degrees above the northeastern horizon at dawn. Only a few determined comet watchers spotted the creature.
	Paranal and La Palma sites chosen for final negotiations to host world's largest array of gamma-ray telescopes On 15 and 16 July 2015, the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) Resource Board decided to enter into detailed contract negotiations for hosting CTA on the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Paranal grounds in Chile and at the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC), Roque de los Muchachos Observatory in La Palma, Spain.

Technology news

	Indoor candle device is designed to keep phones charged An emergency generator for your phone at time of power outages? That's on offer in the form of a crowdfunded-campaign item called Candle Charger. It offers USB power when you need it, designed to keep phones souped up when the grid cannot. Two ingredients are involved: a candle and water, together behaving as a little indoor power plant for smartphones, to make sure you stay connected no matter what.
	Robots pass 'wise-men puzzle' to show a degree of self-awareness A trio of Nao robots has passed a modified version of the "wise man puzzle" and in so doing have taken another step towards demonstrating self-awareness in robotics. The feat was demonstrated at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York to the press prior to a presentation to be given at next month's RO-MAN conference in Kobe, Japan.
	New model predicts wind speeds more accurately with three months of data than others do with 12 When a power company wants to build a new wind farm, it generally hires a consultant to make wind speed measurements at the proposed site for eight to 12 months. Those measurements are correlated with historical data and used to assess the site's power-generation capacity.
	How artificial intelligence is changing economic theory A century of economic theory assumed that, given their available options, humans would always make rational decisions. Economists even had a name for this construct: homo economicus, the economic man.
Inside a former Ford plant, a robot takes step into the future More than 80 years ago, Model As rolled out of the gleaming new Ford assembly plant at the edge of the San Francisco Bay. Today the brick "daylight factory" with tall ceilings and an open floor plan is where state-of-the-art technology of a different era is manufactured - wearable robots that help humans walk, lift heavy items and run faster.
	Hoverbike could be a reality in three to five years, creators say Inside a lab in this city outside Baltimore, a small 3-D printer bleeps, passing black plastic through a needle to slowly build the feet of a mannequin named Buster.
Why Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba stumbled with its US shopping site Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., the giant online retailer in China, hoped to replicate its success with a U.S. online shopping site and, thus, take a crack at Amazon.com Inc. and others.
Mint founder Aaron Patzer on Fountain, his new app How do you follow a success like Mint.com? Aaron Patzer's looking to answer that with a question. Or lots of questions.
Google self-driving car involved in first injury accident Google says one of its self-driving cars has been involved in an injury accident for the first time.
	Reddit out to tame its wild side Popular online bulletin board Reddit is mulling ways to make its free-for-all discussions more civil by restraining what people can post, a move that could anger some of the site's most passionate members.
	Hitchhiking robot embarking on coast-to-coast tour across US With its thumb raised skyward and a grin on its digital face, the robotic creation of two researchers in Canada is about to start a hitchhiking journey across the U.S.
	Europe divided along former Iron Curtain over nuclear power A quarter-century after the collapse of communism, Central Europe faces a new divide: irreconcilable visions of nuclear power that pit nations once on the opposite sides of the Iron Curtain against one another.
	Broadband won't make businesses more productive if they lack software savvy One of the great promises of technology ever since the invention of the spinning wheel is that it can increase productivity. The use of business computing has grown exponentially in the last 20 years and exploded into the colossal consumer business it is today, with many people having not just one but several computers or similar devices such as smartphones at their disposal.
	Kinect research captures game play exertions A Kinect sensor has proved to be an unlikely tool to help estimate the amount of energy that people expend while they are playing video games that utilise the sensor technology.
	Volcanic popcorn is key to insulating wallpaper A humble soil additive used by millions of amateur and professional gardeners alike is set to slash the cost of the most effective form of insulation for buildings.
Review: New, smarter light bulbs do more than just turn on In the near future, the light bulbs in your house may do a lot more than turn on and off.
	Review: Amazon Echo is great and will only get better I've been playing with one of Amazon's newest gadgets, the Echo, which is part Bluetooth speaker and part Siri. I believe we're all going to have something like this in our homes in the future.
Google shares gain a record $65B in value Google is already one of the largest companies in the world, and on Friday it made one of the largest stock market moves ever.
Machine learning helps IBM boost accuracy of US Department of Energy solar forecasts by up to 30 percent IBM Research today revealed that solar and wind forecasts it is producing using machine learning and other cognitive computing technologies are proving to be as much as 30 percent more accurate than ones created using conventional approaches.  Part of a research program funded the by the U.S. Department of Energy's SunShot Initiative, the breakthrough results suggest new ways to optimize solar resources as they are increasingly integrated into the nation's energy systems.

Medicine & Health news

	Some like it sweet, others not so much: It's partly in the genes A new study from the Monell Center and collaborating institutions suggests that a single set of genes affects a person's perception of sweet taste, regardless of whether the sweetener is a natural sugar or a non-caloric sugar substitute.
	Opponent activity of a new type of neuron is responsible for selective motion vision Motion despite immobility. The illusion of self-motion is created, for example, in an IMAX cinema with the help of large-format movies. This is possible, because the brain calculates self-motion from the visual surround moving past the eyes. Deciphering how this is accomplished is the aim of Alexander Borst and his team at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried. Together with colleagues from the Janelia Research Campus in Virginia (USA), the researchers have now discovered a new neuron type in the brain of fruit flies. Detailed analysis has shown that these cells form the basis of a phenomenon known as motion opponency, meaning that - in humans and other species - specific nerve cells are activated by motion in one direction and inhibited by motion in the opposite direction. By studying the newly discovered cells, the researchers have been able to investigate this phenomenon in detail and elucidate its function fo! r the first time.
	Researchers discover web-like structures that may contribute to immune response to atherosclerosis (Medical Xpress)—A small team of researchers with the Francis Crick Institute in London has identified web-like structures called neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) that develop in the body of mice that may contribute to an inflammatory response to atherosclerosis. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes several experiments they conducted with mice that helped to reveal the nature of the NETs and the role they play in chronic inflammation. Matthias Nahrendorf and Filip Swirski of Harvard Medical School offer a Perspective piece on the work done by the team in the same journal article.
	Study in mice may identify new ways to treat immune thrombocytopenia Immune thrombocytopenia, or ITP, is an autoimmune disease whereby the immune system sends antibodies to attack and destroy the body's platelets—blood cells responsible for controlling bleeding.
Lymphomas tied to metabolic disruption Researchers from the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio have found evidence that directly links disrupted metabolism (energy production in cells) to a common and often fatal type of lymphoma. The finding was announced Thursday (July 16) in Nature Communications.
Grandparents' affection piling on the pounds in Chinese children New research published today has revealed that affection from grandparents towards their grandchildren may play a major role in contributing to the childhood obesity pandemic in China.
	Toddlers who chill in front of TV are at later risk of being victimized by classmates For young children, the number of hours spent watching TV at the age of 29 months correlates to the likelihood he'll be bullied in sixth grade, says Linda Pagani of the University of Montreal and its affiliated CHU Sainte-Justine children's hospital. "It is plausible that early lifestyle habits characterized by less effortful interactive experiences, such as early televiewing, can ultimately result in social skill deficits. More time spent watching television leaves less time for family interaction, which remains the primary vehicle for socialization," Professor Pagani explained. "Early television exposure is also linked with developmental deficits associated with brain functions that drive interpersonal problem solving, emotional regulation, socially competent peer play, and positive social contact. Finally, TV viewing may lead to poor eye-contact habits - a cornerstone of friendship and self-affirmation in social interaction."
Physicians testified for tobacco companies against plaintiffs with cancer, study finds Despite scientific evidence to the contrary, a small group of otolaryngologists have repeatedly testified, on behalf of the tobacco industry, that heavy smoking did not cause the cancer in cases of dying patients suing for damages, according to a study by a Stanford University School of Medicine researcher.
	Lung cancer patients who quit smoking live longer (HealthDay)—Lung cancer patients live longer if they quit smoking around the time of their cancer diagnosis, a new study finds.
	Insured Americans up to three times likelier to get preventive care: CDC (HealthDay)—Americans are up to three times more likely to receive preventive care for potentially fatal chronic diseases if they have health insurance, federal officials reported Thursday.
	AMA suggests ways to encourage use of patient portals (HealthDay)—Measures can be taken to encourage patients to use patient portals to help ensure practices meet current Stage 2 meaningful use requirements, according to an article published by the American Medical Association (AMA).
	No smoke without fire – the link between smoking and mental health A recent study suggested a causal association between smoking tobacco and developing psychosis or schizophrenia, building on research about the relationship between the use of substances and the risk of psychosis. While cannabis is one of the usual suspects, a potential link with tobacco will have come as a surprise to many.
	The challenge and benefits of getting aging adults to exercise The benefits of staying active as we age are striking. In addition to keeping the body strong, regular exercise can reduce the risk of heart disease, blood pressure, stroke, and some cancers, experts say. It can even improve cognitive function.
	Scientists aim at a genetically lethal strain of leukemia Researchers at UR Medicine's Wilmot Cancer Institute have developed what they believe to be the first mouse model to investigate why a certain subset of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients responds particularly poorly to chemotherapy.
	Being positive amid daily stress is good for long-term health Relax. Breathe. It's all small stuff. When faced with life's daily challenges, adults who don't maintain a positive outlook have shown elevated physiological markers for inflaming cardiovascular and autoimmune disease, according to new research by Cornell University and Penn State psychologists.
	Researchers find link between cancer gene and obesity Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center researchers have discovered that a gene known to cause cancer also may play a role in determining if someone becomes obese.
	Hospitalizations increase near fracking sites, study shows People living in areas of Pennsylvania where hydraulic fracturing is booming are suffering increasing rates of hospitalization, a new study says. The study is one of a small but growing number suggesting that the practice could be affecting human health. It appears this week in the scientific journal PLOS ONE.
Researchers, clients turn to video to treat stuttering Fly fishing isn't just a hobby for Tim Sesink, it's a passion. And it comes through in his voice when talking about the complex set of variables—water speed, temperature and wind—that come into play when letting a cast fly.
	Study finds gender disparities for inmates with HIV In the largest study of inmates with HIV receiving antiretroviral therapy, Yale researchers uncovered significant differences in HIV treatment outcomes for men and women in the justice system. Their findings point to the need for gender-specific HIV prevention strategies for incarcerated individuals.
Neuroscientists investigate how tiny eye movements help control visual input into the brain Without us being aware of it, our eyes constantly perform tiny corrections of their viewing direction. Until recently, the purpose of these corrections was not well understood. A group of Tübingen researchers at the Werner Reichardt Centre for Integrative Neuroscience (CIN) and the Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research (HIH) has now tackled this problem. They have discovered a direct link between tiny eye movements and the focusing of attention needed to perceive our visual environment.
Tree-lined streets improve your health Most of us naturally believe that being close to nature is good for our well being. But can the benefits be proven and quantified? A new study, published in Scientific Reports last week, has attempted to evaluate just how much the trees that line our city streets could improve the population's health.
Food safety expert explains food labels and their regulations Understanding what terms such as "natural," "organic" and "local" on food labels really mean is important before purchasing any food product, according to Kansas State University food safety specialist Londa Nwadike.
	Cholesterol metabolism in immune cells linked to HIV progression, may lead to new therapy Enhanced cholesterol metabolism in certain immune cells may help some people infected with HIV naturally control disease progression, according to new research from the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.
	Researchers discover a possible reason for drug resistance in breast tumors HER2 membrane proteins play a special role in certain types of breast cancer: amplified levels of HER2 drive unrestricted cell growth. HER2-tailored antibody-based therapeutics aim to prevent cancer cell growth. However, two-thirds of HER2 positive breast cancer patients develop resistance against HER2-targeting drugs. The reason for this is not yet understood. Researchers now found out, that HER2 dimers appeared to be absent from a small sub-population of resting SKBR3 breast cancer cells. This small subpopulation may have self-renewing properties that are resistant to HER2-antibody therapy and thus able to seed new tumor growth.
30-year study shows that moderate hormone suppression may be enough in thyroid cancer A study of long-term thyroid cancer outcomes shows, among other findings, that moderate suppression of thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH), which drives the disease, may be as beneficial as more extreme hormone suppression. Extreme TSH suppression is associated with increased side effects including osteoporosis and heart rhythm irregularities. Results are published online ahead of print in the journal Thyroid.
	Could that before-dinner drink make you eat more? (HealthDay)—Having a drink before dinner really may make some people eat more—by focusing the brain's attention on food aromas, a small study suggests.
	Why skin wrinkles more around the eyes (HealthDay)—Facial wrinkles—such as so-called "laugh lines" or "crow's feet"—are the bane of many aging adults. Now, new research on cadavers may offer some insight into why some skin creases are more pronounced than others.
	Researchers threaten guys' masculinity, then watch them compensate with lies Pity the male of the species. It's so easy to threaten his masculinity, then watch him try to compensate by simply lying about himself.
	New limb-lengthening technique is less cumbersome for patients, study finds A highly specialized procedure that lengthens bones can prevent the need for amputations in selected patients who have suffered severe fractures.
	Weight disqualifies one in three young adults from US military (HealthDay)—One-third of young adults in the United States are too overweight to be in the military, according to a report from a group of retired military leaders.
Conventional wisdom overlooks links between chemical mixtures and cancer Conventional thinking about cancer prevention may overlook growing evidence that the combined effects of chemicals that are not carcinogenic on their own may be a significant cause of cancer, according to a new EWG analysis of a series of papers published June 22 in the scientific journal Carcinogenesis.
	"Saving Eliza" campaign helps another child Valerie Byers had long suspected that her son Will's diagnosis of autism was wrong. So when she saw a clip on the homepage of the Today Show about a little girl named Eliza, in late February, she knew instantly that 5-year-old Will had something far worse.
Emergency rooms test new ways to help minority children with uncontrolled asthma The rates of asthma in children are unusually high in Chicago and the respiratory disorder disproportionately affects African-American children. To address the issue, Rush University Medical Center and six other major medical centers in Chicago are conducting a multicenter trial to see how best to implement asthma guidelines in emergency departments and at home.
Improving cancer diagnosis and treatment monitoring There is nothing very glamorous about cancer, but now a new EU-funded project – GLAM – aims to help make monitoring and diagnosis a bit less intrusive and unpleasant.
	Opinion: The less you know about health insurance, the harder it is to choose the right plan Picking the right insurance plans for your budget and health needs is challenging. Weighing monthly premiums and co-pays against yearly deductibles and comparing the benefits different plans offer can make your head spin, especially if you are newly insured.
How to save against jaw-dropping prescription drug prices If the cost of your prescription medicine is giving you a headache, you're not alone.

Biology news

Study explains why hemp and marijuana are different Genetic differences between hemp and marijuana determine whether Cannabis plants have the potential for psychoactivity, a new study by University of Minnesota scientists shows.
	Loch Ness Monster hunter hooked on catfish theory A man who has spent 24 years scanning Scotland's Loch Ness for its legendary mysterious monster reckons Nessie is most likely a giant catfish—although he is not prepared to give up looking just yet.
Climate change just one of many risks to trees in the tropical Andes Scientists have provided the first robust assessment of climate change impacts on extinction risk in the tropical Andes, an area of global importance for biodiversity.
	Facebook for the proteome There are approximately 20,000 human genes that encode proteins, but despite remarkable progress since the human genome was first sequenced more than a decade ago, scientists still understand in detail how only a small fraction of how these proteins function in the cell.
	Stem cells have more reserves for DNA replication In cell division, nothing is as important as the precise replication of billions of genetic letters that make up DNA. Since this genomic integrity is so fundamental to survival, scientists had assumed that replication mechanisms operate the same way in all cells, which depend in part on molecular reserves called dormant origins.   However, stem cells—which give rise to many different cell types—have more of these reserves at hand that help them deal with the ill effects of stress, reported Yale researchers on July 16 in the journal Stem Cell Reports.
	Extra support for cells under stress may be a job for DoGs Stress wreaks havoc on our health—even at the cellular level. Cells under certain kinds of duress can lose water and put pressure on our DNA, making it difficult for genes to carry out critical functions such as self-repair. Now Yale School of Medicine researchers have found a peculiar way cells fight back against stress.
	Non-native species are transforming grassland ecosystems Non-native 'space invaders' are transforming the world's precious grassland ecosystems, with new research showing that they do far better than native plant species in the presence of fertiliser and large herbivores like kangaroos, cows and elephants.
	Discovery of new genes suggest why insects are the most evolutionarily successful organisms In an article published today in the journal Nature Communications, researchers from the University of Bergen (Norway), IRTA Institute of Marine Sciences of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and Institute of Evolutionary Biology (UPF-CSIC) presented the discovery and evolutionary origin of a new subfamily of molecular channels that they suggest may have allowed insects to become the dominant species on earth.
	Intestinal parasites are a common cause of diarrhoea in cats Diarrhoea in cats can have several causes, with infections from single-cell intestinal parasites being a common explanation. Researchers from the Vetmeduni Vienna, studied nearly 300 cats in order to assess the presence and prevalence of parasitic species in Austria. The most common causative agents were Giardia. One species of Giardia that was found may also be transmissible to humans. The results of the study were published in the journal Parasitology Research.
	A fish too deep for science Drs. Carole Baldwin and Ross Robertson from the Smithsonian Institution discovered a new small goby fish that differs from its relatives not only in its size and colors, but also in the depth of its habitat (70-80 m) in the southern Caribbean. Their finding comes as a part of the institution's Deep Reef Observation Project (DROP). This is why the scientists gave it the name Coryphopterus curasub in recognition of the Curasub submersible that was used in their deep-reef exploration. Their study can be found in the open-access journal ZooKeys.
Scientists use bait and hooks to explore the lives of sharks Storm clouds thickened on the horizon, thunder rumbled, close and ominous, and the shark was loose and thrashing on the bottom of the boat.
	New study reveals improved way to interpret high-throughput biological data This study has developed a unique bioinformatics approach for identifying associations between molecules from a range of vast data sources. Applied to studies with the aim to measure metabolism in tissues under variating conditions e.g. genetics, diets and environment.
USDA: Many factors considered amid animal disease outbreaks The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Thursday that it considers many factors when determining ways to euthanize large numbers of animals during a disease outbreak, and said it was reviewing an animal rights group's criticism of a recent proposal for fighting any future outbreaks of bird flu.
	Guatemalan security forces rescue 52 endangered species Guatemalan security forces rescued 52 animals from endangered species, including several dozen macaws and some turtles, during a raid in which they arrested two alleged wildlife traffickers, an official said Thursday.
	With plant extracts, preventing antibiotic resistance in farm animals The Mexican company Grupo Nutec manufactured a new product, Plofora, based on plant extracts. It replaces antibiotics for farm animals in order to naturally activate specific genes that strengthen animals' immune systems and simultaneously prevents bacteria from developing resistance to drugs.

---

This email is a free service of Phys.org
You received this email because you subscribed to our list.
If you no longer want to receive this email use the link below to unsubscribe.
https://sciencex.com/profile/nwletter/
You are subscribed as jmabs1@gmail.com