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Wednesday, December 19, 2012

ScienceDaily: Most Popular News

ScienceDaily: Most Popular News


Analysis of Marcellus flowback finds high levels of ancient brines

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:35 PM PST

Brine water that flows back from gas wells in the Marcellus Shale region after hydraulic fracturing is many times more salty than seawater, with high contents of various elements, including radium and barium. The chemistry is consistent with brines formed during the Paleozoic era, a new study found.

Global rates of infertility remain unchanged over past 2 decades

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:35 PM PST

In 2010, almost 50 million couples worldwide were unable to have a child after five years of trying. Infertility rates have hardly changed over the past 20 years, according to a new study.

Ants aquaplaning on a pitcher plant

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:35 PM PST

An insect-trapping pitcher plant in Venezuela uses its downward pointing hairs to create a 'water slide' on which insects slip to their death, new research reveals.

Birdsong bluster may dupe strange females, but it won't fool partners

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:35 PM PST

Male birds use their song to dupe females they have just met by pretending they are in excellent physical condition. Just as some men try to cast themselves in a better light when they approach women, so some male birds seek to portray that they are fitter than they really are. But males do not even try to deceive their long-term partners, who are able to establish his true condition by his song.

Blood test accurately detects lymphedema, study shows

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:35 PM PST

Scientists have identified a set of proteins circulating in blood whose levels accurately flag the presence of lymphedema. The findings spur optimism that this common but relatively neglected condition, which affects an estimated 10 million people in the United States, finally will be amenable to detection (and, eventually, treatment) with 21st-century techniques.

Scientists discover how HIV virus gains access to carrier immune cells to spread infection

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:35 PM PST

Scientists have identified how HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, enters the cells of the immune system enabling it to be dispersed throughout an organism.

Commonly prescribed antibiotic, amoxicillin, ineffective for treating uncomplicated chest infections, study suggests

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:33 PM PST

The antibiotic amoxicillin, that doctors typically prescribe for common lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) such as bronchitis, is no more effective at relieving symptoms than the use of no medication, even in older patients. The findings are from the largest randomised placebo controlled trial of antibiotics for acute uncomplicated LRTI to date.

Celiac 'epidemics' link to infections early in life

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:33 PM PST

Celiac disease affects about 1% of the population but occasional 'epidemics' have been noticed along with a seasonal variation in number of cases diagnosed. New research indicates that repeated infections early in life increases the risk for celiac disease.

Cancer cells co-opt immune response to escape destruction

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:33 PM PST

Researchers report that tumor cells use stress signals to subvert responding immune cells, exploiting them to actually boost conditions beneficial to cancer growth.

From Cassini for the holidays: Backlit view of Saturn and its rings

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 12:36 PM PST

Just in time for the holidays, NASA's Cassini spacecraft, in orbit around Saturn for more than eight years now, has delivered another glorious, backlit view of the planet Saturn and its rings.

Shot away from its companion, giant star makes waves: Spitzer captures infrared portrait

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 12:33 PM PST

Like a ship plowing through still waters, the giant star Zeta Ophiuchi is speeding through space, making waves in the dust ahead. NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has captured a dramatic, infrared portrait of these glowing waves, also known as a bow shock.

Ozone levels have sizeable impact on worker productivity

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 12:32 PM PST

Researchers assessed the impact of pollution on agricultural worker productivity using daily variations in ozone levels. Their results show that ozone, even at levels below current air-quality standards in most parts of the world, has significant negative impacts on worker productivity. Their findings suggest that environmental protection is important for promoting economic growth and investing in human capital in contrast to its common portrayal as a tax on producers.

Metamaterials experts show a way to reduce electrons' effective mass to nearly zero

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 12:32 PM PST

The field of metamaterials involves augmenting materials with specially designed patterns, enabling those materials to manipulate electromagnetic waves and fields in previously impossible ways. Now, researchers have come up with a theory for moving this phenomenon onto the quantum scale, laying out blueprints for materials where electrons have nearly zero effective mass. Such materials could make for faster circuits with novel properties.

MRIs reveal signs of brain injuries not seen in CT scans

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 12:32 PM PST

Hospital MRIs may be better at predicting long-term outcomes for people with mild traumatic brain injuries than CT scans, the standard technique for evaluating such injuries in the emergency room, according to a new clinical trial.

Tracking the origins of HIV

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 11:30 AM PST

Human immunodeficiency virus may have affected humans for much longer than is currently believed. Researchers now think that the genomes of an isolated West African human population provide important clues about how the disease has evolved.

Host cholesterol secretion likely to influence gut microbiota

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 11:30 AM PST

For more than half a century, researchers have known that the bacteria that colonize the gastrointestinal tract of mammals influence their host's cholesterol metabolism. Now, researchers show that changes in cholesterol metabolism induced by diet can alter the gut flora.

States aiming to promote healthy eating through sales taxes often miss the target

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 11:30 AM PST

Increasing sales taxes on sugary foods to promote healthier food choices among grocery store shoppers is unlikely to be effective because many consumers are unaware of the tax differences on food items sold in grocery stores, according to a new study.

From super to ultra: Just how big can black holes get?

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 11:30 AM PST

Some of the biggest black holes in the Universe may actually be even bigger than previously thought, according to a study using data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory.

Here's your chances for a white Christmas and a dry New Year's Eve in the U.S.

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 11:29 AM PST

Climatologists have examined 50 years of weather data and calculated the chances for a white Christmas and a dry New Year's Eve for various cities throughout the United States.

Small, portable sensors allow users to monitor exposure to pollution on their smart phones

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 10:31 AM PST

Computer scientists have built a small fleet of portable pollution sensors that allow users to monitor air quality in real time on their smart phones. The sensors could be particularly useful to people suffering from chronic conditions, such as asthma, who need to avoid exposure to pollutants. CitiSense is the only air-quality monitoring system that delivers real-time data to users' cell phones and home computers -- at any time.

Curbing car travel could be as effective as cutting calories

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 10:31 AM PST

Those considering how to maintain a healthy weight during holiday festivities, or looking ahead to New Year's resolutions, may want to think twice before reaching for traditional staples like cookies or candy – or the car keys. A new study suggests that both daily automobile travel and calories consumed are related to body weight, and reducing either one, even by a small amount, correlates with a reduction in body mass index.

Internet outages in the US doubled during Hurricane Sandy

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 10:31 AM PST

Scientists who track Internet outages throughout the world noted a spike in outages due to Hurricane Sandy, with almost twice as much of the Internet down in the US as usual.

The Green Revolution is wilting

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 10:31 AM PST

The Green Revolution has stagnated for key food crops in many regions of the world, according to a new study.

Cancer study overturns current thinking about gene activation

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:15 AM PST

A new Australian study shows that large regions of the genome -- amounting to roughly 2 percent -- are epigenetically activated in prostate cancer. Regions activated contain many prostate cancer-specific genes, including PSA (prostate specific antigen) and PCA3, the most common prostate cancer markers. Until now, these genes were not known to be regulated epigenetically.

The best-laid plans: How we update our goals based on new information

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:15 AM PST

Humans are adept at setting goals and updating them as new situations arise -- for example, a person who is playing a video game may switch to a new goal when their phone rings. Now, researchers have identified mechanisms that govern how the brain incorporates information about new situations into our existing goals.

Reappraisal defuses strong emotional responses to Israel-Palestine conflict

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:15 AM PST

Reappraisal is a widely-used cognitive strategy that can help people to regulate their reactions to emotionally charged events. Now, new research suggests that reappraisal may even be effective in changing people's emotional responses in the context of one of the most intractable conflicts worldwide: The Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Study of pipestone artifacts overturns a century-old assumption

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:15 AM PST

In a new study, the first to actually test pipestone from quarries across the upper Midwest, researchers conclude that those who buried ceremonial pipes in a famous mound site in southeastern Ohio got the stone – and perhaps even the finished, carved pipes – from Illinois. The findings offer new insight into the Hopewell people, who lived in the region from about 100 B.C. to A.D. 400.

Long-terms benefits follow brain surgery for certain forms of epilepsy

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:14 AM PST

Brain surgery for certain difficult forms of epilepsy often reduces or eliminates seizures for more than 15 years after the procedure, according to new research by neurologists.

How hepatitis C virus reprograms human liver cells

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:14 AM PST

Hepatitis C virus has evolved to invade and hijack the basic machinery of the human liver cell to ensure its survival and spread. Researchers have discovered how hepatitis C binds with and re-purposes a basic component of cellular metabolism known as a microRNA to help protect and replicate the virus.

Spread of cancer cells may be slowed by targeting of protein

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:14 AM PST

The spread of cancer cells may be slowed by targeting the protein km23-1, according to researchers.

Mistaking OCD for ADHD has serious consequences

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:14 AM PST

Obsessive-compulsive disorder and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder appear very similar, but have very different neuropsychological roots. New evidence demonstrates that there are enormous consequences if they're mistaken for each other, and that ritalin, if misprescribed to children with OCD, will only worsen their symptoms.

Liquid metal used to create wires that stretch eight times their original length

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:14 AM PST

Researchers have created conductive wires that can be stretched up to eight times their original length while still functioning. The wires can be used for everything from headphones to phone chargers, and hold potential for use in electronic textiles.

Sleeping pills owe half their benefits to placebo effect, study finds

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:12 AM PST

Half of the benefit of taking sleeping pills comes from the placebo effect, according to a major new study.

Psychologists: Scrooge's transformation parallels real life-changing experiences

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 09:12 AM PST

Psychologists studied 14 people who had sudden life-changing experiences. They say Ebenezer Scrooge's transformation fits right in. George Bailey from "It's a Wonderful Life" is another realistic movie character who embodies sudden change.

Survival of the females: Horse embryo study provides important new information

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:20 AM PST

It is well known that many mammals are able to adjust the ratio of male and female young depending on the surrounding conditions at the time of conception. A recent study provides important information on how the survival of female embryos may be enhanced under conditions that would otherwise favor the birth of males.

Women earn more if they work in different occupations than men, large international study finds

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:20 AM PST

Women earn less money than men the more the sexes share the same occupations, a large-scale survey of 20 industrialized countries has found.

New process to make one-way flu vaccine discovered

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:19 AM PST

A new process to make a one-time, universal influenza vaccine has been discovered. Researchers found a way to make the one-time vaccine by using recombinant genetic engineering technology that does not use a seasonal virus. Instead, the new vaccine uses a virus' small fragment that does not vary among the different strains of flu viruses.

Patients with diabetes may not receive best treatment to lower heart disease risk, study suggests

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:19 AM PST

For some people with diabetes, there may be such a thing as too much care. Traditional treatment to reduce risks of heart disease among patients with diabetes has focused on lowering all patients' blood cholesterol to a specific, standard level.

Crisis in Syria has Mesopotamian precedent, experts say

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:19 AM PST

New research has revealed intriguing parallels between modern day and Bronze-Age Syria as the Mesopotamian region underwent urban decline, government collapse, and drought.

Silent stroke can cause Parkinson's disease

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:19 AM PST

Scientists have for the first time identified why a patient who appears outwardly healthy may develop Parkinson's disease.

Children's meetings offline with people met online examined in new study

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:16 AM PST

Few parents feel entirely comfortable with their children meeting their online acquaintances in real life. But a new study sets out to put the risks and benefits of such meetings in perspective.

TV and the internet: a marriage made in entertainment heaven

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:16 AM PST

If you have bought a new television lately, the chances are it is a lot smarter than your old one. Smart TVs, also known as connected or hybrid televisions, featuring integrated internet connectivity, currently account for around a third of TV sales in Europe. They are the end point in a huge and rapidly expanding value chain driven by the intensifying convergence of television and the internet.

Oxytocin, social sharing and recovery from trauma

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:15 AM PST

Therapists have long known that people who've had a traumatic experience feel the need to talk about what they've been through. This process is called 'social sharing' and can take place for days, weeks, months or years after the event.

'Glitch’ in pulsar ‘glitch’ theory

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:15 AM PST

Researchers have called in to question a 40 year-old theory explaining the periodic speeding up or 'glitching' of pulsars. A pulsar is a highly magnetized rotating neutron star formed from the remains of a supernova. It emits a rotating beam of electromagnetic radiation, which can be detected by powerful telescopes when it sweeps past the Earth, rather like observing the beam of a lighthouse from a ship at sea. Pulsars rotate at extremely stable speeds, but occasionally they speed up in brief events described as 'glitches' or 'spin-ups'. The prevailing theory is that these events arise as a rapidly spinning superfluid within the star transfers rotational energy to the star's crust, the component that is tracked by observations. However, academics have used a mathematical model to disprove this.

Long-term survival rates after less-invasive repair of abdominal aneurysm the same as with 'open' procedure

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 08:13 AM PST

Despite earlier signs that a less-invasive surgery is safer and better than "open" operations to repair potentially lethal abdominal aortic aneurysms, a new study shows survival rates after four years are similar for both procedures.

Chemical that fends off harm to organs: Purines fend off surgery-related damage

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 06:43 AM PST

Anesthesia is quite safe these days. But sometimes putting a patient under to fix one problem, such as heart damage, can harm a different organ, such as a kidney. Now a group of researchers has found a group of molecules -- called purines -- that fend off damage during anesthesia.

Bad news for bats: Deadly fungus persists in caves

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 06:42 AM PST

Researchers have found that the organism that causes deadly white-nose syndrome persists in caves long after it has killed the bats in those caves.

Botany experiment will try out zero gravity aboard space station

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 06:42 AM PST

Gravity: It's the law in these parts. But to reach the stars, humans may have to learn to live outside the law.

A cosmic holiday ornament, Hubble-style

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 06:42 AM PST

Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have photographed a festive-looking nearby planetary nebula called NGC 5189. The intricate structure of this bright gaseous nebula resembles a glass-blown holiday ornament with a glowing ribbon entwined.

Industrial chemicals: A new breed of stable anti-aromatic compound

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:19 AM PST

The novel compound is a new chapter in a story that began in 1825, when English scientist Michael Faraday first isolated benzene from gas lights. Benzene would later be identified as one of a class of compounds known as aromatics, which have immense importance in both biological function and industrial production.

Immediate health risk must be weighed against radiation-induced cancer risk

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:19 AM PST

The lifetime risks of cancer from medical radiation may be overemphasized relative to more immediate health risks, according to a new study.

Bugs in the Christmas tree

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:18 AM PST

Your Christmas tree may be adorned with lights and glitter. But 25,000 insects, mites, and spiders are sound asleep inside the tree.

pH measurements: How to see the real face of electrochemistry and corrosion?

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:18 AM PST

For several decades antimony electrodes have been used to measure the acidity/basicity -- and so to determine the pH value. Unfortunately, they allow for measuring pH changes of solutions only at a certain distance from electrodes or corroding metals. Researchers have now developed a method for producing antimony microelectrodes that allow for measuring pH changes just over the metal surface, at which chemical reactions take place.

A mathematical formula to decipher the geometry of surfaces like that of cauliflower

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:18 AM PST

Scientists are describing laws that govern the development of certain complex natural patterns, such as those found on the surface of cauliflower.

Prehistoric ghosts revealing new details: Synchrotron helps identify previously unseen anatomy preserved in fossils

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:17 AM PST

Scientists have used synchrotron-based imaging techniques to identify previously unseen anatomy preserved in fossils. Their work on a 50-million-year-old lizard skin identified the presence of teeth (invisible to visible light), demonstrating for the first time that this fossil animal was more than just a skin moult. This was only possible using some of the brightest light in the universe, X-rays generated by a synchrotron.

Antibiotics based on a new principle may defeat MRSA

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:17 AM PST

Scientists have presented a new principle for fighting bacterial infections, in other words, a new type of antibiotic. The new antibiotic mechanism is based on selectively blocking the thioredoxin system in the cells, which is crucial to the growth of certain bacteria. Scientists hope to be able to treat such conditions as stomach ulcers, TB and MRSA.

Schrödinger's cat has a light touch: Quantum physics used to observe delicate systems

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:17 AM PST

A new paper introduces a novel way to observe very delicate bodies based on quantum physics. Researchers in Spain have shown that groups of photons organized in certain quantum states can gently explore the properties of objects in a non-invasive way. The results overcome for the first time a limit imposed by quantum mechanics, and may permit the observation of unknown properties of ultra-sensitive objects such as individual atoms or living cells.

Consequences of abandoning alpine meadows: Scrubs now encroaching on land that had been cultivated for centuries

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:16 AM PST

Agriculture is increasingly vanishing from the Alps. Land that was cultivated for centuries is now being abandoned and scrubs are encroaching on it. This affects not only the landscape, but also the water balance and will in future also have an impact on power generation. These are the conclusions reached by an interdisciplinary research group supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF).

Bullying by childhood peers leaves a trace that can change the expression of a gene linked to mood

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:16 AM PST

A recent study suggests that bullying by peers changes the structure surrounding a gene involved in regulating mood, making victims more vulnerable to mental health problems as they age.

Enzyme linked to aggressive prostate cancer identified

Posted: 18 Dec 2012 05:14 AM PST

Researchers have identified an enzyme specifically linked to aggressive prostate cancer, and have also developed a compound that inhibits the ability of this molecule to promote the metastatic spread of the cancer.

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