ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Physicists localize 3-D matter waves for first time
• Survey gives clues to origin of Type Ia supernovae
• Imaging agents offer new view of inflammation, cancer
• Strong attachment to local communities made oil spill more stressful for many coastal residents
• New targets for treating inflammatory, autoimmune diseases discovered
• NASA's moon twins going their own way
• Measuring elusive neutrinos flowing through the Earth, physicists learn more about the sun
• Jonesing for java: Could caffeine use predict risk for cocaine abuse?
• Removal of restrictions can decrease music piracy
• Genetic link to suicidal behavior confirmed
• Why anti-rejection drugs for organ transplant patients cause hypertension
• Sniffing out the brain's predictive power: Human brain smells what it expects rather than what it sniffs
• Gray jays' winter survival depends on food storage, study shows
• Study tracks mutations causing congenital dyserythropoietic anemia (CDA) II back to the Roman Empire
• Smart phones: Keeping business data secure while allowing installation of personal apps
• Prague's 88 nature reserves threatened by invasive plant species
• Market transactions and economics in general affect biological invasions
• Learning to live in mountain lion country
• Chromosome inheritance? Not the same for all the chromosomes
• Astrophysics and extinctions: News about planet-threatening events
• Raising 'good' cholesterol levels reduces heart attack and stroke risk in diabetes patients
• Early detection of plant disease
• Ancient climate change has left a strong imprint on modern ecosystems
• Wireless window contacts: No maintenance, no batteries
• Scientist searches for moons around asteroids
• The abundance of tuna in the first days of life is influenced by cannibalism
• Timing is crucial for family consent in brain dead organ donors
• Pregnant mothers at risk from air pollution, California study suggests

Physicists localize 3-D matter waves for first time Posted: 07 Oct 2011 01:16 PM PDT Physicists have experimentally demonstrated for the first time how three-dimensional conduction is affected by the defects that plague materials. The researchers achieved complete Anderson localization of quantum matter waves in three dimensions. The team also measured the energy a particle needs to escape localization, known as the mobility edge. They found that as disorder increased, so did the mobility edge, meaning that materials with high concentrations of defects induce more localization.

Survey gives clues to origin of Type Ia supernovae Posted: 07 Oct 2011 01:16 PM PDT The 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for groundbreaking use of supernovae to measure the expansion of the universe, which yielded a surprise: it's accelerating, not slowing down. Nevertheless, astronomers have been unsure what type of explosion produces these bright supernovae. A new study using the Subaru Telescope suggests that Type Ia supernovae come from the merger of two white dwarfs, not one white dwarf grown fat by feeding off its companion.

Imaging agents offer new view of inflammation, cancer Posted: 07 Oct 2011 10:23 AM PDT A series of novel imaging agents could make it possible to "see" tumors in their earliest stages, before they turn deadly. The compounds, derived from inhibitors of the enzyme cyclooxygenase-2 and detectable by positron emission tomography imaging, may have broad applications for cancer detection, diagnosis and treatment.

Strong attachment to local communities made oil spill more stressful for many coastal residents Posted: 07 Oct 2011 10:23 AM PDT In one of the first publications to present systematically collected public health data on coastal populations affected by the catastrophic oil spill of 2010, sociologists report that individuals having a stronger sense of attachment to their community exhibited higher self-reported levels of anxiety, worry, nervousness and fear.

New targets for treating inflammatory, autoimmune diseases discovered Posted: 07 Oct 2011 09:25 AM PDT Researchers have discovered a cellular pathway that promotes inflammation in diseases like asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease, and multiple sclerosis. Understanding the details of this pathway may provide opportunities for tailored treatments of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.

NASA's moon twins going their own way Posted: 07 Oct 2011 09:24 AM PDT NASA's Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL)-B spacecraft successfully executed its first flight path correction maneuver Wednesday, Oct. 5. The rocket burn helped refine the spacecraft's trajectory as it travels from Earth to the moon and provides separation between itself and its mirror twin, GRAIL-A. The first burn for GRAIL-A occurred on Sept. 30.

Measuring elusive neutrinos flowing through the Earth, physicists learn more about the sun Posted: 07 Oct 2011 08:39 AM PDT Using one of the most sensitive neutrino detectors on the planet, physicists are now measuring the flow of solar neutrinos reaching earth more precisely than ever before. The detector probes matter at the most fundamental level and provides a powerful tool for directly observing the sun's composition.

Jonesing for java: Could caffeine use predict risk for cocaine abuse? Posted: 07 Oct 2011 08:39 AM PDT A new study that examined responses to stimulants is the first to demonstrate that caffeine reinforcement prospectively predicts the positive effects of another drug.

Removal of restrictions can decrease music piracy Posted: 07 Oct 2011 08:39 AM PDT Contrary to the traditional views of the music industry, removal of digital rights management restrictions can actually decrease piracy, according to new research.

Genetic link to suicidal behavior confirmed Posted: 07 Oct 2011 08:39 AM PDT A new study has found evidence that a specific gene is linked to suicidal behavior, adding to our knowledge of the many complex causes of suicide. This research may help doctors one day target the gene in prevention efforts.

Why anti-rejection drugs for organ transplant patients cause hypertension Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:33 AM PDT A group of researchers has discovered the process that may be causing side effects caused by the anti-rejection drugs given to organ transplant patients. The discovery means those side effects likely can be dealt with much more cheaply and easily.

Sniffing out the brain's predictive power: Human brain smells what it expects rather than what it sniffs Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:33 AM PDT In the moments before you "stop and smell the roses," it's likely your brain is already preparing your sensory system for that familiar floral smell. New research offers strong evidence that the brain uses predictive coding to generate "predictive templates" of specific smells -- setting up a mental expectation of a scent before it hits your nostrils.

Gray jays' winter survival depends on food storage, study shows Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:33 AM PDT A new study shows that gray jays hoping to survive and reproduce through Canada's harsh winters need to be able to store food in the right kinds of trees.

Study tracks mutations causing congenital dyserythropoietic anemia (CDA) II back to the Roman Empire Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT A new study analyzed two mutations (E109K and R14W) of the SEC23B gene and discovered one of them is responsible for the higher frequency of CDA II in Italian population. The first mutation, E109K, may have originated in the Middle East about 2.400 years ago and may have spread in the heyday of the Roman Empire. The other one may have originated in Southern Italy about 3.000 years ago.

Smart phones: Keeping business data secure while allowing installation of personal apps Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT More and more companies are providing their employees with smartphones. While companies seek the best security available for their data, employees would also like to install apps of their own. Security experts have now developed equipment software with two separate areas: the business area and the personal area.

Prague's 88 nature reserves threatened by invasive plant species Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT Cities are generally regarded as hostile for wildlife and urbanization a dramatic form of destruction of natural habitats. Still, they are far from dead zones. Their biodiversity may even exceed that of surrounding landscapes.

Market transactions and economics in general affect biological invasions Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT Biological invasions, i.e., the spread of introduced, non-native species, not only serve as ecological model systems, but also bring out the importance of economic activities on ecological processes.

Learning to live in mountain lion country Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT Photographs and videos captured by remote wildlife cameras confirm that mountain lions make regular visits to Jasper Ridge Biological Preserve, Stanford University's 1,189-acre field research site in the hills five miles west of the main campus.

Chromosome inheritance? Not the same for all the chromosomes Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT New findings show that in aphids the two X chromosomes have a different inheritance. Aphids are insects with a sex determination model based on the presence of two X chromosomes (XX) in females and a single X chromosome (XO) in males. Previous studies suggested that X chromosome loss during male determination was random and that both X chromosomes have the same probability to be inherited in males. On the contrary, some authors suggested the presence of strong biases in the transmission of sex chromosomes, so that X chromosomes may have a non-mendelian inheritance in aphids.

Astrophysics and extinctions: News about planet-threatening events Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT Space is a violent place. If a star explodes or black holes collide anywhere in our part of the Milky Way, they'd give off colossal blasts of lethal gamma-rays, X-rays and cosmic rays and it's perfectly reasonable to expect Earth to be bathed in them. A new study of such events has yielded some new information about the potential effects of what are called "short-hard" interstellar radiation events.

Raising 'good' cholesterol levels reduces heart attack and stroke risk in diabetes patients Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:32 AM PDT Increasing levels of high-density lipoproteins, better known as HDL or "good" cholesterol, reduced the risk for heart attack and stroke among patients with diabetes.

Early detection of plant disease Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:29 AM PDT Each year, plant viruses and fungal attacks lead to crop losses of up to 30 percent. That is why it is important to detect plant disease early on. Yet laboratory tests are expensive and often time-consuming. Researchers are now developing a low-cost quick test for use on site.

Ancient climate change has left a strong imprint on modern ecosystems Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:29 AM PDT As Earth's climate cycles between warm and cool periods, species often must move to stay within suitable conditions. Scientists have now mapped how fast species have had to migrate in the past to keep up with changing climate. They found that small-ranged species – which constitute much of Earth's biodiversity – are concentrated in regions where little migration has been required. Predicted climate change will drastically increase the required migration rates in many of these locations, putting their unique faunas at risk.

Wireless window contacts: No maintenance, no batteries Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:29 AM PDT Window contacts tell us which of a house's windows are open or closed. Researchers have now developed a fail-safe system that is particularly easy to use and needs no wiring or batteries. The sensors harvest the energy they need to run from ambient radio signals.

Scientist searches for moons around asteroids Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:21 AM PDT Most people know that some planets have moons but would be surprised to know that some asteroids do, too. According to new research, about 20 percent of them do.

The abundance of tuna in the first days of life is influenced by cannibalism Posted: 07 Oct 2011 07:21 AM PDT Two new studies have shown that the coexistence of tuna larvae of different species and sizes in the spawning areas is essential for the survival of such early life stages, since cannibalism can constitute a significant fraction of natural mortality during this period.

Timing is crucial for family consent in brain dead organ donors Posted: 07 Oct 2011 04:32 AM PDT Hearts used in transplants can only be sourced from donors that are brain dead before circulation to their heart has ceased. Data from a new study indicate that the time at which organ donation in brain dead donors is first discussed with family members could affect whether or not they consent to donation.

Pregnant mothers at risk from air pollution, California study suggests Posted: 07 Oct 2011 04:32 AM PDT A California-based study has looked in detail at air quality and the impact of traffic-related air pollution on premature birth. Results from the study show that traffic-related air pollution, especially polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, is associated with up to a 30 percent increase in premature births, and that seasonal changes and vicinity to the coast affected concentration of toxic pollutants in the air.

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