ScienceDaily: Top News

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• New MRI technique may predict progress of dementias
• Autism by the numbers: Researchers examine impact of new diagnostic criteria
• Zip code as important as genetic code in childhood obesity
• Fish, bugs and mercury contamination in small ponds: Why we should worry about aquatic insects and hg contamination
• Engineers unlock secrets of beetle flight
• Can a standard vision test predict nighttime driving performance?
• Chips as mini Internets: Data-routing techniques that undergird Internet could increase efficiency of multicore chips
• What triggers a mass extinction? Habitat loss and tropical cooling were once to blame
• Symptoms that mimic epilepsy linked to stress, poor coping skills
• Brain-injury data used to map intelligence in the brain
• Personality, habits of thought and gender influence how we remember
• Has the Dead Sea used up its nine lives? Dead Sea almost dried up over 100,000 years ago
• Overcoming obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Women not getting enough exercise; at risk of developing metabolic syndrome
• Sulfur in every pore: Improved batteries with carbon nanoparticles
• Miniature sensors may advance climate studies
• Mothers and OCD children trapped in rituals have impaired relationships
• U.S. records warmest March; more than 15,000 warm temperature records broken
• Web-based tool produces fast, accurate autism diagnosis, study suggests
• Processes at the surface of catalysts: Using infrared spectroscopy, scientists detect that oxygen defects act as active centers
• The green light gives the game away: New method for direct identification of antigens
• Eggs of enigmatic dinosaur in Patagonia discovered
• Antioxidant may disrupt Alzheimer's disease process
• Impact of climate change on forest diseases assessed
• Eliminating 64 calories per day on average would allow the US childhood obesity prevention goals to be met
• Frequent dental X-rays linked to most common brain tumor
• Mass participation dream experiment launches
• Fish thriving around wind farms
• More exercise, eating less fat and weight loss programs are in, popular diets are out, study suggests
• Born nice? Peoples' niceness may reside in their genes, study finds
• Pelvic muscle training effective in treating urinary incontinence for women
• Rapid method of assembling new gene-editing tool could revolutionize genetic research
• Mating has long-term benefits: Courtship can take effort, but now scientists know why it might be worth it

New MRI technique may predict progress of dementias Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:09 PM PDT A new technique for analyzing brain images offers the possibility of using magnetic resonance imaging to predict the rate of progression and physical path of many degenerative brain diseases, report scientists.

Autism by the numbers: Researchers examine impact of new diagnostic criteria Posted: 10 Apr 2012 01:36 PM PDT Getting an autism diagnosis could be more difficult in 2013 when a revised diagnostic definition goes into effect. The proposed changes may affect the proportion of individuals who qualify for a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, according to a new study.

Zip code as important as genetic code in childhood obesity Posted: 10 Apr 2012 01:35 PM PDT Neighborhood supermarket and park proximity directly related to obesity, study finds.

Fish, bugs and mercury contamination in small ponds: Why we should worry about aquatic insects and hg contamination Posted: 10 Apr 2012 01:35 PM PDT There have been many scientific studies looking at the levels of toxic mercury (Hg) in fish. After all, fish can end up directly on our plate. However, far fewer studies have examined Hg levels in aquatic insects. This is a significant oversight because aquatic insects are an important source of Hg to fish and even terrestrial wildlife.

Engineers unlock secrets of beetle flight Posted: 10 Apr 2012 01:35 PM PDT Mechanical engineers are using remote-controlled rhinoceros beetles to study the mechanics behind their ability to fly. Research findings could inform the next generation of aircraft design.

Can a standard vision test predict nighttime driving performance? Posted: 10 Apr 2012 12:00 PM PDT Just because a driver has passed the motor vehicle administration's vision test may not mean he or she is safe to drive. A recent study found that the frequency and distance at which drivers with moderate levels of blurred vision and cataracts recognize pedestrians at night was severely reduced, even when the drivers have passed the required vision test.

Chips as mini Internets: Data-routing techniques that undergird Internet could increase efficiency of multicore chips Posted: 10 Apr 2012 11:59 AM PDT The data-routing techniques that undergird the Internet could increase the efficiency of multicore chips while lowering their power requirements. Today, a typical chip might have six or eight cores, all communicating with each other over a single bundle of wires, called a bus. With a bus, however, only one pair of cores can talk at a time, which would be a serious limitation in chips with hundreds or even thousands of cores, which many electrical engineers envision as the future of computing.

What triggers a mass extinction? Habitat loss and tropical cooling were once to blame Posted: 10 Apr 2012 11:59 AM PDT The second-largest mass extinction in Earth's history coincided with a short but intense ice age. Although it has long been agreed that the so-called Late Ordovician mass extinction was related to climate change, exactly how the change produced the extinction has not been known. Now, scientists have determined that the majority of extinctions were caused by habitat loss due to falling sea levels and cooling of the tropical oceans.

Symptoms that mimic epilepsy linked to stress, poor coping skills Posted: 10 Apr 2012 11:59 AM PDT Based on their clinical experience and observations, physicians and psychologists say that more than one-third of the patients admitted to The Johns Hopkins Hospital's inpatient epilepsy monitoring unit for treatment of intractable seizures have been discovered to have stress-triggered symptoms rather than a true seizure disorder.

Brain-injury data used to map intelligence in the brain Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:08 AM PDT Scientists report that they have mapped the physical architecture of intelligence in the brain. This is one of the largest and most comprehensive analyses so far of the brain structures vital to general intelligence and to specific aspects of intellectual functioning, such as verbal comprehension and working memory.

Personality, habits of thought and gender influence how we remember Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:08 AM PDT We all have them -- positive memories of personal events that are a delight to recall, and painful recollections that we would rather forget. A new study reveals that what we do with our emotional memories and how they affect us has a lot to do with our gender, personality and the methods we use (often without awareness) to regulate our feelings.

Has the Dead Sea used up its nine lives? Dead Sea almost dried up over 100,000 years ago Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:08 AM PDT Scientists say that recent drilling into the sediment of the Dead Sea indicates that it has recovered from several periods of dryness and very little rainfall in the ancient past, but warns that there's still cause for concern.

Overcoming obsessive-compulsive disorder Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:08 AM PDT Did I remember to lock the back door? Did I turn off the stove? Were the lights still on when I left the house this morning? Such minor doubts are part of our daily mental chatter. But for people who suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder, thoughts along these lines can lead to compulsive checking -- a potentially debilitating behavior that keeps the sufferer locked in an endless cycle of fear and doubt.

Women not getting enough exercise; at risk of developing metabolic syndrome Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:08 AM PDT A U.S. national study shows that women are less likely than men to get at least 30 minutes of exercise per day, resulting in greater odds of developing metabolic syndrome -- a risky and increasingly prevalent condition related to obesity.

Sulfur in every pore: Improved batteries with carbon nanoparticles Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:07 AM PDT Lithium-sulfur batteries may be the power storage devices of the future. Newly developed porous nanoparticles containing sulfur deliver optimized battery performance.

Miniature sensors may advance climate studies Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:06 AM PDT An air sampler the size of an ear plug is expected to cheaply and easily collect atmospheric samples to improve computer climate models. The inexpensive tool can collect pristine vapor samples in the field. It also can monitor pollution and be employed medically.

Mothers and OCD children trapped in rituals have impaired relationships Posted: 10 Apr 2012 10:06 AM PDT A new study finds mothers tend to be more critical of children with obsessive-compulsive disorder than they are of other children in the family. And, that parental criticism is linked to poorer outcomes for the child after treatment.

U.S. records warmest March; more than 15,000 warm temperature records broken Posted: 10 Apr 2012 08:40 AM PDT Record and near-record breaking temperatures dominated the eastern two-thirds of the United States and contributed to the warmest March on record for the contiguous United States, a record that dates back to 1895. More than 15,000 warm temperature records were broken during the month.

Web-based tool produces fast, accurate autism diagnosis, study suggests Posted: 10 Apr 2012 08:15 AM PDT Researchers have significantly reduced from hours to minutes the time it takes to accurately detect autism in young children, experts say.

Processes at the surface of catalysts: Using infrared spectroscopy, scientists detect that oxygen defects act as active centers Posted: 10 Apr 2012 08:14 AM PDT In chemical industry, heterogeneous catalysis is of crucial iportance to the manufacture of basic or fine chemicals, in catalytic converters of exhaust gas, or for the chemical storage of solar energy. Scientists have now developed a new infrared spectroscopy method in order to study processes at surfaces of oxides used as catalysts.

The green light gives the game away: New method for direct identification of antigens Posted: 10 Apr 2012 08:14 AM PDT The immune system is a vital part of our defenses against pathogens, but it can also attack host tissues, resulting in autoimmune disease. The antigens that induce destructive immune reactions can now be identified directly – without any prior knowledge of their possible structure.

Eggs of enigmatic dinosaur in Patagonia discovered Posted: 10 Apr 2012 07:20 AM PDT An Argentine-Swedish research team has reported a 70-million-year-old pocket of fossilized bones and unique eggs of an enigmatic birdlike dinosaur in Patagonia.

Antioxidant may disrupt Alzheimer's disease process Posted: 10 Apr 2012 07:19 AM PDT Alzheimer's disease (AD) is now the sixth leading cause of death among Americans, affecting nearly 1 in 8 people over the age of 65. There is currently no treatment that alters the course of this disease. However, an increasing amount of evidence suggests that changes in the way the body handles iron and other metals like copper and zinc may start years before the onset of AD symptoms. A new study shows that reducing iron levels in blood plasma may protect the brain from changes related to AD.

Impact of climate change on forest diseases assessed Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:36 AM PDT Climate change is projected to have far-reaching environmental impacts both domestically and abroad. A recently published report examines the impact of climate change on forest diseases and how these pathogens will ultimately affect forest ecosystems in the Western United States and Canada.

Eliminating 64 calories per day on average would allow the US childhood obesity prevention goals to be met Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:35 AM PDT In order for the nation to achieve goals set by the federal government for reducing obesity rates by 2020, children in the United States would need to eliminate an average of 64 excess calories per day, researchers calculated in a new study. This reduction could be achieved by decreasing calorie intake, increasing physical activity, or both.

Frequent dental X-rays linked to most common brain tumor Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:33 AM PDT People who received frequent dental x-rays in the past have an increased risk of developing the most commonly diagnosed primary brain tumor in the United States. Ionizing radiation is the primary environmental risk factor for developing meningioma, which is the most frequently diagnosed primary brain tumor in the United States. Dental x-rays are the most common artificial source of exposure to ionizing radiation for individuals living in the United States.

Mass participation dream experiment launches Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:33 AM PDT Is it possible to influence people as they sleep and give them their perfect dream? Today sees the launch of a new study that uses a specially designed iPhone app in an attempt to improve the dreams of millions of people around the world. If successful, the study will allow people to create their perfect dream and so wake up feeling especially happy and refreshed.

Fish thriving around wind farms Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:33 AM PDT The first Danish study into how one of the worlds largest wind farms affects marine life is now completed. It shows that the wind turbines and the fish live quite happily together. Indeed some species of fish have actually increased in number.

More exercise, eating less fat and weight loss programs are in, popular diets are out, study suggests Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:31 AM PDT Contrary to popular perception, a large proportion of obese Americans can and do lose weight, say researchers. What's more, they say, the old tried and true methods of eating less fat and exercising are some of the most effective paths to weight loss success.

Born nice? Peoples' niceness may reside in their genes, study finds Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:31 AM PDT It turns out that the milk of human kindness is evoked by something besides mom's good example. Research by psychologists has found that at least part of the reason some people are kind and generous is that their genes nudge them toward it.

Pelvic muscle training effective in treating urinary incontinence for women Posted: 10 Apr 2012 06:31 AM PDT A new comparative effectiveness report confirms that pelvic floor muscle training is effective for treating adult women with urinary incontinence without risk of side effects.

Rapid method of assembling new gene-editing tool could revolutionize genetic research Posted: 09 Apr 2012 10:39 AM PDT The development of a new way to make a powerful tool for altering gene sequences should greatly increase the ability of researchers to knock out or otherwise alter the expression of any gene they are studying.

Mating has long-term benefits: Courtship can take effort, but now scientists know why it might be worth it Posted: 09 Apr 2012 10:39 AM PDT Courtship rituals can be all-consuming, demanding time and effort – but now scientists have discovered why it might be worth it.

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