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Saturday, September 7, 2013

ScienceDaily: Top News

ScienceDaily: Top News


Drug patch treatment sees new breakthrough

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 06:41 PM PDT

This new flexible patch treatment can quicken drug delivery time while cutting waste, and can likely minimize side-effects in some cases, notable in vaccinations and in cancer therapy.

Inflatable antennae could give CubeSats greater reach: Design inflates with powder that turns into gas

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 06:41 PM PDT

Researchers have come up with a design that may significantly increase the communication range of small satellites, enabling them to travel much farther in the solar system.

Scientists use DNA to assemble a transistor from graphene

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 11:19 AM PDT

Graphene is a sheet of carbon atoms arrayed in a honeycomb pattern, just a single atom thick. It could be a better semiconductor than silicon -- if we could fashion it into ribbons 20 to 50 atoms wide. Could DNA help?

Novel therapeutic cancer vaccine goes to human clinical trials

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 11:18 AM PDT

Medical researchers have launched a Phase I clinical trial of a therapeutic melanoma vaccine designed to reprogram a patient's immune system to destroy tumors. The vaccine consists of a small disk-like, biodegradable sponge that's infused with signaling molecules and components of the patient's tumor.

Touch goes digital: Electronic recording and replay of human touch demonstrated

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 11:18 AM PDT

Researchers report a breakthrough in technology that could pave the way for digital systems to record, store, edit and replay information in a dimension that goes beyond what we can see or hear: touch.

Mother chimps crucial for offspring's social skills

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 08:43 AM PDT

Orphaned chimpanzees are less socially competent than chimpanzees who were reared by their mother. Researchers observed that orphaned chimpanzees frequently engaged in social play, but their play bouts were much shorter and resulted in aggression more often. Apparently, chimpanzee mothers endow their offspring with important social skills.

Debris flows on Arctic sand dunes are similar to dark dune spot-seepage flows on Mars

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 08:42 AM PDT

Scientists have demonstrated that frozen water in the form of snow or frost can melt to form debris flows on sunward-facing slopes of sand dunes in the Alaskan arctic at air temperatures significantly below the melting point of water. The debris flows consist of sand mixed with liquid water that cascade down steep slopes.

Indiana Jones meets George Jetson

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 08:42 AM PDT

A team of researchers has designed a microplasma source capable of exciting matter in a controlled, efficient way. This miniature device may find use in a wide range of applications in harsh environments, but can also help revolutionize archaeology.

Growing thin films of germanium

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 08:42 AM PDT

Researchers have developed a new technique to produce thin films of germanium crystals -- key components for next-generation electronic devices such as advanced large-scale integrated circuits and flexible electronics, which are required for gadgets that move or bend.

Shining a little light changes metal into semiconductor

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:30 AM PDT

Materials science engineers changed the electronic properties of new class of materials -- just by exposing it to light.

New opportunites found for waste heat

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:30 AM PDT

Physicists are working on an innovation that could boost vehicle mileage by 5 percent and power plant and industrial processing performance as much as 10 percent, by capturing waste heat and converting it to electrical power.

New connection between stacked solar cells can handle energy of 70,000 suns

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:26 AM PDT

Researchers have come up with a new technique for improving the connections between stacked solar cells, which should improve the overall efficiency of solar energy devices and reduce the cost of solar energy production. The new connections can allow these cells to operate at solar concentrations of 70,000 suns' worth of energy without losing much voltage as 'wasted energy' or heat.

Rare fossil ape cranium discovered in China

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:26 AM PDT

A team of researchers has discovered the cranium of a fossil ape from Shuitangba, a Miocene site in Yunnan Province, China. The juvenile cranium of the fossil ape Lufengpithecus is significant, according to researchers.

Good asthma control during pregnancy is vital

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:26 AM PDT

Good asthma management during pregnancy is vital during pregnancy, as poor asthma control can have adverse effects on maternal and fetal outcomes, says a new review.

One baby in every 46 born with a congenital anomaly, new UK report finds

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:25 AM PDT

One baby in every 46 was born with a congenital anomaly in 2011, according to the third annual report by the British Isles Network of Congenital Anomaly Registers.

Pornography reinforces sexist attitudes among a subgroup of heterosexuals

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:25 AM PDT

Pornography has long held a controversial place in society, and its relationship with a number of behaviors and attitudes has been highly debated. But the concern remains: How does viewing pornography affect our attitudes towards women? A recent article found that exposure to pornography was related to and increased sexist attitudes, but only among a subgroup of users.

First detailed view of morphing Parkinson's protein revealed

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:25 AM PDT

Researchers have taken detailed images and measurements of the morphing structure of a brain protein thought to play a role in Parkinson's disease, information that could aid the development of medications to treat the condition.

Neuroscientists show that monkeys can decide to call out or keep silent

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:21 AM PDT

"Should I say something or not?" Human beings are not alone in pondering this dilemma -- animals also face decisions when they communicate by voice. Neurobiologists have now demonstrated that nerve cells in the brain signal the targeted initiation of calls -- forming the basis of voluntary vocal expression.

Lost Tudor sculptures reassembled with help from 3-D scanning

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:13 AM PDT

Experts have tried to recreate two Tudor monuments using a mixture of humanities research and scientific technology.

Short-term blood sugar control protects the kidney but not the heart in patients with diabetes

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:13 AM PDT

An international study has shown that short-term blood sugar control in patients with diabetes has a limited effect on their risk of cardiovascular problems, such as heart disease and stroke.

Protection system for building works on sloping work surfaces, such as roofs

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:13 AM PDT

Researchers have developed an innovative protection system for building works, suitable for use on the edges of the surfaces with a slope greater than 10°, such as decks and roofs.

Static killers? Natural killer cell activity can be influenced by phosphorylating a protein in NK cells

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:13 AM PDT

Mammals contain cells whose primary function is to kill other cells in the body. The so-called Natural Killer (NK) cells are highly important in defending our bodies against viruses or even cancer. Scientists provide evidence that NK cell activity can be influenced by phosphorylating a protein (STAT1) in NK cells. The results could be of immediate therapeutic relevance.

Iron in the sun: A greenhouse gas for X-ray radiation

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:13 AM PDT

Scientists have investigated for the first time X-ray absorption of highly charged iron ions. A transportable ion trap developed at MPIK was used for generation and storage of the ions. The high-precision measurements provide important new insight into the role of highly charged ions in astrophysical plasmas, e. g. for radiation transport inside stars.

Using digital cameras to measure the height of Northern Lights

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:13 AM PDT

Scientists came up with an idea for a new method to measure the height of aurora borealis after working on a 3-D movie for a planetarium.They used two digital single-lens reflex (SLR) cameras set 8 km apart to capture 3D images of Northern Lights and determine the altitude where electrons in the atmosphere emit the light that produces aurora.

Researching new detectors for chemical, biological threats

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:10 AM PDT

Scientists are building on decades of sensor work to invent tiny detectors that can sniff out everything from explosives and biotoxins to smuggled humans.

Important mechanism underlying Alzheimer's disease discovered

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:10 AM PDT

Alzheimer's disease affects more than 26 million people worldwide. It is predicted to skyrocket as boomers age —- nearly 106 million people are projected to have the disease by 2050. Fortunately, scientists are making progress towards therapies. Scientists have defined a key mechanism behind the disease's progress, giving hope that a newly modified Alzheimer's drug will be effective.

Combination of social media, behavior psychology leads to HIV testing, better health behaviors

Posted: 06 Sep 2013 07:10 AM PDT

A new study demonstrates that an approach that combines behavioral science with social media and online communities can lead to increased AIDS testing and improved health behaviors among men at risk of HIV infection. The approach is also applicable across a variety of diseases.

Human gut microbes alter mouse metabolism, depending on diet

Posted: 05 Sep 2013 11:28 AM PDT

Germ-free mice that received gut bacteria from obese humans put on more weight and accumulated more fat than mice that were given bacteria from the guts of lean humans, according to a new study.

Finally mapped: The brain region that distinguishes bits from bounty

Posted: 05 Sep 2013 11:28 AM PDT

In comparing amounts of things -- be it the grains of sand on a beach, or the size of a sea gull flock inhabiting it -- humans use a part of the brain that is organized topographically, researchers have finally shown. In other words, the neurons that work to make this "numerosity" assessment are laid out in a shape that allows those most closely related to communicate and interact over the shortest possible distance.

Certification of aquaculture: one of the strategies to sustainable seafood production

Posted: 05 Sep 2013 11:27 AM PDT

Certification of products from aquatic farming - aquaculture – is contributing to sustainable production, but it also has serious limits. Therefore it should be seen as one approach among many for steering aquaculture toward sustainability, experts say.

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