ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Revolutionary microshutter technology hurdles significant challenges
• NASA-funded X-ray instrument settles interstellar debate
• Weighing the Milky Way: Researchers devise precise method for calculating the mass of galaxies
• Prehistoric dairy farming at the extremes
• World's smallest propeller could be used for microscopic medicine
• Vision-correcting display makes reading glasses so yesterday
• Huge waves measured for first time in Arctic Ocean
• Mysterious molecules in space: Silicon-capped hydrocarbons may be source of 'diffuse interstellar bands'
• 'Killer sperm' prevents mating between worm species
• Watching neurons fire from a front-row seat
• Brainwaves can predict audience reaction of television programming
• Brand-specific television alcohol ads a significant predictor of brand consumption among underage youth
• A new way to make microstructured surfaces: Method can produce strong, lightweight materials with specific surface properties
• Tough foam from tiny sheets: Lab uses atom-thick materials to make ultralight foam
• The Quantum Cheshire Cat: Can neutrons be located at a different place than their own spin?
• Do your stem cells sound like cancer? While-you-wait, non-invasive cancer diagnosis by converting stem cell data into sound
• Social origins of intelligence in the brain
• Diet affects males' and females' gut microbes differently
• Autistic brain less flexible at taking on tasks
• Famine in the Horn of Africa (1984) was caused by El Nino and currents in the Indian Ocean
• Optimum inertial self-propulsion design for snowman-like nanorobot
• Beyond invisibility cloaks? Flexible metamaterial absorbers developed
• Kill switch in cell phones could save consumers more than $3.4 billion annually
• Help your infant or toddler cope with stressful events
• From finding Nemo to minerals: What riches lie in the deep sea?
• Evolution in rainforest flies points to climate change survival
• Preterm children's brains can catch up years later
• Violent aftermath for the warriors at Alken Enge
• Worldwide water shortage by 2040
• When it comes to gluten-free diets, unfounded beliefs abound
• Gasses from Kilauea volcano affected tropical storm Flossie formation
• Microscopic rowing -- without a cox: Cells' whip-like appendages can synchronize their movements
• Mortality rates increase due to extreme heat and cold
• Using TV, videos or a computer game as a stress reducer after a tough day at work can lead to feelings of guilt and failure
• Healthy lifestyle may buffer against stress-related cell aging
• Generating a genome to feed the world: African rice sequenced
• Lead pollution beat explorers to South Pole, persists today
• Stem cell advance may increase efficiency of tissue regeneration
• NASA long-lived Mars Opportunity rover passes 25 miles of driving
• Printing the metals of the future
• Cassini spacecraft reveals 101 geysers and more on icy Saturn moon
• Forced mutations doom HIV: How potential HIV drug exacts its toll on viral populations
• Mineral magic? Common mineral capable of making and breaking bonds
• Dementia patients more likely to get implanted pacemakers, says study
• Endurance runners more likely to die of heat stroke than heart condition
• Running reduces risk of death regardless of duration, speed
• Memory relies on astrocytes, the brain's lesser known cells: supportive cells vital in cognitive function
• Physicists unlock nature of high-temperature superconductivity
• Stress-tolerant tomato relative sequenced
• Stimulation of brain region restores consciousness to animals under general anesthesia
• Glucose 'control switch' in the brain key to both types of diabetes
• Cell's recycling center implicated in division decisions
• Brain's habenula signals how bad things could be
• Impact of Deepwater Horizon oil spill on coral is deeper and broader than predicted
• Global warming amplifier: Rising water vapor in upper troposphere to intensify climate change
• Facial features are the key to first impressions
• Irreversible inhibitor for KRAS gene mutation involved in lung, colon, and pancreatic cancers
• Genetic mutations linked to salivary gland tumors
• Researchers produce record-length mirror-image protein
• Learning the smell of fear: Mothers teach babies their own fears via odor, animal study shows

Revolutionary microshutter technology hurdles significant challenges Posted: 29 Jul 2014 07:56 PM PDT NASA technologists have hurdled a number of significant technological challenges in their quest to improve an already revolutionary observing technology originally created for the James Webb Space Telescope.

NASA-funded X-ray instrument settles interstellar debate Posted: 29 Jul 2014 07:56 PM PDT New findings from a NASA-funded instrument have resolved a decades-old puzzle about a fog of low-energy X-rays observed over the entire sky. Thanks to refurbished detectors first flown on a NASA sounding rocket in the 1970s, astronomers have now confirmed the long-held suspicion that much of this glow stems from a region of million-degree interstellar plasma known as the local hot bubble, or LHB.

Weighing the Milky Way: Researchers devise precise method for calculating the mass of galaxies Posted: 29 Jul 2014 07:49 PM PDT Does the Milky Way look fat in this picture? Has Andromeda been taking skinny selfies? Using a new, more accurate method for measuring the mass of galaxies, and international group of researchers has shown that the Milky Way has half the Mass of the Andromeda Galaxy.

Prehistoric dairy farming at the extremes Posted: 29 Jul 2014 07:49 PM PDT Finland's love of milk has been traced back to 2500 BC, thanks to high-tech techniques to analyze residues preserved in fragments of ancient pots.

World's smallest propeller could be used for microscopic medicine Posted: 29 Jul 2014 01:47 PM PDT Scientists have created robots that are only nanometers in length, small enough to maneuver inside the human body and possibly inside human cells.

Vision-correcting display makes reading glasses so yesterday Posted: 29 Jul 2014 12:29 PM PDT Researchers are developing vision-correcting displays that can compensate for a viewer's visual impairments to create sharp images without the need for glasses or contact lenses. The technology could potentially help those who currently need corrective lenses to use their smartphones, tablets and computers, and could one day aid people with more complex visual problems.

Huge waves measured for first time in Arctic Ocean Posted: 29 Jul 2014 12:29 PM PDT The first measurements of waves in the middle of the Arctic Ocean recorded house-sized waves during a September 2012 storm. More sensors are going out this summer to study waves in newly ice-free Arctic waters.

Mysterious molecules in space: Silicon-capped hydrocarbons may be source of 'diffuse interstellar bands' Posted: 29 Jul 2014 12:27 PM PDT New research has offered a tantalizing new possibility in the realm of interstellar molecules and diffuse interstellar bands: these mysterious molecules may be silicon-capped hydrocarbons like SiC3H, SiC4H and SiC5H.

'Killer sperm' prevents mating between worm species Posted: 29 Jul 2014 11:20 AM PDT Most cross-species mating is merely unsuccessful in producing offspring. However, when researchers mated Caenorhabditis worms of different species, they found that the lifespan of the female worms and their number of progeny were drastically reduced compared with females that mated with the same species. In addition, females that survived cross-species mating were often sterile, even if they subsequently mated with their own species.

Watching neurons fire from a front-row seat Posted: 29 Jul 2014 11:19 AM PDT They are with us every moment of every day, controlling every action we make, from the breath we breathe to the words we speak, and yet there is still a lot we don't know about the cells that make up our nervous systems. When things go awry and nerve cells don't communicate as they should, the consequences can be devastating. Speech can be slurred, muscles stop working on command and memories can be lost forever.

Brainwaves can predict audience reaction of television programming Posted: 29 Jul 2014 11:19 AM PDT By analyzing the brainwaves of 16 individuals as they watched mainstream television content, researchers were able to accurately predict the preferences of large TV audiences, up to 90 percent in the case of Super Bowl commercials.

Brand-specific television alcohol ads a significant predictor of brand consumption among underage youth Posted: 29 Jul 2014 11:19 AM PDT Underage drinkers are three times more likely to drink alcohol brands that advertise on television programs they watch compared to other alcohol brands, providing new and compelling evidence of a strong association between alcohol advertising and youth drinking behavior.

A new way to make microstructured surfaces: Method can produce strong, lightweight materials with specific surface properties Posted: 29 Jul 2014 09:38 AM PDT A team of researchers has created a new way of manufacturing microstructured surfaces that have novel three-dimensional textures. These surfaces, made by self-assembly of carbon nanotubes, could exhibit a variety of useful properties -- including controllable mechanical stiffness and strength, or the ability to repel water in a certain direction.

Tough foam from tiny sheets: Lab uses atom-thick materials to make ultralight foam Posted: 29 Jul 2014 09:38 AM PDT Tough, ultralight foam of atom-thick sheets can be made to any size and shape through a new chemical process. In microscopic images, the foam dubbed "GO-0.5BN" looks like a nanoscale building, with floors and walls that reinforce each other. The structure consists of a pair of two-dimensional materials: floors and walls of graphene oxide that self-assemble with the assistance of hexagonal boron nitride platelets.

The Quantum Cheshire Cat: Can neutrons be located at a different place than their own spin? Posted: 29 Jul 2014 09:38 AM PDT Can neutrons be located at a different place than their own spin? A quantum experiment demonstrates a new kind of quantum paradox. The Cheshire Cat featured in Lewis Caroll's novel "Alice in Wonderland" is a remarkable creature: it disappears, leaving its grin behind. Can an object be separated from its properties? It is possible in the quantum world. In an experiment, neutrons travel along a different path than one of their properties -- their magnetic moment. This "Quantum Cheshire Cat" could be used to make high precision measurements less sensitive to external perturbations.

Do your stem cells sound like cancer? While-you-wait, non-invasive cancer diagnosis by converting stem cell data into sound Posted: 29 Jul 2014 09:38 AM PDT Converting stem cell data into sounds could enable GPs to make instant, non-invasive cancer diagnoses during a routine check-up. A recent study shows how data sonification (where data is conveyed as audio signals as opposed to visual illustrations such as graphs) can improve standard techniques currently used in spectroscopy stem cell analysis. What could this mean for cancer diagnostics?

Social origins of intelligence in the brain Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:54 AM PDT By studying the injuries and aptitudes of Vietnam War veterans who suffered penetrating head wounds during the war, scientists are tackling -- and beginning to answer -- longstanding questions about how the brain works. The researchers found that brain regions that contribute to optimal social functioning also are vital to general intelligence and to emotional intelligence. This finding bolsters the view that general intelligence emerges from the emotional and social context of one's life.

Diet affects males' and females' gut microbes differently Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:54 AM PDT The microbes living in the guts of males and females react differently to diet, even when the diets are identical, according to a new study. These results suggest that therapies designed to improve human health and treat diseases through nutrition might need to be tailored for each sex.

Autistic brain less flexible at taking on tasks Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:54 AM PDT The brains of children with autism are relatively inflexible at switching from rest to task performance, according to a new brain-imaging study.

Famine in the Horn of Africa (1984) was caused by El Nino and currents in the Indian Ocean Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:53 AM PDT Oceanic patterns are important drivers of climatic variability. There is a clear link between periods of drought in the North Ethiopian Highlands and oceanic phases of El Nino, the Indian Ocean Dipole and the Southwestern Monsoons.

Optimum inertial self-propulsion design for snowman-like nanorobot Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:53 AM PDT A new study investigates the effects of small but finite inertia on the propulsion of micro and nano-scale swimming machines. Scale plays a major role in locomotion. Swimming microorganisms, such as bacteria and spermatozoa, are subjected to relatively small inertial forces compared to the viscous forces exerted by the surrounding fluid. Such low-level inertia makes self-propulsion a major challenge. Now, scientists have found that the direction of propulsion made possible by such inertia is opposite to that induced by a viscoelastic fluid.

Beyond invisibility cloaks? Flexible metamaterial absorbers developed Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:53 AM PDT Scientists have created flexible metamaterial absorbers designed to suppress electromagnetic radiation from mobile electronics. Electromagnetic metamaterials boast special properties not found in nature and are rapidly emerging as a hot research topic for reasons extending far beyond "invisibility cloaks."

Kill switch in cell phones could save consumers more than $3.4 billion annually Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:51 AM PDT A new study shows consumer savings from the Kill Switch legislation exceed initial projections and now points to well over $3 billion. This savings to consumers comes at the expense of insurance and wireless industry profits.

Help your infant or toddler cope with stressful events Posted: 29 Jul 2014 08:51 AM PDT 18-month-old "Karla" was playing on the slide at the park in her neighborhood, her mother sitting on a nearby bench chatting with her friend. A loud screech was followed by a crash and the sound of car alarms going off. In a flash, Karla was swept into her mother's arms and both were shaking as they saw people running and heard sirens coming toward the scene of a car crash in the street next to the park.

From finding Nemo to minerals: What riches lie in the deep sea? Posted: 29 Jul 2014 07:11 AM PDT As fishing and the harvesting of metals, gas and oil have expanded deeper and deeper into the ocean, scientists are drawing attention to the services provided by the deep sea, the world's largest environment.

Evolution in rainforest flies points to climate change survival Posted: 29 Jul 2014 06:32 AM PDT Scientists believe some tropical species may be able to evolve and adapt to the effects of climate change. The new findings suggests some sensitive rainforest-restricted species may survive climate change and avoid extinction. But only if the change is not too abrupt and dramatically beyond the conditions that a species currently experiences.

Preterm children's brains can catch up years later Posted: 29 Jul 2014 06:31 AM PDT There's some good news for parents of preterm babies -- latest research shows that by the time they become teenagers, the brains of many preterm children can perform almost as well as those born at term.

Violent aftermath for the warriors at Alken Enge Posted: 29 Jul 2014 06:31 AM PDT Denmark attracted international attention in 2012 when archaeological excavations revealed the bones of an entire army, whose warriors had been thrown into the bogs near the Alken Enge wetlands in East Jutland after losing a major engagement about 2,000 years ago. Work has continued in the area since then and archaeologists have now made sensational new findings.

Worldwide water shortage by 2040 Posted: 29 Jul 2014 06:31 AM PDT Water is used around the world for the production of electricity, but new research results show that there will not be enough water in the world to meet demand by 2040 if the energy and power situation does not improve before then.

When it comes to gluten-free diets, unfounded beliefs abound Posted: 29 Jul 2014 06:26 AM PDT Lots of people are eating gluten-free diets, but perhaps for the wrong reasons, a UF/IFAS researcher says. Such diets, while necessary for those with celiac disease, may lack nutrients essential to good health.

Gasses from Kilauea volcano affected tropical storm Flossie formation Posted: 29 Jul 2014 05:45 AM PDT One might assume that a tropical storm moving through volcanic smog would sweep up the tainted air and march on, unchanged. However, a recent study from atmospheric scientists revealed that, though microscopic, gasses and particles from Kilauea volcano exerted an influence on Tropical Storm Flossie -- affecting the formation of thunderstorms and lightning in the sizable storm.

Microscopic rowing -- without a cox: Cells' whip-like appendages can synchronize their movements Posted: 29 Jul 2014 05:45 AM PDT New research shows that the whip-like appendages on many types of cells are able to synchronize their movements solely through interactions with the fluid that surrounds them.

Mortality rates increase due to extreme heat and cold Posted: 29 Jul 2014 04:36 AM PDT When temperatures are extremely high or low, there is a significant increase in the number of deaths caused by heart failure or stroke. This has been confirmed by epidemiological studies.

Using TV, videos or a computer game as a stress reducer after a tough day at work can lead to feelings of guilt and failure Posted: 29 Jul 2014 04:36 AM PDT It seems common practice: After a long day at work, most people sometimes just want to turn on the TV or play a video or computer game to calm down and relax. However, in a new study researchers found that people who were highly stressed after work did not feel relaxed or recovered when they watched TV or played computer or video games. Instead, they tended to show increased levels of guilt and feelings of failure.

Healthy lifestyle may buffer against stress-related cell aging Posted: 29 Jul 2014 04:35 AM PDT A new study shows that while the impact of life's stressors accumulate overtime and accelerate cellular aging, these negative effects may be reduced by maintaining a healthy diet, exercising and sleeping well.

Generating a genome to feed the world: African rice sequenced Posted: 28 Jul 2014 06:19 PM PDT An international team of scientists has sequenced the genome of African rice. The new information will enable scientists and agriculturalists to develop varieties of rice that can survive in a changing climate.

Lead pollution beat explorers to South Pole, persists today Posted: 28 Jul 2014 06:19 PM PDT Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen became the first man to reach the South Pole in December 1911. More than 100 years later, an international team of scientists has proven that air pollution from industrial activities arrived to the planet's southern pole long before any human. Using data from 16 ice cores, industrial lead contamination was pervasive throughout Antarctica by the late 19th century.

Stem cell advance may increase efficiency of tissue regeneration Posted: 28 Jul 2014 06:18 PM PDT A new stem-cell discovery might one day lead to a more streamlined process for obtaining stem cells, which in turn could be used in the development of replacement tissue for failing body parts, according to scientists.

NASA long-lived Mars Opportunity rover passes 25 miles of driving Posted: 28 Jul 2014 04:22 PM PDT NASA's Opportunity Mars rover, which landed on the Red Planet in 2004, now holds the off-Earth roving distance record after accruing 25 miles (40 kilometers) of driving. The previous record was held by the Soviet Union's Lunokhod 2 rover.

Printing the metals of the future Posted: 28 Jul 2014 04:20 PM PDT 3-D printers can create all kinds of things, from eyeglasses to implantable medical devices, straight from a computer model and without the need for molds. But for making spacecraft, engineers sometimes need custom parts that traditional manufacturing techniques and standard 3-D printers can't create, because they need to have the properties of multiple metals. Now, researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, are implementing a printing process that transitions from one metal or alloy to another in a single object.

Cassini spacecraft reveals 101 geysers and more on icy Saturn moon Posted: 28 Jul 2014 04:15 PM PDT Scientists using mission data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft have identified 101 distinct geysers erupting on Saturn's icy moon Enceladus. Their analysis suggests it is possible for liquid water to reach from the moon's underground sea all the way to its surface.

Forced mutations doom HIV: How potential HIV drug exacts its toll on viral populations Posted: 28 Jul 2014 01:23 PM PDT Fifteen years ago, medical researchers had a novel idea for an HIV drug. They thought if they could induce the virus to mutate uncontrollably, they could force it to weaken and eventually die out -- a strategy that our immune system uses against many viruses.

Mineral magic? Common mineral capable of making and breaking bonds Posted: 28 Jul 2014 01:23 PM PDT Researchers have demonstrated how a common mineral acts as a catalysts for specific hydrothermal organic reactions -- negating the need for toxic solvents or expensive reagents.

Dementia patients more likely to get implanted pacemakers, says study Posted: 28 Jul 2014 01:23 PM PDT People with dementia are more likely to get implanted pacemakers for heart rhythm irregularities, such as atrial fibrillation, than people who don't have cognitive difficulties, according to researchers. The researchers noted the finding runs counter to expectations that less aggressive interventions are the norm for patients with the incurable and disabling illness.

Endurance runners more likely to die of heat stroke than heart condition Posted: 28 Jul 2014 01:23 PM PDT Heat stroke is 10 times more likely than cardiac events to be life-threatening for runners during endurance races in warm climates, according to a new study. The authors noted the findings may play a role in the ongoing debate over pre-participation ECG screenings for preventing sudden death in athletes by offering a new perspective on the greatest health risk for runners.

Running reduces risk of death regardless of duration, speed Posted: 28 Jul 2014 01:23 PM PDT Running for only a few minutes a day or at slow speeds may significantly reduce a person's risk of death from cardiovascular disease compared to someone who does not run, according to a new study.

Memory relies on astrocytes, the brain's lesser known cells: supportive cells vital in cognitive function Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:40 PM PDT When you're expecting something -- like the meal you've ordered at a restaurant -- or when something captures your interest, unique electrical rhythms sweep through your brain.

Physicists unlock nature of high-temperature superconductivity Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:40 PM PDT Physicists have identified the 'quantum glue' that underlies a promising type of superconductivity -- a crucial step towards the creation of energy superhighways that conduct electricity without current loss.

Stress-tolerant tomato relative sequenced Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:40 PM PDT The genome of Solanum pennellii, a wild relative of the domestic tomato, has been published by an international group of researchers. The new genome information may help breeders produce tastier, more stress-tolerant tomatoes.

Stimulation of brain region restores consciousness to animals under general anesthesia Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:40 PM PDT Stimulating the ventral tegmental area, one of two dopamine-producing regions in the brain, was able to arouse animals receiving general anesthesia with either isoflurane or propofol. The same effect did not result from stimulation of the substantia nigra.

Glucose 'control switch' in the brain key to both types of diabetes Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:39 PM PDT Researchers have pinpointed a mechanism in part of the brain that is key to sensing glucose levels in the blood, linking it to both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Cell's recycling center implicated in division decisions Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:39 PM PDT Most cells do not divide unless there is enough oxygen present to support their offspring, but certain cancer cells and other cell types circumvent this rule. Researchers have now identified a mechanism that overrides the cells' warning signals, enabling cancers to continue to divide even without a robust blood supply. In the process, the researchers found that lysosomes -- the cell's protein 'recycling centers' -- help govern cell division decisions.

Brain's habenula signals how bad things could be Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:39 PM PDT An evolutionarily ancient and tiny part of the brain tracks expectations about nasty events, according to new research. The study demonstrates for the first time that the human habenula, half the size of a pea, tracks predictions about negative events, like painful electric shocks, suggesting a role in learning from bad experiences.

Impact of Deepwater Horizon oil spill on coral is deeper and broader than predicted Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:39 PM PDT A new discovery of two additional coral communities showing signs of damage from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill expands the impact footprint of the 2010 spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Global warming amplifier: Rising water vapor in upper troposphere to intensify climate change Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:39 PM PDT A new study from scientists at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science and colleagues confirms rising levels of water vapor in the upper troposphere -- a key amplifier of global warming -- will intensify climate change impacts over the next decades. The new study is the first to show that increased water vapor concentrations in the atmosphere are a direct result of human activities.

Facial features are the key to first impressions Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:38 PM PDT A new study shows that it is possible to accurately predict first impressions using measurements of physical features in everyday images of faces, such as those found on social media.

Irreversible inhibitor for KRAS gene mutation involved in lung, colon, and pancreatic cancers Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:36 PM PDT Cancer researchers have found a molecule that selectively and irreversibly interferes with the activity of a mutated cancer gene common in 30 percent of tumors.

Genetic mutations linked to salivary gland tumors Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:36 PM PDT Research conducted at the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute has discovered links between a set of genes known to promote tumor growth and mucoepidermoid carcinoma, an oral cancer that affects the salivary glands.

Researchers produce record-length mirror-image protein Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:36 PM PDT Biochemists have reported an advance in the production of functional mirror-image proteins. In a new study, they have chemically synthesized a record-length mirror-image protein and used this protein to demonstrate that a cellular chaperone, which helps "fold" large or complex proteins into their functional state, has a previously unappreciated talent -- the ability to fold mirror-image proteins. These findings will greatly facilitate mirror-image protein production for applications in drug discovery and synthetic biology.

Learning the smell of fear: Mothers teach babies their own fears via odor, animal study shows Posted: 28 Jul 2014 12:36 PM PDT Babies can learn what to fear in the first days of life just by smelling the odor of their distressed mothers', new research suggests. And not just "natural" fears: If a mother experienced something before pregnancy that made her fear something specific, her baby will quickly learn to fear it too -- through her odor when she feels fear.

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