Morning Digest: Funerals begin for Newtown victims as schools confront tragedy

	Click to View in Browser 12/17/2012 Funerals begin for Newtown victims as schools confront tragedy NEWTOWN, Connecticut (Reuters) - The small Connecticut town shattered by an act President Barack Obama called "unconscionable evil," holds on Monday the first two of 20 funerals for schoolchildren massacred in their classrooms last week.. Syrian vice president says neither side can win war BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian Vice President Farouq al-Sharaa said that neither the forces of President Bashar al-Assad nor rebels seeking to overthrow him can win the war which is now being fought on the outskirts of Assad's powerbase in Damascus.. Stock futures signal flat to higher open PARIS (Reuters) - Stock pointed to a flat to higher open on Wall Street on Monday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.09 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.04 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.01 percent at 4:57 a.m. ET.. "Hobbit" film sets December record in U.S., Canada debut (Reuters) - "The Hobbit" brought home a big box office treasure over the weekend, setting a December movie record with $84.77 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales as legions of fans turned out for the long-awaited big-screen return to Middle Earth.. 49ers stave off furious Patriots fightback to reach playoffs (Reuters) - The San Francisco 49ers squandered a 28-point lead against an explosive New England Patriots on Sunday but recovered late on to secure a playoffs berth with a thrilling 41-34 road victory.. Google could emerge unscathed from federal web search probe: WSJ (Reuters) - Google may not face any major repercussions from the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) two-year-old anti-trust investigation into its web search business, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.. Mind-controlled robotic arm gets closer than ever to human limb LONDON (Reuters) - Researchers in the United States have developed a robotic arm controlled directly by thought with a level of agility closer than ever to a normal human limb.. Japanese women enamored of "Mr Right" love game apps TOKYO (Reuters) - After being saved from kidnapping, you discover you're the daughter of the prime minister and your life is in imminent danger. You are introduced to a handful of handsome bodyguards, and must decide who you want to protect you 24 hours a day.. Related Video All clear after bomb scare at Connecticut Church Japan's Noda steps down after election defeat Great Debate How Obama seized the narrative Public agrees: Next step is gun control A daily digest of breaking business news, coverage of the US economy, major corporate news and the financial markets. Register Today   The latest Reuters articles on M&A, IPOs, private equity, hedge funds and regulatory updates delivered to your inbox each day. Register Today   » MORE NEWSLETTERS - 3 Times Square New York, NY 10036 USA © Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters Ensure delivery of Reuters Newsmails, add mail@nl.reuters.com to your address book. Details Subscribe to other Reuters newsletters. Unsubscribe from this newsletter. Follow us on Twitter Friend us on Facebook Forward to a friend

ScienceDaily: Top Health News

---

• Woman with quadriplegia feeds herself chocolate using mind-controlled robot arm
• Resistance to cocaine addiction may be passed down from father to son
• Ordinary heart cells become 'biological pacemakers' with injection of single gene
• New technique could make cell-based immune therapies for cancer safer and more effective
• Even the smallest stroke can damage brain tissue and impair cognitive function
• Kidney failure under the microscope
• Significant link found between daytime sleepiness and vitamin D
• The mu opioid receptor genotype may be a marker for those who drink for alcohol's rewarding effects
• Chronic alcohol and marijuana use during youth can compromise white-matter integrity
• Alcohol marketers use drinker identity and brand allegiance to entice underage youth
• Negative emotionality may make some people more prone to alcohol or other drug problems
• Ibrutinib has 'unprecedented' impact on mantle cell lymphoma

Woman with quadriplegia feeds herself chocolate using mind-controlled robot arm Posted: 17 Dec 2012 12:09 AM PST Reaching out to "high five" someone, grasping and moving objects of different shapes and sizes, feeding herself dark chocolate. For Jan Scheuermann and a team of researchers, accomplishing these seemingly ordinary tasks demonstrated for the first time that a person with longstanding quadriplegia can maneuver a mind-controlled, human-like robot arm in seven dimensions (7D) to consistently perform many of the natural and complex motions of everyday life.

Resistance to cocaine addiction may be passed down from father to son Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST New research reveals that sons of male rats exposed to cocaine are resistant to the rewarding effects of the drug, suggesting that cocaine-induced changes in physiology are passed down from father to son.

Ordinary heart cells become 'biological pacemakers' with injection of single gene Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Researchers have reprogrammed ordinary heart cells to become exact replicas of highly specialized pacemaker cells by injecting a single gene -- a major step forward in the decade-long search for a biological therapy to correct erratic and failing heartbeats.

New technique could make cell-based immune therapies for cancer safer and more effective Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Scientists have shown for the first time the effectiveness of a new technique that could allow the development of more-specific, cell-based immune therapies for cancer.

Even the smallest stroke can damage brain tissue and impair cognitive function Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Blocking a single tiny blood vessel in the brain can harm neural tissue and even alter behavior, a new study in animals has shown. But these consequences can be mitigated by a drug already in use, suggesting treatment that could slow the progress of dementia associated with cumulative damage to miniscule blood vessels that feed brain cells.

Kidney failure under the microscope Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:24 AM PST Better targeted treatments for 20 percent of renal failure patients are on the horizon following a key discovery about the role of white blood cells in kidney inflammation.

Significant link found between daytime sleepiness and vitamin D Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST A new study suggests that there is a significant correlation between excessive daytime sleepiness and vitamin D, and race plays an important factor.

The mu opioid receptor genotype may be a marker for those who drink for alcohol's rewarding effects Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Previous research has found that individuals who become more energized, talkative, and/or social when they drink – versus sedated or sleepy – are more likely to drink more heavily. A new study examined the impact of a mutation of the mu opioid receptor gene on the effects of drinking. Findings indicate that the OPRM1 genotype seems to moderate the pleasant and stimulating effects to alcohol among alcohol-dependent individuals.

Chronic alcohol and marijuana use during youth can compromise white-matter integrity Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Chronic alcohol and marijuana during youth is associated with worsened neurocognitive abilities into later adolescence and adulthood. A new study examines fiber tract integrity affected by adolescent alcohol and marijuana use for 1.5 years. Results support previous findings of reduced white-matter integrity in these youth.

Alcohol marketers use drinker identity and brand allegiance to entice underage youth Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Underage youth are regularly exposed to alcohol marketing. New research has examined associations between alcohol marketing and binge drinking by youth. Results indicate these associations are mediated by drinker identity and brand allegiance, which are actively cultivated by alcohol marketers.

Negative emotionality may make some people more prone to alcohol or other drug problems Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:09 PM PST Sensitivity to the stimulating effects of alcohol and other drugs is a risk marker for their problematic use. Negative emotionality has also been associated with substance use. New findings indicate that a high level of negative emotionality may lead to problem drinking when it occurs together with sensitivity to a drug-based reward.

Ibrutinib has 'unprecedented' impact on mantle cell lymphoma Posted: 14 Dec 2012 04:08 PM PST An international study of ibrutinib in people with relapsed or refractory mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) continues to show unprecedented and durable results with few side effects.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top Health News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

ScienceDaily: Top Science News

---

• Woman with quadriplegia feeds herself chocolate using mind-controlled robot arm
• Scientists discover evidence of giant panda's population history and local adaptation
• Ordinary heart cells become 'biological pacemakers' with injection of single gene
• 'Missing' polar weather systems could impact climate predictions

Woman with quadriplegia feeds herself chocolate using mind-controlled robot arm Posted: 17 Dec 2012 12:09 AM PST Reaching out to "high five" someone, grasping and moving objects of different shapes and sizes, feeding herself dark chocolate. For Jan Scheuermann and a team of researchers, accomplishing these seemingly ordinary tasks demonstrated for the first time that a person with longstanding quadriplegia can maneuver a mind-controlled, human-like robot arm in seven dimensions (7D) to consistently perform many of the natural and complex motions of everyday life.

Scientists discover evidence of giant panda's population history and local adaptation Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST A research team has successfully reconstructed a continuous population history of the giant panda from its origin to the present.

Ordinary heart cells become 'biological pacemakers' with injection of single gene Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Researchers have reprogrammed ordinary heart cells to become exact replicas of highly specialized pacemaker cells by injecting a single gene -- a major step forward in the decade-long search for a biological therapy to correct erratic and failing heartbeats.

'Missing' polar weather systems could impact climate predictions Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Intense but small-scale polar storms could make a big difference to climate predictions, according to new research. Difficult-to-forecast polar mesoscale storms occur frequently over the polar seas; however, they are missing in most climate models. New research shows that their inclusion could paint a different picture of climate change in years to come.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top Science News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

---

• Toward a new model of the cell: Everything you always wanted to know about genes
• Scientists discover evidence of giant panda's population history and local adaptation
• 'Missing' polar weather systems could impact climate predictions
• Action by 2020 key for limiting climate change

Toward a new model of the cell: Everything you always wanted to know about genes Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Turning vast amounts of genomic data into meaningful information about the cell is the great challenge of bioinformatics, with major implications for human biology and medicine. Researchers have proposed a new method that creates a computational model of the cell from large networks of gene and protein interactions, discovering how genes and proteins connect to form higher-level cellular machinery.

Scientists discover evidence of giant panda's population history and local adaptation Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST A research team has successfully reconstructed a continuous population history of the giant panda from its origin to the present.

'Missing' polar weather systems could impact climate predictions Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Intense but small-scale polar storms could make a big difference to climate predictions, according to new research. Difficult-to-forecast polar mesoscale storms occur frequently over the polar seas; however, they are missing in most climate models. New research shows that their inclusion could paint a different picture of climate change in years to come.

Action by 2020 key for limiting climate change Posted: 16 Dec 2012 10:25 AM PST Limiting climate change to target levels will become much more difficult to achieve, and more expensive, if action is not taken soon, according to a new analysis.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top Environment News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610