Newswise: SciNews

eStadium Application Brings Multimedia Sports Features to Smartphones

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 16:15:00 EST

eStadium application allows fans sitting in the stands of an athletic event to access video replays, up-to-the-second statistics, player bios, play-by-play analysis and a wealth of other information designed to enhance the thrill of the game.

Monell Center Joins With CAS to Host Beijing Meeting on Taste and Smell Research

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:15:00 EST

The Monell Center and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) are co-hosts of the Beijing International Meeting on Taste and Smell Research. Organized by Monell in collaboration with the CAS, the meeting will be the first international meeting on taste and smell to be held in China. The historic meeting will be held November 15-17 at the Beijing Marriot Hotel City Wall.

Dust Control Research Leads to a NIOSH Grant to Facilitate Adoption of Hazard Controls

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 12:40:00 EST

Barriers to the adoption of sanding tools that lead to healthier environments include productivity, work quality, and perceptions of benefits and risks.

New Landscape Rating System to Transform The Industry, Complete Green Building Puzzle

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:15:00 EST

The American Society of Landscape Architects, the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center at The University of Texas at Austin and the U.S. Botanic Garden today released the nation's first rating system for sustainable landscapes, with or without buildings.

Taking Aim at Mysterious DNA Structures in the Battle Against Cancer

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:00:00 EST

Designers of anti-cancer drugs are aiming their arrows at mysterious chunks of the genetic material DNA that may play a key role in preventing the growth and spread of cancer cells, according to an article in the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News, ACS' weekly newsmagazine.

An Inexpensive "Dipstick" Test for Pesticides in Foods

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

Scientists in Canada are reporting the development of a fast, inexpensive "dipstick" test to identify small amounts of pesticides that may exist in foods and beverages. Their paper-strip test is more practical than conventional pesticide tests, producing results in minutes rather than hours by means of an easy-to-read color-change, they say.

Curry-cure? Spicing Up the Effectiveness of a Potential Disease-fighter

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

Scientists are reporting development of a nano-size capsule that boosts the body's uptake of curcumin, an ingredient in yellow curry now being evaluated in clinical trials for treatment of several diseases. Their study is in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, a bi-weekly publication. Koji Wada and colleagues note that curcumin is a potent antioxidant found in the spice...

Toward Home-brewed Electricity with "Personalized Solar Energy"

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

New scientific discoveries are moving society toward the era of "personalized solar energy," in which the focus of electricity production shifts from huge central generating stations to individuals in their own homes and communities. That's the topic of a report by an international expert on solar energy scheduled for the November 2 issue of ACS' Inorganic Chemistry...

New Evidence Supports 19th Century Idea on Formation of Oil and Gas

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

Scientists in Washington, D.C. are reporting laboratory evidence supporting the possibility that some of Earth's oil and natural gas may have formed in a way much different than the traditional process described in science textbooks. Their study is scheduled for Nov./Dec. issue of ACS' Energy & Fuels, a bi-monthly publication. Anurag Sharma and colleagues note that the traditional process...

Airborne Nitrogen Shifts Nutrient Limitation in Pristine Lakes

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 17:00:00 EST

The impact of airborne nitrogen released from the burning of fossil fuels and wide-spread use of fertilizers in agriculture is much greater that previously recognized and even extends to remote alpine lakes, according to a study published Nov. 6 in the journal Science.

AAN Names New Editor-in-Chief of Neurology Journal

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:40:00 EST

The American Academy of Neurology has named a new Editor-in-Chief of its medical journal Neurology(r), the world's leading clinical neurology journal. Robert A. Gross, MD, PhD, with the University of Rochester Medical Center and Director of the Strong Epilepsy Center in Rochester, New York, will officially succeed Editor-in-Chief John H. Noseworthy, MD, FAAN. Gross has been serving as Interim Editor-in-Chief since Noseworthy resigned from the position earlier this year to become president and CEO of the Mayo Clinic.

Mom Was Right: Nice Guys Don't Always Finish Last

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:30:00 EST

Picture it: One jerk in a bar spends the night delivering bad come-ons to women. By the end of the evening, the women aren't receptive to even the nicest guys around. It's a scenario with a basis in evolutionary theory. Males increase their fitness by acquiring more mates; however, this is often not the case for females - and therein lies the conflict.

How Size Matters for Catalysts

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:00:00 EST

Chemists found the first conclusive link between the size of catalyst particles on a surface, their electronic properties and their ability to speed reactions. It is a step toward better catalysts for energy production and to fight global warming.

Horse Genome Sequence and Analysis Published in Science

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:00:00 EST

An international team of researchers has decoded the genome of the domestic horse Equus caballus, revealing a genome structure with remarkable similarities to humans and more than one million genetic differences across a variety of horse breeds. In addition to shedding light on a key part of the mammalian branch of the evolutionary tree, the work also provides a critical starting point for mapping disease genes in horses.

Researchers Hail Innovative Plan to Save Rainforest, Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:15:00 EST

An innovative proposal by the Ecuadorian government to protect an untouched, oil rich region of Amazon rainforest is a precedent-setting and potentially economically viable approach, says a team of environmental researchers from the University of Maryland, the World Resources Institute and Save America's Forests.

Researchers Develop Novel Cancer Detection Method

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 12:25:00 EST

Clarkson University researchers have developed a novel method of detection of cervical cancer cells using nonspecific adhesion of silica beads to cells.

Story Tips From the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory November 2009

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST

1) Fuel economy ratings for the new 2010 model year automobiles are posted at www.fueleconomy.gov, which ORNL maintains for the U.S. DOE and the U.S. EPA; 2) A team led by ORNL's Nina Balke has moved closer to developing more rugged memory and logic devices; 3) Heavy trucks are less heavy but just as safe and rugged because of steel rail frames; 4) A new approach to crunching massive volumes of data uses neural networks like an artificial brain.

UMB Received 104 NIH Research Grants Under the Federal Stimulus Bill

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:30:00 EST

Funding harvest reflects an overall expansion of vital research programs at UMB's professional schools.

Hubble Image Showcases Star Birth in M83, the Southern Pinwheel

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST

Hubble's new Wide Field Camera 3 has captured the colorful and stunning detail of star birth in nearby galaxy M83.

Education and Planning Cut Death Toll in Samoa Tsunami

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 08:35:00 EST

Community-based education and awareness programs minimized the death toll from the recent Samoan tsunami, according to a team of researchers that traveled to Samoa last month. Funded by a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant, the team collected data to document the impacts of the earthquake and ensuing tsunami that occurred on Sept. 29.

NIST Quantifies Low Levels of 'Heart Attack Risk' Protein

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

Searching for a needle in a haystack may seem futile, but it's worth it if the needle is a hard-to-detect protein that may identify a person at high risk of a heart attack. NIST researchers have taken the first steps toward standardizing the measurement of a blood protein whose presence in higher-than-normal levels may predict an elevated risk for cardiovascular disease.

Capturing Those In-Between Moments: NIST Solves Timing Problem in Molecular Modeling

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

A theoretical physicist at NIST has developed a method for calculating the motions and forces of thousands of atoms simultaneously over a wider range of time scales than previously possible. The method overcomes a longstanding timing gap in modeling nanometer-scale materials and many other physical, chemical and biological systems at atomic and molecular levels.

NIST, CU to Build Instrument to Help Search for Earth-like Planets

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) will collaborate with the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU) to build and apply a custom laser-based instrument--a frequency comb--to help search for extrasolar Earth-like planets.

NIST Test Proves 'The Eyes Have It' for ID Verification

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:00:00 EST

The eyes may be the mirror to the soul, but the iris reveals a person's true identity. A new report from NIST demonstrates that iris recognition algorithms can maintain their accuracy even with compact images, affirming their potential for large-scale identity management applications.

Scientists Reveal How Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells Differ from Embryonic Stem Cells and Tissue of Derivation

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 16:00:00 EST

The same genes that are chemically altered during normal cell differentiation, as well as when normal cells become cancer cells, are also changed in stem cells that scientists derive from adult cells, according to new research from Johns Hopkins and Harvard.