ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Moon and asteroids share history, NASA scientists find
• Artifacts shed light on social networks of the past
• Scientists confirm first two-headed bull shark
• New study analyzes the risk to endangered whales from ships in southern California
• New model predicts hospital readmission risk
• Requests for lower-back MRIs often unnecessary, experts say
• Clean electricity from bacteria? Researchers make breakthrough in race to create 'bio-batteries'
• Could that cold sore increase your risk of memory problems?
• Research provides clues to alcohol addiction vulnerability
• Meeting broad, varied, competing priorities in conservation
• Ghanaian pregnant women who sleep on back at increased risk of stillbirth
• Developing our sense of smell
• Scientists use DNA to quickly unravel relationship between plants and insects
• Predictions of climate impacts on fisheries can be a mirage
• Hunger-spiking neurons could help control autoimmune diseases
• Decoding the genetic history of the Texas longhorn
• What a bunch of dodos! A catastrophic mass extinction of birds in the Pacific Islands followed the arrival of the first people
• Aye-ayes: Endangered lemurs' complete genomes are sequenced and analyzed for conservation efforts
• Parent-child violence leads to teen dating violence, study suggests
• Monoclonal antibody targets, kills leukemia cells
• 'Moderate' New England red tide forecasted for 2013
• Researchers decode biology of blood and iron disorders mapping out novel future therapies
• Office workers carry biomarker of potentially harmful flame retardant, study finds
• Arguments in the home linked with babies' brain functioning
• New mechanism for long-term memory formation discovered
• Other stomach microbiota modulate resistance to H. pylori-driven ulcers
• Violins can mimic the human voice
• Research documents lesser prairie chickens
• Peculiar parasitoid wasp found on rare sawfly developing in ferns
• Cleverly designed vaccine blocks H5 avian influenza in animal models
• Super batteries? Hybrid ribbons a gift for powerful batteries
• Personal monitor system could change healthcare
• Elevated carbon dioxide in atmosphere trims wheat, sorghum moisture needs
• T-cell therapy eradicates an aggressive leukemia in two children
• Genomes of peregrine and saker falcons throw lights on evolution of a predatory lifestyle
• Catalyst in a teacup: New approach to chemical reduction
• Glass-blowers at a nano scale
• Speed of light may not be fixed, scientists suggest; Ephemeral vacuum particles induce speed-of-light fluctuations
• New lung cancer study takes page from Google's playbook
• Leading experts disagree on evidence behind prostate cancer screening recommendations
• A marine animal to feed your eco-car
• Probing how pancreatic cancers metastasize
• Nerve regeneration research and therapy may get boost from new discovery
• Measuring the magnetism of antimatter: Antiprotons measured more accurately than ever before
• New urgency in battle against 'bound legs' disease
• Sequencing tracks animal-to-human transmission of bacterial pathogens
• Too much choice leads to riskier decisions, new study finds
• Old mice, young blood: Rejuvenating blood of mice by reprogramming stem cells that produce blood
• Ash from refuse could become hydrogen gas
• Laser empties atoms from the inside out
• Scientists propose alternative method for the study of ions

Moon and asteroids share history, NASA scientists find Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:52 PM PDT NASA and international researchers have discovered that Earth's moon has more in common than previously thought with large asteroids roaming our solar system.

Artifacts shed light on social networks of the past Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:40 PM PDT The advent of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter have made us all more connected, but long-distance social networks existed long before the Internet. A new study led by an anthropologist provides new information on social networks in the pre-Hispanic Southwest in A.D. 1200-1450. Among the findings are that people were able to maintain surprisingly long distance relationships in a time when the only mode of transportation was walking.

Scientists confirm first two-headed bull shark Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:40 PM PDT Scientists have confirmed the discovery of the first-ever, two-headed bull shark.

New study analyzes the risk to endangered whales from ships in southern California Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:39 PM PDT Researchers have identified areas off southern California with high numbers of whales and assessed their risk from potentially deadly collisions with commercial ship traffic.

New model predicts hospital readmission risk Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:39 PM PDT Preventing avoidable readmissions could result in improved patient care and significant cost savings. In a new model, researchers help clinicians identify which medical patients are at the greatest risk for potentially avoidable hospital readmissions so extra steps can be taken to keep those patients healthy and out of the hospital.

Requests for lower-back MRIs often unnecessary, experts say Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:39 PM PDT More than half of lower-back MRIs ordered at two Canadian hospitals were either inappropriate or of questionable value for patients. And family doctors were more apt to order these unnecessary tests compared to other specialists, demonstrates newly published medical research.

Clean electricity from bacteria? Researchers make breakthrough in race to create 'bio-batteries' Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:39 PM PDT Scientists have made an important breakthrough in the quest to generate clean electricity from bacteria. New findings show that proteins on the surface of bacteria can produce an electric current by simply touching a mineral surface. The research shows that it is possible for bacteria to lie directly on the surface of a metal or mineral and transfer electrical charge through their cell membranes. This means that it is possible to 'tether' bacteria directly to electrodes – bringing scientists a step closer to creating efficient microbial fuel cells or 'bio-batteries.'

Could that cold sore increase your risk of memory problems? Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:38 PM PDT The virus that causes cold sores, along with other viral or bacterial infections, may be associated with cognitive problems, according to a new study.

Research provides clues to alcohol addiction vulnerability Posted: 25 Mar 2013 03:38 PM PDT A team studying alcohol addiction has new research that might shed light on why some drinkers are more susceptible to addiction than others.

Meeting broad, varied, competing priorities in conservation Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:06 PM PDT Solutions that meet the broad, varied, and often competing priorities of conservation are difficult to come by. New research takes a hard look at why, in an effort to find ways to resolve the issue.

Ghanaian pregnant women who sleep on back at increased risk of stillbirth Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:06 PM PDT Pregnant women in Ghana who slept on their back (supine sleep) were at an increased risk of stillbirth compared to women who did not sleep on their back, according to new research.

Developing our sense of smell Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:06 PM PDT Biologists have found that neural-crest stem cells--multipotent, migratory cells unique to vertebrates that give rise to facial bones, smooth muscle, and other structures -- also play a key role in building the nose's olfactory sensory neurons, the only neurons that regenerate throughout adult life. Learning how they form may offer insights into how neurons in general can be induced to differentiate or regenerate and new avenues for the treatment of neurological disorders or injury.

Scientists use DNA to quickly unravel relationship between plants and insects Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:05 PM PDT It can take years of direct observation for a researcher to fully understand the diets of a community of herbivorous insects in a tropical rain forest. Now, scientists are paving a fast track using the DNA found inside the insects' stomachs, potentially turning years of research into months. This method will help scientists understand the ecology and evolution of plant-herbivore interactions more efficiently.

Predictions of climate impacts on fisheries can be a mirage Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:05 PM PDT In the early 1940s, California fishermen hauled in a historic bounty of sardine that set the backdrop for John Steinbeck's "Cannery Row" novel. But by the end of the decade the nets came up empty and the fishery collapsed. Where did they all go? According to a new study, the forces behind the sardine mystery are a dynamic and interconnected moving target.

Hunger-spiking neurons could help control autoimmune diseases Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:05 PM PDT Neurons that control hunger in the central nervous system also regulate immune cell functions, implicating eating behavior as a defense against infections and autoimmune disease development, researchers have found.

Decoding the genetic history of the Texas longhorn Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:05 PM PDT Researchers analyzed almost 50,000 genetic markers from 58 cattle breeds. They found that the Longhorn genome traces back through Christopher Columbus' second voyage to the New World, the Moorish invasion of Spain and the ancient domestication of the aurochs in the Middle East and India.

What a bunch of dodos! A catastrophic mass extinction of birds in the Pacific Islands followed the arrival of the first people Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:05 PM PDT The demise of the dodo is one of the better known bird extinctions in the world, but its sad fate was anticipated a thousand times over by its Pacific cousins.

Aye-ayes: Endangered lemurs' complete genomes are sequenced and analyzed for conservation efforts Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:05 PM PDT For the first time, the complete genomes of three separate populations of aye-ayes -- a type of lemur -- have been sequenced and analyzed in an effort to characterize patterns of genetic diversity and help guide conservation efforts for the species. The aye-aye species is found only on the island of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean and recently was re-classified as "endangered" by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.

Parent-child violence leads to teen dating violence, study suggests Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:02 PM PDT Teen dating violence is all too common and according to researchers it is a reflection of the relationships teens have with their parents or their parent's partner.

Monoclonal antibody targets, kills leukemia cells Posted: 25 Mar 2013 01:02 PM PDT Researchers have identified a humanized monoclonal antibody that targets and directly kills chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) cells.

'Moderate' New England red tide forecasted for 2013 Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:54 AM PDT New England is expected to experience a "moderate" red tide this spring and summer, report scientists studying the toxic algae that cause blooms in the Gulf of Maine. The "red tide" is caused by an alga Alexandrium fundyense, which produces a toxin that can cause paralytic shellfish poisoning. Red tide typically occurs annually along some portions of the Gulf of Maine coast. This year's outlook is similar to the 2012 red tide which was also classified as "moderate."

Researchers decode biology of blood and iron disorders mapping out novel future therapies Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:54 AM PDT Two studies shed light on the molecular biology of three blood disorders, leading to novel strategies to treat these diseases.

Office workers carry biomarker of potentially harmful flame retardant, study finds Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:54 AM PDT A flame retardant removed from children's pajamas 30 years ago but now used in polyurethane foam is prevalent in office environments, especially in older buildings, where urine testing of workers turned up widespread evidence of its biomarker, a new study has found.

Arguments in the home linked with babies' brain functioning Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:53 AM PDT Being exposed to arguments between parents is associated with the way babies' brains process emotional tone of voice, according to a new study. Infants were found to respond to an angry tone of voice, even when they're asleep.

New mechanism for long-term memory formation discovered Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:53 AM PDT Neurobiologists have found a novel molecular mechanism that helps trigger the formation of long-term memory. The researchers believe the discovery of this mechanism adds another piece to the puzzle in the ongoing effort to uncover the mysteries of memory and, potentially, certain intellectual disabilities.

Other stomach microbiota modulate resistance to H. pylori-driven ulcers Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:53 AM PDT Mice with different naturally occurring stomach bacteria have distinct susceptibilities to disease caused by Helicobacter pylori, the well-known cause of ulcers in humans, according to a new study. This is the first study to document (in mice) that the presence of certain bacteria in the stomach microbiota can prevent pathology from H. pylori.

Violins can mimic the human voice Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:53 AM PDT For many years, some musical experts have wondered if the sound of the Stradivari and Guarneri violins might incorporate such elements of speech as vowels and consonants. A Texas A&M University researcher has now provided the first evidence that the Italian violin masters tried to impart specific vowel sounds to their violins.

Research documents lesser prairie chickens Posted: 25 Mar 2013 10:52 AM PDT Scientists have been studying the lesser prairie chicken (LPC), a prairie grouse native to the West Texas landscape, for more than three decades. Now this research could be square in the middle of an ongoing debate whether to protect the bird as threatened under the Endangered Species Act.

Peculiar parasitoid wasp found on rare sawfly developing in ferns Posted: 25 Mar 2013 09:56 AM PDT An Austrian amateur entomologist discovered a peculiar parasitoid wasp living on a rare sawfly, living inside ferns. It is the first time ever that the parasitoid is reared. The female parasitoid has the unusual ability to extend and modify the shape of its metasoma, or rear body, during its first day of appearance from the gall.

Cleverly designed vaccine blocks H5 avian influenza in animal models Posted: 25 Mar 2013 09:56 AM PDT Until now, most experimental vaccines against the highly lethal H5N1 avian influenza virus have lacked effectiveness. But a new vaccine has proven highly effective against the virus when tested in both mice and ferrets. It is also effective against the H9 subtype of avian influenza.

Super batteries? Hybrid ribbons a gift for powerful batteries Posted: 25 Mar 2013 09:56 AM PDT Ribbons of vanadium oxide and graphene become ultrafast charging and discharging electrodes for lithium-ion batteries in new research. The ribbons are thousands of times thinner than a sheet of paper, yet have potential that far outweighs current materials for their ability to charge and discharge very quickly.

Personal monitor system could change healthcare Posted: 25 Mar 2013 09:44 AM PDT A wireless personal health monitoring system using smartphones to upload data via the Internet will revolutionize the U.S. healthcare industry, its pioneering creators say.

Elevated carbon dioxide in atmosphere trims wheat, sorghum moisture needs Posted: 25 Mar 2013 09:44 AM PDT Agronomy researchers found that elevated levels of carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere have an upside -- a reduced need for moisture in some important crops.

T-cell therapy eradicates an aggressive leukemia in two children Posted: 25 Mar 2013 09:43 AM PDT Two children with an aggressive form of childhood leukemia had a complete remission of their disease -- showing no evidence of cancer cells in their bodies -- after treatment with a novel cell therapy that reprogrammed their immune cells to rapidly multiply and destroy leukemia cells.

Genomes of peregrine and saker falcons throw lights on evolution of a predatory lifestyle Posted: 25 Mar 2013 08:12 AM PDT Researchers have completed the genome sequencing and analysis of two iconic falcons, the peregrine and saker falcons. The work provides an invaluable resource for the deep understanding of the adaptive evolution in raptors and the genetic basis of their wide distribution.

Catalyst in a teacup: New approach to chemical reduction Posted: 25 Mar 2013 08:12 AM PDT Taking their inspiration from nature, scientists have developed a new method for carrying out chemical reduction – an industrial process used to produce fuels and chemicals that are vital for modern society. Their catalyst-based approach has the big advantages that it uses cheap, replenishable reagents and it works well at room temperature and in air – so much so, it can even be carried out safely in a teacup.

Glass-blowers at a nano scale Posted: 25 Mar 2013 08:11 AM PDT Very much like a glass-blower, researchers have managed to shape the exit hole of a glass capillary and finely control its diameter between 200 nanometers and zero.

Speed of light may not be fixed, scientists suggest; Ephemeral vacuum particles induce speed-of-light fluctuations Posted: 25 Mar 2013 08:11 AM PDT Two new articles challenge established wisdom about the nature of vacuum. In one article scientists have identified a quantum level mechanism for interpreting vacuum as being filled with pairs of virtual particles with fluctuating energy values. As a result, the inherent characteristics of vacuum, like the speed of light, may not be a constant after all, but fluctuate.

New lung cancer study takes page from Google's playbook Posted: 25 Mar 2013 08:11 AM PDT A new study shows that the same sort of mathematical model that Google uses to predict which websites people want to visit may help researchers predict how lung cancer spreads through the human body.

Leading experts disagree on evidence behind prostate cancer screening recommendations Posted: 25 Mar 2013 08:10 AM PDT Do the results of recent randomized trials justify the recent U.S. recommendation against yearly measurement of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) as a screening test for prostate cancer?

A marine animal to feed your eco-car Posted: 25 Mar 2013 07:14 AM PDT The marine animal tunicate can be used both as biofuel and fish food, according to new research. On the ocean floor, under the pier, and on ship ropes – that's where the tunicates live. Tunicates are marine filter feeders that serve as bacteria eaters and as a foodstuff in Korea and Japan. But in the future they may become more prevalent. Researchers have found that a certain type of tunicate – ascidiacea – can be used as a renewable source of biofuel and fish food.

Probing how pancreatic cancers metastasize Posted: 25 Mar 2013 07:14 AM PDT Researchers have discovered that a protein found in the cells surrounding pancreatic cancers play a role in the spread of the disease to other parts of the body.

Nerve regeneration research and therapy may get boost from new discovery Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:40 AM PDT A new mechanism for guiding the growth of nerves that involves cell-death machinery may bring advances in neurological medicine and research.

Measuring the magnetism of antimatter: Antiprotons measured more accurately than ever before Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:40 AM PDT In a breakthrough that could one day yield important clues about the nature of matter itself, scientists have succeeded in measuring the magnetic charge of single particles of matter and antimatter more accurately than ever before.

New urgency in battle against 'bound legs' disease Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:40 AM PDT The harm done by konzo -- a disease overshadowed by the war and drought it tends to accompany -- goes beyond its devastating physical effects to impair children's memory, problem solving and other cognitive functions.

Sequencing tracks animal-to-human transmission of bacterial pathogens Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:37 AM PDT Researchers have used whole genome sequencing to reveal if drug-resistant bacteria are transmitted from animals to humans in two disease outbreaks that occurred on different farms in Denmark. The results confirm animal-to-human transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a disease-causing bacterium that carries the recently described mecC gene.

Too much choice leads to riskier decisions, new study finds Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:37 AM PDT The more choices people have, the riskier the decisions they make, according to a new study which sheds light on how we behave when faced with large amounts of information.

Old mice, young blood: Rejuvenating blood of mice by reprogramming stem cells that produce blood Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:36 AM PDT The blood of young and old people differs. Scientists have now rejuvenated the blood of mice by reversing, or reprogramming, the stem cells that produce blood.

Ash from refuse could become hydrogen gas Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:35 AM PDT Every year, millions of tons of environmentally harmful ash is produced worldwide, and is mostly dumped in landfill sites or, in some countries, used as construction material. The ash is what is left when rubbish has been burnt in thermal power stations. A researcher has now developed a technique to use the ash to produce hydrogen gas.

Laser empties atoms from the inside out Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:35 AM PDT Plasma physicists have used one of the world's most powerful lasers to create highly unusual plasma composed of hollow atoms. The experimental work demonstrated that it is possible to remove the two most deeply bound electrons from atoms, emptying the inner most quantum shell and leading to a distinctive plasma state.

Scientists propose alternative method for the study of ions Posted: 25 Mar 2013 06:35 AM PDT Scientists have proposed a new experimental method for researching positively charged ions. The study involved investigating the electronic structure of the argon ions using synchrotron radiation.

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