ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Practicing tai chi reduces risk of falling in older adults
• What's eating at Pluto?
• Satellites and shipwrecks: Landsat satellite spots foundered ships in coastal waters
• NASA Targets May 2018 Launch of Mars InSight Mission
• Double cheeseburger and a diet soda, please
• Science can now link climate change with some extreme weather events
• Differential immuno-capture biochip offers specific leukocyte counting for HIV diagnosis
• Change in mosquito mating may control Zika virus
• Olin drone research aims to help fight wildfires
• The dangers, risks of binge drinking
• Circuit for experience-informed decision-making identified in rats
• Virus common among livestock depends on a micro-RNA to replicate
• Parents of premature babies get confidence boost from home-from-hospital project
• Antitrust laws may hinder socially-responsible business collaboration
• Ultrasonic surgery reduces pain, swelling after chin surgery
• Functional heart muscle regenerated in decellularized human hearts
• CPAP may not improve glycemic control in people with diabetes
• Terrestrial biosphere contributing to warming climate
• If you treat a parent's depression, will their child's asthma improve?
• Early detection: Colorectal cancer rates declining in Germany
• Unpacking space radiation to control astronaut, earthbound cancer risk
• Wildland fire emissions worse in polluted areas
• Skin has the nerve to tell you to scratch
• Science curriculum tailored to English language learners boosts student achievement
• Touting 'naturalness' of breastfeeding could backfire, experts warn
• Individual rewards can boost team performance at work
• New analytical model for e-sports predicts who is winning, and why
• Symbiosis with partner exchange
• Lack of TRPV2 impairs thermogenesis in mouse brown adipose tissue
• World's thinnest lens to revolutionize cameras
• Researchers develop promising candidate for next-generation anti-malarial drug
• Researchers dig up new molecular details on 'the other type' of stem cells
• Soap bubbles for treating stenosed blood vessels
• New, non-invasive method allows to determine whether a child is celiac or not with just a puncture in the finger
• Android smartphone data spies exposed like bank robbers
• Measuring crop plants
• Family-based counseling increases physical activity, improves diet quality in children
• Insufficient knowledge of stroke patient's last hours of life
• Supercondenser stores heat as electricity
• Lower oil prices lead to higher carbon dioxide emissions
• Evidence in the Cassia Hills of Idaho, west of Yellowstone, reveals 12 catastrophic eruptions
• Different kinds of physical activity shown to improve brain volume, cut Alzheimer's risk in half
• Heart attacks could be reduced by rethinking the way we prescribe statins
• New lifeline for patients with inoperable neuroendocrine cancers
• Younger sibling may be good for your child's health
• Paleontologists discover 250-million-year-old new species of reptile in Brazil
• Seismic for the spine: Vibration technology offers alternative to MRI
• Multi-gene test identifies early breast cancer patients who can be spared chemo
• Can nutritional supplements impact genetic hearing loss in children?
• Foldable material can change size, volume and shape
• Using statistics to predict rogue waves
• Light exposure improves depressive symptoms among cancer survivors
• Flooding alleviated by targeted tree planting and river restoration, scientists discover
• Study identifies that state laws that 'substantially reduce' gun deaths
• Blacks face a higher risk of kidney failure than whites, regardless of genetics

Practicing tai chi reduces risk of falling in older adults Posted: 11 Mar 2016 12:01 PM PST Researchers have compared the effects of tai chi to leg strengthening exercises (a physical therapy called 'lower extremity training,' or LET) in reducing falls. After six months of training, people in the tai chi group were significantly less likely to experience an injury-causing fall than were people in the LET group.

What's eating at Pluto? Posted: 11 Mar 2016 11:25 AM PST Far in the western hemisphere, scientists on NASA's New Horizons mission have discovered what looks like a giant "bite mark" on Pluto's surface. They suspect it may be caused by a process known as sublimation -- the transition of a substance from a solid to a gas. The methane ice-rich surface on Pluto may be sublimating away into the atmosphere, exposing a layer of water-ice underneath, they report.

Satellites and shipwrecks: Landsat satellite spots foundered ships in coastal waters Posted: 11 Mar 2016 11:24 AM PST An estimated 3 million shipwrecks are scattered across the planet's oceans. Most maritime mishaps take place close to shore where hazards to navigation -- such as rocks, reefs, other submerged objects and vessel congestion -- are abundant. While there is a romantic association of shipwrecks and buried treasure, it is desirable to know where they are located for many other practical reasons. The ships may be of historical significance or, if the hard substrate of the ship has created a reef, of ecological significance. Modern-era shipwrecks are also commonly sources of pollution, leaking onboard fuel and corroded heavy metals. Nearshore shipwrecks can be navigational hazards themselves.

NASA Targets May 2018 Launch of Mars InSight Mission Posted: 11 Mar 2016 11:22 AM PST NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) mission to study the deep interior of Mars is targeting a new launch window that begins May 5, 2018, with a Mars landing scheduled for Nov. 26, 2018.

Double cheeseburger and a diet soda, please Posted: 11 Mar 2016 11:18 AM PST While more consumers than ever are making healthier choices at the grocery store, they tend to purchase a balance of healthy and less-healthy foods, according to new research.

Science can now link climate change with some extreme weather events Posted: 11 Mar 2016 10:35 AM PST Extreme weather events like floods, heat waves and droughts can devastate communities and populations worldwide. Recent scientific advances have enabled researchers to confidently say that the increased intensity and frequency of some, but not all, of these extreme weather events is influenced by human-induced climate change, according to a new report.

Differential immuno-capture biochip offers specific leukocyte counting for HIV diagnosis Posted: 11 Mar 2016 10:32 AM PST A highly sensitive biosensor based on a differential immuno-capture technology can detect sub-populations of white blood cells, scientists report. As part of a small, disposable biochip, the microfluidic biosensor can count CD4+/CD8+ T cells quickly and accurately for AIDS diagnosis in the field.

Change in mosquito mating may control Zika virus Posted: 11 Mar 2016 10:32 AM PST Genetic cues from male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes passed on during sex affect which genes are turned on or off in a females' reproductive tract post-mating, including genes related to blood feeding, egg development and immune defense, according to new research.The researchers believe such processes provide information that could be exploited to fight mosquito-borne diseases, such as dengue fever, chikungunya and Zika virus.

Olin drone research aims to help fight wildfires Posted: 11 Mar 2016 09:53 AM PST An American professor is working on proof of concept system to deploy drones into a wildfire and send back information in real time, potentially saving lives and livelihoods in the process.

The dangers, risks of binge drinking Posted: 11 Mar 2016 09:53 AM PST Experts take an in-depth look into a favorite college pastime -- binge drinking -- by understanding the dangers and risks of alcohol. Moderate drinking is defined as no more than one drink per day for women and no more than two drinks per day for men, translating to seven or fewer drinks per week for women and 14 or fewer drinks per week for men.

Circuit for experience-informed decision-making identified in rats Posted: 11 Mar 2016 09:50 AM PST Researchers have discovered how the rat brain 's memory and executive hubs talk with each other as decision-making is informed by past experiences. Also, the rat brain encodes memories for location during periods of stillness via a separate system than for memories of activity.

Virus common among livestock depends on a micro-RNA to replicate Posted: 11 Mar 2016 09:50 AM PST Increasingly, scientists are finding that small RNA molecules might be effective targets for antiviral drugs. Using a new screening method, researchers now show that a number of RNA viruses need access to micro-RNAs produced by their host cells to replicate.

Parents of premature babies get confidence boost from home-from-hospital project Posted: 11 Mar 2016 09:50 AM PST New parents benefit from help to prepare them to bring their premature babies home from hospital, researchers have found. A team examined the effects of a parent-orientated discharge planning process, known as the Train-to Home intervention.

Antitrust laws may hinder socially-responsible business collaboration Posted: 11 Mar 2016 09:50 AM PST American antitrust laws could hamper the efforts of companies to collaborate on sustainable and socially-responsible business practices, even as consumers and businesses increasingly value them, a new study suggests.

Ultrasonic surgery reduces pain, swelling after chin surgery Posted: 11 Mar 2016 09:50 AM PST For patients undergoing plastic surgery of the chin (genioplasty), the use of ultrasonic 'piezosurgery' equipment reduces trauma, pain, and swelling, compared to traditional surgical drills, reports a study.

Functional heart muscle regenerated in decellularized human hearts Posted: 11 Mar 2016 08:07 AM PST Researchers have taken some initial steps toward the creation of bioengineered human hearts using donor hearts stripped of components that would generate an immune response and cardiac muscle cells generated from induced pluripotent stem cells, which could come from a potential recipient.

CPAP may not improve glycemic control in people with diabetes Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:57 AM PST People with type 2 diabetes and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may not experience improved glycemic control by using continuous positive airway pressure, or CPAP, as some studies have suggested, according to the results of a randomized, controlled trial.

Terrestrial biosphere contributing to warming climate Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:57 AM PST Terrestrial biosphere is contributing to climate change because of human activities including agriculture, researchers report. The researchers used greenhouse gas data from 2001 to 2010 and compared it to information from pre-industrial emissions, enabling the team to explain changes created by human activity.

If you treat a parent's depression, will their child's asthma improve? Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:57 AM PST A new study is underway to determine whether treating a depressed caregiver will improve the child's asthma. The researchers say the findings eventually may reduce health disparities in child asthma because there is a higher percentage of depressed caregivers among children with asthma from minority and socio-economically disadvantaged groups.

Early detection: Colorectal cancer rates declining in Germany Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:56 AM PST The introduction of screening colonoscopy in Germany is showing results: Within ten years of the start of this screening program for the early detection of colorectal cancer, the number of new cases has significantly dropped in the age groups 55 years and over, research shows.

Unpacking space radiation to control astronaut, earthbound cancer risk Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:55 AM PST Personalizing the assessment of cancer risk due to space radiation may let NASA pinpoint astronauts who could withstand higher doses, removing one barrier to a trip to Mars.

Wildland fire emissions worse in polluted areas Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:55 AM PST When plant matter burns, it releases a complex mixture of gases and aerosols into the atmosphere. In forests subject to air pollution, these emissions may be more toxic than in areas of good air quality, according to a new study.

Skin has the nerve to tell you to scratch Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:55 AM PST A potential drug target for itching sensations has been developed by researchers. Their work shows that skin cells -- when exposed to certain itch-producing chemicals -- can powerfully regulate nearby sensory nerve cells and facilitate transmission of the itchy feelings to the brain. The ion channel TRPV4 functions in skin cells as a pivotal switch in this newly revealed signaling pathway.

Science curriculum tailored to English language learners boosts student achievement Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:54 AM PST In a large-scale study involving more than 6,000 fifth graders, an innovative science curriculum was found to have a positive impact on science learning for students with different levels of English proficiency.

Touting 'naturalness' of breastfeeding could backfire, experts warn Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:54 AM PST Breastfeeding campaigns that extol breastfeeding as the 'natural' way to feed infants could result in harmful decision-making by some parents on other important health matters, according to experts, who warn that promoting breastfeeding in this way may indirectly undercut important health practices not viewed as natural.

Individual rewards can boost team performance at work Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:54 AM PST Conventional wisdom has held that boosting team performance in the workplace should focus on rewarding entire teams that perform well -- and that rewarding individuals increases competition rather than helping team performance. But new research finds that rewarding individual workers can boost performance both for other workers and for the team.

New analytical model for e-sports predicts who is winning, and why Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:54 AM PST A new analytical model for e-sports not only helps game developers better understand how players perform, but can also predict the outcome of the game.

Symbiosis with partner exchange Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:52 AM PST In worm-bacteria symbioses, some microbes remain faithful to their hosts, others to their location. The results of this study clearly show how flexible and full of surprises marine symbioses are.

Lack of TRPV2 impairs thermogenesis in mouse brown adipose tissue Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:52 AM PST Brown adipose tissue (BAT), a major site for mammalian non-shivering thermogenesis, could be a target for prevention and treatment of human obesity. Transient receptor potential vanilloid 2 (TRPV2), a Ca2+-permeable cation channel, plays vital roles in the regulation of various cellular functions. Now researchers have revealed that lack of TRPV2 impairs thermogenesis in mouse brown adipose tissue.

World's thinnest lens to revolutionize cameras Posted: 11 Mar 2016 07:52 AM PST Scientists have created the world's thinnest lens, one two-thousandth the thickness of a human hair, opening the door to flexible computer displays and a revolution in miniature cameras. Researchers have said the discovery hinged on the remarkable potential of the molybdenum disulphide crystal.

Researchers develop promising candidate for next-generation anti-malarial drug Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:44 AM PST A therapeutic compound has been developed that is effective in inhibiting Plasmodium falciparum, one of five species of parasite that infects people with malaria, and the strain which causes the highest number of malaria deaths.

Researchers dig up new molecular details on 'the other type' of stem cells Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:42 AM PST Scientists reveal that the combination of two molecular signals determines which cells that have already differentiated can regain their stem cell properties.

Soap bubbles for treating stenosed blood vessels Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:42 AM PST Liposomes are currently used as drug delivery vehicles but recognized by the immune system. Scientists have shown that special artificial liposomes do not elicit any reaction in human and porcine sera as well as pigs.

New, non-invasive method allows to determine whether a child is celiac or not with just a puncture in the finger Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:42 AM PST A new, simple and non invasive method has been developed that allows clinicians to determine whether a child aged 2-4 suffers from celiac disease or not without the necessity of a blood extraction.

Android smartphone data spies exposed like bank robbers Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST When a bank is robbed, the loot will often contain a wad of manipulated banknotes. These will explode en route and release a colorful dye, marking the money as stolen. Researchers use a similar principle to identify spyware on smartphones. Computer scientists have now developed a matching application for the current version of the Android smartphone operating system, allowing for a more precise monitoring of malicious apps.

Measuring crop plants Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST What happens inside plants as they respond to environmental stimuli? How does the outward appearance, the phenotype, change in response to temperature and water availability? How does the local environment affect the growth of plants and which characteristics must breeders take into account in future varieties to increase yield and decrease water and nutrient requirements? The measuring of crop plants and their response to a changing environment is at the heart of a new large-scale project.

Family-based counseling increases physical activity, improves diet quality in children Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST Individualized and family-based lifestyle counseling helps 6-8-year-old children increase their physical activity levels and improve their diet quality during a two-year follow-up, a recent Finnish study has shown.

Insufficient knowledge of stroke patient's last hours of life Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST Caregivers are displaying insufficient knowledge of how things are for stroke patients the week before they die – for example, staff have difficulties stating whether the patients had someone with them at their death, or if they were experiencing pain. Care for stroke patients therefore risks becoming worse compared to patients who die from cancer.

Supercondenser stores heat as electricity Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST A supercondenser has been developed that can be charged by the sun. It contains no expensive or hazardous materials, has patents pending, and it should be fully possible to manufacture it on an industrial scale.

Lower oil prices lead to higher carbon dioxide emissions Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST If the price of oil decreases, carbon dioxide emissions increase. This is what two Spanish scientists claim after comparing the relationship between air pollution and economic development by using the real oil prices in Spain between 1874 and 2011 as an indicator. The scientists suggest a need to design new energy taxes.

Evidence in the Cassia Hills of Idaho, west of Yellowstone, reveals 12 catastrophic eruptions Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST Ancient super-eruptions west of Yellowstone, USA, were investigated by an international initiative to examine the frequency of massive volcanic events. Yellowstone famously erupted cataclysmically in recent times, but these were just the latest of a longer succession of huge explosive eruptions that burned a track from Oregon eastward toward Yellowstone during the past 16 million years.

Different kinds of physical activity shown to improve brain volume, cut Alzheimer's risk in half Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:41 AM PST A variety of physical activities from walking to gardening and dancing can improve brain volume and cut the risk of Alzheimer's disease by 50%, a new study suggests.

Heart attacks could be reduced by rethinking the way we prescribe statins Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST Millions of people take statins to help lower their cholesterol level. Currently statins are prescribed to patients based on their future risk of cardiovascular disease, mainly driven by age, which excludes many individuals who may benefit from them. A research team has developed a new approach to determine which individuals should receive these important medications. Their findings could improve prevention of heart disease, especially in younger people.

New lifeline for patients with inoperable neuroendocrine cancers Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST A novel drug proven to reduce the risk of disease progression by 79% offers new hope to patients with inoperable metastatic advanced midgut neuroendocrine cancer.

Younger sibling may be good for your child's health Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST Becoming a big brother or big sister before first grade may lower a child's risk of becoming obese, a new study suggests. Children the same age who didn't have a sibling were nearly three times more likely to be obese by first grade, the study showed.

Paleontologists discover 250-million-year-old new species of reptile in Brazil Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST A new fossil reptile that lived 250 million years ago in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, southernmost Brazil has been discovered by an international team of researchers. The species has been identified from a mostly complete and well preserved fossil skull.

Seismic for the spine: Vibration technology offers alternative to MRI Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST Vibration has potential as a diagnosis tool that could also identify new categories of back problems, twin control study shows. The findings show the viability of vibration as a diagnostic tool that could help improve MRI utilization in the short term.

Multi-gene test identifies early breast cancer patients who can be spared chemo Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST Researchers have shown for the first time that it is possible to use a multi-gene test to identify early breast cancer patients who can be spared chemo and who will still be alive and well five years after diagnosis. Results from the phase III PlanB trial, show that showed that 94 percent of women assessed as at low risk of a recurrence of their disease by the 21-gene Recurrence Score (Oncotype DX) test were disease-free after five years.

Can nutritional supplements impact genetic hearing loss in children? Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST An enhanced diet helped reduce hearing loss in mice with the genetic mutation most commonly responsible for childhood deafness. The study found that an antioxidant regimen of beta carotene (precursor to vitamin A), vitamins C and E and magnesium helped slow progression of hereditary deafness in the mice with a connexin 26 gene deletion. Mutations in this gene are a leading cause of genetic hearing loss in many populations.

Foldable material can change size, volume and shape Posted: 11 Mar 2016 05:39 AM PST A new type of foldable material has been designed that is versatile, tunable and self actuated. It can change size, volume and shape; it can fold flat to withstand the weight of an elephant without breaking, and pop right back up to prepare for the next task.

Using statistics to predict rogue waves Posted: 10 Mar 2016 06:41 PM PST Scientists have developed a mathematical model to derive the probability of extreme waves. This model uses multi-point statistics, the joint statistics of multiple points in time or space, to predict how likely extreme waves are. The results demonstrate that evolution of these probabilities obey a well-known function, greatly reducing the complexity of the results.

Light exposure improves depressive symptoms among cancer survivors Posted: 10 Mar 2016 06:41 PM PST Light therapy decreased depressive symptoms and normalized circadian rhythms among cancer survivors, according to researchers, who add that those exposed to a dim red light experienced no change in symptoms.

Flooding alleviated by targeted tree planting and river restoration, scientists discover Posted: 10 Mar 2016 06:41 PM PST Strategic planting of trees on floodplains could reduce the height of flooding in towns downstream by up to 20 percent, according to a study by an international team of scientists.

Study identifies that state laws that 'substantially reduce' gun deaths Posted: 10 Mar 2016 06:41 PM PST Gun-related deaths in the US could be reduced by more than 80 percent if three laws implemented in some states were extended nationally, an analysis suggests.

Blacks face a higher risk of kidney failure than whites, regardless of genetics Posted: 10 Mar 2016 06:41 PM PST Over nearly 25 years of follow-up, blacks had a higher risk of hypertension, diabetes, and kidney failure than whites, after adjustments. Most blacks with gene variants that have been linked to kidney disease experienced kidney function decline similar to blacks without the variants.

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