ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Drought alters recovery of Rocky Mountain forests after fire
• Many species now going extinct may vanish without a fossil trace
• US adults get failing grade in healthy lifestyle behavior
• Plants boost extreme temperatures by 5°C
• Scientists say many plants don't respond to warming as thought
• Why did we invent pottery?
• Details revealed for how plant creates anticancer compounds
• New gravity map gives best view yet inside Mars
• City birds are smarter than country birds
• Potential new treatment for prostate cancer
• Wrinkles and crumples make graphene better
• Improving therapy for a very common disorder, generalized anxiety
• Biochemist finds solution to 'acid shock' in craft brewers' sour beer production
• Team explores nanoscale objects and processes with microwave microscopy
• Better safe than sorry: Babies make quick judgments about adults' anger
• Pumping up energy storage with metal oxides
• Eating polyunsaturated fats linked to slowing diabetes progress for some
• Bump in Large Hadron Collider data has physicists electrified
• Why do sunbathers live longer than those who avoid the sun?
• Enhanced precision medicine with RNA sequencing
• Seeing isn't required to gesture like a native speaker
• 'Hypervirulent' strain of strep outbreak identified in Arizona and the Southwest
• No joke: Blondes aren't dumb, science says
• Lighting up disease-carrying mosquitoes
• Survival of the hardest working
• Scientists eliminate HIV-1 from genome of human T-Cells
• New way to control particle motions on 2-D materials
• Scientists extend the reach of single crystals
• Astrophysicists catch two supernovae at the moment of explosion
• Supporting the bioimaging revolution
• Engineers adapt laser method to create micro energy units
• The invisible world of human perception
• Parasites reveal how evolution has molded an ancient nuclear structure
• Eastern Monarch butterflies at risk of extinction unless numbers increase
• Affordable housing not so affordable when transportation costs soar
• Entanglement becomes easier to measure
• Tiny, ancient galaxy preserves record of catastrophic event
• Uncovering bacterial role in platinum formation
• Giving antibodies to infant macaques exposed to an HIV-like virus could clear infection
• Human carbon release rate is unprecedented in the past 66 million years of Earth's history
• Autism genes are in all of us, new research reveals
• Risk of multiple tipping points should be triggering urgent action on climate change
• Tracing the scent of fear
• Global warming pushes wines into uncharted terroir
• New model for how twisted bundles take shape
• New study may lead to improved treatment of type 2 diabetes
• Healthy gut could help prevent deadly side effect of bone marrow transplant
• Skin regeneration in technicolor
• Old tourist photos show seabird's rise over the last century
• Recycling pecan wood for commercial growing substrates
• Antipsychotic drugs linked to increased mortality among Parkinson's disease patients
• Review, view of future in cancer in adolescents, young adults
• Rosacea linked to increased Parkinson disease risk in Danish population study
• Psychiatric diagnoses in young transgender women
• More elderly using dangerous drug combinations
• Signal for embryologic al development
• 'Ethereal carbon': B.C. government presents a fossil fuel as 'clean'
• Hot larvae: Calculating dispersal from unique submarine hot spring ecosystems
• 'Silencer molecules' switch off cancer's ability to spread around body
• Yellow as the sunrise: Unraveling the structure, function of the enzyme aurone synthase

Drought alters recovery of Rocky Mountain forests after fire Posted: 21 Mar 2016 05:04 PM PDT A changing climate is altering the ability of Rocky Mountain forests to recover from wildfire, according to a new study. When warm, dry conditions lead to drought in the years following fires, it impedes the growth and establishment of vulnerable new post-fire seedlings. The study also shows that forest recovery has been negatively affected by increased distances between burned areas and the sources of seeds that typically replace trees lost to fire.

Many species now going extinct may vanish without a fossil trace Posted: 21 Mar 2016 05:04 PM PDT Scientists struggle to compare the magnitude of Earth's ongoing sixth mass-extinction event with the five great die-offs of prehistory. A new study by three paleontologists shows that the species now perishing may vanish without a permanent trace -- and earlier extinctions may be underestimated as well.

US adults get failing grade in healthy lifestyle behavior Posted: 21 Mar 2016 05:03 PM PDT Only 2.7 percent of the US adult population achieves all four of some basic behavioral characteristics that researchers say would constitute a 'healthy lifestyle' and help protect against cardiovascular disease, a recent study concluded.

Plants boost extreme temperatures by 5°C Posted: 21 Mar 2016 05:03 PM PDT Heatwaves from Europe to China are likely to be more intense and result in maximum temperatures that are 3 degrees Celsius to 5 degrees Celsius warmer than previously estimated by the middle of the century -- all because of the way plants on the ground respond to carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Scientists say many plants don't respond to warming as thought Posted: 21 Mar 2016 04:50 PM PDT A global study suggests that increases in plant respiration that could occur under global warming might not be as big as previously estimated, especially in the coldest regions. Since respiration adds CO2 to the air, it means that changes in plants might not add to the already growing burden as much as feared.

Why did we invent pottery? Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:40 PM PDT Archaeologists have revealed surprising new insights into why pottery production increased significantly at the end of the last Ice Age – with culture playing a bigger role than expected.

Details revealed for how plant creates anticancer compounds Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:40 PM PDT Rosy periwinkle is a plant that produces organic compounds used to treat cancer, arrhythmia, and other medical conditions. A Japanese research group has revealed the details of the metabolism process for these compounds on a cellular level. Their data suggests the existence of an unknown mechanism which regulates the creation, movement and distribution of compounds within plants.

New gravity map gives best view yet inside Mars Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:40 PM PDT A new map of Mars' gravity made with three NASA spacecraft is the most detailed to date, providing a revealing glimpse into the hidden interior of the Red Planet.

City birds are smarter than country birds Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:40 PM PDT Birds living in urban environments are smarter than birds from rural environments. But, why do city birds have the edge over their country friends? They adapted to their urban environments enabling them to exploit new resources more favorably then their rural counterparts.

Potential new treatment for prostate cancer Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Researchers have created a new therapeutic for prostate cancer that has shown great efficacy in mouse models of the disease. The treatment is designed to inhibit the activity of a protein called PAK-1, which contributes to the development of highly invasive prostate cancer cells.

Wrinkles and crumples make graphene better Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Researchers have developed a method for making super-wrinkled and super-crumpled sheets of the nanomaterial graphene. The research shows that the topography can enhance some of graphene's already interesting properties.

Improving therapy for a very common disorder, generalized anxiety Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Integrating motivational interviewing with cognitive behavioral therapy improves long-term patient improvement rates than CBT alone, results of a five-year, randomized clinical trial of a new combined treatment approach for severe generalized anxiety disorder suggest.

Biochemist finds solution to 'acid shock' in craft brewers' sour beer production Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Conditions common in the production of certain types of craft beers can inhibit the successful production of these brews, risking a growing segment of an industry whose economic impact was recently estimated at $55 billion. Sour beers are one of the fastest growing segments of the craft beer industry.

Team explores nanoscale objects and processes with microwave microscopy Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Researchers have demonstrated a nondestructive way to observe nanoscale objects and processes in conditions simulating their normal operating environments. Their novel approach combines ultrathin membranes with microwaves and a scanning probe.

Better safe than sorry: Babies make quick judgments about adults' anger Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Babies form generalizations about adults' anger and try to appease those they think might be anger-prone, new research indicates. It suggests that babies are capable of coming up with appeasement gestures in situations involving anger-prone adults.

Pumping up energy storage with metal oxides Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Material scientists have found certain metal oxides increase capacity and improve cycling performance in lithium-ion batteries. The team synthesized and compared the electrochemical performance of three graphene metal oxide nanocomposites and found that two of them greatly improved reversible lithium storage capacity.

Eating polyunsaturated fats linked to slowing diabetes progress for some Posted: 21 Mar 2016 12:39 PM PDT Replacing saturated fat in the diet with polyunsaturated fat, found in foods such as vegetable oils or nuts, is linked to slower progress of type 2 diabetes in people with prediabetes whose muscles do not take up glucose properly, new research led by a dietitian has found.

Bump in Large Hadron Collider data has physicists electrified Posted: 21 Mar 2016 11:00 AM PDT In December, the ATLAS and CMS experiments reported what could be the first hint of a new massive particle that spits out two photons as it decays. Now, physicists are presenting their latest analyses, including a full investigation of this mysterious bump. After carefully checking, cross-checking and rechecking the data, both experiments have come to the same conclusion -- the bump is still there.

Why do sunbathers live longer than those who avoid the sun? Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:58 AM PDT New research looks into the paradox that women who sunbathe are likely to live longer than those who avoid the sun, even though sunbathers are at an increased risk of developing skin cancer. An analysis of information on 29,518 Swedish women who were followed for 20 years revealed that longer life expectancy among women with active sun exposure habits was related to a decrease in heart disease and noncancer/non–heart disease deaths, causing the relative contribution of death due to cancer to increase. Whether the positive effect of sun exposure demonstrated in this observational study is mediated by vitamin D, another mechanism related to UV radiation, or by unmeasured bias cannot be determined.

Enhanced precision medicine with RNA sequencing Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:57 AM PDT Researchers are showing how genetic analysis using RNA sequencing can vastly enhance that understanding, providing doctors and their patients with more precise tools to target the underlying causes of disease, and help recommend the best course of action. Scientists highlight the many advantages of using RNA-sequencing in the detection and management of everything from cancer to infectious diseases.

Seeing isn't required to gesture like a native speaker Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT People the world over gesture when they talk, and they tend to gesture in certain ways depending on the language they speak. Findings from a new study including blind and sighted participants suggest that these gestural variations do not emerge from watching other speakers make the gestures, but from learning the language itself.

'Hypervirulent' strain of strep outbreak identified in Arizona and the Southwest Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT A research team has helped state, local and tribal health officials identify an outbreak of 'hypervirulent' strep bacteria in the American Southwest. Identified in Flagstaff, Ariz., from January to July 2015, this outbreak of the emm59 clone of group A Streptococcus is directly related to cases identified recently in New Mexico. This strain type appears to have evolved from a nationwide outbreak in Canada that lasted from 2006-09, according to a report.

No joke: Blondes aren't dumb, science says Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT The 'dumb blonde' stereotype is simply wrong, according to a new national study of young baby boomers. The study of 10,878 Americans found that white women who said their natural hair color was blonde had an average IQ score within 3 points of brunettes and those with red or black hair. The resulting findings showed that blonde-haired white women had an average IQ of 103.2, compared to 102.7 for those with brown hair, 101.2 for those with red hair and 100.5 for those with black hair.

Lighting up disease-carrying mosquitoes Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT A simple technique for simultaneously detecting RNA from West Nile and chikungunya virus in samples from mosquitoes has been developed by a researcher who is now working to add the ability to screen for Zika virus.

Survival of the hardest working Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT An engineering team has developed a cellular kill switch, a sensor that rewards hard working cells and eliminates their lazy counterparts. The high-tech engineering fix could help improve production of biofuels and pharmaceuticals.

Scientists eliminate HIV-1 from genome of human T-Cells Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT A specialized gene editing system is paving the way to an eventual cure for patients infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. In a new study, the researchers show that they can both effectively and safely eliminate the virus from the DNA of human cells grown in culture.

New way to control particle motions on 2-D materials Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT A new study points the way to new photonic devices with one-way traffic lanes. In the new work, the team showed that shining beams of circularly polarized light onto the graphene ribbons causes electrons in the material to cluster into two different "valleys" in the electronic band structure.

Scientists extend the reach of single crystals Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT Materials scientists and physicists have demonstrated a new method of making single crystals that could enable a wider range of materials to be used in microelectronics, solar energy devices and other high-technology applications.

Astrophysicists catch two supernovae at the moment of explosion Posted: 21 Mar 2016 10:55 AM PDT Two supernovae have been caught in the act of exploding by an international team of astrophysicists. Stars 10 to 20 times the mass of our sun often puff up to supergiants before ending their lives as supernovae. These stars are so large that Earth's orbit would easily fit inside such a star.

Supporting the bioimaging revolution Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:39 AM PDT The rapid rise of high-resolution 3D cellular imaging techniques in biology demands data solutions has meant that developers have had to keep up.

Engineers adapt laser method to create micro energy units Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:38 AM PDT As the demand for thinner microelectronic devices increases, manufacturers often are limited by how oddly shaped the energy sources must become to make them conform to the smaller space. Now, researchers have developed a method of transferring an energy source to virtually any shape. Using direct laser-writing techniques, scientists can help smartphone manufacturers fabricate energy storage units such as micro fuel cells that are environmentally friendly, highly designable and thin.

The invisible world of human perception Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:38 AM PDT Perception experts have long known that we see less of the world than we think we do. We create mental models of our surroundings by stitching together scraps of information gleaned while shifting attention from place to place. The process that creates the illusion of a complete picture relies on filtering out most of what's out there. Now, researchers find people have more control over what gets filtered out than previously believed.

Parasites reveal how evolution has molded an ancient nuclear structure Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:38 AM PDT The architecture of the nuclear pore complex is similar in humans and yeast, suggesting that it had been established over a billion years ago. But new research in a simple parasite, the trypanosome, indicates that it has actually been evolving steadily.

Eastern Monarch butterflies at risk of extinction unless numbers increase Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:38 AM PDT Long-term declines in the overwintering Eastern population of North American monarch butterflies are significantly increasing their likelihood of becoming extinct over the next two decades, according to new research.

Affordable housing not so affordable when transportation costs soar Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:38 AM PDT A new report assesses the affordability of US Department of Housing and Urban Development rental assistance properties from the perspective of transportation costs.

Entanglement becomes easier to measure Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:37 AM PDT Physicists have developed a new protocol to detect entanglement of many-particle quantum states using a much easier approach. The new protocol is particularly interesting for characterizing entanglement in systems involving many particles. These systems could help us not only to improve our understanding of matter but to develop measurement techniques beyond current existing technologies.

Tiny, ancient galaxy preserves record of catastrophic event Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:37 AM PDT The lightest few elements in the periodic table formed minutes after the Big Bang. Heavier chemical elements are created by stars, either from nuclear fusion in their interiors or in catastrophic explosions. However, scientists have disagreed for nearly 60 years about how the heaviest elements, such as gold and lead, are manufactured. New observations of a tiny galaxy discovered last year show that these heavy elements are likely left over from rare collisions between two neutron stars.

Uncovering bacterial role in platinum formation Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:37 AM PDT The important role of specialist bacteria has been uncovered in the formation and movement of platinum and related metals in surface environments.

Giving antibodies to infant macaques exposed to an HIV-like virus could clear infection Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:36 AM PDT Infant rhesus macaques treated with antibodies within 24 hours of being exposed to SHIV, a chimeric simian virus that bears the HIV envelope protein, were completely cleared of the virus. The study shows that antibodies given after a baby macaque has already been exposed to SHIV can clear the virus, a significant development in the HIV scientific community.

Human carbon release rate is unprecedented in the past 66 million years of Earth's history Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:36 AM PDT Researchers look at changes of Earth's temperature and atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) since the end of the age of the dinosaurs. Their findings suggest humans are releasing carbon about 10 times faster than during any event in the past 66 million years.

Autism genes are in all of us, new research reveals Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:36 AM PDT New light has been shed on the genetic relationship between autistic spectrum disorders and ASD-related traits in the wider population. Autism spectrum disorders are a class of neurodevelopmental conditions affecting about 1 in 100 children. They are characteriszd by social interaction difficulties, communication and language impairments, as well as stereotyped and repetitive behavior.

Risk of multiple tipping points should be triggering urgent action on climate change Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT Pioneering new research shows that existing studies have massively under-valued the risk that ongoing carbon dioxide emissions pose of triggering damaging tipping points.

Tracing the scent of fear Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT A new study has identified nerve cells and a region of the brain behind this innate fear response. With a new technique that uses specially-engineered viruses to uncover the nerve pathway involved, a research team has pinpointed a tiny area of the mouse brain responsible for this scent-induced reaction.

Global warming pushes wines into uncharted terroir Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT In much of France and Switzerland, the best wine years are traditionally those with an exceptionally hot summer and late-season drought. Now, a study out this week shows that warming climate has largely removed the drought factor from the centuries-old early-harvest equation. It is only the latest symptom that global warming is affecting biological systems and agriculture.

New model for how twisted bundles take shape Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT Polymer scientists identify for the first time the factors that govern the final morphology of self-assembling chiral filament bundles. They also report experimental results supporting their new model.

New study may lead to improved treatment of type 2 diabetes Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT Worldwide, 400 million people live with diabetes. Patients with diabetes mostly fall into one of two categories, type 1 diabetics, triggered by autoimmunity at a young age, and type 2 diabetics, caused by metabolic dysfunction of the liver. New research has discovered that a common genetic defect in beta cells may underlie both forms of diabetes.

Healthy gut could help prevent deadly side effect of bone marrow transplant Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT A metabolite has been found in the gut microbiome that could improve outcomes after bone marrow transplant. Butyrate was significantly reduced in the intestinal tract of experimental mice that received bone marrow transplant. When the researchers increased butyrate in these mouse models, they saw a decrease in the incidence and severity of graft vs. host disease.

Skin regeneration in technicolor Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT Skin regeneration, either after injury or normally to replace dead skin, is difficult to observe at the cellular level. A new system -- based on the Brainbow technology that labels individual neurons -- genetically color-codes skin cells in zebrafish, allowing researchers to track cell populations in real time.

Old tourist photos show seabird's rise over the last century Posted: 21 Mar 2016 09:35 AM PDT Researchers have used tourist photos to reconstruct the rise and fall of common guillemots, one of the largest auk species. Those data show that the guillemots suffered early in the 20th century, but their numbers have now risen to a historically high level. They also demonstrate the power of amateur photos and other unconventional sources of evidence to help fill gaps in the scientific record.

Recycling pecan wood for commercial growing substrates Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:44 AM PDT A study evaluated vegetative growth and leaf nutrient responses of chrysanthemum grown in five pecan wood chip substrate levels that substituted 0%, 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% of peatmoss by volume. Three water-soluble fertilizer rates were applied. Results showed that, with low to moderate amounts of pecan wood, further adjustments to fertilizer rate and irrigation volume would support sustainable fertigation practices, reduce dependence on peatmoss, and provide a value-added recycling option for pecan growers.

Antipsychotic drugs linked to increased mortality among Parkinson's disease patients Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:44 AM PDT At least half of Parkinson's disease patients experience psychosis at some point during the course of their illness, and physicians commonly prescribe antipsychotic drugs, such as quetiapine, to treat the condition. However, a new study suggests that these drugs may do significantly more harm in a subset of patients.

Review, view of future in cancer in adolescents, young adults Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:44 AM PDT A narrative review examines the current status of cancer in adolescents and young adults and offers a view of the future. The article discusses incidence and survival, distribution and biology of disease, special challenges, the price of success, and opportunities for progress.

Rosacea linked to increased Parkinson disease risk in Danish population study Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:44 AM PDT Patients with rosacea, a chronic inflammatory skin condition, appeared to have increased risk of new-onset Parkinson disease compared with individuals in the general Danish population, but further studies are need to confirm this observation and the clinical consequences of it, according to an article.

Psychiatric diagnoses in young transgender women Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:44 AM PDT About 41 percent of young transgender women had one or more mental health or substance dependence diagnoses and nearly 1 in 5 had two or more psychiatric diagnoses in a study of participants enrolled in a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prevention intervention trial, according to an article.

More elderly using dangerous drug combinations Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:14 AM PDT One in six older adults now regularly use potentially deadly combinations of prescription and over-the-counter medications and dietary supplements -- a two-fold increase over a five-year period.

Signal for embryologic al development Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:12 AM PDT To grow or to specialize? To remain stationary or initiate migration? How do cells know what to do and how they should develop? The protein YAP plays a crucial role in the development of the human neural crest, report investigators.

'Ethereal carbon': B.C. government presents a fossil fuel as 'clean' Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:12 AM PDT Despite worldwide concern about the consequences of "fracking", the British Columbia government is presenting its proposed Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) industry as both an economic benefit to the Canadian province and a source of 'clean' fossil fuel.

Hot larvae: Calculating dispersal from unique submarine hot spring ecosystems Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:05 AM PDT Larval dispersal from hydrothermal vent fields have been quantified in order to understand and protect the creatures found there, report investigators.

'Silencer molecules' switch off cancer's ability to spread around body Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:05 AM PDT Scientists have revealed that a key molecule in breast and lung cancer cells can help switch off the cancers' ability to spread around the body. The findings may help scientists develop treatments that prevent cancer traveling around the body -- or produce some kind of test that allows doctors to gauge how likely a cancer is to spread.

Yellow as the sunrise: Unraveling the structure, function of the enzyme aurone synthase Posted: 21 Mar 2016 08:05 AM PDT What is it that walnut leaves, mushrooms and Coreopsis have in common? An enzyme that is also responsible for the browning reaction in bananas or apples is present in all of them in large amounts. For the first time, chemists have analyzed the structure of the enzyme in the leaves of Coreopsis.

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