ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Occupational therapy reduces hospital readmissions, research finds
• New tech promises to boost electric vehicle efficiency, range
• 'Thermal metamaterial' innovation could help bring waste-heat harvesting technology to power plants, factories
• New way to reprogram lymph node function to fight multiple sclerosis
• Assessing health risks from oil and gas operations
• Cassini begins epic final year at Saturn
• Gene therapy used to treat pulmonary dysfunction in Pompe disease
• New mosquito-borne disease detected in Haiti
• For first time, individual atoms seen keeping away from each other or bunching up as pairs
• Levitating nanoparticle improves 'torque sensing'
• Bats use second sense to hunt prey in noisy environments
• 2016 ties with 2007 for second lowest Arctic sea ice minimum
• First U.S. marine national monument created in Atlantic
• A tight squeeze for electrons: Quantum effects observed in ‘one-dimensional’ wires
• Echoes of black holes eating stars discovered
• Some ancient Mars lakes formed long after others
• Gaia’s billion star maps hints at treasures to come
• Lowering systolic blood pressure would save more than 100,000 lives per year, study finds
• How plant roots sense, react to soil flooding
• Food waste could store solar, wind energy
• Meeting demand for 'natural' vanilla calls for creativity
• 'Open science' paves new pathway to develop malaria drugs
• Study discovers potential new target for treatment of spinal muscular atrophy
• For-profit trade schools prove costly for disadvantaged black youth
• Taste for Fat: Scientists discover molecular handle behind some cancers' preference for fat
• Seven-year study pays off with 'most detailed' picture of head and neck cancer stem cells to date
• Computer program beats physicians at brain cancer diagnoses
• Modern-day alchemy: Researchers reveal that magnetic 'rust' performs as gold at the nanoscale
• Plutonium keeps its electrons close to home
• New way of testing drugs could speed up development of breast cancer treatments
• Stem cells grown into 3-D lung-in-a-dish
• Pacific Ocean’s response to greenhouse gases could extend California drought for centuries
• Research reduces violence against pregnant women
• Offspring to parents who were babies during the Holocaust had a worse course of schizophrenia
• New tech to boost electric vehicle efficiency, range
• Nightclub goers more likely to use new designer drugs
• Keeping medical imaging safe for children
• Study explores potency of antibodies to combat HIV infection
• Patient overcomes rare acute necrotizing pancreatitis
• Laughter-based exercise program has health benefits, study finds
• Exploration team shoots for the moon with water-propelled satellite
• Black hole hidden within its own exhaust
• Team discovers, successfully treats new variant of antibiotic-resistant bacterium
• Cost for surface patterning plastics lowered
• Starving black hole returns brilliant galaxy to the shadows
• NASA begins study of Australia's Great Barrier Reef
• Fighting cancer with space research
• Skull base surgeons help pioneer method of extracting tumors from ear canal
• Drug-loaded synthetic nanoparticles can distinguish lung cancer cells from healthy cells
• Tobacco industry tactics influential in e-cigarette policy
• How a small implanted device could help limit metastatic breast cancer
• New clinical guidelines for LAM, a rare lung disease
• Math difficulties may reflect problems in a crucial learning system in the brain
• Yes, computing genetic ancestors is super accurate
• Advancing lithium-air batteries with development of novel catalyst
• Engaging in fantasy play could benefit creative thinking in children
• Promote legal alternatives to stop unlawful downloading, says study
• Link discovered between touch of individuals with autism, their social difficulties
• Magnetic polaron imaged for the first time
• Poison in the brain

Occupational therapy reduces hospital readmissions, research finds Posted: 15 Sep 2016 02:59 PM PDT A recent study has found that 30-day readmission rates for heart failure, pneumonia, and acute myocardial infarction were improved with the help of occupational therapy.

New tech promises to boost electric vehicle efficiency, range Posted: 15 Sep 2016 02:54 PM PDT Researchers have developed a new type of inverter device with greater efficiency in a smaller, lighter package -- which should improve the fuel-efficiency and range of hybrid and electric vehicles.

'Thermal metamaterial' innovation could help bring waste-heat harvesting technology to power plants, factories Posted: 15 Sep 2016 02:49 PM PDT Researchers have used a 'thermal metamaterial' to control the emission of radiation at high temperatures, an advance that could bring devices able to efficiently harvest waste heat from power plants and factories.

New way to reprogram lymph node function to fight multiple sclerosis Posted: 15 Sep 2016 02:40 PM PDT Researchers report a new way to turn off the harmful immune attack that occurs during autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), while keeping healthy functions of the immune system intact.

Assessing health risks from oil and gas operations Posted: 15 Sep 2016 02:36 PM PDT A new study of air pollutant emissions from northern Front Range oil and gas operations has been presented to state officials in Colorado.

Cassini begins epic final year at Saturn Posted: 15 Sep 2016 02:32 PM PDT After more than 12 years studying Saturn, its rings and moons, NASA's Cassini spacecraft has entered the final year of its epic voyage. The conclusion of the historic scientific odyssey is planned for September 2017, but not before the spacecraft completes a daring two-part endgame.

Gene therapy used to treat pulmonary dysfunction in Pompe disease Posted: 15 Sep 2016 01:58 PM PDT Researchers have successfully used gene therapy to treat patients with infantile onset Pompe disease, a progressive condition that severely compromises cardiopulmonary function in the first years of life.

New mosquito-borne disease detected in Haiti Posted: 15 Sep 2016 01:49 PM PDT Researchers have identified a patient in Haiti with a serious mosquito-borne illness that has never before been reported in the Caribbean nation.

For first time, individual atoms seen keeping away from each other or bunching up as pairs Posted: 15 Sep 2016 01:29 PM PDT If you bottle up a gas and try to image its atoms using today's most powerful microscopes, you will see little more than a shadowy blur. Atoms zip around at lightning speeds and are difficult to pin down at ambient temperatures. If, however, these atoms are plunged to ultracold temperatures, they slow to a crawl, and scientists can start to study how they can form exotic states of matter, such as superfluids, superconductors, and quantum magnets.

Levitating nanoparticle improves 'torque sensing' Posted: 15 Sep 2016 12:52 PM PDT Researchers have levitated a tiny nanodiamond particle with a laser in a vacuum chamber, using the technique for the first time to detect and measure its "torsional vibration," an advance that could bring new types of sensors and studies in quantum mechanics.

Bats use second sense to hunt prey in noisy environments Posted: 15 Sep 2016 12:42 PM PDT Like many predators, the fringe-lipped bat primarily uses its hearing to find its prey, but with human-generated noise on the rise, scientists are examining how bats and other animals might adapt to find their next meal. According to a new study, when noise masks the mating calls of the bat's prey, túngara frogs, the bat shifts to another sensory mode -- echolocation.

2016 ties with 2007 for second lowest Arctic sea ice minimum Posted: 15 Sep 2016 12:33 PM PDT The Arctic's ice cover appears to have reached its minimum extent on September 10, 2016, according to scientists. Arctic sea ice extent on that day stood at 4.14 million square kilometers (1.60 million square miles), statistically tied at second lowest in the satellite record with the 2007 minimum.

First U.S. marine national monument created in Atlantic Posted: 15 Sep 2016 12:15 PM PDT Deep in the oceans exist some of the world's oldest and most mysterious sea canyons and mountains, or seamounts. Formed millions of years ago by extinct volcanoes and sediment erosion, sea canyons and seamounts are biodiversity hot spots -- home to many rare and endangered species.

A tight squeeze for electrons: Quantum effects observed in ‘one-dimensional’ wires Posted: 15 Sep 2016 11:34 AM PDT Researchers have observed quantum effects in electrons by squeezing them into one-dimensional 'quantum wires' and observing the interactions between them. The results could be used to aid in the development of quantum technologies, including quantum computing.

Echoes of black holes eating stars discovered Posted: 15 Sep 2016 11:26 AM PDT A black hole destroying a star, an event astronomers call 'stellar tidal disruption,' releases an enormous amount of energy, brightening the surroundings in an event called a flare. Two new studies characterize tidal disruption flares by studying how surrounding dust absorbs and re-emits their light, like echoes. This approach allowed scientists to measure the energy of flares from stellar tidal disruption events more precisely than ever before.

Some ancient Mars lakes formed long after others Posted: 15 Sep 2016 11:20 AM PDT Lakes and snowmelt-fed streams on Mars formed much later than previously thought possible, according to new findings. The recently discovered lakes and streams appeared roughly a billion years after an earlier era of wet conditions on ancient Mars. These results suggest the surface conditions at this later time may also have been suitable for microbial life on the Red Planet.

Gaia’s billion star maps hints at treasures to come Posted: 15 Sep 2016 11:19 AM PDT The first catalog of more than a billion stars from ESA's Gaia satellite was just published -- the largest all-sky survey of celestial objects to date.

Lowering systolic blood pressure would save more than 100,000 lives per year, study finds Posted: 15 Sep 2016 11:05 AM PDT Intensive treatment to lower systolic (top number) blood pressure to below 120 would save more than 100,000 lives per year in the United States, say scientists. Two thirds of the lives saved would be men and two thirds would be aged 75 or older.

How plant roots sense, react to soil flooding Posted: 15 Sep 2016 11:04 AM PDT While it's been known that plant roots were capable of sensing many individual soil characteristics (water, nutrients and oxygen availability), scientists have not had any understanding of how they integrated these signals in order to respond in an appropriate way. Researchers have just discovered a mechanism that allows a plant to adjust its water status and growth according to different soil flooding conditions. The results of this study describe how roots sense and respond to soil oxygen and potassium levels jointly, so as to change their water uptake capacity. Aside from their scientific importance, these findings could make it possible to optimize crop flood tolerance.

Food waste could store solar, wind energy Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:32 AM PDT Saving up excess solar and wind energy for times when the sun is down or the air is still requires a storage device. Batteries get the most attention as a promising solution although pumped hydroelectric storage is currently used most often. Now researchers are advancing another potential approach using sugar alcohols — an abundant waste product of the food industry — mixed with carbon nanotubes.

Meeting demand for 'natural' vanilla calls for creativity Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:31 AM PDT In recent years, consumers have increasingly been looking for "natural" ingredients in their food products. But when it comes to one of the world's most popular flavors, vanilla, meeting that demand has been difficult. So food scientists are scrambling for new ways to produce vanillin — the main vanilla flavor molecule — without losing the natural label.

'Open science' paves new pathway to develop malaria drugs Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:31 AM PDT Malaria remains one of the world's leading causes of mortality in developing countries. Last year alone, it killed more than 400,000 people, mostly young children. An international consortium of researchers now unveils the mechanics and findings of a unique "open science" project for malaria drug discovery that has been five years in the making.

Study discovers potential new target for treatment of spinal muscular atrophy Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:31 AM PDT In spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), the affected nerve cells that control muscle movement, or motor neurons, have defects in their mitochondria, which generate energy used by the cell, scientists have found for the first time. Impaired mitochondrial function and structure in motor neurons were discovered before symptoms occurred, suggesting a role in disease development.

For-profit trade schools prove costly for disadvantaged black youth Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:31 AM PDT Young people from disadvantaged neighborhoods are drawn to for-profit trade schools as the quickest route to jobs. But the very thing that makes for-profit schools seem so appealing — a streamlined curriculum — is the reason so many poor students drop out.

Taste for Fat: Scientists discover molecular handle behind some cancers' preference for fat Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:30 AM PDT Most cancers have a sweet tooth but—mysteriously—some tumors prefer fat over sugar. Now, a study reveals how these cancers develop their appetite for fat.

Seven-year study pays off with 'most detailed' picture of head and neck cancer stem cells to date Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:30 AM PDT Cancer stem cells resist therapy and are a major cause of relapse, long after the bulk of a tumor has been killed. A new study provides the most comprehensive picture to date of head and neck cancer stem cells, identifying genetic pathways that cancer stem cells hijack to promote tumor growth and visualizing the process of "asymmetric division" that allows a stem cell to create tumor tissue cells while retaining its own stem-like profile.

Computer program beats physicians at brain cancer diagnoses Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:24 AM PDT A computer program has been developed that uses radiomic features found in routine MRI scans to distinguish between radiation necrosis and recurrent brain cancer. In a comparison, the program was nearly twice as accurate as a pair of neruoradiologists.

Modern-day alchemy: Researchers reveal that magnetic 'rust' performs as gold at the nanoscale Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:24 AM PDT Researchers are giving new meaning to the phrase "turning rust into gold"—and making the use of gold in research settings and industrial applications far more affordable.

Plutonium keeps its electrons close to home Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:24 AM PDT Extremely complex plutonium has ties to energy and security. Scientists found that plutonium's behavior, in plutonium tetrafluoride, can be attributed to atoms hoarding electrons

New way of testing drugs could speed up development of breast cancer treatments Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:23 AM PDT Scientists have discovered a new way to test hundreds of cancer drugs very quickly, which could drastically cut the time it takes to find potential breast cancer treatments, according to a report.

Stem cells grown into 3-D lung-in-a-dish Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:22 AM PDT By coating tiny gel beads with lung-derived stem cells and then allowing them to self-assemble into the shapes of the air sacs found in human lungs, researchers have succeeded in creating three-dimensional lung "organoids." The laboratory-grown lung-like tissue can be used to study diseases including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, which has traditionally been difficult to study using conventional methods.

Pacific Ocean’s response to greenhouse gases could extend California drought for centuries Posted: 15 Sep 2016 10:15 AM PDT Clues from prehistoric droughts and arid periods in California show that today's increasing greenhouse gas levels could lock the state into drought for centuries.

Research reduces violence against pregnant women Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:13 AM PDT Results of a study on intimate partner violence show that pregnant victims saw a significant reduction in exposure to such acts after participating in the Domestic Violence Enhanced Home Visitation Program (DOVE).

Offspring to parents who were babies during the Holocaust had a worse course of schizophrenia Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:13 AM PDT Results of a new study have found that no difference in the risk of developing schizophrenia between second-generations Holocaust survivors and those whose parents were not exposed to the Holocaust. However, an examination of various sub-groups showed that second-generation survivors whose parents were babies during the Holocaust are at higher risk of suffering from a more severe course of schizophrenia.

New tech to boost electric vehicle efficiency, range Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:13 AM PDT A new type of inverter device has been developed with greater efficiency in a smaller, lighter package – which will improve the fuel-efficiency and range of hybrid and electric vehicles.

Nightclub goers more likely to use new designer drugs Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:13 AM PDT Novel Psychoactive Substances are synthetic or "designer" drugs which have increased in popularity in recent years. Few studies in the U.S. have focused on use among one of the highest-risk populations—electronic dance music (EDM) nightclub and festival attendees. Researchers found that more frequent nightclub attendance was strongly associated with increased risk of use of new street drugs. Attending nightclubs every week more than doubled the odds of reporting use.

Keeping medical imaging safe for children Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:12 AM PDT What's the difference between an MRI and a CT scan? An X-ray and an ultrasound? Will it involve radiation that could harm the child in the long term?

Study explores potency of antibodies to combat HIV infection Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:12 AM PDT A clinical trial underway – known as the AMP study (for Antibody Meditated Prevention) – will determine whether infusing an experimental antibody (VRC01) into HIV-negative men and transgender individuals who have sex with men, will prevent the acquisition of HIV.

Patient overcomes rare acute necrotizing pancreatitis Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:12 AM PDT Larry Jacob got the call every parent fears. His daughter was sick, away at college and needed help. Mr. Jacob left his home in the Chicago suburbs and was driving to Western Illinois University when he suddenly doubled over in pain. He called an ambulance and was taken to a local hospital, where he was treated for pancreatitis, which is a painful condition most commonly caused by gallstones developing and becoming lodged in the bile duct.

Laughter-based exercise program has health benefits, study finds Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:05 AM PDT Incorporating laughter into a physical activity program that is focused on strength, balance and flexibility could improve older adults' mental health, aerobic endurance and confidence in their ability to exercise, according to a study.

Exploration team shoots for the moon with water-propelled satellite Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:05 AM PDT Cislunar Explorers, a team of Cornell University students guided by Mason Peck, a former senior official at NASA and associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, is attempting to boldly go where no CubeSat team has gone before: around the moon. Not only is Peck's group attempting to make a first-ever moon orbit with a satellite no bigger than a cereal box, made entirely with off-the-shelf materials, it's doing so with propellant that you can obtain simply by turning on a faucet.

Black hole hidden within its own exhaust Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:05 AM PDT New data from ALMA reveal that the black hole at the center of a galaxy named NGC 1068 is actually the source of its own dusty torus of dust and gas, forged from material flung out of the black hole's accretion disk.

Team discovers, successfully treats new variant of antibiotic-resistant bacterium Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:05 AM PDT Researchers have discovered a new mutation in a highly antibiotic-resistant strain of E. coli that resists clearance by the body's own immune system by inhibiting white blood cells that ordinarily kill and remove bacteria. In a new paper, the researchers describe the case that led them to discover the mutation, and offer suggestions for how to recognize and address this particular microbe if encountered in the future.

Cost for surface patterning plastics lowered Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:03 AM PDT A new way to simultaneously shape and surface treat plastic components has been developed by researchers. The new method can reduce the manufacturing cost of medical devices, such as diagnostic tools for various diseases.

Starving black hole returns brilliant galaxy to the shadows Posted: 15 Sep 2016 09:03 AM PDT Many galaxies are found to have an extremely bright core powered by a supermassive black hole. These cores make "active galaxies" some of the brightest objects in the Universe. They are thought to shine so brightly because hot material is glowing fiercely as it falls into the black hole, a process known as accretion. This brilliant light can vary hugely between different active galaxies, so astronomers classify them into several types based on the properties of the light they emit.

NASA begins study of Australia's Great Barrier Reef Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:40 AM PDT A NASA airborne mission designed to transform our understanding of Earth's valuable and ecologically sensitive coral reefs has set up shop in Australia for a two-month investigation of the Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest reef ecosystem.

Fighting cancer with space research Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:36 AM PDT For the past 15 years, the big data techniques pioneered by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, have been revolutionizing biomedical research. On Sept. 6, 2016, JPL and the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, renewed a research partnership through 2021, extending the development of data science that originated in space exploration and is now supporting new cancer discoveries.

Skull base surgeons help pioneer method of extracting tumors from ear canal Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT A surgical team is helping to pioneer a new minimally invasive procedure that extracts vertigo-inducing tumors from the inner ear without having to remove a large piece of skull, as is usually required.

Drug-loaded synthetic nanoparticles can distinguish lung cancer cells from healthy cells Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT A synthetic polymer that can transport a drug into lung cancer cells without going inside of normal lung cells has now been successfully developed by scientists, a new report outlines.

Tobacco industry tactics influential in e-cigarette policy Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT By employing the same tactics it used to drive policymaking from the 1970s-1990s, the tobacco industry has become successful in influencing pro-industry e-cigarette laws at the state level, according to a new study.

How a small implanted device could help limit metastatic breast cancer Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT A small device implanted under the skin can improve breast cancer survival by catching cancer cells, slowing the development of metastatic tumors in other organs and allowing time to intervene with surgery or other therapies.

New clinical guidelines for LAM, a rare lung disease Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT New clinical practice guidelines have now been published for the diagnosis and management of lymphangioleiomyomatosis (LAM), a rare lung disease that primarily affects women of child-bearing age.

Math difficulties may reflect problems in a crucial learning system in the brain Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT Children differ substantially in their mathematical abilities. In fact, some children cannot routinely add or subtract, even after extensive schooling. This new paper proposes that math disability arises from abnormalities in brain areas supporting procedural memory. Procedural memory is a learning and memory system that is crucial for the automatization of non-conscious skills, such as driving or grammar.

Yes, computing genetic ancestors is super accurate Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT For decades, geneticists have used programs to compute back through tens of millions of years of mutations to ancestral genes. Are the algorithms really working? A novel lab physical benchmark says yes.

Advancing lithium-air batteries with development of novel catalyst Posted: 15 Sep 2016 06:00 AM PDT A fundamental step forward has been taken in advancing Li-air through the development of mixed metal catalyst that could lead to more efficient electrode reactions in the battery.

Engaging in fantasy play could benefit creative thinking in children Posted: 15 Sep 2016 05:57 AM PDT Analysis revealed that children who reported higher levels of fantastical play also received higher creativity scores.

Promote legal alternatives to stop unlawful downloading, says study Posted: 15 Sep 2016 05:57 AM PDT The promotion of legal alternatives, rather than the risk of prosecution, is more likely to change unlawful file sharing behavior, according to new research.

Link discovered between touch of individuals with autism, their social difficulties Posted: 15 Sep 2016 05:57 AM PDT The sense of touch may play a more crucial role in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) than previously assumed. The main findings of the research show that individuals with ASD may have difficulties to determine which tactile sensations belong to the action of someone else.

Magnetic polaron imaged for the first time Posted: 15 Sep 2016 05:57 AM PDT A new artificial magnetic material has been developed by researchers, enabling remarkable possibilities to materials research, say scientists.

Poison in the brain Posted: 15 Sep 2016 05:57 AM PDT There are factors that facilitate the formation of putatively toxic structures in the neuronal nuclei of Alzheimer's patients, report scientists. A research team compared brain samples from Alzheimer's patients with those of the healthy individuals in the same age group. The result: in the samples taken from Alzheimer's patients, the number of nuclear spheres was much higher than in those taken from healthy study participants.

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