ScienceDaily: Top News

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• NASA's MMS breaks Guinness World Record
• Rubella virus persists after vaccination in some patients with immunodeficiency disorders
• Stressed-out rats consume more alcohol, revealing related brain chemistry
• Chicago wouldn’t last long under zombie invasion, model finds
• Physicists gain new understanding of how materials break
• NASA's NavCube could support an X-ray communications demonstration in space
• The brain can reveal drinking status even after death
• Receptor that may allow HIV to infect kidney cells identified
• New study shows balloon in a capsule helps patients lose nearly twice as much weight than diet, exercise and lifestyle therapy alone
• Informing action on a historic climate agreement
• Tumor cells in blood samples could predict prostate cancer spread
• Significant Bronze Age city discovered in Northern Iraq
• Nanostructures made of pure gold
• Male sleep habits may increase risk of cancer
• Successful calculation of human and natural influence on cloud formation
• Trace metal recombination centers kill LED efficiency
• Weight loss after obesity doesn’t cut risk of certain types of cancer
• Discovery of new bacteria complicates problem with salmon poisoning in dogs
• Most desirable traits in dogs for potential adopters
• After a long demise due to poaching, Virunga’s hippos climbing back
• New computational tool may speed drug discovery

NASA's MMS breaks Guinness World Record Posted: 04 Nov 2016 04:08 PM PDT NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale mission, or MMS, is breaking records. MMS now holds the Guinness World Record for highest altitude fix of a GPS signal. Operating in a highly elliptical orbit around Earth, the MMS satellites set the record at 43,500 miles above the surface. The four MMS spacecraft incorporate GPS measurements into their precise tracking systems, which require extremely sensitive position and orbit calculations to guide tight flying formations.

Rubella virus persists after vaccination in some patients with immunodeficiency disorders Posted: 04 Nov 2016 11:58 AM PDT Some patients with rare primary immunodeficiency disorders may be at risk for infection by rubella virus, and possibly serious skin inflammation, after receiving the rubella vaccine, usually administered as part of the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine. Although the vaccine for rubella (German measles) has an established record of safety and effectiveness in the general population, patients with severe deficiencies in their immune defenses may be susceptible to side effects from the vaccine, say researchers.

Stressed-out rats consume more alcohol, revealing related brain chemistry Posted: 04 Nov 2016 11:57 AM PDT Rodents that had been exposed to stress had a weakened alcohol-induced dopamine response and voluntarily drank more alcohol compared to controls, a new study has found. The blunted dopamine signaling to ethanol arose due to changes in the circuitry in the ventral tegmental area, the heart of the brain's reward system.

Chicago wouldn’t last long under zombie invasion, model finds Posted: 04 Nov 2016 09:05 AM PDT In the unlikely event of the zombie apocalypse, it would take less than two months for the undead to take control of the city, says a new study.

Physicists gain new understanding of how materials break Posted: 04 Nov 2016 08:36 AM PDT Scientists could eventually help create materials that resist breaking or crack in a predictable fashion. The findings were the result of experiments and computer simulations in which researchers examined the effects of varying the rigidity of a material. Using both a simulation and artificial structures called metamaterials, they found material failure can be continuously tuned through changes in its underlying rigidity.

NASA's NavCube could support an X-ray communications demonstration in space Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:31 AM PDT Two proven technologies have been combined to create a promising new technology that could meet future navigational challenges in deep space. It also may help demonstrate -- for the first time -- X-ray communications in space, a capability that would allow the transmission of gigabits per second throughout the solar system.

The brain can reveal drinking status even after death Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:24 AM PDT Scientists who use postmortem brain tissue to study alcohol's effects on brain structure and function will find this research interesting. Phosphatidylethanol (PEth) is an alcohol metabolite and its concentration in whole blood samples is a biomarker of drinking habits. For this study, scientists examined PEth levels in postmortem brains of individuals known to have had alcohol use disorders (AUDs).

Receptor that may allow HIV to infect kidney cells identified Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:24 AM PDT New research suggests that transmembrane TNF-alpha may allow HIV to infect kidney cells that not express the major HIV-1 CD4 receptor. The findings could provide insights on how patients develop HIV-1 associated nephropathy.

New study shows balloon in a capsule helps patients lose nearly twice as much weight than diet, exercise and lifestyle therapy alone Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:23 AM PDT Patients with obesity who swallowed gas-filled balloon capsules designed to help them eat less, lost 1.9 times more weight than patients who relied on diet, exercise and lifestyle therapy alone, according to new research.

Informing action on a historic climate agreement Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:23 AM PDT The Paris Agreement on climate change goes into effect today, but while the agreement set ambitious targets for tackling climate change, scientists say there is a long way to go to achieve it. Research suggests pathways to get the world on track.

Tumor cells in blood samples could predict prostate cancer spread Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:21 AM PDT Researchers have found a group of circulating tumor cells in prostate cancer patient blood samples that are linked to the spread of the disease, according to new research.

Significant Bronze Age city discovered in Northern Iraq Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:21 AM PDT Archeologists have uncovered a large Bronze Age city not far from the town of Dohuk in northern Iraq. The excavation work has demonstrated that the settlement, which is now home to the small Kurdish village of Bassetki in the Autonomous Region of Kurdistan, was established in about 3000 BC and was able to flourish for more than 1200 years. The archeologists also discovered settlement layers dating from the Akkadian Empire period (2340-2200 BC), which is regarded as the first world empire in human history.

Nanostructures made of pure gold Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:20 AM PDT The idea is reminiscent of the ancient alchemists' attempts to create gold from worthless substances: Researchers have discovered a novel way to fabricate pure gold nanostructures using an additive direct-write lithography technique. An electron beam is used to turn an auriferous organic compound into pure gold. This new technique can now be used to create nanostructures, which are needed for many applications in electronics and sensor technology. Just like with a 3D-printer on the nanoscale, almost any arbitrary shape can be created.

Male sleep habits may increase risk of cancer Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:20 AM PDT Men who have worked night shifts for more than 20 years, or who work night shifts without daytime napping, or sleep for more than ten hours per night on average may have an increased risk of cancer, according to a new study.

Successful calculation of human and natural influence on cloud formation Posted: 04 Nov 2016 07:18 AM PDT When new particles develop in the atmosphere, this influences cloud formation and with that the climate too. Since a few years, these complex processes have been reproduced in a large air chamber within the CLOUD experiment at CERN. Researchers have now used the results for the first time to calculate the production of aerosol particles in all the Earth's regions and at different heights. The study deciphers the role of the various chemical systems which are responsible for particle formation. They also determined the influence of ions which develop through cosmic radiation.

Trace metal recombination centers kill LED efficiency Posted: 03 Nov 2016 01:24 PM PDT A research team has demonstrated the impact transition metal impurities have on the efficiency of nitride semiconductors. They report that trace amounts of transition metal impurities act as recombination centers in gallium nitride semiconductors.

Weight loss after obesity doesn’t cut risk of certain types of cancer Posted: 03 Nov 2016 01:03 PM PDT Losing weight may not protect against colon and liver cancer, even though obesity is associated with increased risk of certain types of gastrointestinal malignancy.

Discovery of new bacteria complicates problem with salmon poisoning in dogs Posted: 03 Nov 2016 12:21 PM PDT Scientists have discovered another bacterium that can cause symptoms similar to "salmon poisoning" in dogs - and may complicate the efforts of Pacific Northwest pet owners to keep their dogs protected and healthy.

Most desirable traits in dogs for potential adopters Posted: 03 Nov 2016 12:19 PM PDT One researcher has performed extensive research trying to increase the adoption rates and decrease euthanasia rates for animal shelters throughout the country.

After a long demise due to poaching, Virunga’s hippos climbing back Posted: 03 Nov 2016 12:19 PM PDT Recent surveys for hippos in Virunga National Park -- the oldest protected area in Africa -- have found that the beleaguered behemoths are finally recovering from decades of poaching and habitat loss in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

New computational tool may speed drug discovery Posted: 03 Nov 2016 11:34 AM PDT A new computational tool called fABMACS is helping scientists see beyond static images of proteins to more efficiently understand how these molecules function, which could ultimately speed up the drug discovery process.

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