 Next step in evolution? A technical life form that passes on knowledge and experience
 04.09.2010 20:00  0 views  0 comments
 Dutch biologist Gerard Jagers op Akkerhuis has developed the ‘operator hierarchy’ -- a system based on the complexity of particles and of organisms, which can predict the next step in evolution: a technical life form, that can pass on its knowledge and experience to the next generation. Read more »
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Helping corn-based plastics take more heat
04.09.2010 20:00 0 views 0 comments
 A team of agricultural scientists are working to make corn-derived plastics more heat tolerant -- research that may broaden the range of applications for which these plastics could be used as an alternative to petroleum-based plastics. Read more »
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Functional motor neuron subtypes generated from embryonic stem cells
04.09.2010 20:00 0 views 0 comments
 Scientists have devised a method for coaxing mouse embryonic stem cells into forming a highly specific motor neuron subtype. The research provides new insight into motor neuron differentiation and may prove useful for devising and testing future therapies for motor neuron diseases. Read more »
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Novel nanotechnology collaboration leads to breakthrough in cancer research
04.09.2010 20:00 0 views 0 comments
 A multidisciplinary group of researchers has produced a 3.6-angstrom resolution structure of the human adenovirus. Scientists are working with adenovirus as a vector for gene therapy, but have needed better structural information. Read more »
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Hair provides proof of the link between chronic stress and heart attack
04.09.2010 20:00 0 views 0 comments
 Researchers have provided the first direct evidence using a biological marker, to show chronic stress plays an important role in heart attacks. The scientists developed a method to measure cortisol levels in hair providing an accurate assessment of stress levels in the months prior to an acute event such as a heart attack. Read more »
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Magnetism's subatomic roots: Study of high-tech materials helps explain everyday phenomenon
04.09.2010 20:00 0 views 0 comments
 Theoretical physicists have created a new model that helps define the subatomic origins of ferromagnetism -- the everyday "magnetism" of compass needles and refrigerator magnets. The model was created to explore the inner workings of ferromagnetic compounds that are related to high-temperature superconductors. Read more »
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Verbal snippets offer insights on well-being amid separation, divorce
04.09.2010 14:00 0 views 0 comments
 A new study of romantically separated people shows they offer clues to their emotional status in just a few seconds of conversation. Read more »
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Many urban streams harmful to aquatic life following winter pavement deicing
04.09.2010 14:00 0 views 0 comments
 The use of salt to deice pavement can leave urban streams toxic to aquatic life, according to a new study on the influence of winter runoff in northern US cities, with a special focus on eastern Wisconsin and Milwaukee. Read more »
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New animal model for hemophilia A developed
04.09.2010 14:00 0 views 0 comments
 Researchers have developed a new animal model for studying hemophilia A, with the goal of eventually treating people with the disorder. Hemophilia A, a hereditary defect that prevents blood from clotting normally, is caused by a variety of mutations in the factor VIII gene. Read more »
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Why fish oils work swimmingly against inflammation and diabetes
04.09.2010 14:00 0 views 0 comments
 Researchers have identified the molecular mechanism that makes omega-3 fatty acids so effective in reducing chronic inflammation and insulin resistance. Read more »
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When it comes to the immune system, we're all more alike than previously thought, study finds
04.09.2010 14:00 0 views 0 comments
 When it comes to the mechanics of the human immune system, we are all more alike than previously thought, according to a new study. Read more »
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Most new farmland in tropics comes from slashing forests, research shows
04.09.2010 14:00 0 views 0 comments
 A new study shows that more than 80 percent of the new farmland created in the tropics between 1980 and 2000 came from felling forests, which sends carbon into the atmosphere and drives global warming. But the research team also noted that big agribusiness has largely replaced small farmers in doing most of the tree cutting in Brazil and Indonesia, which may make it easier to rein in the trend. Read more »
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Low grades in adolescence linked to dopamine genes, says biosocial criminologist
04.09.2010 2:00 0 views 0 comments
 The academic performance of adolescents will suffer in at least one of four key subjects -- English, math, science, history -- if their DNA contains one or more of three specific dopamine gene variations, according to a biosocial criminologist. Read more »
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Chemists, engineers achieve world record with high-speed graphene transistors
04.09.2010 2:00 0 views 0 comments
 Researchers have developed a new fabrication process for high-speed graphene transistors using a nanowire as the self-aligned gate. This new technique does not produce any appreciable defects in the graphene during fabrication, so the carrier mobility is retained. Also, by using a self-aligned approach with a nanowire as the gate, the group was able to overcome alignment difficulties previously encountered and fabricate short channel devices with unprecedented performance. Read more »
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How bone-marrow stem cells hold their 'breath' in low-oxygen environments
04.09.2010 2:00 0 views 0 comments
 Researchers have identified unique metabolic properties that allow a specific type of stem cell in the body to survive and replicate in low-oxygen environments. Read more »
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Giant Greenland iceberg -- largest in the northern hemisphere -- enters Nares Strait
04.09.2010 2:00 0 views 0 comments
 The European Space Agency's Envisat satellite has been tracking the progression of the giant iceberg that calved from Greenland's Petermann glacier on 4 August 2010. A new animation shows that the iceberg, the largest in the northern hemisphere, is now entering Nares Strait -- a stretch of water that connects the Lincoln Sea and Arctic Ocean with Baffin Bay. Read more »
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Mechanisms and function of a type of mysterious immune cell discovered
04.09.2010 2:00 0 views 0 comments
In two closely related studies, two teams of scientists have discovered the underlying mechanisms that activate a type of immune cell in the skin and other organs. The findings may lead to the development of new therapies to treat inflammation, wounds, asthma and malignant tumors. Read more »
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Ants take on Goliath role in protecting trees in the savanna from elephants
04.09.2010 2:00 0 views 0 comments
 Ants are not out of their weight class when defending trees from the appetite of nature's heavyweight, the African elephant, a new study finds. Columns of angered ants will crawl up into elephant trunks to repel the ravenous beasts from devouring tree cover throughout drought-plagued East African savannas, playing a potentially important role in regulating carbon sequestration in these ecosystems. Read more »
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Science's policy clout diminished, but oil risk looms large, study finds
03.09.2010 23:00 0 views 0 comments
More people are likely to believe scientific studies claiming that oil drilling is riskier, not safer, than was previously thought, according to a new study of attitudes in California. What's more the findings show that scientists' efforts to influence public opinion have a limited effect. Read more »
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Computer technique could help partially sighted 'see' better
03.09.2010 23:00 0 views 0 comments
 Thousands of people who are partially sighted following stroke or brain injury could gain greater independence from a simple, cheap and accessible training course which could eventually be delivered from their mobile phones or hand-held games consoles, according to a new study. Read more »
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