(Press-News.org) Alexandria, VA – As the Colorado River winds through the Colorado Plateau's soft sedimentary strata, it picks up a tremendous amount of sediment. This sediment – which once left the river's waters so muddy that Spanish explorers christened it El Rio Colorado "the reddish river" – is a vital component to the unique ecosystems of the river. However, with the construction of the Hoover and Glen Canyon dams, which trap the sediment, the once-turbid waters have become a dazzling blue-green, signaling major changes with serious implications for the health of the river's native ecosystems.
In an attempt to study the impact the dams have on the geomorphology and biology of the Grand Canyon, scientists have been experimenting with high flow episodes – periodically flooding the dam to try to recreate its native environment. Could controlled flooding benefit native fish, sandbars and cultural sites that have been drastically altered by the dams' construction and 50 years of operation? Or is the Colorado River forever changed? Read the story online and find out at http://bit.ly/13BSDTd.
Read this story and more in the March issue of EARTH Magazine available online now. Discover how ancient minerals rode icebergs across the Atlantic; join Voyager on the magnetic highway to interstellar space; and meet the new candidate for oldest dinosaur all in this month's issue of EARTH.
###
Keep up to date with the latest happenings in Earth, energy and environment news with EARTH magazine online at http://www.earthmagazine.org/. Published by the American Geosciences Institute, EARTH is your source for the science behind the headlines.
The American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 250,000 geologists, geophysicists and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society's use of resources, resiliency to natural hazards, and interaction with the environment.
EARTH: Releasing a flood of controversy on the Colorado River
2013-03-05
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Is the iPad creative? It depends on who's buying it
2013-03-05
Encouraging consumers to feel ownership of products they haven't yet purchased can backfire because consumers tend to see themselves in the products they own, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.
"Companies assume that consumers who are made to feel ownership of a product prior to purchase will prefer it over competing products, but this can actually have the opposite effect and lead consumers to judge the product less favorably," write authors Liad Weiss and Gita V. Johar (both Columbia University).
Companies encourage us to feel a sense of ...
Product promotion: When do emotional appeals trump celebrity spokespeople?
2013-03-05
Emotional appeals could be more effective than celebrities when promoting products related to a consumer's identity, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.
"Specific emotions can help consumers strengthen their identities by providing information about how to feel a particular identity, especially when emotions are associated with distinct patterns of action. Consumers tend to choose products that bolster emotions associated with a particular identity," write authors Nicole Verrochi Coleman (University of Pittsburgh) and Patti Williams (Wharton ...
Novel small molecules used to visualize prostate cancer
2013-03-05
Two novel radiolabeled small molecules targeting prostate-specific membrane antigen (PSMA) have excellent potential for further development as diagnostic and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals, according to research published this month in The Journal of Nuclear Medicine. The imaging agents—123I-MIP-1072 and 123I-MIP-1095—were shown to have a high sensitivity of lesion detection in bone, soft tissue and the prostate gland with minimal retention in non-target tissue.
An estimated 238,500 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2013, and 29,700 will die from the disease. ...
Are new national policies designed to reduce hospital readmissions working?
2013-03-05
New Rochelle, NY, March 5, 2013–Reducing preventable hospital readmissions is a cornerstone of emerging healthcare policy. The U.S. government has developed payment policies that will decrease payments to hospitals with excess patient readmission levels, for example. Early lessons learned from these current policy initiatives hint at their likelihood for success and are examined in an insightful article in Population Health Management, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the Population Health Management website ...
EEG patterns indicate when patients lose, regain consciousness under propofol anesthesia
2013-03-05
Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators have identified specific EEG (electroencephalogram) signatures that indicate when patients lose and regain consciousness under the general anesthetic drug propofol. Their report being published online in PNAS Early Edition is part of a major MGH-based investigation into the mechanisms behind general anesthesia and builds on the results of a November 2012 paper.
"We have discovered highly structured EEG patterns that indicate when people are sedated during administration of propofol, when they are unconscious and when ...
Seniors who play video games report better sense of emotional well-being
2013-03-05
New research from North Carolina State University finds that older adults who play video games report higher levels of emotional well-being.
Researchers asked 140 people aged 63 and older how often they played video games, if at all. The study participants then took a battery of tests to assess their emotional and social well-being. 61 percent of study participants played video games at least occasionally, with 35 percent of participants saying they played at least once per week.
The study found that participants who played video games, including those who only played ...
Before and after: Ad placement should reflect cultural conceptions of time
2013-03-05
Consumers respond more favorably to advertising when the placement of product images is consistent with the way they visualize time, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.
"Whether a product's image is placed on the left or the right of an advertisement matters for products promising results occurring over time (weight loss aids or anti-aging creams) or products that are valued because they are old or new (antique furniture, modern art, wine, new technologies)," write authors Boyoun (Grace) Chae and JoAndrea Hoegg (both University of British Columbia).
Consumers ...
U of M researchers utilize genetically corrected stem cells to spark muscle regeneration
2013-03-05
MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL (March 5, 2013) – Researchers at the University of Minnesota's Lillehei Heart Institute have combined genetic repair with cellular reprogramming to generate stem cells capable of muscle regeneration in a mouse model for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD).
The research, which provides proof-of-principle for the feasibility of combining induced pluripotent stem cell technology and genetic correction to treat muscular dystrophy, could present a major step forward in autologous cell-based therapies for DMD and similar conditions and should pave the way ...
The Joint Facial and Invasive Neck Trauma (J-FAINT) Project, Iraq and Afghanistan 2003-2011
2013-03-05
Alexandria, VA — With over 37,000 face and neck injuries in more than 7,000 military personnel during Operations Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Enduring Freedom (OEF), a new study in Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery concludes additional training in the management of these injuries and improvements in body armor could be beneficial.
The authors note that OIF and OEF have changed the way military surgeons approach facial and penetrating neck trauma. "This study highlights the need for a trained head and neck surgeon in the deployed environment to address these changes and ...
Comparison investing: Why are consumers more willing to take risks when they can compare products?
2013-03-05
Consumers are more willing to take risks and accept delays in exchange for greater benefits when they are able to compare products, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.
"Rationally speaking, consumer preferences should be the same whether their product choices are presented side-by-side and evaluated comparatively or presented one at a time and evaluated in isolation, but it makes a remarkable difference in consumer decision-making," write authors Christopher K. Hsee (University of Chicago Booth School of Business), Jiao Zhang (University of Miami), ...