Tuesday, July 29: Chile and Argentina may face critical water storage issues due to rain-bearing westerly winds over South America's Patagonian Ice-Field to moving south as a result of global warming. A reconstruction of past changes in the North and Central Patagonian Ice-field, which plays a vital role in the hydrology of the region, has revealed the ice field had suddenly contracted around 15,000 years ago after a southerly migration of westerly winds. This migration of westerly winds towards the south pole has been observed again in modern times and is expected ...

WASHINGTON-–A team of theoretical physicists at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and Boston College has identified cubic boron arsenide as a material with an extraordinarily high thermal conductivity and the potential to transfer heat more effectively from electronic devices than diamond, the best-known thermal conductor to date. As microelectronic devices become smaller, faster and more powerful, thermal management is becoming a critical challenge. This work provides new insight into the nature of thermal transport at a quantitative level and predicts a new material, ...

The burden of improved conditions in state prisons may be borne by welfare recipients, according to new research from Rice University and Louisiana State University. The study, "Intended and Unintended Consequences of Prison Reform" published online this month in the Journal of Law, Economics & Organization, examined the impact of federal court orders condemning prison crowding and the outcomes among states following these orders. The researchers found that court-mandated efforts by the federal government to improve living conditions in state prisons resulted in decreased ...

WASHINGTON, July 29, 2013 — After six years of anticipation, that rock star of plants — a rainforest giant known as the corpse flower for its putrid odor — has bloomed here, and is the subject of a new video by the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world's largest scientific society. It is available at http://www.bytesizescience.com. The video, produced by ACS Office of Public Affairs' award-winning Digital Services Unit, focuses on the chemical cocktail responsible for the offensive odor of the flower. More formally known as titan arum or Amorphophallus titanum, the ...

A Virginia Commonwealth University study¹ shows intensive job training benefits youth with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), one of the most challenging disabilities in the world where only 20 percent find employment. Published in the Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, the study demonstrates that nine months of intensive internship training, in conjunction with an engaged hospital, can lead to high levels of competitive employment in areas such as cardiac care, wellness, ambulatory surgery and pediatric intensive care units. "This is the first study of its ...

NOAA-supported scientists found a large Gulf of Mexico oxygen-free or hypoxic "dead" zone, but not as large as had been predicted. Measuring 5,840 square miles, an area the size of Connecticut, the 2013 Gulf dead zone indicates nutrients from the Mississippi River watershed are continuing to affect the nation's commercial and recreational marine resources in the Gulf. "A near-record area was expected because of wet spring conditions in the Mississippi watershed and the resultant high river flows which deliver large amounts of nutrients," said Nancy Rabalais, Ph.D. executive ...

The island of Madagascar harbors a unique biodiversity that evolved due to its long-lasting isolation from other land masses. Numerous plant and animal species are found solely on Madagascar. Lemurs, a subgroup of primates, are among the most prominent representatives of the island's unique fauna. They are found almost exclusively on Madagascar. The only exceptions are two species of the genus Eulemur that also live on the Comoros Islands, where they probably have been introduced by humans. Thanks to extensive field research over the past decades, numerous previously unknown ...

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Researchers have uncovered the genetics behind what makes some people susceptible to Takayasu arteritis, a debilitating disease that can lead to poor circulation, easy tiredness in the legs and arms, organ damage and stroke. A study led by the University of Michigan has identified five genes tied to Takayasu arteritis, an inflammation that damages the aorta and can lead to narrowed arteries, aneurysms, high blood pressure, and heart failure. The findings appear in the August issue of The American Journal of Human Genetics. "Discovering the genetic ...

Male fruit flies have one X chromosome per cell, females have two. So genes on the male X must work twice as hard to produce the same amount of protein as its female counterparts. A team of researchers at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich has found a new switch involved in making this possible. In the fruit fly Drosophila -- as in humans -- the sexes have different sets of chromosomes. While females have two X chromosomes in their somatic cells, males have one X and one copy of the much smaller Y. The latter determines maleness but carries very few genes, ...

Antibiotic use—and misuse—is the main driver for selection of antibiotic resistant bacteria. This has led many countries to implement interventions designed to reduce overall antibiotic consumption. Now, using methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) as an example, Laura Temime of the Conservatoire National des Arts et Metiers, Paris, and collaborators warn that simply reducing antibiotics consumption does not necessarily reduce resistance. The research is published online ahead of print in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. The success of antibiotic reduction ...

Philadelphia, Pa. (August 29, 2013) - Cataract surgery can lead to good results from a clinical standpoint yet have poor outcomes from the patient's point of view, reports a study, "Analyzing Patient-Reported Outcomes to Improve Cataract Care", appearing in the August issue of Optometry and Vision Science, official journal of the American Academy of Optometry. The journal is published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health. Using well-designed and validated tools to assess patient-reported outcomes can lead to new insights for improving the ...

WASHINGTON D.C., July 29, 2013 -- If genes are the currency of life, then the whole economies are genetic networks, which include genes as well as the complex webs of interactions and interconnections between them. Genetic networks are integrally important to the proper development and functioning of an organism, just as genes are, but they tend to be far more complex and difficult to understand. Because of their complexity, the field has been slow to unravel genetic networks, said Leon Glass, the Isadore Rosenfeld Chair in Cardiology and a professor of physiology at ...

VIDEO: Now, new computer technology is making highly sophisticated biological systems available for viewing by students and researchers. In a new study, a scientist from the University of Missouri's School of... Click here for more information. COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Many scientists agree that the best way to learn the anatomy of any species is to utilize donor bodies. However, thousands of junior high, high school and college students, and university researchers do not have access ...

What do wound healing, cancer metastasis, and bacteria colonies have in common? They all involve the collective displacement of biological cells. New research sheds some new light on the physical mechanisms provoking the displacement of a sheet of cell, known as an epithelium. It typically covers our organs including the stomach and intestine, as well as our epidermis. In a paper about to appear in EPJ E, Martine Ben Amar from Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris explains the importance of understanding the displacement of the epithelium as a means of influencing ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Broken bones and joint replacements may someday heal faster, thanks to an unusual coating for medical implants under development at The Ohio State University. Researchers here have found that bone cells grow and reproduce faster on a textured surface than they do on a smooth one—and they grow best when they can cling to a microscopic shag carpet made of tiny metal oxide wires. In tests, the wires boosted cell growth by nearly 80 percent compared to other surfaces, which suggests that the coating would help healthy bone form a strong bond with an implant ...

Scientists have long been worried about the possible harmful effects of regular cellular phone use, but so far no study has managed to produce clear results. Currently, cell phones are classified as carcinogenic category 2b – potentially carcinogenic to humans – by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). A new Tel Aviv University study, though, may bring bad news. To further explore the relationship between cancer rates and cell phone use, Dr. Yaniv Hamzany of Tel Aviv University's Sackler Faculty of Medicine at Tel Aviv University and the Otolaryngology ...

Year-round ice-free conditions across the surface of the Arctic Ocean could explain why the Earth was substantially warmer during the Pliocene Epoch than it is today, despite similar concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, according to new research carried out at the University of Colorado Boulder. In early May, instruments at the Mauna Loa Observatory in Hawaii marked a new record: The concentration of carbon dioxide climbed to 400 parts per million for the first time in modern history. The last time researchers believe the carbon dioxide concentration ...

Boston, MA, July 29, 2013 -- While most children cannot be shielded from emotionally traumatic events, clinicians can target those who are most vulnerable to developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to a large study from Boston Children's Hospital. Findings appear online in the August issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, accompanied by an editorial. Researchers led by Katie McLaughlin, PhD, of the Departments of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at Boston Children's, analyzed data on 6,483 teen–parent pairs from the ...

PITTSBURGH -- Diets lacking omega-3 fatty acids—found in foods like wild fish, eggs, and grass-fed livestock—can have worsened effects over consecutive generations, especially affecting teens, according to a University of Pittsburgh study. Published in Biological Psychiatry, the Pitt team found that in a rodent model second-generation deficiencies of omega-3s caused elevated states of anxiety and hyperactivity in adolescents and affected the teens' memory and cognition. "We have always assumed that stress at this age is the main environmental insult that contributes ...

PITTSBURGH—Objects made from graphite—such as lithium-ion batteries—are "hydrophobic," meaning that they "dislike" water. For decades this lack of likeability has presented significant challenges in terms of building more durable technological devices made with graphite—until now. It appears that past samples of graphite were likely contaminated by air, causing the samples to appear hydrophobic, according to a University of Pittsburgh study. The Pitt team has demonstrated—for the first time—these materials are actually intrinsically attracted to water or "hydrophilic." ...

PITTSBURGH -- The joints of children with the most common form of chronic inflammatory arthritis contain immune cells that resemble those of 90-year-olds, according to a new study led by researchers at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC and the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. The findings, published in the August issue of Arthritis and Rheumatism, suggest that innovative treatment approaches could aim to prevent premature aging of immune cells. Juvenile idiopathic arthritis, or JIA, is the most prevalent rheumatic condition in the world and affects ...

Researchers who collect genetic samples from children for medical research need to explain the process more clearly to parents, according to a new study that suggests many parents don't fully understand the finer details about how these samples will be used and stored. The study was published in June in Genetics in Medicine. Kim McBride, MD, MS, principal investigator in the Center for Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Research in The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, and colleagues followed up with families enrolled in a genetic biobank—a storage facility ...

Choking is a leading cause of injury among children, especially for children 4 years of age and younger. A new study by researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital and colleagues at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examined nonfatal food-related choking among children 14 years of age or younger from 2001through 2009. During the nine-year study period, more than 12,000 children were treated each year in U.S. emergency departments for injuries from choking on food, which equals 34 children ...

Viper tick removal service Human cases of Lyme disease continue to rise in the United States. The bacterial disease—which, if untreated can cause significant neurological problems—is transmitted to people by black-legged ticks, which pick up the pathogen by feeding on infected animals, primarily small mammals such as mice. Previous studies have shown that when fewer predators of small mammals are present, the abundance of ticks goes up, resulting in an increase of Lyme infections in people. Edward Kabay, at East Chapel Hill High School, together with Nicholas Caruso ...

Fluorescent tetrapod nanocrystals could light the way to the future design of stronger polymer nanocomposites. A team of researchers with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)'s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has developed an advanced opto-mechanical sensing technique based on tetrapod quantum dots that allows precise measurement of the tensile strength of polymer fibers with minimal impact on the fiber's mechanical properties. In a study led by Paul Alivisatos, Berkeley Lab director and the Larry and Diane Bock Professor of Nanotechnology at the ...