Most big galaxies fit into one of two camps: pinwheel-shaped spiral galaxies and blobby elliptical galaxies. Spirals like the Milky Way are hip and happening places, with plenty of gas and dust to birth new stars. Ellipticals are like cosmic retirement villages, full of aging residents in the form of red giant stars. Now, astronomers have discovered that one well-known elliptical has a split personality. Centaurus A is hiding a gassy spiral in its center. "No other elliptical galaxy is known to have spiral arms," said lead author Daniel Espada (National Astronomical Observatory ...

Depending on which naive theory consumers use, a low price can indicate either good value or low quality, whereas a high price may imply either poor value or high quality, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "Consumers rarely have complete information and use various strategies to fill the gaps in their knowledge as they consider and choose products. One of these strategies involves using naive theories: informal, common sense, explanations that consumers use to make sense of their environment. For example, consumers may believe that popular ...

Consumers are often less satisfied when they buy or receive products that are easily counted because this makes them focus on value instead of experience, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. "Numbers make us feel more certain of what is in front of us. When we count, we understand exactly how big, expensive, heavy, or old something is. But when we buy or receive products that are easily counted, we may be less satisfied," write authors Jingjing Ma and Neal J. Roese (both Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University). What happens when ...

Parents with a higher number of stressors in their lives are more likely to have obese children, according to a new study by pediatric researchers. Furthermore, when parents perceive themselves to be stressed, their children eat fast food more often, compared to children whose parents feel less stressed. "Stress in parents may be an important risk factor for child obesity and related behaviors," said Elizabeth Prout-Parks, M.D., a physician nutrition specialist at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, who led a study published online today in the November issue of ...

With adolescents seemingly glued to cell phones and social networking websites, experts are investigating whether the near-constant digital activity changes youths' development. A new study from the University of Washington shows that digital media helps teens reach developmental milestones, such as fostering a sense of belonging and sharing personal problems. But the study also raised questions about whether digital connectedness might hinder the development of an autonomous sense of self. Katie Davis, an assistant professor in the Information School and an expert ...

A new study from Johns Hopkins researchers suggests that the lethal spread of breast cancer is as dependent on a tumor's protein-rich environment as on genetic changes inside tumor cells. In a report in the Sept. 25 issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists conclude that a molecular signal in the protein meshwork surrounding the breast cancer cells may provide the critical trigger to initiate the life-threatening process of metastasis to distant sites in the body. Moreover, their experiments suggest that the environment surrounding ...

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found a key difference in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease and those who are cognitively normal but still have brain plaques that characterize this type of dementia. "There is a very interesting group of people whose thinking and memory are normal, even late in life, yet their brains are full of amyloid beta plaques that appear to be identical to what's seen in Alzheimer's disease," says David L. Brody, MD, PhD, associate professor of neurology. "How this can occur is a tantalizing ...

Focusing in on beam focus The rapidly evolving technology of laser plasma accelerators (LPAs) – called "table-top accelerators" because their length can be measured in centimeters instead of kilometers – promises a new breed of machines, far less expensive and with far less impact on the land and the environment than today's conventional accelerators. Future LPAs offer not only compact high-energy colliders for fundamental physics but diminutive light sources as well. These will probe chemical reactions, from artificial photosynthesis to "green catalysis"; unique biological ...

This press release is available in German. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is considered the fourth most common cause of death in the United States. Usually the precursor to this life-threatening lung disease is a chronic bronchitis. Partially destroyed alveoli and an over-inflation of the lungs, known as emphysema, are serious side effects. However, the subtle differences in the tissue are barely discernable in standard X-ray images. In addition to the conventional X-ray images, the Munich scientists analyzed the radiation scattered by the tissue. ...

Patients treated in magnet hospitals (specially designated for their nursing excellence) had 14 percent lower odds of death than those in non-magnet hospitals in a four-state study of 564 hospitals led by the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing. The magnet designation, determined by the American Nurses Credentialing Center, recognizes high-quality patient care, high levels of nurse education, and nursing innovation. "Even controlling for differences in nursing, hospital, and patient characteristics, surgical patients fared better in magnet hospitals," said lead ...

LA JOLLA, CA – October 21, 2012 – Biochemists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered a genetic sequence that can alter its host gene's activity in response to cellular energy levels. The scientists have found this particular energy-sensing switch in bacterial genes, which could make it a target for a powerful new class of antibiotics. If similar energy-sensing switches are also identified for human genes, they may be useful for treating metabolism-related disorders such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. "This discovery adds a new dimension to our ...

Reflective surfaces polarize light, a phenomenon that fishermen or photographers overcome by using polarizing sunglasses or polarizing filters to cut our reflective glare. However, PhD student Tom Jordan from the Bristol Centre for Complexity Sciences and his supervisors Professor Julian Partridge and Dr Nicholas Roberts in Bristol's School of Biological Sciences found that these silvery fish have overcome this basic law of reflection – an adaptation that may help them evade predators. Previously, it was thought that the fish's skin – which contains "multilayer" arrangements ...

PHILADELPHIA — The extensive system of levees along the Mississippi River has done much to prevent devastating floods in riverside communities. But the levees have also contributed to the loss of Louisiana's wetlands. By holding in floodwaters, they prevent sediment from flowing into the watershed and rebuilding marshes, which are compacting under their own weight and losing ground to sea-level rise. Reporting in Nature Geoscience, a team of University of Pennsylvania geologists and others used the Mississippi River flood of the spring of 2011 to observe how floodwaters ...

Washington, D.C.— Solar radiation management is a type of geoengineering that would manipulate the climate in order to reduce the impact of global warming caused by greenhouse gasses. Ideas include increasing the amount of aerosols in the stratosphere, which could scatter incoming solar light away from Earth's surface, or creating low-altitude marine clouds to reflect these same rays. Research models have indicated that the climatic effect of this type of geoengineering will vary by region, because the climate systems respond differently to the reflecting substances ...

A new study in BioMed Central's open access journal Critical Care suggests that intensive glycemic control does not reduce mortality in neurocritical care patients and could, in fact, lead to more neurological damage. Complicating the picture, poor glucose control also leads to worse recovery and should be avoided. This study suggests that a strategy to maintain intermediate glucose levels would contribute to better outcomes in these patients. Hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia are common in critically ill patients and are strongly associated with worse outcomes. This is ...

When animals and plants are exposed to influences such as bacterial attack, odour and cold, calcium ions flow into the cells. The calcium provides the cells with a signal about what is going on outside, but as high concentrations of calcium are toxic to the cells, it must be quickly pumped out again. Researchers from the Danish National Research Foundation's PUMPkin Centre at both the University of Copenhagen and Aarhus University have now shown that calcium pumps in the cell's outer membrane adjust the pump speed very accurately to the calcium concentration. These findings ...

This press release is available in German. A Danish-British research team has discovered a turbo switch in the vital calcium pump in our body's cells. In studies at the X-ray source DORIS at Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotorn DESY in Hamburg and the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility ESRF in Grenoble the team discovered that the on-off switch of the pump has a previously unknown third position, which switches the pump into a turbo gear. The group of Henning Tidow from Aarhus University and Lisbeth Poulsen from the University of Copenhagen published its studies ...

Cambridge, Mass., and Washington, D.C. - October 21, 2012 - By tailoring geoengineering efforts by region and by need, a new model promises to maximize the effectiveness of solar radiation management while mitigating its potential side effects and risks. Developed by a team of leading researchers, the study was published in the November issue of Nature Climate Change. Solar geoengineering, the goal of which is to offset the global warming caused by greenhouse gases, involves reflecting sunlight back into space. By increasing the concentrations of aerosols in the stratosphere ...

STANFORD, Calif. — The brain's key "breeder" cells, it turns out, do more than that. They secrete substances that boost the numbers and strength of critical brain-based immune cells believed to play a vital role in brain health. This finding adds a new dimension to our understanding of how resident stem cells and stem cell transplants may improve brain function. Many researchers believe that these cells may be able to regenerate damaged brain tissue by integrating into circuits that have been eroded by neurodegenerative disease or destroyed by injury. But new findings ...

VIDEO: Children diagnosed with mental health disorders were three times more likely to be identified as bullies, according to new research presented Oct. 22 at the American Academy of Pediatrics National... Click here for more information. NEW ORLEANS – Children diagnosed with mental health disorders were three times more likely to be identified as bullies, according to new research presented Oct. 22 at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition ...

NEW ORLEANS – Despite an increase in media attention, as well as national and local efforts to educate athletes on the potential dangers of traumatic brain injuries, a new study found that many high school football players are not concerned about the long-term effects of concussions and don't report their own concussion symptoms because they fear exclusion from play. The abstract, "Awareness and Attitudes of High School Athletes Towards Concussions," was presented on Oct. 22, at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. Researchers ...

NEW ORLEANS – State laws that mandate car booster seat use for children at least until age 8 are associated with fewer motor vehicle-related fatalities and severe injuries, and should be standardized throughout the U.S. to optimally protect children, according to new research presented Oct. 22 at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. The AAP recommends that children be secured in a belt-positioning booster seat until the child reaches 4 feet, 9 inches in height, sometime between the ages of 8 and 12. While many states ...

NEW ORLEANS – All-terrain vehicle (ATV) manufacturer warning labels aimed at children under age 16 are largely ineffective, and formal dealer-sponsored training is infrequently offered and deemed unnecessary by most young ATV users, according to new research presented at the Oct. 22 at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. The study of ATV crashes involving children also found less than 35 percent of children were wearing a helmet when injured in an ATV crash, and nearly 60 percent were riding again within six months. Children ...

NEW ORLEANS – High schools with athletic trainers have lower overall injury rates, according to a new study, "A Comparative Analysis of Injury Rates and Patterns Among Girls' Soccer and Basketball Players," presented Oct. 22 at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. In addition, athletes at schools with athletic trainers are more likely to be diagnosed with a concussion. Researchers reviewed national sports injury data on girls' high school soccer and basketball programs with athletic trainers, between the fall of ...

NEW ORLEANS – Despite a new federal law that prohibits the sale of adult-sized all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) for use by children under age 16, most ATV sellers are willing to discuss doing so, according to new research presented Oct. 22 at the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) National Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. From 2000 through 2007, a total of 1,160 children less than 16 years of age died in ATV-related crashes according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. Since April 2009, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act prohibits ATV manufacturers ...