Doppler measurements that help track storms on Earth may also be useful for understanding storms on the sun. A Rice University astrophysicist is part of an international team that combined Doppler techniques with images and data from a space-based telescope to observe, for the first time, loops of 1,800,000-degree Fahrenheit plasma flowing up from the sun's surface at more than 12 miles per second. The loops, rooted in active regions near sunspots and guided by the sun's magnetic field, arch over the sun and may be the first signs of trouble spots, where plasma undergoes ...

The new fossil find from the chalk beds of the Franconian Jura evokes associations with a pet cemetery, for the young predatory dinosaur reveals clear traces of fluffy plumage. It also poses an intriguing question: Were all dinosaurs dressed in down? The fossil of the fledgling saurian, probably newly hatched when it met its end, is remarkable in many ways. First of all, juveniles are extremely rare in the dinosaur fossil record, so every new discovery provides insights into dinosaur nurseries. Moreover, this specimen is perhaps the best-preserved predatory dinosaur that ...

VIB researcher Mohamed Lamkanfi, connected to the Ghent University, discovered that mice that do not produce the receptor protein NLRP6, are better protected against bacterial infections and can easier remove bacteria from the body. Therapeutic drugs that neutralize NLRP6 could be a possible treatment option, in addition to the use of antibiotics, for fighting bacterial infections. His research was published in the leading scientific magazine Nature. Mohamed Lamkanfi (VIB – Ghent University): "Our lab investigates the role of the innate immunity, which is of crucial importance ...

PITTSBURGH—There is no question that being a parent is, at times, challenging both physically and mentally. However knowledge of the actual affect parenthood has on health has been inconsistent at best, until now. New research led by Carnegie Mellon University's Sheldon Cohen and Rodlescia S. Sneed shows that being a parent influences health in a positive way. Published in Psychosomatic Medicine, the research provides the first evidence that, when exposed to a common cold virus, parents are 52 percent less likely to develop a cold than non-parents. "We have had a long-term ...

X-ray observations have revealed something curious about the young star that illuminates McNeil's Nebula, a glowing jewel of cosmic dust in the Orion constellation: The object is a protostar rotating once a day, or 30 times faster than the sun. The stellar baby also has distinct birthmarks—two X-ray-emitting spots, where gas flows from a surrounding disk, fueling the infant star. The young star, V1647 Orionis, first made news in early 2004, when it erupted and lit up McNeil's Nebula, located 1,300 light years away in a region of active star formation within the constellation ...

Philadelphia, PA, July 3, 2012 – Exposure to childhood maltreatment increases the risk for most psychiatric disorders as well as many negative consequences of these conditions. This new study, by Dr. Gustavo Turecki and colleagues at McGill University, Canada, provides important insight into one of the most extreme outcomes, suicide. "In this study, we expanded our previous work on the epigenetic regulation of the glucocorticoid receptor gene by investigating the impact of severe early-life adversity on DNA methylation," explained Dr. Turecki. The glucocorticoid receptor ...

Over a dozen radio signals that have hindered data collection on ESA's SMOS water mission have been switched off. The effort also benefits satellites such as NASA's Aquarius mission, which measures ocean salinity at the same frequency. We all know what happens when you place a cell phone too close to a speaker: seconds before the phone rings, that obnoxious buzz interrupts your favourite song. This is radio interference – an unwanted reception of radio signals. Not only can it interrupt the music from your stereo, it can also impede satellite measurements. ESA's ...

Although Herbig-Haro (HH) objects come in a wide array of shapes, the basic configuration is usually the same. Twin jets of heated gas, ejected in opposite directions from a forming star, stream through interstellar space. These outflows are fueled by gas falling onto the young star, which is surrounded by a disc of dust and gas. If the disc is the fuel tank, the star is the gravitational engine, and the jets are the exhaust. In Hubble's image of HH 110, one such turbulent streamer of gas can clearly be seen streaking across the frame. The intricate structures within ...

Philadelphia, PA, July 3, 2012 – When a person injures their knee, it becomes inflamed. When a person has a cold, their throat becomes inflamed. This type of inflammation is the body's natural and protective response to injury. Interestingly, there is growing evidence that a similar process happens when a person experiences psychological trauma. Unfortunately, this type of inflammation can be destructive. Previous studies have linked depression and inflammation, particularly in individuals who have experienced early childhood adversity, but overall, findings have ...

A new study by medical scientists coordinated from the University of Manchester has for the first time used patients' results to establish that "safety indicators" for people taking anticoagulant drugs to regulate a common heart condition are correct. More than 760,000 patients in the UK have atrial fibrillation (AF), a defect that causes an irregular heart rate. It is also known to increase the risk and severity of stroke. The main treatment used to regulate the condition is an anticoagulant drug called warfarin which prevents the blood from forming clots so easily. ...

Ottawa, Ontario (July 3, 2012) – The number of adult sockeye salmon produced per spawner has been decreasing over the last decade or more along the western coast of North America, from Washington state up through British Columbia and southeast Alaska. A new study published in the Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences says that this widespread decrease in productivity has important implications for management of salmon stocks and requires research into its potential causes to help determine future management strategies. "It is possible that the downward trends ...

BOSTON -- In the complex chain of molecular events that underlie eating behaviors and body weight, the AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) enzyme has proven to be a critical link. Now, researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) have identified the mechanism responsible for inhibition of AMPK activity in the hypothalamus, a discovery that not only provides a deeper understanding of energy balance but also reveals a critical integration point where multiple signaling pathways, including PI3K-AKT and mTOR converge. Described in the July 3 issue of Cell ...

WASHINGTON, July 3, 2012 — From the hiss of the fuse to the boom and burst of colors, an American Chemical Society (ACS) video, available again this year, explains the science behind the exciting sights and sounds of Fourth of July fireworks. The video is available at www.BytesizeScience.com. The Chemistry of Fireworks describes how these perennial crowd-pleasers represent chemistry-in-action with a demonstration by fireworks expert John A. Conkling, Ph.D. Author of The Chemistry of Pyrotechnics, Basic Principles and Theory, Conkling is an adjunct professor with Washington ...

DARPA's UAVForge, a crowdsourcing competition to design, build and manufacture an advanced small unmanned air vehicle (UAV), set out to determine if a loosely-connected community of UAV enthusiasts could develop a militarily relevant back-pack portable UAV with specific capabilities. By using a crowdsourcing design approach, the effort sought to inspire innovation and creative thought by lowering barriers to entry and increasing the number and diversity of contributors. More than 140 teams and 3,500 individuals from 153 countries and territories participated on UAVForge.net—the ...

Physicists from the Curie Institute, France, explored the relative impact of the mechanical pressure induced by dividing cells in biological tissues. This approach complements traditional studies on genetic and biochemical signalling mechanisms to explain experimental observations of how biological tissues evolve. This work, recently published in European Physical Journal E¹, could have significant implications for the understanding of cancer growth. Jonas Ranft and team created a two-component mathematical model accounting for both the cells and the fluid caught in between. ...

A robot that drives into an industrial disaster area and shuts off a valve leaking toxic steam might save lives. A robot that applies supervised autonomy to dexterously disarm a roadside bomb would keep humans out of harm's way. A robot that carries hundreds of pounds of equipment over rocky or wooded terrain would increase the range warfighters can travel and the speed at which they move. But a robot that runs out of power after ten to twenty minutes of operation is limited in its utility. In fact, use of robots in defense missions is currently constrained in part by power ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. ¬— The most common ailment to affect a horse is lameness. A University of Missouri equine veterinarian has developed a way to detect this problem using a motion detection system called the "Lameness Locator." Now, Kevin Keegan, a professor of equine surgery in the College of Veterinary Medicine at MU, has found that his Lameness Locator can detect lameness earlier than veterinarians using the traditional method of a subjective eye test. The Lameness Locator, which is now in commercial use, places small sensors on the horse's head, right front limb and ...

Cyanobacteria are among the most primitive living beings, aged over 3,500 million years old. These aquatic microorganisms helped to oxygenate the earth´atmosphere. At present their populations are increasing in size without stopping. It appears that global warming may be behind the rise in their numbers and may also lead toan increase in the amount of toxins produced by some of these populations. "Cyanobacteria love warm water, therefore an increase in temperature during this century may stimulate their growth, especially that of the cytotoxic varieties, which could ...

MANHATTAN, KAN. -- A Kansas State University-led quantum mechanics study has discovered a new bound state in atoms that may help scientists better understand matter and its composition. The yet-unnamed bound state, which the physicists simply refer to as "our state" in their study, applies to three identical atoms loosely bound together -- a behavior called three-body bound states in quantum mechanics. In this state, three atoms can stick together in a group but two cannot. Additionally, in some cases, the three atoms can stick together even when any two are trying to ...

WASHINGTON, July 3—Using the compound eyes of the humble moth as their inspiration, an international team of physicists has developed new nanoscale materials that could someday reduce the radiation dosages received by patients getting X-rayed, while improving the resolution of the resulting images. The work, led by Yasha Yi—a professor of the City University of New York, who is also affiliated with Massachusetts Institute of Technology and New York University—was published today in the Optical Society's (OSA) journal, Optics Letters. Like their Lepidopteran cousins ...

July 3, 2012, London, United Kingdom, and Shenzhen, China – The symposium themed "The Era of Next Generation Sequencing in Cancer", co-organized by BGI, the world's largest genomics organization, and Imperial College London, was successfully conducted in London, UK. Around 70 experts, scholars, and representatives from the local colleges, institutes and biotechnology industries attended the meeting with the aim to exchange their insights on high-throughput genomics and accelerate the further development of cancer research. The symposium started with a friendly opening ...

With the 2012 summer Olympic games about to take place in London, children everywhere are looking forward to watching their sports idols and role models take center stage. While the Olympics may inspire some to try a new sport, such as track, parents should be aware that this participation does not come without risk of injury. A new study by researchers at the Center for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital found that from 1991 through 2008 more than 159,000 children and adolescents between 10 and 18 years of age were ...

The objective of this innovation project is to improve the learning environment of the assistant referees with multimedia materials which offer a visual experience that is the most similar to what referees on the pitch experience, and which can train visual perception in decision-making calls on off-side plays. For that purpose, researchers in the UC3M Television-Film group: memory, representation and industry (TECMERIN) are using this 3D recording technique for the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) to use as teaching material in its training courses ...

Zymoseptoria tritici is often a headache for European farmers. This ascomycete originating from the Middle East attacks the leaves of wheat plants triggering "speckled leaf blotch", which can cut crop yields by up to 50 percent. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Terrestrial Microbiology in Marburg and Aarhus University in Denmark have now taken a close look at the genome of a close relative, Zymoseptoria pseudotritici and have made a surprising discovery. The fungus which, unlike its more globally active cousin, preferentially attacks grasses in Iran, clearly ...

Baltimore, MD – July 3, 2012. Researchers from the University of Maryland School of Maryland report promising results from using adult stem cells from bone marrow in mice to help create tissue cells of other organs, such as the heart, brain and pancreas - a scientific step they hope may lead to potential new ways to replace cells lost in diseases such as diabetes, Parkinson's or Alzheimer's. The research in collaboration with the University of Paris Descartes is published online in the June 29, 2012 edition of Comptes Rendus Biologies, a publication of the French Academy ...