Since the early days of iris recognition technologies, it has been assumed that the iris was a "stable" biometric over a person's lifetime — "one enrollment for life." However, new research from University of Notre Dame researchers has found that iris biometric enrollment is susceptible to an aging process that causes recognition performance to degrade slowly over time. "The biometric community has long accepted that there is no 'template aging effect' for iris recognition, meaning that once you are enrolled in an iris recognition system, your chances of experiencing ...

"Fracking" stories about shale gas extraction hit the news daily, fueling a growing conflagration between environmental protectionism and economic interests. Otherwise known as hydraulic fracturing, fracking has become a profitable venture thanks to advances in horizontal drilling technology, opening up large US reservoirs and vastly changing the natural gas market. Touted as a clean energy source and a bridge fuel to transition from fossil fuels, natural gas via fracking is also frought with public health and environmental concerns. A session at the upcoming annual ...

The continent of Antarctica is at risk from human activities and other forces, and environmental management is needed to protect the planet's last great wilderness area, says an international team of researchers, including a Texas A&M University oceanographer, in a paper published in the current issue of Science magazine. Mahlon "Chuck" Kennicutt II, professor of oceanography who has conducted research in the area for more than 25 years, says Antarctica faces growing threats from global warming, loss of sea ice and landed ice, increased tourism, over-fishing in the region, ...

LA JOLLA, CA – July 12, 2012 –Readers of the top-ranked scientific journals Science and Nature might have noticed a recent wave of articles, most recently in the July 13, 2012 issue of Science, with deep importance for biology and medicine. These papers, all published this year by collaborations headed by the Scripps Research Institute laboratory of Professor Raymond Stevens, illuminate a large and medically important family of proteins called G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). GPCRs sit in the cell membrane and sense various molecules outside the cell, including odors, ...

New York, NY – For the first time, the den sites of two female snow leopards and their cubs have been located in Mongolia's Tost Mountains, with the first known videos taken of a mother and cubs, located and recorded by scientists from Panthera, a wild cat conservation organization, and the Snow Leopard Trust (SLT). Watch the videos and view a photo gallery. Because of the snow leopard's secretive and elusive nature, coupled with the extreme and treacherous landscape which they inhabit, dens have been extremely difficult to locate. This is a tremendous discovery and ...

VIDEO: Cornstarch and water is a smart material derived from simple components. This video shows a bowling ball bouncing off the surface of the mixture, which also can catch a dropped... Click here for more information. Most people buy cornstarch to make custard or gravy, but Scott Waitukaitis and Heinrich Jaeger have used it to solve a longstanding physics problem with a substance known to generations of Dr. Seuss readers as "Oobleck," and to scientists as a non-Newtonian liquid. This ...

MANHATTAN, Kan. -- They might be called a blessing or a curse -- tannins, which are present in certain sorghums, contain health-promoting antioxidant properties, but also provide a bitter taste and decreased protein digestibility. To better understand tannins, their role in sorghum and how they can be altered to improve sorghum's use as food and feed, a team of scientists led by Kansas State University and U.S. Department of Agriculture researchers, has cloned the tannin gene in sorghum. Tannins' high antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and UV-protective functions promote ...

Cardiologists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a noninvasive imaging technique that may help determine whether children who have had heart transplants are showing early signs of rejection. The technique could reduce the need for these patients to undergo invasive imaging tests every one to two years. The new method is described online in the Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. The invasive imaging test, a coronary angiogram, involves inserting a catheter into a blood vessel and injecting a dye to look for dangerous plaque ...

Boulder, Colo., USA – Geology highlights include understanding new evidence for rock pulverization by catastrophic events near major faults in California and Japan; modern-day examples of active arc-continent collision in Taiwan; discovery and study of the highest-latitude coral reefs presently known on Earth, located in Japan; the puzzling record of the changing isotope ratio of calcium in seawater over the last 500 million years; and a possible refutation of hypotheses concerning shallow-water methane seep fauna. Highlights are provided below. Geology articles published ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. ¬— Online advertising has become prevalent in the past five years, and social media sites, such as Facebook, have played a major role. Now, a study at the University of Missouri School of Journalism has developed a method that could help advertisers target online audiences easier by knowing their personality types. Using a new personality scale, researchers determine how people with certain personality types use social media websites. Heather Shoenberger, a doctoral student in the MU School of Journalism, found that those individuals who liked high-risk ...

SEATTLE – Women who want to lose weight should faithfully keep a food journal, and avoid skipping meals and eating in restaurants – especially at lunch – suggests new research from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The findings by Anne McTiernan, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues – from the first study to look at the impact of a wide range of self-monitoring and diet-related behaviors and meal patterns on weight change among overweight and obese postmenopausal women – are published online in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formerly the Journal of ...

Osteoarthritis progression is not more likely in patients who have undergone single-bundle ACL reconstruction, says researchers presenting their work today at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine's Annual Meeting in Baltimore. "While previous studies have shown the benefits of double bundle ACL reconstruction compared to single bundle, none have focused on the long-term effects of osteoarthritis(OA)," noted Jongkeun Seon, MD, corresponding author from Chonnam National University Hwasun Hospital. "A final follow-up in our study showed 9.6 percent of the ...

BALTIMORE, MD – A sports hernia is a common cause of groin pain in athletes, however until lately little has been known as to why they occur. Researchers presenting their study today at the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine's (AOSSM) Annual Meeting in Baltimore suggest that a type of hip condition (Femoral Acetabular Impingement (FAI) might be a contributing cause. "Our study illustrated that those patients with FAI tend to have a change in hip biomechanics which in turn leads to increased stress across the groin. With these stresses a sports hernia ...

Vitamin D deficiency is associated with poorer lung function in asthmatic children treated with inhaled corticosteroids, according to a new study from researchers in Boston. "In our study of 1,024 children with mild to moderate persistent asthma, those who were deficient in vitamin D levels showed less improvement in pre-bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) after one year of treatment with inhaled corticosteroids than children with sufficient levels of vitamin D," said Ann Chen Wu, MD, MPH, assistant professor in the Department of Population Medicine ...

A new study demonstrates the superiority of a specific technique to perform anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction in children. In recent years, the number of ACL surgeries in pediatric athletes has skyrocketed. The study, conducted by researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) in New York City, shows that a technique called the All-Inside, All-Epiphyseal ACL Reconstruction (AE) provides great knee stability and effectively controls joint stress. "The AE technique is not available except in a few select centers around the country including HSS," said ...

Boston, MA – A study lead by researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) shows an association between increased concentrations of phthalates in the body and an increased risk of diabetes in women. Phthalates are endocrine disrupting chemicals that are commonly found in personal care products such as moisturizers, nail polishes, soaps, hair sprays and perfumes. They are also used in adhesives, electronics, toys and a variety of other products. This finding is published in the July 13, 2012 online edition of Environmental Health Perspectives Researchers, lead ...

July 13, 2012, New York, NY—Twenty percent of U.S. women (18.7 million) ages 19-64 were uninsured in 2010, up from 15 percent (12.8 million) in 2000, according to a new Commonwealth Fund report on women's health care. An additional 16.7 million women were underinsured in 2010, compared with 10.3 million in 2003. The report estimates that once fully implemented, the Affordable Care Act will cover nearly all women, reducing the uninsured rate among women from 20 percent to 8 percent. "Women, particularly those in their childbearing years, are uniquely at risk for being ...

Shaun King is back again, delivering more visuals to fans with the music video release for his hit single, "2 Up 2 Down." The official video release is set for today, Thursday, July 12, 2012 at 12PM Eastern Standard Time. Fans will be able to watch the video on Shaun's YouTube channel, http://www.youtube.com/ShaunKingTV and on VEVO. "I really enjoyed shooting this video and the hood showed a lot of love," states Shaun. "I will never forget growing up in Virginia and feel that I owe it to VA to put my home back on the map." "2 Up ...

CFLA's founding vision was for Attorneys and Legal Professionals to utilize cutting edge trade secrets and industry professionals to assist them in the training, research, and work product development necessary to litigate on behalf of their homeowner clients. CFLA brought together some of the best minds in the legal and technological fields to make this vision a reality. The result is CFLA, Inc - the leading, nationally recognized legal brand for law firms, attorneys, and small business in the United States. This class carries a $395.00 registration fee. Learn more ...

Iran. It was on President George W. Bush's list of the "Axis of Evil", but Andrew and Friedel had a somewhat different experience when they spent 3 months biking through Iran. They stopped to use a pay phone because they needed to get visas for the countries in Central Asia. A stranger stopped by to offer them the use of his cell phone instead, the pay phones are notoriously unreliable. Then a second stranger stopped by. Then a third stranger stopped. Soon they had 5 strangers on 5 different cell phones calling 5 different embassies on their behalf. Another day as ...

Sculptor Guy J. Bellaver's business, Sculpture, has received notification from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs that the business is a "Verified" Veteran Owned Business. To achieve this status, the business must go through a rigorous process, submitting detailed information about its history and present operations. Bellaver has been a sculptor full time since 1975, and counts the Kane County Veterans Memorial among his major works of public art. He was in the United States Army during the Vietnam War era, and was honorably discharged after his ...

GammaTech Computer Corp., a major international manufacturer and supplier of innovative notebook and tablet computers, has added to its award-winning line of fully rugged tablets. The new model, the T7Q, meets Military Standard 810G for drop, shock, spill, salt, fog, and freeze/thaw resistance; and meets IP-65 for protection against dust and water. The unit is an ideal, lightweight solution for virtually any outdoor environment such as transportation, field services, utilities, oil, gas and other types of mobile applications. "Whether used on the road, in an office ...

Pathfinder Partners, LLC, a San Diego-based company that invests in distressed real estate and defaulted loans, has closed Pathfinder Partners Opportunity Fund III, L.P., the firm's third fund focused on acquiring real estate assets in major markets throughout the western United States. According to Mitch Siegler, senior managing director and co-founder of Pathfinder, the $57.5 million fund, which held its initial closing in May, 2011, had its final closing in May, 2012. "We have already deployed the majority of the Fund capital - concluding 17 portfolio investments ...

Divorce can be complicated and difficult for all involved. Among other things, when considering divorce, spouses may have many concerns about family and financial stability. Early action can help address these concerns. Consider taking the following steps to allay fears about your financial future as a newly single individual. Ascertain Assets and Debts When couples divorce, they divide not only their assets, but also their debts. Spouses considering divorce must ascertain their debts, such as mortgages, car loans and credit card debt. It is also important to identify ...

Wynn Resorts, Ltd. and its once-largest stockholder are involved in an ongoing lawsuit over shares which Wynn forcibly redeemed earlier this year. Stephen Wynn and Japanese gambling magnate Kazura Okada, once close friends and colleagues, are each attempting to gain control of Okada's former 20 percent share. The dispute arose when Okada became involved in a casino deal in the Philippines. Wynn felt this would compete with his Macau casinos and refused to participate in the development. Wynn owns the Bellagio and Mirage Casino and Resort Hotels, while Okada made his ...