Fairbanks, Alaska—Nearly one year ago, a repurposed NASA spacecraft flew by the comet Hartley 2. As a result, a multitude of high-resolution images were gathered over 50 days that allow scientists to understand the nature of the comet's surface and it's hidden interior. University of Alaska Fairbanks scientist Don Hampton was a key member of the mission to Hartley 2; he's an optics expert that helped create the highly sensitive telescope, camera and infrared spectrometer that flew on the spacecraft. Hampton, the optical science manager at Poker Flat Research Range, is ...

Outcomes of bypass surgery to repair blocked arteries in the legs tend to be better in the roughly one-in-five people who have inherited a specific genetic variation from both parents, according to a study presented at the late-breaking clinical trials session of the Vascular Annual Meeting in Chicago on June 18, 2011. For the estimated 8 million people in the United States with peripheral artery disease (PAD) and for their physicians, the new findings may prove useful in weighing treatment options – surgery versus medication alone, for example. More than 100,000 bypasses, ...

Barrow's annual Zircus Plus circus festival will return next month, featuring a double-header of top acts from the UK and France. On Friday July 15th and Saturday July 16th, Gallic ensemble DeFracto and England's own PanGottic will take the stage at the Cumbrian town's Forum venue. DeFracto's new production, Circuits Fermes - which translates as Closed Circuits - features two men, numerous white juggling balls and a sizeable wooden board. All these factors come together to create one entertaining performance, which manages to highlight the skill of the participants ...

There have been instances in Earth history when average temperatures have changed rapidly, as much as 10 degrees Celsius (18 degrees Fahrenheit) over a few decades, and some have speculated the same could happen again as the atmosphere becomes overloaded with carbon dioxide. New research lends support to evidence from numerous recent studies that suggest abrupt climate change appears to be the result of alterations in ocean circulation uniquely associated with ice ages. "There might be other mechanisms by which greenhouse gases may cause an abrupt climate change, ...

Greengrade announces the direct integration with USGBC's LEED Online for submitting LEED certification applications. Greengrade is a collaborative online management software tool that allows LEED project teams to communicate, track and manage LEED project information from planning to submission. The new integration between LEED Online and Greengrade significantly increases efficiency in LEED project management by eliminating the need to manage documents and data in multiple platforms and/or software. "We are thrilled that USGBC has taken the steps to enable direct ...

Researchers at Delft University of Technology and the University of Basel have established a biomimetic nanopore that provides a unique test and measurement platform for the way that proteins move into a cell's nucleus. In the journal Nature Nanotechnology (June 19 - online), they report an artificial nanopore that is functionalized with key proteins which mimicks the natural nuclear pore. Upon testing the transport of individual proteins through the biomimetic pore, they found that most proteins cannot move through, but some specific ones can indeed pass. This is the hallmark ...

The age at which bodychecking is introduced in youth ice hockey does not appear to affect overall risk of injury and concussion, although introducing it at the Pee Wee level (ages 11-12) reduces the risk of injury resulting in more than seven days loss from playing time for Bantam ice hockey players (ages 13-14), found an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) (pre-embargo link only) http://www.cmaj.ca/embargo/cmaj101540.pdf. The age to introduce bodychecking in youth hockey leagues is controversial. To determine whether there is a difference in risk of ...

To protect children from lifelong injuries in sports, we need a public health approach similar to that mounted against smoking and drunk driving, states an editorial in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) (pre-embargo link only) http://www.cmaj.ca/embargo/cmaj110634.pdf. The annual rate of catastrophic injury in sports or recreational activities is 6.9 per 100 000 participants, and many of the injured are children and youth under age 21. Nearly 500 Ontarians alone are hospitalized each year from hockey injuries and concussions in particular can have long-term ...

1. For Hypertension Patients, Single Reading Not Enough to Assess Blood Pressure Control Using Multiple Readings Increases Measurement Accuracy For patients with hypertension, physicians typically use a single in-office blood pressure (BP) reading to assess how well medical interventions are working and then adjust hypertension medications accordingly. However, some patients may experience a phenomenon known as "white coat" hypertension, meaning they have a higher than normal BP due to the anxiety associated with the office visit. Researchers sought to determine how ...

A new study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal by University of Calgary Faculty of Kinesiology researcher Dr. Carolyn Emery and colleagues has shown that when bodychecking is introduced into Bantam ice hockey there is no difference between overall injury rates or concussion, regardless of whether players have prior bodychecking experience in Pee Wee. Emery, co-chair of the Sport Injury Prevention Research Centre at the University of Calgary Sport Medicine Centre, began by comparing injury and concussion rates in Alberta where bodychecking is allowed, ...

A shorter pause in CPR just before a defibrillator delivered an electric shock to a cardiac arrest victim's heart significantly increased survival, according to a study in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. Researchers found the odds of surviving until hospital discharge were significantly lower for patients whose rescuers paused CPR for 20 seconds or more before delivering a shock (the pre-shock pause), and for patients whose rescuers paused CPR before and after defibrillation (the peri-shock pause) for 40 seconds or more, compared to patients with ...

In a landmark newly published study (http://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2011/985345/), scientists from State University, New York working collaboratively with researchers from HairGenesis, report the positive outcome of a set of basic science experiments designed to test an advanced hair regrowth formula in a cell-based model of human hair follicle keratinocytes. Combining naturally derived 5 alpha-reductase inhibitors with highly potent anti-inflammatory agents, the scientific team showed how their proprietary composition could potentially outperform single agent hair ...

Chapel Hill, NC – Ongoing research into the problem of how Hepatitis C becomes a chronic disease has uncovered a deeper mystery about its sister strain, Hepatitis A. Hepatitis C is a continuing public health problem, which is difficult to measure because symptoms occur months to years after infection. The World Health Organization estimates as many as 2 to 4 million people in the United States may have chronic Hepatitis C, and most do not know they are infected. More than a third of those who are long-term carriers may develop chronic liver disease or liver cancer. "Hepatitis ...

An exercise training program worked better than a commonly used beta blocker, significantly improving — even curing — patients with a debilitating heart syndrome, according to research published in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association. Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) — called "The Grinch Syndrome" because most patients have a heart that's "two sizes too small" — affects about 500,000 Americans, primarily young women. POTS is characterized by a rapid increase in heartbeat of more than 30 beats per minute or a heart rate that exceeds ...

Millions of adults with peripheral artery disease are not receiving the medications needed to reduce their risk of heart attack, stroke and death, according to research in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. Most patients are not receiving recommended therapies such as cholesterol and blood pressure-lowering medications, the study's authors found. Peripheral artery disease is the result of atherosclerosis, or blockages in the arteries in the legs caused by plaque. People with this disease have a significantly increased risk of having either a non-fatal ...

For grownups, drifting off for an afternoon snooze is often easier said than done. But many of us have probably experienced just how simple it can be to catch those zzz's in a gently rocking hammock. By examining brain waves in sleeping adults, researchers reporting in the June 21 issue of Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, now have evidence to explain why that is. The study finds that napping on a slowly swinging bed really does get us to sleep faster. To the researchers' surprise, rocking also changes the nature of our sleep, encouraging deeper sleep. "It ...

Scientists have developed a new method to make proteins form crystals using 'smart materials' that remember the shape and characteristics of the molecule. The technique, reported today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, should assist research into new medicines by helping scientists work out the structure of drug targets. The process of developing a new drug normally works by identifying a protein that is involved in the disease, then designing a molecule that will interact with the protein to stimulate or block its function. In order to do this, scientists ...

New research at the University of Leicester is investigating a growing fascination with 'chav' culture among middle-class gay men in Britain. Professor Joanna Brewis, from the University of Leicester School of Management, UK, will conduct primary empirical research into gay class tourism following publication of findings reported last year in the journal Sociology. Research she carried out with her former colleague Professor Gavin Jack, now at La Trobe University in Australia, revealed the complex consumer patterns of middle-class homosexual men who go 'slumming' at ...

PHILADELPHIA — An international research team including University of Pennsylvania scientists has shown that the rate of sea-level rise along the U.S. Atlantic coast is greater now than at any time in the past 2,000 years and that there is a consistent link between changes in global mean surface temperature and sea level. The research was conducted by members of the Department of Earth and Environmental Science in Penn's School of Arts and Science: Benjamin Horton, associate professor and director of the Sea Level Research Laboratory, and postdoctoral fellow Andrew Kemp, ...

The risk of developing venous thromboembolism (VTE) may be nearly twice as high for patients undergoing open surgery for colorectal problems, versus those undergoing laparoscopic colorectal (LC) resections, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Venous thromboembolism (the formation of blood clots in the veins) occurs in up to 25 percent of patients who undergo surgery without specific steps taken to prevent the condition, according to background information in the article. The authors note that colorectal surgery ...

Most hospitals follow established practice guidelines for surgery involving Medicare beneficiaries with cancer, but in some cases their practice patterns diverge from the guidelines, according to a report published Online First today by Archives of Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. According to background information in the article, health care quality has emerged as an important concern in the United States. However, the right care is not always delivered to the right patient at the right time, the authors remark. "Currently, it is well documented that the ...

A review of tonsillectomy-technique studies found that some new methods have advantages over traditional methods, but others are equivalent, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. As background information, the article states that tonsillectomy is well established in terms of safety, but is often accompanied by pain, postsurgical bleeding, and a prolonged recovery. Traditionally, the operation has been performed using cold steel and/or electrocautery dissection (CS/EC). Newer methods ...

Using a fluticasone furoate nasal spray for treatment of obstructive sleep apnea in children appears to reduce production of certain inflammatory cell proteins that may play a role in development of obstructive sleep apnea, according to a report in the June issue of Archives of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. "Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome is characterized by prolonged partial upper airway obstruction and/or intermittent complete obstruction with disruption of normal ventilation during sleep and normal sleep patterns," the authors ...

Not all varieties of botulinum toxin seem to be equally effective in reducing crow's feet wrinkles, according to a report published Online First today by Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery, one of the JAMA/Archives journals. Botulinum toxin, a protein long considered harmful, is now known as a neuromodulator (a chemical that affects nerve impulses) that has cosmetic and medical uses, according to background information in the article. In 1989, botulinum toxin type A was approved in the United States for two muscular conditions that affect the appearance of the eyes. In ...

A newly constructed, 2,000-year history of sea level elevations will help scientists refine the models used to predict climate-change-induced sea level rise, according to an international team of climate researchers. The record also shows that the past century had the fastest recorded rate of sea level rise. "One of the largest uncertainties in projecting the impacts of climate change involve predicting the amount and rate of future sea level rise," said Michael E. Mann, professor of meteorology, Penn State. "The societal ramifications are as great as any climate change ...