Corners of Time, a gourmet Mediterranean online marketplace, announces a first of its kind collaboration between Lebanon and California. In order to insure top quality olive oil and olive oil based products for its customers, Corners of Time has brought Lebanese olive tree cuttings into the United States. They are currently USDA quarantined at Novavine, an expert olive and grape nursery located in Sonoma County. Four thousand years later, Corners of Time is completing the 16th century BC mission of its Lebanese ancestors, those adventurous Phoenician sailors who spread ...

OAK RIDGE, Tenn., May 16, 2011 – Billions of dollars lost each year as waste heat from industrial processes can be converted into electricity with a technology being developed at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The high-efficiency thermal waste heat energy converter actively cools electronic devices, photovoltaic cells, computers and large waste heat-producing systems while generating electricity, according to Scott Hunter, who leads the development team. The potential for energy savings is enormous. "In the United States, more than 50 percent ...

Scientists at the University of Washington (UW) Department of Genome Sciences have identified several sporadic or "de novo" genetic mutations in children with autism spectrum disorder. The researchers applied leading edge molecular biology techniques and massively parallel sequencing to simultaneously examine all of the protein coding portions of the genome, collectively called the exome. The research was published in advance online Sunday, May 15, in Nature Genetics. The study was led by Dr. Brian O'Roak, senior fellow in the UW Department of Genome Sciences, and ...

The author of the new book, "The Sarah Palin Rogue Revolution, Taking America By Storm", says he knows the answer. The book, which explores Palin's 2012 aspirations, debuted in the best sellers in Kindle Political and Elections categories. Tony Reynolds, the author, says he answered the question, "is Palin is going to run for President in 2012?" by analyzing other political campaigns, such as those of President's Reagan, Bush, Clinton and Obama. As well as analyzing Independent campaigns such as H. Ross Perot and others. This new book is available ...

Bladder cancer is the fourth-most-common cancer in men and one of the most expensive cancers to treat from diagnosis to death. After initial diagnosis and surgery, patients must return to the urologist at least yearly for a costly, time-consuming and uncomfortable bladder scan. Tumors recur in more than half of patients. Researchers at the University of Washington are proposing a more automated approach that could be cheaper, more comfortable and more convenient for both doctors and patients. Their system would use the UW's ultrathin laser endoscope, which is like a thin ...

College Park, Md. (May 16, 2011) – 'Feeling' sounds, muffling explosions and car exhaust, and 'hearing' damage to spacecraft are just some of the approximately 50 lay-language versions of papers being presented at the 161st Acoustical Society of America's (ASA) meeting in Seattle, Wash., May 23-27. These summaries are posted online in the ASA's Worldwide Pressroom; many contain evocative sounds, images, and animations. Reporters attending the meeting or covering the sessions remotely now have access to a wide array of easily approachable summaries covering all aspects ...

A series of workshops held by the Institute of Medicine explored what is necessary to enable health professionals and organizations to harness the full potential of new digital technologies such as tablets and electronic health records to increase efficiency and apply knowledge to real-time care decisions. Digital Infrastructure for the Learning Health System: The Foundation for Continuous Improvement in Health and Health Care recaps presentations and discussions from the experts in computer science and health IT, health care delivery and administration, privacy, patient ...

DAVIS, Calif.—River flow fluctuations downstream of dams are often out of sync with natural flow patterns and can have significant negative effects on aquatic species, such as native frogs, according to a team of scientists from the USDA Forest Service's Pacific Southwest Research Station, the University of California, Davis and the University of California, Berkeley. The team examined how altered water flows caused by hydroelectric dams impact the life cycle of the foothill yellow-legged frog (Rana boylii). The frog, which lives in foothill regions from southern California ...

Rice University bioengineering students have modified a child-size training mannequin to give medical students hands-on pediatric experience so that real patients can be spared further stress and pain. The students created Ped.IT, short for Pediatric Evaluation Device Intended for Training, as their senior design project at the request of doctors at Texas Children's Hospital (TCH) who have long recognized the need for students to get hands-on experience in pediatrics without having to subject young patients to additional probing and exams. "I've been trying since 2003 ...

Learning Disabilities Worldwide has indisputably become the global leader in changing the lives of children and families affected with learning disabilities all across the world. As a result of the latest innovation and transitions, Learning Disabilities Worldwide has positioned itself to ensure that the promise of "No Child Left Behind" becomes a reality not only in the United States but across the globe. Learning Disabilities Worldwide is becoming this catalyst by "speaking their language." With the launch of the renovated website, Learning Disabilities ...

An international research team has identified a lung protein that appears to play a key role in smoking-related emphysema and have crafted an antibody to block its activity, Indiana University scientists reported. The research, conducted in mice, suggests that the protein, a cytokine named EMAPII, could provide a target for drugs to treat emphysema, said Irina Petrache, M.D., associate professor of medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine. The research was posted online May 16 for the June edition of The Journal of Clinical Investigation. Emphysema, a form ...

Scientists at the Sahlgrenska Academy have discovered an explanation of how stroke patients can achieve better recovery. A hormone that is associated with the growth hormone system has proved to benefit recovery during the later phases of rehabilitation after a stroke. Insulin-like growth factor I, IGF-I, is a hormone that is found in the blood and contributes to, among other things, growth and bone mass. The levels of this hormone are higher in people who exercise regularly and those with good health. Scientists at the Sahlgrenska Academy have shown for the first time ...

Civilizations have always embraced jewelry as a way of expressing an idea, a concept, a statement, and today's society is replete with rich examples of the aforementioned. From tattoos to fine jewelry, people have experimented with various mediums to express themselves and convey a message that is uniquely theirs. It is a form of communicating one's individuality and sometimes a way to express one's association with an idea or even one's membership on the conceptual level at least, in some social stratification construct. All at once, subtly or sometimes not, jewelry on ...

These days a bad credit score will get you turned away by a bank, but if you tell a good story about that score, you can improve your chances of getting a microloan from a peer-to-peer lender, according to new research from Rice University and the University of Delaware. The researchers found that in peer-to-peer lending, unverifiable information such as personal narratives and explanations affected lending decisions above and beyond objective, verifiable information such as credit scores and histories. In two new studies, researchers analyzed data from Prosper.com, ...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- It seems like a no-brainer: Remanufacturing products rather than making new ones from scratch — widely done with everything from retread tires to refilled inkjet cartridges to remanufactured engines — should save a lot of energy, right? Not so fast, says a new study by researchers at MIT. In some cases, the conventional wisdom is indeed correct. But out of 25 case studies on products in eight categories done by a team led by Professor of Mechanical Engineering Timothy Gutowski, there were just as many cases where remanufacturing actually cost more ...

The Discover Digital Group (DDG), a unique consultancy that focuses on identifying opportunities for business, is providing Fortune 500 corporations with a way to identify new e-revenue opportunities. These include the navigation of digital product development and to cultivate new audiences for existing products through social media, digital acquisition and loyalty optimization. DDG Founder Justin Tobin and DDG help companies acclimate and rise to the challenges presented by rapid business transformations, especially in e-commerce technologies. Their team of diverse ...

A University of Oklahoma environmental science graduate student will travel to Ethiopia in June to test materials she has been investigating as possible solutions to fluorosis—a widespread problem in the Rift Valley, where high levels of fluoride in the drinking water result in dental and skeletal disease. Laura Brunson, graduate student in the OU College of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science, works with researchers in the OU Water Center on global water challenges, specifically fluorosis. Left untreated, fluorosis causes darkening of the teeth and bone deformities. ...

It seems like everyone wants to be happier and the pursuit of happiness is one of the foundations of American life. But even happiness can have a dark side, according to the authors of a new review article published in Perspectives on Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. They say that happiness shouldn't be thought of as a universally good thing, and outline four ways in which this is the case. Indeed, not all types and degrees of happiness are equally good, and even pursuing happiness can make people feel worse. People who want ...

ATS 2011, DENVER – According to a new study conducted by researchers in Connecticut, the Wii Fit™ offers patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) an effective workout – and one that, because it is enjoyable, patients are more likely to use. "Our study showed that COPD patients exercised at a relatively high percent of their maximum during three to five minutes of specified Wii Fit™exercises, indicating the Wii™ Fit may be a reasonable home-based exercise regimen for COPD patients," said Jeffrey Albores, MD, Internal Medicine Resident, University of ...

Eric Knight, one of America's leading inventors and entrepreneurs, has announced the publication of his "The New Race To Space" book -- www.TheNewRaceToSpace.com -- and, simultaneously, the launch of a multifaceted online platform for fans to interact with him: www.EricKnight.com. "'The New Race To Space' book is another touch point in a life-long passion for rocketry and aerospace," said Knight. "It's essentially my diary of the multi-year quest to build and launch the first civilian rocket into space -- a true team effort that was successful ...

A new test for prostate cancer that measures levels of prostate specific antigen (PSA) as well as six specific antibodies found in the blood of men with the disease was more sensitive and more specific than the conventional PSA test used today, according to a study by researchers at UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. The test, called the A+PSA assay, also reduced the rate of false-positives, tests that indicate the presence of cancer when no disease is actually present, said Gang Zeng, an associate professor of urology, a Jonsson Cancer Center researcher and ...

U.S. MILITARY ACADEMY, WEST POINT, N.Y.—How could a colorblind animal know how to change its skin color to blend into its surroundings? And what will the animal's predator "see," looking at its prey before and after it hides? These provocative questions are addressed in article published today by a collaborative team from the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in Woods Hole, Mass., and the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y. The article, "Hyperspectral imaging of cuttlefish camouflage indicates good color match in the eyes of fish predators," appears in Proceedings ...

Efficiency is a problem with today's solar panels; they only collect about 20 percent of available light. Now, a University of Missouri engineer has developed a flexible solar sheet that captures more than 90 percent of available light, and he plans to make prototypes available to consumers within the next five years. Patrick Pinhero, an associate professor in the MU Chemical Engineering Department, says energy generated using traditional photovoltaic (PV) methods of solar collection is inefficient and neglects much of the available solar electromagnetic (sunlight) spectrum. ...

A new tool is available to select for soybean rust resistance in breeding populations, said Glen Hartman, University of Illinois professor of crop sciences and USDA-ARS scientist. Hartman and his team of researchers successfully used quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR) assays to assess fungal DNA in soybean leaf tissue to quantify the level of resistance in individual plants with resistance to soybean rust. "This is not a new technique," Hartman said. "But it is a new tool for use in soybean rust resistance breeding, which has typically used phenotyping or ...

OAK BROOK, Ill. – A simple blood test may help prevent a serious complication associated with a contrast agent commonly used in MRI exams, according to a study published in the July issue of Radiology. Within the past five years, use of gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCA) has been linked to the development of nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF), a rare disorder mainly affecting patients with severe kidney disease. But since 2008, restrictive GBCA administration guidelines implemented by Massachusetts General Hospital have proven effective in preventing NSF. "It ...