CORVALLIS, Ore. – Researchers at Oregon State University have discovered a way to make a low-cost material that might accomplish negative refraction of light and other radiation – a goal first theorized in 1861 by a giant of science, Scottish physicist James Maxwell, that has still eluded wide practical use. Other materials can do this but they are based on costly, complex crystalline materials. A low-cost way that yields the same result will have extraordinary possibilities, experts say – ranging from a "super lens" to energy harvesting, machine vision or "stealth" coatings ...

As another cold British winter passes by many British tourists are making plans to head off on long weekends and trips to the sunshine during the spring. With that in mind Carrentals.co.uk has sourced new prices to let people rent a car for less on trips to the beaches of Cyprus or for long weekends on the north-west coast of England. The island of Cyprus remains as popular a destination as ever for UK travellers and tourists, with its mix of sunshine, beautiful beaches and a warm welcome from locals. Many Brits choose to fly into Cyprus' Larnaca Airport, and right now ...

San Diego, Calif. – Each year, phytoplankton blooms known as "red tides" kill millions of fish and other marine organisms and blanket vast areas of coastal water around the world. Though the precise causes of red tides remain a mystery, a team of researchers in the United States and Spain has solved one of the main riddles about these ecological disasters by uncovering the specific mechanism that triggers phytoplankton to release their powerful toxins into the environment. "Previous theories about how phytoplankton release toxins proposed a rather awkward, untested 'exudation' ...

Under a microscope, a tiny droplet slides between two fine hairs like a roller coaster on a set of rails until — poof — it suddenly spreads along them, a droplet no more. That instant of change, like the popping of soap bubble, comes so suddenly that it seems almost magical. But describing it, and mapping out how droplets stretch into tiny columns, is a key to understanding how liquids affect fibrous materials from air filters to human hair. And that knowledge allows scientists to better describe why water soaks into some materials, beads atop others and leaves others ...

Action dash Games' new website just launched with over 50 fast paced action games. Every subgenre of the action games scene is catered to on this site. For players who are into shooters, for instance, there's Dead Frontier, a top dozen zombie game that plays like Gears of War might have on the Sega Genesis. This game features dark, gritty graphics, hardcore shooting, and satisfyingly crunchy sound effects. If you want some running and jumping action, check out Stickicide 3, a stick figure platforming game that has you dodging traps and even driving vehicles to get from ...

Cooking Games 365 has recently launched its new website, which features free online action games related to cooking, baking, dessert and pizza decorating, and restaurant and catering administration. The site hosts links to hundreds of interactive food preparation-related video games that any Internet user can play completely free of charge. The gameplay of certain games is at times challenging, but anyone can learn to rise to the culinary challenges presented in each game. The content of the games is appropriate for all ages. Game players might be schoolchildren who dream ...

As the Earth's climate changes, the worst inundations from hurricanes and tropical storms could become far more common in low-lying coastal areas, a new study suggests. Researchers from Princeton University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology found that regions such as the New York City metropolitan area that currently experience a disastrous flood every century could instead become submerged every one or two decades. The researchers report in the journal Nature Climate Change that projected increases in sea level and storm intensity brought on by climate change ...

James Colman to take up post in April 2012. Gatwick Airport announced today that James Colman will be joining the Executive Management team as Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Director, taking up the post in April. He will lead a team of 22 people spanning media and PR, Public Affairs, Internal Communications, Airport Communications and Corporate Responsibility. 2012 will be a critical year for the Government's new aviation policy and James will be responsible for positioning Gatwick in the critical debates about the future of UK aviation, as well as continuing ...

JUPITER, FL, February 23, 2012 – Although it's widely accepted that inflammation is a critical underlying factor in a range of diseases, including the progression of cancer, little is known about its role when normal cells become tumor cells. Now, scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute have shed new light on exactly how the activation of a pair of inflammatory signaling pathways leads to the transformation of normal breast cells to cancer cells. The study, led by Jun-Li Luo, an assistant professor at Scripps Florida, was published online ...

- Julia Gregory joins Gatwick as Head of Surface Transport - Gatwick committed to enhancing the airport's strategic connectivity - Encouraging more air passengers to use public transport is key priority Julia Gregory joined Gatwick Airport earlier this year as Head of Surface Transport with responsibility for setting and delivering the airport's surface access strategy in support of the airport's ambition to compete and grow to become London's airport of choice. Gatwick can see a clear path to grow to 40 million passengers by the end of this decade on its single ...

Patrick J. Bartels, Esq. and Jennifer L. Harwood, Esq. of Keefe Bartels represented the Estate of Vincent Cook and his widow, Muriel Cook in an asbestos case filed in Middlesex County, New Jersey (The Estate of Vincent Cook v. A.W. Chesterton Company, et al. Docket No. MID-L-4659-05 AS). Mr. Cook was a member of Local 28 Boilermakers Union, and worked as a boilermaker for over 40 years before he retired in 1988. As a boilermaker, he worked at numerous job sites throughout New Jersey including PSE&G sites at Hudson, Sewaren, Mercer, and Linden, and refineries such as ...

The study of the photospheric stellar abundances of the planet-host stars is the key to understanding how protoplanets form, as well as which protoplanetary clouds evolve planets and which do not. These studies, which have important implications for models of giant planet formation and evolution, also help us to investigate the internal and atmospheric structure and composition of extrasolar planets.. Theoretical studies suggest that C/O and Mg/Si, are the most important elemental ratios in determining the mineralogy of terrestrial planets, and they can give us information ...

Boca Raton law firm, Brodie & Friedman is proud to announce the 2nd Annual emb(race) family event and fundraiser. The proceeds of the fundraiser will benefit Stand Among Friends' program for individuals with disabilities. This year's all-inclusive event will be better than ever, featuring: children's games, live music, food, prizes and much more! Brodie & Friedman continue to demonstrate their commitment to children, families and the greater Boca Raton, Florida community through sponsoring events such as emb(race). Please join Brodie & Friedman on Sunday, ...

Most of us know someone -- a family member, a friend or another Philadelphian -- who has a heart problem or has suffered a stroke. Cardiovascular disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the United States, killing roughly 2,200 people every day. February is American Heart Month, a reminder to all Americans that the battle against heart disease is winnable. Through a campaign titled "Million Hearts," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has set the goal of preventing 1 million heart attacks and strokes by 2016. The key to this initiative is prevention ...

San Diego, Calif. – How much calcium could a hibernating woodchuck's heart cells sequester, if a hibernating woodchuck's heart cells could sequester calcium? More than enough, it turns out, to protect the animals from cardiac arrhythmias – abnormal heart rhythms such as ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation that can lead to sudden cardiac death – according to a new study of the hibernating animals that may provide insight into arrhythmia therapies. The findings will be presented at a poster session at the 56th Annual Meeting of the Biophysical Society (BPS), ...

Tomorrow's aircraft could contribute to their power needs by harnessing energy from the wheel rotation of their landing gear to generate electricity. They could use this to power their taxiing to and from airport buildings, reducing the need to use their jet engines. This would save on aviation fuel, cut emissions and reduce noise pollution at airports. The feasibility of this has been confirmed by a team of engineers from the University of Lincoln with funding from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC). This forms part of the Research Councils ...

Many Pennsylvania homeowners are falling behind on mortgage payments, according to recent real estate figures released by CoreLogic. Pennsylvania's foreclosure rate was approximately 2.6 percent in November, compared with 2.35 percent for 2010. Pennsylvania 90-day mortgage delinquencies are on the rise, too, increasing from 5.46 percent to 5.76 percent over the same period. Homeowners throughout central Pennsylvania are having an especially difficult time making timely mortgage payments and avoiding foreclosure. The Harrisburg-Carlisle area suffered a 5 percent increase ...

WASHINGTON, February 23, 2012—The Council of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) unanimously issued two resolutions at its February meeting in response to the suspension of the Mexican American Studies program in the Tucson Unified School District No. 1 (TUSD). The resolutions addressed specifically the suspension of such courses and urged also the repeal of Arizona HB2281, which amended the Arizona Revised Statutes Relating to School Curriculum and led to the questioning of such courses. The action to suspend courses and teaching activities related ...

Birds in eastern North America are picking up the pace along their yearly migratory paths. The reason, according to University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers, is rising temperatures due to climate change. Using migration information collected in eBird, a citizen science program database containing 10 years' worth of observations from amateur birdwatchers, assistant professor of biology Allen Hurlbert, Ph.D., and his team in the UNC College of Arts and Sciences analyzed when 18 different species of birds arrived at various points across their migration ...

High profile drunk driving cases like those involving actress Lindsay Lohan have brought nationwide attention to a problem that has been worrying North Carolina lawmakers for years -- how do you both fairly punish drunk drivers for their actions and keep drunk drivers off the road in an effort to reduce drunk driving accidents? "Laura's Law" With the recent passage of "Laura's Law," a North Carolina statute that dramatically increases the penalties facing repeat drunk drivers, the state's legislature has shown a desire to keep repeat DWI offenders ...

University of California, Berkeley, chemists are reimagining catalysts in ways that could have a profound impact on the chemical industry as well as on the growing market for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Catalysts are materials typically metals that speed up chemical reactions and are widely used in the synthesis of chemicals and drugs. They also are employed in automobile catalytic converters to change combustion chemicals into less-polluting emissions and in fuel cells to convert water into hydrogen. The problem with catalysts, however, is that chemical reactions ...

Few people want to consider their own mortality, so it can be difficult for some to ponder the issue of estate planning. Even so, everyone -- from the very rich to those with much more modest asset holdings -- will benefit from a comprehensive estate plan that dictates how and where their property should go after they are gone. It is never too early or too late to get started on an estate plan, but an ounce of estate planning prevention is worth way more than a pound of cure. Taking steps now by drafting a will, trust, living will or health care directive can keep your ...

America's divorce rate has maintained an average of about 50 percent for first-time marriages for several years now. There is one demographic that has seen a sharp rise in its divorce rate, though: the so-called "baby boomers." Couples over the age of 50 are now divorcing more than twice as often as they did back in the 1990s, and now one in four marital splits results in a "gray divorce." How Are Late-Life Divorces Different? Couples who have been together for 20, 30, 40 years or more are intrinsically linked in countless ways. They likely share ...

NEW YORK (February 23, 2012) – The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) and the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Programme (SOCP) announced today Sumatra's first ever successful sentence of an illegal orangutan owner and trader in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia. The seven-month prison sentence is only the third for Indonesia, despite orangutans being strictly protected under Indonesian law since 1924. Although there have been over 2,500 confiscations of illegally held orangutans in Indonesia since the early 1970's, the first actual prosecution of an illegal orangutan ...

A jackknifing 18-wheeler truck poses significant danger to not only the truck driver but to anyone sharing the road. It is essential for drivers to take safety measures to avoid disastrous results. It is also important for operators of passenger vehicles to take extra precautions when driving near tractor-trailers. Briefly, a semi-truck jackknifing accident occurs when a commercial truck driver loses control of the rig and the back of the trailer slides out from behind the truck forming an L or a V shape. In the process of rotating around the tractor, the trailer will ...