Thin brick installations hit an all-time high this summer, as builders and contractors continue to look for building solutions that are both environmentally sound and affordable. American Brick Company (Ambrico) reports that the popularity of thin brick has been growing steadily in the last ten years, as more attention is being paid to finding economical solutions to building renovations and new construction projects. According to the experts at Ambrico, thin brick, also known as "faux brick", can be used in just about any type of construction project, from ...

Physicists with the Institute of Ultrafast Spectroscopy and Lasers (IUSL) at The City College of New York have presented a new way to map spiraling light that could help harness untapped data channels in optical fibers. Increased bandwidth would ease the burden on fiber-optic telecommunications networks taxed by an ever-growing demand for audio, video and digital media. The new model, developed by graduate student Giovanni Milione, Professor Robert Alfano and colleagues, could even spur enhancements in quantum computing and other applications. "People now can detect ...

The Milky Way will have the fuel to continue forming stars, thanks to massive clouds of ionized gas raining down from its halo and intergalactic space. This is the conclusion of a new study by Nicolas Lehner and Christopher Howk, faculty in the Department of Physics at the University of Notre Dame. Their report, "A Reservoir of Ionized Gas in the Galactic Halo to Sustain Star Formation in the Milky Way," will be published in Science tomorrow (Aug. 26). Using the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph, one of the newest instruments on the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, these researchers ...

CINCINNATI—Hot chili peppers are known to make people "tear up," but a new study led by University of Cincinnati allergy researcher Jonathan Bernstein, MD, found that a nasal spray containing an ingredient derived from hot chili peppers (Capsicum annum) may help people "clear up" certain types of sinus inflammation. The study, which appears in the August 2011 edition of Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, compares the use of the Capsicum annum nasal spray to a placebo nasal spray in 44 subjects with a significant component of nonallergic rhinitis (i.e., nasal congestion, ...

Award-winning car hire price comparator Carrentals.co.uk - the website home to bargain rental deals from companies like Alamo, Auto Europe, Budget, Holiday Autos and Sixt - announces Neill Watson has joined the site as a contributing blogger. Neill Watson is a seasoned motoring expert photographer and writer and will write on auto industry issues for the hire car website. Involved in the motoring industry for more than 25 years, Neill Watson has been a professional auto photographer and writer since 2002. Recent years have seen Neill's job take him testing out supercars ...

BERKELEY, Calif. (Aug. 25, 2011)—A supernova discovered yesterday is closer to Earth—approximately 21 million light-years away—than any other of its kind in a generation. Astronomers believe they caught the supernova within hours of its explosion, a rare feat made possible with a specialized survey telescope and state-of-the-art computational tools. The finding of such a supernova so early and so close has energized the astronomical community as they are scrambling to observe it with as many telescopes as possible, including the Hubble Space Telescope. Joshua Bloom, ...

BATAVIA, Illinois -- The physics community got a jolt last year when results showed for the first time that neutrinos and their antimatter counterparts, antineutrinos, might be the odd man out in the particle world and have different masses. This idea was something that went against most commonly accepted theories of how the subatomic world works. A result released today (August 25) from the MINOS experiment at the Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory appears to quell concerns raised by a MINOS result in June 2010 and brings neutrino and antineutrino ...

Free delivery has been a key to the success of a new business which has turned from a home-based hobby into a full-time online enterprise for a Norfolk couple. Martin and Monica Lott set up FYFO.co.uk, and now sell footwear through their own website and on eBay from more than 60 top brands and offering no-cost delivery on all standard orders has helped them hit the ground running since the site was launched at the start of this month. But according to marketing director of online delivery services agent Parcel2Go.com, Richard Mercer, they are just one of many examples ...

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — University of Illinois researchers are giving a light answer to the heavy question of cell growth. Led by electrical and computer engineering professor Gabriel Popescu, the research team developed a new imaging method called spatial light interference microscopy (SLIM) that can measure cell mass using two beams of light. Described in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the SLIM technique offers new insight into the much-debated problem of whether cells grow at a constant rate or exponentially. SLIM is extremely sensitive, quantitatively ...

CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Zoologists at Oregon State University have discovered that a freshwater species of zooplankton will eat a fungal pathogen which is devastating amphibian populations around the world. This tiny zooplankton, called Daphnia magna, could provide a desperately needed tool for biological control of this deadly fungus, the scientists said, if field studies confirm its efficacy in a natural setting. The fungus, B. dendrobatidis, is referred to as a "chytrid" fungus, and when it reaches high levels can disrupt electrolyte balance and lead to death from cardiac ...

For the first time, scientists can see pathways to stop a deadly brain cancer in its tracks. Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have imaged individual cancer cells and the routes they travel as the tumor spreads. The researchers used a novel cryo-imaging technique to obtain the unprecedented look at a mouse model of glioblastoma multiforme, a particularly aggressive cancer that has no treatments to stop it from spreading. A description of their work, and images, will be published Sept. 1 in the journal Cancer Research. "We're able ...

(Santa Barbara, Calif.) –– A supernova discovered Wednesday is closer to Earth ––approximately 21 million light years away –– than any other of its kind in a generation. Astronomers believe they caught the supernova within hours of its explosion –– a rare feat for events of this type. The discovery of a supernova so early in its life, and so close to Earth has energized the astronomical community. Scientists around the world are scrambling to observe it with as many telescopes as possible, including the Hubble Space Telescope, and telescopes from the UC Santa Barbara-affiliated ...

Studies about medications published in the most influential medical journals are frequently designed in a way that yields misleading or confusing results, new research suggests. Investigators from the medical schools at UCLA and Harvard analyzed all the randomized medication trials published in the six highest-impact general medicine journals between June 1, 2008, and Sept. 30, 2010, to determine the prevalence of three types of outcome measures that make data interpretation difficult. In addition, they reviewed each study's abstract to determine the percentage ...

Ascensio System SIA, the developer of IT solutions for corporate use, launches a fully-featured mobile version of the Projects section that is a constituent of the TeamLab platform for project management and team collaboration. From now on, the TeamLab users gain a virtual analogue of their office activities. The mobile Projects module incorporates a complete set of tools to control and participate in projects outside office: both team leaders and teammates view projects, create and leave status comments on tasks, initiate and manage milestones, take part in discussions ...

Philadelphia, PA, August 26, 2011 – Eating and physical activity habits for a lifetime can develop at an early age. As the use of preschool child care increases and the prevalence of childhood obesity is at an all-time high, the opportunity to positively impact eating and exercise habits within this setting presents itself. A review in the September 2011 issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association describes and evaluates research addressing opportunities and strategies for the prevention of obesity among preschool children in child-care settings. It examines ...

Divorce is not easy on anyone. When two partners decide to part ways, the painful divide affects more than just the two spouses. Multiple lives are clearly impacted. Children of divorcing parents are also confronted with strong emotions and abrupt changes in lifestyle. Certainly, their lives often become tumultuous, for an adjustment period, anyways. While their world suddenly looks different, there is good news. It is true that divorce may be challenging, difficult and even painful for children of all ages, but they truly can survive their parent's divorce. In fact, ...

A caesium fountain clock that keeps the United Kingdom's atomic time is now the most accurate long-term timekeeper in the world, according to a new evaluation of the clock that will be published in the October 2011 issue of the international scientific journal Metrologia by a team of physicists at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) in the United Kingdom and Penn State University in the United States. An early posting of the paper on the journal's online site will occur on 26 August 2011. The clock is one of an elite group of caesium fountain clocks that have been ...

Unfortunately, divorce often brings out the less seemly side of those people we once loved. Rather than an amicable parting of the ways, divorces can easily become a race to grab any and all assets available. This creates an unfair advantage when one spouse has handled all or most of the finances during the marriage. Still, an experienced Houston divorce attorney can help you to uncover hidden assets your soon-to-be-ex may be hiding. If you think your spouse may be hiding money and/or assets from you, Forbes Magazine offers a list of five warning signs you should be ...

Assets with beneficiary forms seem appealing to people trying to set up estate plans. Such assets have the benefit of going directly to the heirs and avoiding the lengthy and sometimes costly probate process. However, people need to make sure that they coordinate their named beneficiary assets with the rest of their estate planning documents such as wills and trusts. Otherwise people may inadvertently sabotage their own plans for their possessions after they die because such forms override wills -- wills do not override beneficiary designations. Those making estate plans ...

Washington, DC (August 26, 2011) — African Americans are four times more likely to develop kidney failure than whites. A new study has found that a condition that occurs when the kidneys are damaged and spill protein into the urine contributes to this increased risk. The study, conducted by William McClellan, MD of Emory University and his colleagues, appears in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN), a publication of the American Society of Nephrology. The investigators analyzed information from 27,911 individuals (40.5% of whom ...

A new University of British Columbia study finds single parents and male gay couples face significant discrimination in the Metro Vancouver rental housing market, compared to straight couples. Overall, the study finds that same-sex male couples are nearly 25 per cent more likely to be rejected by landlords seeking renters, while single parents are approximately 15 per cent more likely to be rejected. The research, published in the August issue of the journal Social Problems, is the largest investigation of housing discrimination towards single parents, and the first ...

No one really likes to contemplate his or her own mortality, but traditional wisdom teaches that a little planning during life makes things a lot easier on surviving loved ones after death -- which is why it is prudent to make a will. However, many believe that once they have accomplished that task they need never think about it again. The truth is that a person needs to revisit his or her estate plan periodically to ensure that it remains current and accurately expresses his or her wishes, especially after major life events such as marriage, divorce, births, deaths, moves, ...

"It's not that the salmon are biting less, there are less of them," explained Eva García Vázquez, lead author and Functional Biology researcher at the University of Oviedo (Spain). The study, published in Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, shows a "very marked" decline in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) populations in the Narcea, Sella and Cares rivers (Asturias, northern Spain), especially during the last decade, almost simultaneously with the reduction in the amount caught by recreational fishermen. "Given that fishing effort has almost been constant until ...

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) is a federal aid program that provides monthly payments to the elderly, blind and disabled who have limited income and resources. SSI benefits are meant to help provide people with food, shelter and clothing. SSI is administered by the Social Security Administration and is available for both children and adults who meet medical and financial eligibility requirements. SSI, like Social Security, is funded by the federal government. SSI is financed by funds from the U.S. Treasury generated by taxes. Unlike Social Security benefits, SSI ...

Though spouses have been cheating on each other since the institute of marriage was invented, today's world of electronic communication has provided an environment that makes infidelity that much easier. With the advent of Facebook, text messaging and email, people have found it much simpler to be unfaithful. It is much easier to hide emails than it is to hide written letters arriving through the U.S. mail, for example. A text message provides instant but discreet communication that a phone call cannot. As electronic infidelity has increased, however, so have the ...