Battery technology hasn't kept pace with advancements in portable electronics, but the race is on to fix this. One revolutionary concept being pursued by a team of researchers in New Zealand involves creating "wearable energy harvesters" capable of converting movement from humans or found in nature into battery power. A class of variable capacitor generators known as "dielectric elastomer generators" (DEGs) shows great potential for wearable energy harvesting. In fact, researchers at the Auckland Bioengineering Institute's Biomimetics Lab believe DEGs may enable light, ...

Queen's researchers have discovered that nanoparticles, which are now present in everything from socks to salad dressing and suntan lotion, may have irreparably damaging effects on soil systems and the environment. "Millions of tonnes of nanoparticles are now manufactured every year, including silver nanoparticles which are popular as antibacterial agents," says Virginia Walker, a professor in the Department of Biology. "We started to wonder what the impact of all these nanoparticles might be on the environment, particularly on soil." The team acquired a sample of soil ...

There are many misunderstandings circulating about the best ways for motorcycle riders to avoid being involved in accidents with other cars. In some cases, these myths about motorcycle accidents can do more harm than good -- and put motorcyclists' lives at risk. Motorcycle riders are eight times more likely than those in passenger vehicles to be seriously injured in an accident and 35 times more likely to die in an accident. With these statistics in mind, it is important for motorcyclists to know the best ways to protect their safety - and what legal options they have ...

A novel test aircraft of the TU Muenchen successfully completed its maiden flight yesterday at the airfield of the MFC Red Baron near Heimstetten. The micro aircraft christened "IMPULLS" (Innovative Modular Payload UAV – TUM LLS) will facilitate testing aviation sensors and systems. It was jointly developed by postgraduate students at the Institute of Aircraft Design and the Institute of Flight System Dynamics in Garching. Propelled by a compact electric motor, the aircraft flies quietly and free of emissions. A particularly important feature of the novel design is its ...

Witnesses to a recent fatal bus crash in the Bronx told law enforcement that the bus was veering erratically before flipping onto one side and striking a sign post. The post sliced through the passenger compartment almost to the rear of the vehicle, creating horrific carnage in the passenger area and nearly removing the roof. The bus was returning from a Connecticut casino to Chinatown in Manhattan when the accident occurred early on a Saturday morning, just after the bus entered the Bronx from Westchester County. A host of reports soon after indicated that the driver, ...

College Park, Md. (April 6, 2011) -- Most people experience X-ray computed tomography (CT) scanners when they are evaluated for a suspected tumor or blood clot. But in the lab of Dr. Quin Liu, PhD., in Wuhan China, rice plants were the patients in a novel use of CT scanners as part of an agriculture study to increase rice yield. Into the CT scanner on a conveyor belt went little potted rice plants in an automated facility that could process 4,320 rice plants a day. The non-invasive CT energy analyzed tissues and matched their traits against a computer program to aid ...

When it comes to arguing and proving medical malpractice claims at trial, providing strong expert testimony to support these cases is crucial. The Supreme Court of Connecticut recently decided a case, Klein v. Norwalk, which highlights this important tactic, as well as the standard for disclosing what points an expert will make during testimony. Although this case had a long and difficult journey through multiple Connecticut courts, and continues to make waves, the Connecticut Supreme Court made Klein v. Norwalk a noteworthy opinion. Klein's Claim According to the ...

CORAL GABLES, FL (April 6, 2011)—Learning how babies communicate can teach us a lot about the development of human social interactions. Psychologist Daniel Messinger, from the University of Miami (UM), studies infants' interactions and has found that babies are not simply living in the moment. Instead, infants seem to have particular interests that create historical footprints reflected in the infants' visual engagement over time. The findings were published today, in a study titled, 'Are You Interested, Baby?' Young Infants Exhibit Stable Patterns of Attention during Interaction." ...

College Park, Md. (April 6, 2011) -- A new drug delivery device designed and constructed by Jie Chen, Thomas Cesario and Peter Rentzepis promises to unlock the potential of photosensitive chemicals to kill drug-resistant infections and perhaps cancer tumors as well. Photosensitive chemicals are molecules that release single oxygen atoms and chemical radicals when illuminated. These radicals are very active chemically, and can rip apart and destroy bacteria, said Peter Rentzepis, a professor of chemistry at University of California, Irvine. Yet photosensitive chemicals ...

Watching your parents age is an emotional and often challenging experience. For members of the "sandwich" generation, the need to consider care for aging parents comes while parenting duties for their own children continue. The double-duty can be difficult, especially serious health and financial issues are involved. The Child Becomes the Caregiver For example, many adult children must make sudden decisions when mom or dad falls and breaks a hip or is diagnosed with the first signs of Alzheimer's disease. Once this happens, the tables have turned, and the child ...

BEER-SHEVA, ISRAEL - April 7, 2011 – A large cohort study following 37,000 teenagers for 17 years found that an elevated, yet normal range Body Mass Index (BMI) constitutes a substantial risk factor for obesity-related disorders in young adults (age 30-40). The study showed that elevated BMI in adolescence has distinctive relationships with type 2 diabetes and coronary heart disease in young adulthood. Researchers showed that diabetes is influenced mainly by recent BMI and weight gain. However, for coronary heart disease, both elevated BMI in adolescence and recent ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. - Youths identified as American Indian or Alaska Native (AI/AN) have the greatest lifetime smoking rate of all racial groups, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. Nearly half of the 1.2 million AI/AN youths in the U.S. smoke cigarettes. A University of Missouri study found that public health strategies to combat smoking should teach refusal skills to help youths combat smoking influences, including family members and peers. "Smoking and quitting behaviors are heavily influenced by factors in the immediate environment, including family, ...

For almost a quarter of a century, the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control has distributed alcohol permits to bar and restaurant owners based on a formulaic population quota system rooted in state law. But this system of liquor license rationing has proven a major headache for enterprising Utah restaurant moguls looking to take advantage of one of the fastest growing markets for eateries in the nation. Census reports show slower than expected population growth in Utah (so the number of issued liquor licenses actually exceeds the amount technically allowed ...

A recent news story talks about the tension between driving safely and the proliferation of electronic devices one can use in a car. Many of them can now be used "hands free" with the hope that it will prevent drivers from fumbling around, trying to type in a number or a text as they drive down the highway. Not everyone is convinced that merely making cell phones, GPSs, iPods and every other electronic device people use in cars, hands free will really help people drive safely. Studies by the National Transportation Safety Board have pointed out that texting while ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. - More than 40 percent of Americans have at least one step relative, according to a recent Pew Center study. Relationships between stepchildren and stepparents can be complicated, especially for children. University of Missouri experts have found that stepchildren relate with stepparents based on the stepparents' treatment of them and their evaluations, or judgments, of the stepparents' behaviors. "It takes both parties – children and adults – to build positive relationships in stepfamilies," said Larry Ganong, professor in the Department of Human Development ...

WASHINGTON—April 6, 2011—With Congress at a budget impasse, a new poll suggests the nation's leaders should look more deeply at the public's priorities, particularly regarding proposed cuts to medical, health and scientific research. Research!America urges our nation's leaders to put the public's interest and the nation's future ahead of politics and to move past polarizing budget battles and the uncertainty of continuing resolutions that resolve nothing. Americans are hungry for solutions from Washington. The poll, commissioned by Research!America, surveyed a mix of ...

In the same way that a drunk driving accident may result in criminal (DUI) charges as well as civil claims (for property damage or injuries caused in the accident), worksite accidents may also give rise to both criminal charges and civil claims for damages. A recent case out of San Luis Obispo County is a perfect example where both civil and criminal consequences arose out of a construction accident. A construction site foreman was charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of violating the Labor Code in connection with a worksite accident in ...

CHICAGO --- In a large multi-center clinical trial, a new PSA test to screen for prostate cancer more accurately identified men with prostate cancer -- particularly the aggressive form of the disease -- and substantially reduced false positives compared to the two currently available commercial PSA tests, according to newly published research from Northwestern Medicine. The only currently available Food and Drug Administration-approved screening tests for prostate cancer result in a high number of false positives and lead to unnecessary biopsies and possible over-detection ...

Troy, N.Y. – Proteins are critically important to life and the human body. They are also among the most complex molecules in nature, and there is much we still don't know or understand about them. One key challenge is the stability of enzymes, a particular type of protein that speeds up, or catalyzes, chemical reactions. Taken out of their natural environment in the cell or body, enzymes can quickly lose their shape and denature. Everyday examples of enzymes denaturing include milk going sour, or eggs turning solid when boiled. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Professor ...

Royal Oak health law attorney Andrew B. Wachler provided a review of the past year's developments in Medicare and Medicaid hospital audits at the American Health Lawyers Association's Hospital and Health System Law Institute in February in Las Vegas. The Law Institute sessions provided practicing health care lawyers with an analysis of the legal challenges they face. The principal for Royal Oak law firm Wachler & Associates, P.C., Wachler has been practicing health care law for over 25 years. He counsels U.S. health care providers and organizations in a variety of health ...

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Public relations professionals constantly look for ways to most effectively promote their messages to the media. Sun-A Park, a researcher at the University of Missouri School of Journalism surveyed more than 300 health journalists and found that those who cover strokes and stroke prevention tend to hold negative views of corporate pharmacy media relations, while those who regularly read medical journals tend to cover more stories based on corporate press releases. Park says one key factor influencing journalists' attitudes concerning corporate media press ...

A groundbreaking clinical study of a new method for preventing premature birth in millions of women each year, published in the medical journal Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology, shows that the rate of early preterm delivery in women (< 33 weeks) can be reduced by 45 percent – simply by treating pregnant women at risk with a low-cost gel of natural progesterone during the midtrimester of pregnancy until term. The peer-reviewed findings were led by the Perinatology Research Branch of the National Institutes of Health, housed by the Wayne State University School of ...

LIVERMORE, Calif. --Unlike many conventional chemical detectors that require an external power source, Lawrence Livermore researchers have developed a nanosensor that relies on semiconductor nanowires, rather than traditional batteries. The device overcomes the power requirement of traditional sensors and is simple, highly sensitive and can detect various molecules quickly. Its development could be the first step in making an easily deployable chemical sensor for the battlefield. The Lab's Yinmin "Morris" Wang and colleagues Daniel Aberg, Paul Erhart, Nipun Misra, Aleksandr ...

VIDEO: CfA astronomers have found a pair of white dwarf stars orbiting each other once every 39 minutes. In a few million years, they will merge and reignite as a helium-burning... Click here for more information. White dwarfs are dead stars that pack a Sun's-worth of matter into an Earth-sized ball. Astronomers have just discovered an amazing pair of white dwarfs whirling around each other once every 39 minutes. This is the shortest-period pair of white dwarfs now known. ...

Government regulation is meant to protect safety and reduce risks to people who might otherwise be injured. The Declaration of Independence promised "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," but when that pursuit is unchecked, people too often get hurt by others' dangerous conduct. In our system, government is supposed to level the playing field. That is why, for much of the twentieth century, regulation by states and the federal government grew -- and the result was a safer America. It was democracy in action, as elected legislatures agreed upon safety standards ...