http://www.sciencecentric.com/ Latest news in natural sciences and technology provided by Science Centric en-gb Copyright 2009, Science Centric contact@sciencecentric.com (Stanislav Abadjiev) Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:50:00 GMT Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:50:00 GMT http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss/ http://www.sciencecentric.com/images/sc_logo_news.jpg http://www.sciencecentric.com/ 'Matter is not distributed uniformly in the Universe,' says Masayuki Tanaka from ESO, who led the new study. 'In our cosmic vicinity, stars form in galaxies and galaxies usually form groups and clusters of galaxies. The most widely accepted cosmological theories predict that matter also clumps on a larger scale in the so-called 'cosmic web,' in which galaxies, embedded in filaments stretching between voids, create a gigantic wispy structure'... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110360-shedding-light-on-the-cosmic-skeleton http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110360-shedding-light-on-the-cosmic-skeleton Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:50:00 GMT New insights into the biology of the platypus and echidna have been published, providing a collection of unique research data about the world's only monotremes... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110359-new-insights-into-australia-unique-platypus http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110359-new-insights-into-australia-unique-platypus Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:47:00 GMT Researchers at Rush University Medical Centre and Argonne National Laboratory are collaborating on a study to determine if an imaging technique used by NASA to inspect the space shuttle can be used to predict tissue damage often experienced by breast cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy. The study is examining the utility of three-dimensional thermal tomography in radiation oncology... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110358-adapting-space-industry-technology-treat-breast-cancer http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110358-adapting-space-industry-technology-treat-breast-cancer Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:44:00 GMT Pateamine A (PatA), a natural product first isolated from marine sponges, has attracted considerable attention as a potential anti-cancer agent, and now a new activity has been found for it, which may reveal yet another anti-cancer mechanism. That's the assessment of Daniel Romo, a Texas A and M chemistry professor, and his colleagues at Johns Hopkins University who are pioneers in research involving this novel marine natural product... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110357-new-activity-found-potential-anti-cancer-agent http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110357-new-activity-found-potential-anti-cancer-agent Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:41:00 GMT Decreased physical activity may have little to do with the recent spike in obesity rates among U.S. adolescents, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Prompted by growing concern that the increase was due to decreased physical activity associated with increased TV viewing time and other sedentary behaviours, researchers examined the patterns and time trends in physical activity and sedentary behaviours among U.S. adolescents based on nationally representative data collected since 1991. The review found signs indicating that the physical activity among adolescents increased while TV viewing decreased in recent years. The results are featured in the October 30 online issue of Obesity Reviews... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110356-decrease-physical-activity-may-not-be-factor-increased-obesity-rates-among-adolescents http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110356-decrease-physical-activity-may-not-be-factor-increased-obesity-rates-among-adolescents Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:38:00 GMT As if there weren't enough reasons to stop smoking, a team of researchers at the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) have just found another. A study led by Dr Christian A Pineau, Co-Director of the Lupus and Vasculitis clinic at the MUHC, has clearly linked skin damage and rashes to smoking in people with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The study was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Rheumatology... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110355-smokers-with-common-autoimmune-disorder-at-higher-risk-skin-damage http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110355-smokers-with-common-autoimmune-disorder-at-higher-risk-skin-damage Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:35:00 GMT Fox Chase Cancer Centre researchers report that radiation therapy alone can reduce prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels below detectable amounts in prostate cancer patients. Patients who have an undetectable level of PSA after therapy have less chance of biochemical failure than other patients and a good chance of being cured. The data was presented today at the annual meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110354-undetectable-psa-after-radiation-is-possible-predicts-good-patient-outcomes http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110354-undetectable-psa-after-radiation-is-possible-predicts-good-patient-outcomes Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:32:00 GMT A new study is taking a closer look at the benefits versus risks for lung cancer patients to undergo preventative brain radiation therapy as a means to stop cancer from spreading to the brain... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110353-preventative-brain-radiation-lung-cancer-patients-benefits-risks http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110353-preventative-brain-radiation-lung-cancer-patients-benefits-risks Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:29:00 GMT Radiation dose delivered to the prostate and nearby organs in every brachytherapy procedure should be carefully analysed using post-implant CT or MRI and uniformly documented in every patient, according to a new guideline co-authored by Yan Yu, Ph.D., director of Medical Physics in the department of Radiation Oncology at Thomas Jefferson University... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110352-task-force-develops-new-radiation-guidelines-brachytherapy http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110352-task-force-develops-new-radiation-guidelines-brachytherapy Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:26:00 GMT Why do so many animal species - including fish, birds and insects - display such rich diversity in coloration and other traits? In new research, Gregory Grether, UCLA professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, and Christopher Anderson, who recently earned his doctorate in Grether's laboratory, offer an answer... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110351-why-do-animals-especially-males-have-so-many-different-colours http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110351-why-do-animals-especially-males-have-so-many-different-colours Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:23:00 GMT Scientists at Schepens Eye Research Institute have found that when the eye is missing a diffusible form of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), i.e. one that when secreted can reach other cells at a distance, the retina shows defects similar to 'dry' macular degeneration, also called geographic atrophy (GA). This finding, published in the November 3, 2009 print edition of PNAS (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences), not only increases the understanding of the causes of this blinding disease, but it may also impact the use of anti-VEGF drugs, such as Lucentis, which are designed to neutralise VEGF in eyes with 'wet' macular degeneration... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110350-study-finds-lack-vegf-can-cause-defects-similar-dry-macular-degeneration http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110350-study-finds-lack-vegf-can-cause-defects-similar-dry-macular-degeneration Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:20:00 GMT A fire aboard a Navy ship can quickly become a deadly cauldron. The grim reminders of this would be the deadly fires that took place aboard the USS Forrestal in 1967 or the USS Enterprise in 1969... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110349-navy-researchers-apply-science-fire-fighting http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110349-navy-researchers-apply-science-fire-fighting Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:17:00 GMT MIT cancer biologists have identified a subpopulation of cells that can give rise to pancreatic cancer. They also found that tumours can form in other, more mature pancreatic cell types, but only when they are injured or inflamed, suggesting that pancreatic cancer can arise from different types of cells depending on the circumstances... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110348-possible-origins-pancreatic-cancer-revealed http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110348-possible-origins-pancreatic-cancer-revealed Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:14:00 GMT Though hot tubs, whirlpools and spas are widely used for relaxation and fun, they can pose serious risk for injury. Over the past two decades, as recreational use of hot tubs has increased, so has the number of injuries. A recent study conducted by the Centre for Injury Research and Policy of The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital found that from 1990-2007, the number of unintentional hot tub-related injuries increased by 160 percent, from approximately 2,500 to more than 6,600 injuries per year... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110347-new-national-study-finds-increasing-number-injuries-from-hot-tubs http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110347-new-national-study-finds-increasing-number-injuries-from-hot-tubs Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:11:00 GMT Converting sunlight to electricity might no longer mean large panels of photovoltaic cells atop flat surfaces like roofs... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110346-3-d-system-based-on-optical-fibre-could-provide-new-options-photovoltaics http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110346-3-d-system-based-on-optical-fibre-could-provide-new-options-photovoltaics Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:08:00 GMT A telemedicine system based on a modified version of the Bluetooth wireless protocol can transfer patient data, such as medical images from patient to the healthcare provider's mobile device for patient assessment almost four times as fast as conventional Bluetooth and without the intermittent connectivity problems, according to a paper in the forthcoming issue of the International Journal of Medical Engineering and Informatics... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110345-modified-bluetooth-speeds-up-telemedicine http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110345-modified-bluetooth-speeds-up-telemedicine Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:05:00 GMT Deep-sea ecosystems occupying 60% of the Earth's surface could be vulnerable to the effects of global warming warn scientists writing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110344-climate-variability-impacts-the-deep-sea http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110344-climate-variability-impacts-the-deep-sea Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:56:00 GMT A rocket carrying the European Space Agency's (ESA) Soil Moisture and Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite (2 November) blasted off successfully today at 02:50 Central European Time from Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Northern Russia... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110343-smos-satellite-successfully-launched http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110343-smos-satellite-successfully-launched Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:53:00 GMT A wireless digital 'plaster' that can monitor vital signs continuously and remotely is being tried out with patients and healthy volunteers at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, in a new clinical trial run by Imperial College London researchers... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110342-digital-plaster-monitoring-vital-signs-undergoes-first-clinical-trials http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110342-digital-plaster-monitoring-vital-signs-undergoes-first-clinical-trials Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:50:00 GMT A team of researchers from Boston University School (BUSM), Carney Hospital, Cambridge Health Alliance and Tufts University School of Medicine, have found that widespread poor compliance with regular cleaning of public restrooms on cruise ships may predict subsequent norovirus infection outbreaks (NoVOs). This study, which appears in the 1 November issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, is the first study of environmental hygiene on cruise ships... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110341-poorly-cleaned-public-cruise-ship-restrooms-may-predict-norovirus-outbreaks http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110341-poorly-cleaned-public-cruise-ship-restrooms-may-predict-norovirus-outbreaks Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:47:00 GMT For thousands of years an undesirable and persistent companion has been travelling with man wherever he goes. Mycobacterium leprae, the bacterium that causes leprosy, has only one known natural host - mankind. And because of man's many travels, this bacillus has colonised the entire earth. Its history is therefore intimately tied to our own, and it is this migratory relationship that Stewart Cole, EPFL professor of Microbial Pathogenesis, and his team have analysed in a study to be published in Nature Genetics. Geneticists, microbiologists, and even archeologists have followed the bacteria's traces from their lab to the Silk Road and the tombs of Egyptian mummies... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110340-the-entwined-destinies-mankind-leprosy-bacteria http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110340-the-entwined-destinies-mankind-leprosy-bacteria Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:44:00 GMT In all the world, there are about 200 types of zeolite, a compound of silicon, aluminium and oxygen that gives civilisation such things as laundry detergent, kitty litter and gasoline. But thanks to computations by Rice University professor Michael Deem and his colleagues, it appears there are - or could be - more types of zeolites than once thought... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110339-rice-u-lab-leads-hunt-new-zeolites http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110339-rice-u-lab-leads-hunt-new-zeolites Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:41:00 GMT The control of spider mites, which damage tree leaves, reduce fruit quality and cost growers millions of dollars in the use of pesticide and oil spraying, is being biologically controlled in Pennsylvania apple orchards with two tiny insects known to be natural predators, according to Penn State researchers... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110338-spider-mite-predators-serve-as-biological-control http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110338-spider-mite-predators-serve-as-biological-control Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:38:00 GMT A new study compares neighbourhoods' walkability (degree of ease for walking) with local levels of air pollution and finds that some neighbourhoods might be good for walking, but have poor air quality. Researchers involved in the study include University of Minnesota faculty member Julian Marshall and University of British Columbia faculty Michael Brauer and Lawrence Frank... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110337-researchers-discover-links-between-city-walkability-air-pollution-exposure http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110337-researchers-discover-links-between-city-walkability-air-pollution-exposure Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:35:00 GMT Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have developed a theoretical model that informs the understanding of evolution and determines how quickly an organism will evolve using a catalogue of 'evolutionary speed limits.' The model provides quantitative predictions for the speed of evolution on various 'fitness landscapes,' the dynamic and varied conditions under which bacteria, viruses and even humans adapt... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110336-there-speed-limit-the-pace-evolution-penn-biologists-say http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110336-there-speed-limit-the-pace-evolution-penn-biologists-say Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:32:00 GMT Inhaled nitric oxide (iNO), a therapy used in the treatment of premature newborns with respiratory failure that had shown promising results in short-term studies, does not significantly improve long-term outcomes, according to a national study led by critical care researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110335-multicentre-study-led-by-pitt-finds-early-results-therapy-preemies-not-sustained http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110335-multicentre-study-led-by-pitt-finds-early-results-therapy-preemies-not-sustained Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:29:00 GMT In 2005, a gigantic, 35-mile-long rift broke open the desert ground in Ethiopia. At the time, some geologists believed the rift was the beginning of a new ocean as two parts of the African continent pulled apart, but the claim was controversial... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110334-african-desert-rift-confirmed-as-new-ocean-the-making http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110334-african-desert-rift-confirmed-as-new-ocean-the-making Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:26:00 GMT Early-stage breast cancer patients with HER2 positive tumours one centimetre or smaller are at significant risk of recurrence of their disease, compared to those with early-stage disease who do not express the aggressive protein, according to a study led by researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Centre... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110333-early-stage-her2-positive-breast-cancer-patients-at-increased-risk-recurrence http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110333-early-stage-her2-positive-breast-cancer-patients-at-increased-risk-recurrence Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:23:00 GMT A new study suggests that the inner sense of our cardiovascular state, our 'interoceptive awareness' of the heart pounding, relies on two independent pathways, contrary to what had been asserted by prominent researchers... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110332-study-reveals-second-pathway-feeling-your-heartbeat http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110332-study-reveals-second-pathway-feeling-your-heartbeat Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:20:00 GMT Scientists including researchers from the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton and the University of Essex have discovered that interactions between iron supply, transported through the atmosphere from deserts, and large-scale oceanic circulation control the availability of a crucial nutrient, nitrogen, in the Atlantic. Their findings have potentially important implications for understanding global climate, both past and future... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110331-iron-controls-patterns-nitrogen-fixation-the-atlantic http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110331-iron-controls-patterns-nitrogen-fixation-the-atlantic Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:17:00 GMT A common type of chronic diarrhoea may be caused by a hormone deficiency, according to new research published in the November issue of Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology. The authors of the paper, from Imperial College London, with collaborators from King's College London and the University of Edinburgh, say their results could help more doctors recognise this type of diarrhoeal illness, and may lead to the development of more effective tests and treatments to help improve the lives of many people suffering with chronic diarrhoea... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110330-cause-common-chronic-diarrhoea-revealed-new-research http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110330-cause-common-chronic-diarrhoea-revealed-new-research Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:13:00 GMT Specially developed immune system cells that target the common Epstein-Barr virus can protect immune-suppressed bone marrow transplant recipients against lymph system disease and cancers that arise from the viral infection, said a group of researchers led by those from Baylor College of Medicine, The Methodist Hospital and Texas Children's Hospital... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110329-immune-therapy-can-protect-against-or-treat-later-lymphoma http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110329-immune-therapy-can-protect-against-or-treat-later-lymphoma Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:10:00 GMT The immune system's T cells have the unique responsibilities of being both jury and executioner. They examine other cells for signs of disease, including cancers or infections, and, if such evidence is found, rid them from the body. Precisely how T cells shift so swiftly from one role to another, however, has been a mystery... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110328-study-reveals-missing-link-immune-response-disease http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110328-study-reveals-missing-link-immune-response-disease Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:07:00 GMT Rice University scientists today unveiled a method for the industrial-scale processing of pure carbon-nanotube fibres that could lead to revolutionary advances in materials science, power distribution and nanoelectronics. The result of a nine-year program, the method builds upon tried-and-true processes that chemical firms have used for decades to produce plastics. The research is available online in the journal Nature Nanotechnology... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110327-breakthrough-industrial-scale-nanotube-processing http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110327-breakthrough-industrial-scale-nanotube-processing Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:04:00 GMT A physics experiment using a super-fast explosion in a galaxy 7.3 billion light-years away has given scientists rare experimental evidence about the fundamental structure of space and time. The experiment was performed by a team that includes astrophysicists at Penn State University, who used NASA's Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope to study particles from the explosion moving at nearly the speed of light. The experiment confirmed aspects of Einstein's theories of gravity, which unite space and time in the concept of space-time. The team's research is published in the current early-online edition of the journal Nature and will be published at a later date in the print edition... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110326-rare-space-experiment-gives-clues-about-the-fundamental-structure-the-universe http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110326-rare-space-experiment-gives-clues-about-the-fundamental-structure-the-universe Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:01:00 GMT Most land use changes occurring in the continental U.S result in raised regional surface temperatures, says a new study by scientists at the University of Maryland, Purdue University and the University of Colorado in Boulder... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110325-green-is-cool-but-us-land-changes-generally-are-not http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110325-green-is-cool-but-us-land-changes-generally-are-not Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:58:00 GMT As rates of obesity, diabetes, and related disorders have reached epidemic proportions in the US in recent years, scientists are working from many angles to pinpoint the causes and contributing factors involved in this public health crisis. While sedentary lifestyles and diets high in sugar and fat contribute significantly to the rise in diabetes rates, genetic factors may make some people more vulnerable than others to developing diabetes... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110324-um-scientists-create-fruit-fly-model-help-unravel-genetics-human-diabetes http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110324-um-scientists-create-fruit-fly-model-help-unravel-genetics-human-diabetes Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:55:00 GMT A drug currently under development by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine may help bone fractures heal more quickly after radiation exposure, according to a study by Pitt researchers... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110323-developmental-drug-may-help-bone-fractures-heal-after-radiation-exposure http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110323-developmental-drug-may-help-bone-fractures-heal-after-radiation-exposure Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:52:00 GMT Using an unconventional approach that they designed, University of Pittsburgh drug discoverers and their collaborators at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research have identified compounds that hold promise for treating leishmaniasis, a parasitic infection that many consider one of the world's most overlooked diseases. The findings are available online today in PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110322-pitt-us-army-team-designs-new-strategy-find-drugs-treat-neglected-infection http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110322-pitt-us-army-team-designs-new-strategy-find-drugs-treat-neglected-infection Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:49:00 GMT Adults who had experienced physical abuse as children have 56 per cent higher odds of osteoarthritis compared to those who have not been abused, according to a new study by University of Toronto researchers... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110321-study-finds-link-between-childhood-physical-abuse-arthritis http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110321-study-finds-link-between-childhood-physical-abuse-arthritis Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:46:00 GMT Researchers at the University of Warwick have identified a particular combination of health problems that can double the risk of heart attack and cause a three-fold increase in the risk of mortality... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110320-researchers-identify-the-3-killer-indicators-that-are-even-worse-than-high-cholesterol http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110320-researchers-identify-the-3-killer-indicators-that-are-even-worse-than-high-cholesterol Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:43:00 GMT Healthy pregnant women mount a robust immune response following just one dose of 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine, according to initial results from an ongoing clinical trial sponsored by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110319-initial-results-show-pregnant-women-mount-strong-immune-response-1-dose-2009-h1n1-vaccine http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110319-initial-results-show-pregnant-women-mount-strong-immune-response-1-dose-2009-h1n1-vaccine Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:35:00 GMT Ever since the Falklands wolf was described by Darwin himself, the origin of this now-extinct canid found only on the Falkland Islands far off the east coast of Argentina has remained a mystery. Now, researchers reporting in the November 3rd issue of Current Biology who have compared DNA from four of the world's dozen or so known Falklands wolf museum specimens to that of living canids offer new insight into the evolutionary ancestry of these enigmatic carnivores... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110318-new-clues-the-falklands-wolf-mystery http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110318-new-clues-the-falklands-wolf-mystery Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:32:00 GMT The American College of Physicians (ACP) today sent a letter to House leaders voicing the College's support for key policies in the Affordable Health Care for America Act... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110317-acp-expresses-support-key-policies-affordable-health-care-america-act http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110317-acp-expresses-support-key-policies-affordable-health-care-america-act Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:29:00 GMT The swine flu (H1N1) pandemic has received extensive media coverage this year. The World Health Organisation, in addition to providing frequent updates about cases of infection and death tolls, recommends hyper vigilance in daily hygiene such as frequent hand washing or sneezing into the crook of our arms. News reports at all levels, from local school closures to airport screenings and global disease surveillance, continue to remind us of the high risk... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110316-sneezing-times-flu-pandemic http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110316-sneezing-times-flu-pandemic Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:26:00 GMT Short-term hormone therapy given prior to and during intermediate dose radiation treatment for men with early stage prostate cancer increases their chance of living longer, compared to those who receive the same radiation alone, according to a Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) study, the largest randomised trial of its kind, presented November 2, 2009, at the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) annual meeting. The RTOG trial noted that this benefit appeared to be greatest for men currently defined as at medium-risk for disease failure... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110315-short-term-hormone-therapy-intermediate-dose-radiation-increases-survivial-early-stage-prostate-cancer http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110315-short-term-hormone-therapy-intermediate-dose-radiation-increases-survivial-early-stage-prostate-cancer Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:23:00 GMT Like savvy Wall Street money managers, bacteria hedge their bets to increase their chances of survival in uncertain times, strategically investing their biological resources to weather unpredictable environments... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110314-bacteria-invest-wisely-survive-uncertain-times-ut-southwestern-scientists-report http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110314-bacteria-invest-wisely-survive-uncertain-times-ut-southwestern-scientists-report Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:20:00 GMT A new study from a recent issue of the Journal of Marriage and Family shows that women who exit welfare (under TANF, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), are as likely to marry as women of similar socioeconomic backgrounds who were never on welfare. Marriage rates are lower while women receive TANF, but since most women receive welfare benefits for a short period of time, the overall effect of welfare participation on marriage rates is very small... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110313-women-who-exit-welfare-just-as-likely-marry-as-women-never-on-welfare http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110313-women-who-exit-welfare-just-as-likely-marry-as-women-never-on-welfare Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:17:00 GMT Holidays and tables full of delicious food usually go hand in hand, but for nearly half of the children in the United States, this is not guaranteed... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110312-nearly-half-all-us-children-will-use-food-stamps-says-poverty-expert-at-wustl http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110312-nearly-half-all-us-children-will-use-food-stamps-says-poverty-expert-at-wustl Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:14:00 GMT Infants born to women who received influenza vaccine during pregnancy were hospitalised at a lower rate than infants born to unvaccinated mothers, according to preliminary results of an ongoing study by researchers at Yale School of Medicine. The team presented the study 29 October at the 47th annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America in Philadelphia... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110311-flu-vaccine-given-women-during-pregnancy-keeps-infants-out-the-hospital http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110311-flu-vaccine-given-women-during-pregnancy-keeps-infants-out-the-hospital Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:11:00 GMT Dust samples collected by high-flying aircraft in the upper atmosphere have yielded an unexpectedly rich trove of relicts from the ancient cosmos, report scientists from the Carnegie Institution. The stratospheric dust includes minute grains that likely formed inside stars that lived and died long before the birth of our sun, as well as material from molecular clouds in interstellar space. This 'ultra-primitive' material likely wafted into the atmosphere after the Earth passed through the trail of an Earth-crossing comet in 2003, giving scientists a rare opportunity to study cometary dust in the laboratory... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110310-ultra-primitive-particles-found-comet-dust http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110310-ultra-primitive-particles-found-comet-dust Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:08:00 GMT The latest update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species should cause alarm over the continuing unprecedented loss of species and the failure so far of mechanisms to arrest biodiversity loss, WWF said today... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110309-red-list-update-shows-up-global-failure-slow-biodiversity-loss http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110309-red-list-update-shows-up-global-failure-slow-biodiversity-loss Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:05:00 GMT A detailed picture of the seeds of structures in the universe has been unveiled by an international team co-led by a Cardiff University scientist... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110308-precise-picture-early-universe-supports-dark-matter-theory http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110308-precise-picture-early-universe-supports-dark-matter-theory Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:02:00 GMT Sustaining modest weight loss for 10 years, or taking an anti-diabetic drug over that time, can prevent or lower the incidence of type 2 diabetes in people at high risk for developing the disease, according to the Diabetes Prevention Program Outcomes Study (DPPOS), a long-term follow-up to a landmark 2001 diabetes prevention study... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110307-lifestyle-changes-may-stave-off-diabetes-decade http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110307-lifestyle-changes-may-stave-off-diabetes-decade Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:59:00 GMT The rapid growth of China's forests over the past 20 years makes them the fastest growing forest resources in the world, according to an assessment published in the November issue of BioScience... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110306-data-point-some-improvements-china-environment http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110306-data-point-some-improvements-china-environment Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:56:00 GMT Alternate bearing (also called biennial or uneven bearing) is the tendency of fruit trees to produce a heavy crop one year (called 'on-crop') followed by a light crop or no crop the following 'off-crop' year. On-crop trees produce a large number of small fruit of little commercial value, while off-crop trees produce a small number of large fruit - a high proportion of which are culled in packinghouses due to their unattractive, thick rinds. The phenomenon is widespread and can occur in an entire region, in individual trees, part of a tree, or even on one branch... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110305-study-alternate-bearing-presents-recommendations-citrus-growers http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110305-study-alternate-bearing-presents-recommendations-citrus-growers Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:52:00 GMT Stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) should be considered a new standard of care for early-stage lung cancer treatment in patients with co-existing medical problems, according to results from a national clinical trial led by UT Southwestern Medical Centre physicians... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110304-stereotactic-radiotherapy-offers-noninvasive-effective-treatment-lung-cancer-patients http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110304-stereotactic-radiotherapy-offers-noninvasive-effective-treatment-lung-cancer-patients Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:49:00 GMT A new study by researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine suggests that many patients are dissatisfied with the way they receive results of radiology tests and want more access to information in their medical records, specifically, detailed, lay-language results from those tests... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110303-study-lays-foundation-more-patient-access-medical-records http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110303-study-lays-foundation-more-patient-access-medical-records Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:46:00 GMT Adult survivors of childhood cancer are 20 to 25 percent more likely to never marry compared with siblings and the general population, Yale School of Medicine researchers report in a new study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers and Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110302-childhood-cancer-survivors-less-likely-marry-yale-researchers-find http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110302-childhood-cancer-survivors-less-likely-marry-yale-researchers-find Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:43:00 GMT Learning to talk also changes the way speech sounds are heard, according to a new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by scientists at Haskins Laboratories, a Yale-affiliated research laboratory. The findings could have a major impact on improving speech disorders... http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110301-researchers-unlock-the-sound-learning-by-linking-sensory-motor-systems http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/article.php?q=09110301-researchers-unlock-the-sound-learning-by-linking-sensory-motor-systems Tue, 03 Nov 2009 08:40:00 GMT