Fwd: Science X Newsletter Thursday, Jun 25

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From: Newsletter Phys.org <not-for-reply@physorg.com>
Date: Fri, Jun 26, 2015 at 3:55 AM
Subject: Science X Newsletter Thursday, Jun 25
To: Pascal Alter <pascal.alter@gmail.com>

Dear Pascal Alter,

Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for June 25, 2015:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- Physicists find quantum coherence and quantum entanglement are two sides of the same coin
- Iron: A biological element?
- Engineered particles produce toxins deadly to targeted bacteria
- Researchers stretch a thin crystal to get better solar cells
- UK youths win for color-changing condom to recognize STIs
- Engineers break power and distance barriers for fiber optic communication
- How the brain combines information across sensory modalities
- Exposed water ice detected on comet's surface
- Researchers identify stem-like progenitor cell that exclusively forms heart muscle
- Backward-moving glacier helps scientists explain glacial earthquakes
- Genetic discovery uncovers key tool for morphine production in poppies
- Corals are already adapting to global warming, scientists say
- Calcium uptake by mitochondria makes heart beat harder in fight-or-flight response
- Scientists pinpoint mutations responsible for ineffective 2014-2015 flu vaccine
- Songbirds have a thing for patterns

Nanotechnology news

	Engineered particles produce toxins deadly to targeted bacteria The global rise in antibiotic resistance is a growing threat to public health, damaging our ability to fight deadly infections such as tuberculosis.
	Researchers successfully control optical response of atomically thin materials on short timescale (Phys.org)—A team of researchers with member affiliations to Columbia and Stanford Universities has found a way to control the optical response of atomically thin materials on extremely short timescales. In their paper published in the journal Nature Photonics, the team describes their approach and why they believe it could help in the development of photonic devices.
	Breakthrough graphene production could trigger revolution in artificial skin development A pioneering new technique to produce high-quality, low cost graphene could pave the way for the development of the first truly flexible 'electronic skin', that could be used in robots.
	3D plasmonic antenna capable of focusing light into few nanometers Professors Myung-Ki Kim and Yong-Hee Lee of the Physics Department at KAIST and their research teams developed a 3D gap-plasmon antenna which can focus light into a few nanometers wide space. Their research findings were published in the June 10th issue of Nano Letters.

Physics news

	Physicists find quantum coherence and quantum entanglement are two sides of the same coin (Phys.org)—Quantum coherence and quantum entanglement are two landmark features of quantum physics, and now physicists have demonstrated that the two phenomena are "operationally equivalent"—that is, equivalent for all practical purposes, though still conceptually distinct. This finding allows physicists to apply decades of research on entanglement to the more fundamental but less-well-researched concept of coherence, offering the possibility of advancing a wide range of quantum technologies.
	Engineers break power and distance barriers for fiber optic communication Electrical engineers have broken key barriers that limit the distance information can travel in fiber optic cables and still be accurately deciphered by a receiver. Photonics researchers at the University of California, San Diego have increased the maximum power—and therefore distance—at which optical signals can be sent through optical fibers. This advance has the potential to increase the data transmission rates for the fiber optic cables that serve as the backbone of the internet, cable, wireless and landline networks. The research is published in the June 26 issue of the journal Science.
	The quantum spin Hall effect is a fundamental property of light In a paper that crystalizes knowledge from a variety of experiments and theoretical developments, scientists from the RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science in Japan have demonstrated that the quantum spin Hall effect—an effect known to take place in solid state physics—is also an intrinsic property of light.
	Interaction of tailored light with a single atom and individual nanostructures By adapting a mode of the light field to a system under study, the interaction of light with matter can be optimized. In this context, the spatial distribution of the electric field of such a tailored mode plays an important role. At the MPI for the Science of Light, this approach is utilized to couple light to a single atom or individual nano-particles. It was shown, for example, that light can be coupled to an ion trapped in a parabolic mirror with high efficiency. In other studies, the scattering behavior of individual nano-particles was controlled using polarization tailored light.
	The challenge of building a better atomic clock and why it matters Prior to the mid-18th century, it was tough to be a sailor. If your voyage required east-west travel, you couldn't set out to a specific destination and have any real hope of finding it efficiently.

Earth news

	Iron: A biological element? Think of an object made of iron: An I-beam, a car frame, a nail. Now imagine that half of the iron in that object owes its existence to bacteria living two and a half billion years ago.
	Antarctic life – highly diverse, unusually structured The variety of plant and animal life in the Antarctic is much greater than previously thought, reveals an assessment of Antarctic biodiversity published by a team of scientists in the journal Nature this week.
	Corals are already adapting to global warming, scientists say Some coral populations already have genetic variants necessary to tolerate warm ocean waters, and humans can help to spread these genes, a team of scientists from The University of Texas at Austin, the Australian Institute of Marine Science and Oregon State University have found. The discovery has implications for many reefs now threatened by global warming and shows for the first time that mixing and matching corals from different latitudes may boost reef survival.
	Backward-moving glacier helps scientists explain glacial earthquakes The relentless flow of a glacier may seem unstoppable, but a team of UK and US researchers have shown that during some calving events - when an iceberg breaks off into the ocean - the glacier moves rapidly backward and downward, causing the characteristic glacial earthquakes which until now have been poorly understood.
	Environment takes big hit from water-intensive marijuana cultivation The debate over the legalization of marijuana has focused primarily on questions of law, policy and health. But a new paper co-authored by UC Berkeley researchers shines a spotlight on the environment as an underappreciated victim of the plant's growing popularity as a cash crop.
	Silent extinctions on coral reefs There is a ray of hope in the face of dire predictions about the future of coral reefs, with the prospect that species can shift their distribution ranges to survive climate change.
	Opportunities for geothermal energy: New method reveals past underground temperatures Rocks store information about the temperatures that they have experienced. Wageningen University researchers and international colleagues are the first to develop a method that reveals low-temperature information (from 35 °C and higher) on a relatively short timescale of thousands of years. The new method might find application in locating geothermal reservoirs and in maintaining underground tunnels.
	Even experts don't know the long-term risks of fracking – so why would a local council? Fracking is relatively new and hi-tech – and even experts armed with cutting-edge instruments are only just beginning to get their heads around some of the risks involved. No one really knows exactly what it will mean in the medium to long-term. It's not just that there aren't enough informed opinions – there isn't enough conclusive research anywhere in the world to enable anyone to make truly informed decisions on fracking and its risks.
Optimizing shale gas production from well to wire "Hydraulic fracturing" (or fracking) and "environmentally friendly" often do not appear in the same sentence together. But as the United States teeters on the precipice of a shale gas boom, Northwestern University professor Fengqi You is exploring ways to make the controversial activity easier on the environment—and the wallet.
	Using NASA data to show how raindrops could save rupees Rainwater could save people in India a bucket of money, according to a new study by scientists looking at NASA satellite data.
Doctors and scientists call for divestment from fossil fuel companies Over 50 leading doctors and academics including Fiona Godlee, editor in chief of The BMJ, have signed an open letter published in The Guardian today calling on the Wellcome Trust to divest from fossil fuel companies.
	Lax rules put Congo's forests, key carbon reserve, at risk Without new conservation efforts, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) could lose up to 20 percent of its forests, unleashing a 60 percent increase in carbon emissions, says a new study by researchers at the University of Vermont's Gund Institute for Ecological Economics.
Magnitude-5.8 quake shakes buildings in south-central Alaska A magnitude-5.8 earthquake has rocked south-central Alaska, but the U.S. Geological Survey says there's little likelihood of damage.
	Heat wave subsides in Pakistan as death toll reaches 860 The devastating heat wave that struck southern Pakistan last weekend is slowly subsiding but the toll was still climbing Thursday, to a total of 860 confirmed deaths, a senior health official said.

Astronomy & Space news

	Exposed water ice detected on comet's surface Using the high-resolution science camera on board ESA's Rosetta spacecraft, scientists have identified more than a hundred patches of water ice a few metres in size on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
	Giant galaxy is still growing New observations with ESO's Very Large Telescope have revealed thatthe giant elliptical galaxy Messier 87 has swallowed an entire medium-sized galaxy over the last billion years. For the first time a team of astronomers has been able to track the motions of 300 glowing planetary nebulae to find clear evidence of this event and also found evidence of excess light coming from the remains of the totally disrupted victim.
	The physical properties of dense molecular clouds Small, dense interstellar clouds of gas and dust, containing hundreds to thousands of solar-masses of material, are suspected of being the precursors to stars and stellar clusters. These so-called cores, with gas densities around one thousand molecules per cubic centimeter (a more typical interstellar value is fewer than one per cubic centimeter) have become a primary focus for understanding the process of high-mass star formation. A series of largescale surveys of the Galactic plane have recently detected tens of thousands of them using infrared and submillimeter telescopes that respond to the emission of their dust; the far infrared sensitive Herschel Space Telescope has been particularly important. A detailed census of these dense molecular cloud structures, their temperatures, masses, and environmental conditions, can help constrain the initial conditions of star formation and subsequent galaxy evolution theories. So far, howe! ver, a coherent picture has not emerged, in part because the analyses have been based on individual cases which are often influenced by local effects.
	New NASA supercomputer model shows planet making waves in nearby debris disk A new NASA supercomputer simulation of the planet and debris disk around the nearby star Beta Pictoris reveals that the planet's motion drives spiral waves throughout the disk, a phenomenon that causes collisions among the orbiting debris. Patterns in the collisions and the resulting dust appear to account for many observed features that previous research has been unable to fully explain.
	Spiral arms cradle baby terrestrial planets New work from Carnegie's Alan Boss offers a potential solution to a longstanding problem in the prevailing theory of how rocky planets formed in our own Solar System, as well as in others. The snag he's untangling: how dust grains in the matter orbiting a young protostar avoid getting dragged into the star before they accumulate into bodies large enough that their own gravity allows them to rapidly attract enough material to grow into planets. The study is published by The Astrophysical Journal.
	NASA prepares for future space exploration with international undersea crew NASA will send an international crew to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean this summer to prepare for future deep space missions during the 14-day NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations (NEEMO) 20 expedition slated to begin July 20.
	Earth-directed CME lights the skies Earth experienced a geomagnetic storm on June 22, 2015 due to the arrival of an Earth-directed coronal mass ejection, or CME, from June 20.
	Europa—attempt no landing here, but a fly-by is fine! NASA has now formally started to pack its bags for the next big discovery mission, this time heading to Jupiter's icy moon Europa. Last month NASA announced the instruments that will fly on this trip and now has formally moved it from "concept" to "development" stage.
	Will we ever reach another star? There are two separate parts of your brain I would like to speak with today. First, I want to talk to the part that makes decisions on who to vote for, how much insurance you should put on your car and deals with how not paying taxes sends you to jail. We'll call this part of your brain "Kevin."
	What is the biggest planet in the solar system? Ever since the invention of the telescope four hundred years ago, astronomers have been fascinated by the gas giant of Jupiter. Between it's constant, swirling clouds, its many, many moons, and its Giant Red Spot, there are many things about this planet that are both delightful and fascinating.
	NASA technology protects Webb telescope from contamination Contamination from organic molecules can harm delicate instruments and engineers are taking special care at NASA to prevent that from affecting the James Webb Space Telescope (and all satellites and instruments). Recently, Nithin Abraham, a Thermal Coatings Engineer placed Molecular Adsorber Coating or "MAC" panels in the giant chamber where the Webb telescope will be tested.
	NASA's SDO sees mid-level solar flare The sun emitted a mid-level solar flare, peaking at 4:16 a.m. EDT on June 25, 2015. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the sun constantly, captured an image of the event. Solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation.
	Image: Lights of an aurora from the International Space Station NASA Astronaut Scott Kelly captured this photo of an aurora from the International Space Station on June 23, 2015.

Technology news

	UK youths win for color-changing condom to recognize STIs Here is an idea: condoms that change color when they come in contact with STIs. That is the idea from three students in the UK attending the Isaac Newton Academy in Ilford. They developed their idea into a contest entry and they won in the "Healthcare Category" in theTeen Tech Awards. Their concept is called "S.T.EYE."
	Researchers stretch a thin crystal to get better solar cells Nature loves crystals. Salt, snowflakes and quartz are three examples of crystals - materials characterized by the lattice-like arrangement of their atoms and molecules.
	New conductive ink for electronic apparel University of Tokyo researchers have developed a new ink that can be printed on textiles in a single step to form highly conductive and stretchable connections. This new functional ink will enable electronic apparel such as sportswear and underwear incorporating sensing devices for measuring a range of biological indicators such as heart rate and muscle contraction.
	Solar Impulse could be stuck in Japan for a year: pilot A solar-powered plane attempting to fly around the world must cross the Pacific within a few weeks or it could remain stuck in Japan for a year, its pilot said in an interview published Thursday.
	Thermal spray makes metal stronger, changes conductivity A company spawned by an experiment on lawn mower blades has mushroomed into a national leader in high-temperature coatings that alter the surface properties of metal.
	Researchers designing nuclear power plant that will float eight or more miles out to sea Many experts cite nuclear power as a critical component of a low-carbon energy future. Nuclear plants are steady, reliable sources of large amounts of power; they run on inexpensive and abundant fuel; and they emit no carbon dioxide (CO2).
	Ford unveils MoDe:Flex—an eBike that fits in a car trunk Ford has announced via Twitter (and YouTube) the unveiling of a new electronic bike (eBike) it calls the MoDe:Flex—and its big draw, in addition to serving as a motor assisted pedal vehicle, is that it can be broken down and folded and put neatly into a Ford car trunk.
	I always feel like somebody's watching me… What power can individuals have over their data when their every move online is being tracked? Researchers at the Cambridge Computer Laboratory are building new systems that shift the power back to individual users, and could make personal data faster to access and at much lower cost.
	Google's new self-driving cars cruising Silicon Valley roads The latest models of Google's self-driving cars are now cruising the streets near the Internet company's Silicon Valley headquarters as an ambitious project to transform the way people get around shifts into its next phase.
	Digital messages on vehicle windshields make driving less safe Augmented-reality head-up displays (AR-HUDs) that present digital images on windshields to alert drivers to everything from possible collisions to smart phone activity, are meant to make driving safer. But University of Toronto researchers say they are a threat to safety.
	Review: Microsoft Office, Foursquare mayors, Amazon Echo Android phone owners can now use an updated version of Microsoft's Office tools for writing, spreadsheets and slideshows.
	French taxi drivers smash cars in strike against Uber French taxi drivers smashed up livery cars, set tires ablaze and blocked traffic across the country on Thursday in a nationwide strike aimed at Uber after weeks of rising, sometimes violent tensions over the U.S. ride-hailing company.
	NASA-developed air traffic management tool deployed A new software tool developed by NASA, and being deployed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), is positioned to help air traffic controllers manage the nation's skies.
	Computer vision and mobile technology could help blind people 'see' Computer scientists are developing new adaptive mobile technology which could enable blind and visually-impaired people to 'see' through their smartphone or tablet.
	It pays to repave in colder climates Repaving roads is a costly and complicated process, especially when the road is a critical artery. But new research from Norway shows that switching to more durable asphalt could save significant amounts of money on some cold climate roads—possibly as much as  several million euros a year.
	All-plastic solar cell could help power future flexible electronics If you picture a solar panel, it's most likely dark blue or black, and rigid and flat. Now imagine one that's semitransparent, ultra-thin and bendable. Scientists are closing in on making the latter version a reality. They report in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces the development of a see-through, bendable solar cell made entirely out of plastic. The device could help power the coming wave of flexible electronics.
	How computers are learning to make human software work more efficiently Computer scientists have a history of borrowing ideas from nature, such as evolution. When it comes to optimising computer programs, a very interesting evolutionary-based approach has emerged over the past five or six years that could bring incalculable benefits to industry and eventually consumers. We call it genetic improvement.
	Breakup for online dating app Tinder and parent The popular online dating app Tinder is breaking free as part of a spinoff announced Thursday by parent company IAC/InterActive Corp.
	Need to hit friends up for cash? There's an app for that On a trip to Maine with four friends, Alexander Culbertson racked up $1,300 on gas, hotel rooms, food and drinks.
No more fee: T-Mobile's new phone-upgrade program explained (Update) T-Mobile is revamping its phone-upgrade program by eliminating a $10-a-month charge for the most popular phones.
	US spy chief says China 'leading suspect' in hack The head of US intelligence said Thursday that China is "the leading suspect" in a massive data breach of Washington's government personnel files, but that an investigation is ongoing.
	In reversal, Taylor Swift to stream only on Apple Pop superstar Taylor Swift said Thursday she would stream her latest album exclusively on Apple, capping an 180-degree shift after she threatened a boycott.
	China's Alibaba launches Internet bank Chinese e-commerce behemoth Alibaba on Thursday launched an Internet bank aimed at serving small businesses which often struggle to obtain credit from large banks.
	'Fallout' mobile game an App Store hit A free mobile game spun from blockbuster video game franchise "Fallout" has rocketed to the top of the charts at Apple's online App Store.
	Facebook must hand over 'revenge porn' ID, Dutch court rules A Dutch court on Thursday ordered Facebook to hand over the identity of someone who posted a revenge porn video on the social network, or face having its servers opened up to an outside investigator.
	A look at challenges Uber has faced around the world Taxi drivers in France went on strike Thursday, smashing car windows, setting tires on fire and blocking traffic to express their displeasure with American ride-hailing service Uber. Despite an October law forbidding the company's low-cost UberPop service, its drivers continue to provide rides in France.
Warnings removed from Instagram accounts in North Korea Instagram appears to be back to normal in North Korea after a week of warnings on user accounts saying the popular photo-sharing app had been blacklisted for harmful content.
	Machine tool accuracy to rise to new level The University of Huddersfield's Dr Andrew Longstaff is carrying out research that aims to bring about significant improvements in the accuracy of machine tools. Now he has earned the opportunity to work at one of the world's most advanced facilities and it could provide a fast track that ensures his developments are adopted more speedily by major manufacturers.
Yahoo's Stamos to become Facebook's chief security officer Yahoo's cybersecurity chief says he's heading to Facebook to become its chief security officer.
	Buffalo museum launches gaming app built around artwork The newest work at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery is a gaming app meant to put modern and contemporary art in front of kids by way of their smartphones.
Learning early about late flights A new study published in the Articles in Advance section of Transportation Science, a journal of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS), improves how air traffic managers cope with unexpected delays and provides them with more predictable ways to manage arrival traffic at airports with adverse weather.
AT&T to spend $3B on expanding Iusacell network in Mexico AT&T Inc. plans to invest about $3 billion to build up its recently acquired Iusacell mobile phone network in Mexico.
	Irate French taxi drivers smash cars in strike against Uber French taxi drivers pulled out the throttle in an all-out confrontation with the ultra-cheap Uber car service Thursday, smashing livery cars, setting tires ablaze and blocking traffic during a nationwide strike that caught tourists and celebrities alike in the mayhem.
	Mario and his Mushroom Kingdom hopping into theme parks For his next trick, Shigeru Miyamoto is working in reality, not virtual reality.
	To sway regulators, Charter pledges to play nice on Internet Charter is trying to convince the government that consumers will benefit if it is allowed to create a cable giant through its proposed $67.1 billion acquisition of Time Warner Cable and Bright House.
HBO launches two new shows on Facebook HBO posted the first episodes of its two newest comedy series on Facebook on Thursday, turning the social networking site into a new platform for TV viewing.

Chemistry news

	Disposable lab-on-a-chip chemical assay unit with cell phone camera readout There is growing demand for point-of-care diagnosis worldwide using low-cost, autonomous, and disposable devices. Scientists in Sweden have developed a disposable lab-on-a-chip unit that is manufactured by 3D printing technique and equipped with an integrated 3D-printed optical lens system which serves as an interface for direct readout by any regular cell phone camera. As the scientists report in the journal Angewandte Chemie, their device reliably performs quantitative chemical sensing, and the prototype is designed for colorimetric detection of the glucose concentration in a clinically relevant range.
	Synthetic biology used to engineer new route to biochemicals Living cells can make a vast range of products for us, but they don't always do it in the most straightforward or efficient way. Shota Atsumi, a chemistry professor at UC Davis, aims to address that through "synthetic biology:" designing and building new biochemical pathways within living cells, based on existing pathways from other living things.
	New approach holds promise for earlier, easier detection of colorectal cancer Chemists at Caltech have developed a new sensitive technique capable of detecting colorectal cancer in tissue samples—a method that could one day be used in clinical settings for the early diagnosis of colorectal cancer.
A novel switching mechanism for adhesion Lizbeth Prieto-López, PhD student working with Professor John Williams in the Mechanics, Materials and Design division, is designing a novel switching mechanism for adhesion that uses Van der Waals forces.
	Sprayable foam that slows bleeding could save lives Traumatic injuries, whether from serious car accidents, street violence or military combat, can lead to significant blood loss and death. But using a material derived from crustacean shells, scientists have now developed a foam that can be sprayed onto an open wound to stop the bleeding. They report their successful tests on pigs in the journal ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering.
	Making clothes out of gelatin could reduce agricultural waste From gummy bears to silky mousses, gelatin is essential for making some of our favorite sweets. Now scientists are exploring another use for the common food ingredient: spinning it into yarn so it can be made into clothing. And because gelatin comes from livestock by-products, the new technique would provide an additional use for agricultural leftovers. The report appears in the ACS journal Biomacromolecules.
	Researchers develop new method to count DNA molecules in just 30 minutes A team of scientists including PhD student Friedrich Schuler from the Laboratory of MEMS Applications at the Department of Microsystems Engineering (IMTEK) of the University of Freiburg has developed a method for dividing a DNA sample into thousands of tiny droplets. What sets it apart from previous methods is above all the fact that it is considerably easier to control and rapidly generates more than 10,000 droplets with a diameter of approximately 120 micrometers each. The entire process takes place on a rotating plastic disk the size of a DVD. The researchers presented the new method in an article in the journal Lab Chip.
	A person's diet, acidity of urine may affect susceptibility to UTIs The acidity of urine—as well as the presence of small molecules related to diet—may influence how well bacteria can grow in the urinary tract, a new study shows. The research, at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, may have implications for treating urinary tract infections, which are among the most common bacterial infections worldwide.
	The silent partner in macromolecular crystals The mother liquor from which a biomolecular crystal is grown will contain water, buffer molecules, native ligands and cofactors, crystallization precipitants and additives, various metal ions, and often small-molecule ligands or inhibitors. On average, about half the volume of a biomolecular crystal consists of this mother liquor, whose components form the disordered bulk solvent.

Biology news

	How the brain combines information across sensory modalities (Phys.org)—Visual information is dense, and researchers have long theorized that when visual stimuli are confusing or ambiguous, the brain must apply additional contextual information in order to interpret it. A group of Korean researchers became interested in one source of visual confusion called binocular rivalry as a means of studying how the brain provides additional context to confusing visual information. They have published the results of their study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
	Key link in turtle evolution discovered An international team of researchers from the United States and Germany have discovered a key missing link in the evolutionary history of turtles. The new extinct species of reptile, Pappochelys, was unearthed in an area that was an ancient lake in southern Germany about 240 million years ago during the Middle Triassic Period. Its physical traits make it a clear intermediate between two of the earliest known turtles, Eunotosaurus and Odontochelys. Features in the skull of Pappochelys also provide critical evidence that turtles are most closely related to other modern reptiles, such as lizards and snakes. Previously, scientists believed that turtles may have descended from the earliest known reptiles. Additional information is available in the June 24 issue of Nature.
	New target identified for inhibiting malaria parasite invasion A new study led by researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health finds that a malaria parasite protein called calcineurin is essential for parasite invasion into red blood cells. Human calcineurin is already a proven target for drugs treating other illnesses including adult rheumatoid arthritis and lupus, and the new findings suggest that parasite calcineurin should be a focus for the development of new antimalarial drugs.
	Team gets new close-up view of key part of Ebola virus life cycle A new study led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) reveals a key part of the Ebola virus life cycle at a higher resolution than ever before. The research sheds light on how Ebola virus assembles—and how researchers might stop the often-fatal infection.
	Designer wheat fails anti-aphid field test The scientific quest for pest-resistant crops suffered a blow Thursday when disappointed British researchers announced their designer wheat failed to repel aphids in the field.
	Songbirds have a thing for patterns You might think that young children would first learn to recognize sounds and then learn how those categories of sounds fit together into words. But that isn't how it works. Rather, kids learn sounds and words at the same time. In fact, the higher-level patterns—those words—are key in learning to recognize and place speech sounds into meaningful categories. That's why children who grow up in Japanese-speaking homes don't recognize the difference between 'r' and 'l' sounds. In Japanese, that distinction doesn't matter. Now, researchers reporting in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on June 25 present evidence from European starlings showing that songbirds learn their songs in much the same way.
	Earth's daily rotation period encoded in an atomic-level protein structure A collaborative group of Japanese researchers has demonstrated that the Earth's daily rotation period (24 hours) is encoded in the KaiC protein at the atomic level, a small, 10 nm-diameter biomolecule expressed in cyanobacterial cells (Image 1).
	Genetic discovery uncovers key tool for morphine production in poppies Scientists at the University of York and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) Australia have made a key genetic discovery in poppies, paving the way for more effective painkillers.
	Network of tubes plays a key role in plants' immune defense Chloroplasts, better known for taking care of photosynthesis in plant cells, play an unexpected role in responding to infections in plants, researchers at UC Davis and the University of Delaware have found.
	Waging war on Australia's nastiest parasite: Scientists map blowfly genome Around 2000 genes not seen before in any other organism were discovered. These genes can now be investigated as potential drug and vaccine targets.
	Researchers uncover epigenetic switches that turn stem cells into blood vessel cells Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have identified a molecular mechanism that directs embryonic stem cells to mature into endothelial cells—the specialized cells that form blood vessels. Understanding the processes initiated by this mechanism could help scientists more efficiently convert stem cells into endothelial cells for use in tissue repair, or for engineering blood vessels to bypass blockages in the heart.
	Oslo creates world's first 'highway' to protect endangered bees From flower emblazoned cemeteries to rooftop gardens and balconies, Norway's capital Oslo is creating a "bee highway" to protect endangered pollinators essential to food production.
	Fish reared in hard water are more susceptible to columnaris disease For most people, the choice between soft and hard water for everyday use is a matter of preference or geography. Both types have pros and cons. But for catfish, water hardness can make a difference in the development of columnaris disease, which is caused by the bacterium Flavobacterium columnare. Columnaris disease causes skin and gill lesions, can occur in any freshwater fish species, and costs the U.S. aquaculture industry $40-50 million each year.
	The nutrition behind good sperm Males with low sperm quality probably won't get much help from dining down on fish oil supplements and a bag of carrots, recent aquatic-based research suggests.
	Undergraduate discovers new firefly species The Entomology Research Museum at the University of California, Riverside today announced the discovery of a new species of firefly from Southern California, collected by an undergraduate student as part of his semester's insect collection.
DNA barcoding discloses Antarctic sponge diversity Researchers at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have used DNA barcoding to elucidate the diversity of the sponge fauna found in Antarctic waters. The data provide new insights into the evolution of this poorly characterized group.
A novel DNA damage alarm How does our body keep its DNA intact? Researchers at Erasmus MC have just found a new piece of this puzzle. They discovered a novel alarm that cells use to signal DNA damage. "We already knew that DNA damage triggers an alarm in our body cells", says lead researcher Wim Vermeulen. "We have now shown that this alarm is also set off during transcription (expression) of damaged genes." Maria Tresini, Jurgen Marteijn, Wim Vermeulen and other co-workers just published their findings in the leading scientific journal Nature.
	Recycled water, salt-tolerant grass a water-saving pair Plants need water. People need water. Unfortunately, there's only so much clean water to go around—and so the effort begins to find a solution.
	Bad news and good news for birds nesting at reservoirs In a six-year study at Arrow Lakes Reservoir in British Columbia, researchers from Cooper, Beauchesne and Associates and Simon Fraser University found that while some nests failed due to flooding as the reservoir filled up in the spring, the higher water levels actually provided benefits for the nests that survived. Their results, published this week in The Condor: Ornithological Applications, show that overall, nesting in the reservoir's riparian areas did not reduce nest success.
	Starfish that clone themselves live longer Starfish that reproduce through cloning avoid ageing to a greater extent than those that propagate through sexual reproduction. This is shown by a new research study in which researchers from the University of Gothenburg participated. The study has recently been published in the highly respected journal Heredity.
Past water patterns drive present wading bird numbers Wading bird numbers in the Florida Everglades are driven by water patterns that play out over multiple years according to a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey and Florida Atlantic University. Previously, existing water conditions were seen as the primary driving factor affecting numbers of birds, but this research shows that the preceding years' water conditions and availability are equally important.
	Chimps are sensitive to what is right and wrong How a chimpanzee views a video of an infant chimp from another group being killed gives a sense of how human morality and social norms might have evolved. So says Claudia Rudolf von Rohr of the University of Zurich in Switzerland, lead author of a paper in Springer's journal Human Nature. It provides the first evidence that chimpanzees, like humans, are sensitive to the appropriateness of behaviors, especially those directed toward infants. It also shows that these primates might only take action when a member of their own group is being harmed.
Solving the next step in the mystery of prions Working towards the ultimate goal to develop therapeutics to treat diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, ALS, and BSE (Mad Cow Disease), University of Alberta scientists Michael Woodside, Hao Yu, and Derek Dee are investigating the physical principles underlying the formation of misfolded protein aggregates. The aggregates of misfolded proteins—proteins that clump together in the "wrong" structure—feature prominently in these fatal degenerative diseases.
	Some forestlands cool climate better without trees, study finds Forests worldwide are increasingly used to store carbon as a way to slow climate change, but a Dartmouth-led study finds that some wooded areas may be more valuable without trees, allowing the cleared landscape to reflect rather than absorb the sun's energy. In other words, it's better to have snow-covered ground act as a natural mirror if you want to use some forestlands to cool the climate.
	Seven-year study indicates steady and upward trends for blue and fin whales in Southern California A new study led by researchers at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego indicates a steady population trend for blue whales and an upward population trend for fin whales in Southern California.
	Tracking the genetic arms race between humans and mosquitoes Every time you put on bug spray this summer, you're launching a strike in the ongoing war between humans and mosquitoes—one that is rapidly driving the evolution of the pests.
	More endangered pygmy sloths in Panama than previously estimated A Smithsonian scientist found that pygmy sloths wander inland in addition to inhabiting the mangrove fringes of their island refuge. He realized that the population size of the pygmy sloth was underestimated; a new, higher estimate for the number of sloths on Panama's Escudo de Veraguas Island points to how little is known about the species, and it underscores the need to conserve the sloths' isolated home.
	Moon bears rescued from bile farms in Vietnam Freed from captivity in tiny metal cages, seven long-suffering Asiatic moon bears have been rescued on bile farms in northern Vietnam, as efforts to end the illegal trade are boosted.
	Conservationists: New China policy could save elephants Conservationists hail it as a possible game-changer in the struggle to curb the slaughter of elephants: an unexpected pledge by a senior Chinese official to stop the ivory trade in a country whose vast, increasingly affluent consumer market drives elephant poaching across Africa.
	Neuroscientist investigates how our social lives affect our brains Want a healthy brain? Get a little help from your friends.
	Seeking plans for bluefin recovery and reduced fishing capacity Members of the fisheries commission for the eastern Pacific assembling in Guayaquil, Ecuador need to prioritise initiating a rigorous recovery plan to address the collapse of Pacific Bluefin Tuna stocks and stabilising overall tuna fishing capacity that currently exceeds the optimal scientifically recommended level by at least 50%.
	Family trees could pin down why racehorses are getting faster Scientists have confirmed a pattern that many inveterate racing fans may have suspected for years: British horses are getting faster. But whether that is down to breeding techniques or other factors is less certain. The researchers suggest that one way to find out would be to carry out a detailed analysis of thoroughbred pedigrees to examine whether speediness is inherited.
	The demand for edible fish bred in Finland exceeds supply In 2014, some 13.3 million kilograms of fish were cultivated for human consumption in Finland. This represented a decrease of some 0.3 million kilograms compared to 2013. The value of farmed edible fish was slightly lower than in the previous year, the Natural Resources Institute's (Luke) aquaculture statistics reveals.
	Trawling for fish and scooping up public opinion The idea of bycatch, or marine creatures being unintentionally captured by commercial fishing gears, has long proved to be a point of contention for the Australian public.

Medicine & Health news

	Redrawing language map of brain For 140 years, scientists' understanding of language comprehension in the brain came from individuals with stroke.
	Scientists restore normal function in heart muscle cells of diabetic rats Working with heart muscle cells from diabetic rats, scientists at Johns Hopkins have located what they say is the epicenter of mischief wreaked by too much blood sugar and used a sugar-gobbling enzyme to restore normal function in the glucose-damaged cells of animal heart muscles.
	Scientists seeking better way to screen chemicals for cancer-causing effects The vast majority of the thousands of chemicals in our homes and workplaces have not been tested to determine if they cause cancer. That's because today's options are lacking. Rodent tests are too slow, and cell culture tests don't replicate how cells interact in the body, so their relevance to cancer is limited. Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) have set out to change that.
	Experiment reveals how cells that process sound respond to complex stimuli If you stimulate an auditory nerve cell over and over in a uniform pattern in the lab, it quickly runs out of the chemicals that it uses to send messages from the ear to the brain.
	Researchers survey the epigenetic diversity of neurons Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) scientists have profiled key features of the genetic material inside three types of brain cells and found vast differences in the patterns of chemical modifications that affect how the genes in each type of neuron are regulated. The analysis was made possible by a new method of collecting and purifying the nuclei of specific kinds of cells. Doing this type of study on cells in brain tissue has been challenging because the cells are densely packed and intimately intertwined.
	Targeting nerve endings to curb allergic asthma Current asthma medications, which work by suppressing inflammatory signaling by immune cells or by dilating the airways, can stop working over time. A study from Boston Children's Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Harvard Medical School supports a surprising alternative approach to controlling asthma: targeting certain sensory nerve endings in the lungs that help drive allergic inflammation.
	New drug squashes cancer's last-ditch efforts to survive As a tumor grows, its cancerous cells ramp up an energy-harvesting process to support its hasty development. This process, called autophagy, is normally used by a cell to recycle damaged organelles and proteins, but is also co-opted by cancer cells to meet their increased energy and metabolic demands.
	Cancer drug makes fruit flies live longer Adult fruit flies given a cancer drug live 12% longer than average, according to a UCL-led study researching healthy ageing. The drug targets a specific cellular process that occurs in animals, including humans, delaying the onset of age-related deaths by slowing the ageing process.
	Three simple rules govern complex brain circuit in fly Think the nest of cables under your desk is bad? Try keeping the trillions of connections crisscrossing your brain organized and free of tangles. A new study coauthored by researchers at UC San Francisco and the Freie Universität Berlin reveals this seemingly intractable job may be simpler than it appears.
	Experimental treatment sends deadly leukemia into remission An experimental new treatment approach for a rare, deadly leukemia can send the disease into remission even in patients for whom the standard therapy has failed, buying them more time to have the stem cell transplant that could save their lives, a small pilot study has found.
	Scientists pinpoint mutations responsible for ineffective 2014-2015 flu vaccine Viruses like influenza have the ability to mutate over time, and given that the flu vaccines administered during the 2014-2015 season were largely ineffective at preventing the spread of the flu, it appears the virus that recently circulated had taken on mutations not accounted for when last year's vaccine was developed.
	Calcium uptake by mitochondria makes heart beat harder in fight-or-flight response In a life-threatening situation, the heart beats faster and harder, invigorated by the fight-or-flight response, which instantaneously prepares a person to react or run. Now, a new study by researchers at Temple University School of Medicine (TUSM) shows that the uptick in heart muscle contractility that occurs under acute stress is driven by a flood of calcium into mitochondria—the cells' energy-producing powerhouses.
	Researchers identify stem-like progenitor cell that exclusively forms heart muscle Future therapies for failing hearts are likely to include stem-like cells and associated growth factors that regenerate heart muscle. Scientists from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have just taken an important step towards that future by identifying a stem-like 'progenitor' cell that produces only heart muscle cells.
	New class of compounds shrinks pancreatic cancer tumours and prevents regrowth Scientists from UCL (University College London) have designed a chemical compound that has reduced the growth of pancreatic cancer tumours by 80 percent in treated mice.
A supportive close friendship helps boys and girls overcome adversity A single supportive close friendship can help young people from low-income backgrounds to thrive in challenging circumstances, according to a new University of Sussex study.
Medical research not addressing patient and clinician priorities Research on treatments for health problems, such as diabetes, stroke and schizophrenia, is not being focused on the treatments considered most important by patients and clinicians, according to a study published in the open access journal Research Involvement and Engagement.
Are your emotional responses normal or abnormal? We all feel emotion, we all get upset, can feel low, angry and overjoyed, but when do these emotional responses become something of a medical concern? When are these feelings inappropriate, too intense, or lasting too long? When is the emotional state you are in classed as depression? In light of the 5th revision of the influential Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM- 5), where a person can now be diagnosed as undergoing a "major depressive episode" if showing depressive symptoms for more than two weeks after bereavement, leading researchers in a special section of the SAGE journal Emotion Review argue that we need to take a different approach to diagnosis and that how we define "normal" emotion should be used to inform clinical practice.
	Age-adjusted comorbidity score stratifies mortality in prostate CA (HealthDay)—An age-adjusted prostate cancer-specific comorbidity index (PCCI) can stratify the risk of long-term nonprostate cancer-related mortality, according to a study published in the July issue of The Journal of Urology.
	Drug discovery for Parkinson's disease: Researchers grow neurons in 3-D The progressive loss of neurons in the brain of Parkinson's patients is slow yet inexorable. So far, there are no drugs that can halt this insidious process. Researchers at the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine (LCSB) of the University of Luxembourg have now managed to grow the types of neurons affected starting from neuronal stem cells in a three-dimensional cell culture system. The scientists working with Dr. Ronan Fleming of the LCSB research group Systems Biochemistry are confident this system could greatly facilitate the continuing search for therapeutic agents in future as it models the natural conditions in the brain more realistically than other systems available so far. It is also significantly cheaper to employ in the laboratory.
Five-year window for preventing AIDS rebound: experts High rates of HIV infection combined with rapid population growth mean the next half-decade will be critical for rolling back AIDS, specialists warned on Thursday.
An organic cause for a functional gastrointestinal disorder How many times patients with gastrointestinal disorders have been told "There is nothing wrong, nothing organic, it's all you head". But the pain is real. Now their complaints find a new light in a study published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic.
Psychotherapy may repair problem caused by psychiatric drugs A paper published in the current issue of Psychotherapy and Psychosomatic addresses the neglected problem of psychological disturbances that are caused by psychotropic drug treatment. Up to 70% of patients with psychosis treated with antiserotoninergic second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs; clozapine, olanzapine and risperidone) develop secondary obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) or secondary obsessive-compulsive disorder (s-OCD). Experts suggest two pharmacological strategies to treat s-OCD: a combination of antiserotoninergic SGAs with either dopaminergic SGAs (amisulpride and aripiprazole) or mood stabilizers (valproate or lamotrigine), and augmentation of SGAs with a serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SRI). Nevertheless, data on the efficacy of the augmentation strategy are inconclusive stressing the need for alternative non-pharmacological treatment options.
	Long-acting antipsychotic medication may improve treatment for schizophrenia Schizophrenia, which affects 2 million to 3 million people in the U.S., causes hallucinations, delusions and disorganization. Left untreated, the disease can cause a significant loss in quality of life, including unemployment and estrangement from loved ones. But many people with schizophrenia can control the disorder and live without symptoms for several years if they consistently take prescribed antipsychotic medication, typically a daily pill.
	Researchers study virtual reality exposure therapy to treat military sexual trauma-related PTSD Clinical researchers in Emory's Veterans Program will study the use of virtual reality exposure therapy to treat people suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) due to military sexual trauma.
	Decision to remove artificial ingredients a challenge, says researcher Several major food companies have announced plans to remove artificial ingredients, such as color and flavor, from their products within the next few years. It's a move driven by consumer demand and one that will be a challenge for the industry, says Lester Wilson, University Professor of Food Science and Human Nutrition at Iowa State University.
	Discovery targets dormant bowel cancer cells before they form secondary tumours An international research team, led by the University of Melbourne, have discovered a way to control the stem cell behaviour responsible for the spread of bowel cancer.
	Researchers report underdiagnosis of snoring babies Babies who snore are widely under diagnosed according to Australian researchers investigating less costly and more effective methods of identifying sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (SAHS) in infants.
	Friends motivate us to drink more according to study Friends can be a dangerous influence, with new QUT research confirming what many drinkers already know - that drinking with mates can push you to drink more.
	Eating in the absence of hunger is a recipe for expanding waistline A QUT researcher has had an article on how compulsive snacking is a major cause of weight gain published in the international journal Eating Behaviors.
	Nature's lubricant makes your body a well-oiled machine The old adage goes that the human body is a machine. And in many ways that isn't far from the truth. Like any machine, the human body is made up of many individual parts moving together in a highly coordinated fashion. Parts slide by other parts with every blink and step. And to keep everything running smoothly and undamaged, the machine needs to be well oiled.
	Top athletes don't share a single talent gene, but hundreds of them When this year's Wimbledon tennis championship begins on June 29, British hopes will again be pinned on Andy Murray. Only time will tell if he can kick on from his Queen's Club victory and win the UK's premier tennis tournament for a second time.
	Fructose stimulates brain's reward system to a lesser degree than glucose Fructose not only results in a lower level of satiety, it also stimulates the reward system in the brain to a lesser degree than glucose. This may cause excessive consumption accompanied by effects that are a risk to health, report researchers from the University of Basel in a study published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE. Various diseases have been attributed to industrial fructose in sugary drinks and ready meals.
	How does the brain recognize faces from minimal information? Our brain recognizes objects within milliseconds, even if it only receives rudimentary visual information. Researchers believe that reliable and fast recognition works because the brain is constantly making predictions about objects in the field of view and is comparing these with  incoming information. Only if mismatches occur in this process do higher areas of the brain have to be notified of the error in order to make active corrections to the predictions. Now scientists at the Goethe University have confirmed this hypothesis. As they report in the current edition of the Journal of Neuroscience, those brain waves that are sent to higher brain areas increase their activity when a predictive error occurs. These results also promise a better understanding of schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorders.
	New and innovative approach for successful vaccination against chlamydia infections chlamydiae are the most common sexually transmitted bacterial pathogens in the world. Every year, around 100 million people contract chlamydia infections, which are one of the main causes of female infertility and ectopic pregnancies and can also lead to blindness – especially in developing countries. Now, for the first time in the world, an international research team including Georg Stary from the University Clinic of Dermatology at MedUni Vienna has discovered how to stimulate the immune response to chlamydiae both efficiently and preventively. The research results have now been published in the leading Science journal.
	Therapy affects the brain of people with Tourette syndrome In addition to its effect on chronic tics, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) can change the brain function of people with Tourette syndrome. This is what is revealed in a study by researchers at the Institut universitaire en santé mentale de Montréal (CIUSSS de l'Est-de-l'Île-de-Montréal) and the University of Montreal, the results of which will be presented at the First World Congress on Tourette Syndrome and Tic Disorders, to be held in London from June 24 to 26.
	Researchers question what happens in the brain when we think New research from Lund University in Sweden questions the prevailing doctrine on how the brain absorbs and processes information. The idea that the brain has a mechanism to maintain activity at the lowest possible level is incorrect.
	Study suggests new treatment for impulsivity in some dementia patients Restoring the low levels of the chemical serotonin may help improve brain function and reduce impulsivity in some dementia patients, according to Cambridge researchers. A study published in the July edition of the journal Brain suggests a potential new treatment for people affected by frontotemporal dementia.
	Defining clinical vs. statistical significance The practice of null hypothesis testing has traditionally been used to interpret the results of studies in a wide variety of scientific fields. Briefly, significance testing involves the calculation of an outcome statistic, known as the P value. The P value represents the probability of finding a difference, by chance, between two sets of values larger than that which was observed, assuming no difference between the two sets of values. Conventionally, if that probability is less than 0.05 the outcome is deemed "statistically significant". If this sounds confusing, it's because it is!
	Study finds no net benefit from common anti-clotting drug A costly drug frequently used to treat patients with heart disease may offer no greater benefit than standard medications, say Yale researchers. Their study calls into question widespread use of the drug bivalirudin (Angiomax) during stent procedures.
New study explores bystander intervention in cyberbullying Cyberbullying is drawing increasing attention, with online activity soaring and a larger number of bullying cases resulting in tragedy. "Bystander Intervention in Cyberbullying," a new study published in the National Communication Association's Communication Monographs reveals specific online conditions under which witnesses to cyberbullying are likely (or unlikely) to intervene in defense of a victim.
New breath test for pneumonia Researchers from the University of Manchester are part of a team that has identified an important new approach to diagnose infections in critically ill patients rapidly and accurately.
	People on food stamps aren't feasting on filet mignon There is a popular myth that welfare recipients are using food stamps to purchase luxurious food items such as filet mignon and lobster.
	'Inside Out' provides roadmap for navigating emotions Pixar's new film Inside Out is putting the spotlight on children's emotions. But navigating those emotions and helping children understand them is a real-life challenge. Florida International University psychologist Zoe Klemfuss says understanding the cause of an emotion is often more important than talking about the emotion itself.
Early detection of highly pathogenic influenza viruses Lack of appropriate drugs and vaccines during the influenza A virus pandemic in 2009, the recent Ebola epidemic in West Africa, as well as the ongoing Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus outbreak demonstrates that the world is only insufficiently prepared for global attacks of emerging infectious diseases and that the handling of such threats remains a great challenge.
	Weight loss plus vitamin D reduces inflammation linked to cancer, chronic disease For the first time, researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have found that weight loss, in combination with vitamin D supplementation, has a greater effect on reducing chronic inflammation than weight loss alone. Chronic inflammation is known to contribute to the development and progression of several diseases, including some cancers.
	Tart cherry juice reduced post-race respiratory tract symptoms after a marathon While previous research suggests tart cherry juice may help aid muscle recovery after extensive exercise, a new pilot study published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition found that Montmorency tart cherry juice reduced upper respiratory tract symptoms associated with marathon running in study participants. Post-race sniffles are a common problem among endurance athletes.
	What controls blood flow in the brain? When neurons become active, they call for an extra boost of oxygenated blood—this change in the presence of blood in different regions of the brain is the basis for functional brain scans. However, what controls this increase or decrease in blood supply has been a long-standing debate.
	A new PLOS Pathogens forum explains how basic research is necessary, exciting, and makes a difference "We seek this new Research Matters format for individual scientists to tell the public how diverse fundamental research into pathogens assures real and compelling impact on public health, human knowledge and life", state Kasturi Haldar and Grant McFadden, the journal's Editors-in-Chief in their introductory editorial, which, alongside the first two first contributions to the new series, will be published on June 25th in PLOS Pathogens.
Revisiting the restriction of antibiotics Antibiotic resistance, and multi-drug resistance, is a major public health threat. A new study publishing in PLOS Computational Biology finds conditions where restricting certain antibiotics may increase the frequency of multiple drug resistance.
Computer simulation predicts development, progress of pressure sores Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine have devised a computational model that could enhance understanding, diagnosis and treatment of pressure ulcers related to spinal cord injury. In a report published online in PLOS Computational Biology, the team also described results of virtual clinical trials that showed that for effective treatment of the lesions, anti-inflammatory measures had to be applied well before the earliest clinical signs of ulcer formation.
	Targeted nanoparticles can overcome drug resistance in trypanosomes Sleeping sickness, or African trypanosomiasis, is caused by trypanosome parasites transmitted by tsetse flies and threatens millions of people in sub-Saharan Africa. The disease is considered fatal if untreated, but as it affects mostly poor people in low-income countries, treatment options are limited. The existing drugs have serious side effects, and the parasites are developing resistance. A study published on June 25th in PLOS Pathogens reports a new way to circumvent drug resistance and lower the curative dose by delivering existing drugs directly into the parasite, a high-tech approach with potential applications to other infectious diseases.
	Cellulitis often misdiagnosed in inpatient setting (HealthDay)—Cellulitis is frequently misdiagnosed in the inpatient setting, according to research published in the July issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
	Proof-of-concept study to assess impact of glycemic variability (HealthDay)—A proof-of-concept study will be able to examine the contribution of glycemic variability to outcomes of type 2 diabetes, according to a report published online June 11 in Diabetes Care.
	Same-sex marriage offers couples psychological benefits, experts say (HealthDay)—With the U.S. Supreme Court poised to rule on whether same-sex marriage is a national right, many social scientists say an affirmative ruling in the landmark case would also deliver psychological dividends to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.
	Development of new blood vessels not essential to growth of lymph node metastases While the use of antiangiogenesis drugs that block the growth of new blood vessels can improve the treatment of some cancers, clinical trials of their ability to prevent the development of new metastases have failed. Now a study from the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Cancer Center may have found at least one reason why. In their paper published online in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, an MGH research team reports finding that the growth of metastases in lymph nodes—the most common site of cancer spread—does not require new blood vessels but instead takes advantage of existing blood vessels.
	Glasses that shine green light into the eyes could be the answer to insomnia When you're having trouble sleeping, light is the last thing you assume you need.
	Smartphone app may prevent dangerous freezing of gait in Parkinson's patients Many patients in the latter stage of Parkinson's disease are at high risk of dangerous, sometimes fatal, falls. One major reason is the disabling symptom referred to as Freezing of Gait (FoG)—brief episodes of an inability to step forward that typically occurs during gait initiation or when turning while walking. Patients who experience FoG often lose their independence, which has a direct effect on their already degenerating quality of life. In the absence of effective pharmacological therapies for FoG, technology-based solutions to alleviate the symptom and prolong the patients' ability to live independently are desperately being sought.
	Disconnect between doctors and patients on use of email and Facebook A large number of patients use online communication tools such as email and Facebook to engage with their physicians, despite recommendations from some hospitals and professional organizations that clinicians limit email contact with patients and avoid "friending" patients on social media, new research suggests.
Study highlights 'important safety issue' with widely used MRI contrast agents New results in animals highlight a major safety concern regarding a class of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents used in millions of patients each year, according to a paper published online by the journal Investigative Radiology.
	AASLD updates guidance for use of hepatitis C drugs The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), in partnership with the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and in collaboration with the International Antiviral Society-USA (IAS-USA), created online Recommendations for Testing, Managing, and Treating Hepatitis C in 2014 to aid practitioners treating patients infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). Now an update to the Guidance, with a summary of recommendations regarding treatment with direct-acting antiviral drugs, is published in the AASLD journal, Hepatology.
	Compound in magnolia may combat head and neck cancers Magnolias are prized for their large, colorful, fragrant flowers. Does the attractive, showy tree also harbor a potent cancer fighter?
	A microRNA may provide therapy against pancreatic cancer Indiana University cancer researchers found that a particular microRNA may be a potent therapeutic agent against pancreatic cancer. The research was published June 22 in the journal Scientific Reports.
	Researchers develop innovative gene transfer-based treatment approach University of North Carolina (UNC) School of Medicine researchers have developed an innovative, experimental gene transfer-based treatment for children with giant axonal neuropathy (GAN).
Studies identify predictors of depression and PTSD among African-Americans, Latinos Chronic disease and mental health issues disproportionately affect low-income African-Americans, Latinos and Hispanics, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Two new studies by the UCLA Center for Culture, Trauma and Mental Health Disparities shed light on the causes and impacts of this disparity.
	Delivering drugs to the right place For the 12 million people worldwide who suffer from polycystic kidney disease (PKD), an inherited disorder with no known cure, a new treatment option may be on the horizon.
	Pet care can help improve adolescents' Type 1 diabetes management, pediatricians find UT Southwestern Medical Center pediatric diabetes researchers found that incorporating routine pet care into a child's diabetes self-care plan can significantly improve monitoring of the disease, resulting in lower blood glucose levels.
	Multiple pathways progressing to Alzheimer's disease The amyloid cascade hypothesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) posits that sticky aggregations or plaques of amyloid-beta peptides accumulate over time in the brain, triggering a series of events that ultimately result in the full-blown neurodegenerative disorder. The hypothesis has been a major driver of AD research for more than 20 years.
As siblings learn how to resolve conflict, parents pick up a few tips of their own When children participated in a program designed to reduce sibling conflict, both parents benefited from a lessening of hostilities on the home front. But mothers experienced a more direct reward. As they viewed the children's sessions in real time on a video monitor and coached the kids at home to respond as they'd been taught, moms found that, like their kids, they were better able to manage their own emotions during stressful moments.
	Exercising early in life yields rewards in adult years More than one in three adults in the United States is considered to be obese. What impact can exercise done early in life have on the propensity for exercising during the adult years?
	Alzheimer's disease works differently in patients with and without Down syndrome Researchers at the University of Kentucky's Sanders-Brown Center on Aging have completed a study that revealed differences in the way brain inflammation—considered a key component of AD— is expressed in different subsets of patients, in particular people with Down syndrome (DS) and AD.
	Want to be seen as more loving and a better cook? Serve vegetables to your kids Do you want to be seen as a better cook and a more loving parent? It's as easy as serving a vegetable at dinner, according to recent Cornell Food and Brand Lab research.
S. Korea reports two more MERS deaths South Korea on Thursday reported two more deaths from its MERS outbreak and one more new case, bringing the total fatalities from the deadly virus to 29.
British court ruling backs patent protecting Lilly's Alimta Eli Lilly received some European legal backing for its top product, the lung cancer treatment Alimta, on Thursday when a British court upheld a patent protecting a vitamin regimen administered with the drug.
Early death twice as likely for disadvantaged Australians People living in low socioeconomic areas in Australian capital cities are almost twice as likely to die prematurely and almost five times more likely to be receiving unemployment benefits than people living in the most advantaged areas, according to new inequality statistics released today by the University of Adelaide.
	New nanotechnology drug to control blindness The Mexican company "Medical and Surgical Center for Retina" has created a way to deliver drugs in order to avoid risks and painful treatments in people with secondary blindness due to chronic degenerative blindness such as diabetic retinopathy and degeneration of the eye. The innovative formula eliminates the need to administrate drugs by intraocular injection.
Polish parliament passes law regulating IVF (Update) Poland's parliament adopted a law Thursday on in vitro fertilisation (IVF), which was previously allowed in the mostly Catholic country but remained unregulated because of opposition from the right and the Church.
	Children's centres 'popular but under pressure to deliver more with less' Oxford researchers have highlighted how the role of children's centres across the UK has changed. According to their report, children's centres have increasingly become more focussed on the most disadvantaged rather than supporting families more generally in some of the poorest communities.
	Health care in crisis zones As health care workers, some of us travel to resource-limited settings to deliver care where needs are the greatest. Due to various factors, which range from economic inequality among citizens, political instability, natural disasters, conflict or warfare, many of these places are also some of the most dangerous. As a result, health care workers can find themselves working side-by-side to crime; and even becoming the target of directed threats or violence. Those who are willing to put themselves on the front line in order to help others, can themselves end up being actively targeted. Aside from a stint in Afghanistan in 2013 and a few fleeting visits to some of the more dangerous regions within the African continent, I never truly considered being at risk from doing my job.
Facilitating hearing aid usage by means of gamification Hearing loss is an inevitable part of the ageing process from around 25-30 years old. As the average age of Europe's population is increasing, with expectations by 2050 of two fifths being over 50 years old, demand for assistive hearing devices also is expected to grow. Hearing Aid (HA) technology has dramatically advanced in the last 25 years, since the commercialization of the first digital hearing aid. Nevertheless, this technological advancement is not always accessible or accessed by the hearing impaired population. The majority of individuals with hearing aids use the device as if it was a standard analogue hearing aid, i.e. only for its amplification and equalisation features, and new algorithms are under-used or not exploited to their full potential. Hearing impairment in older adults can lead to frustration, low esteem, withdrawal and social inclusion. Further to these, in children, hearing loss affects speech and language development that impacts on academic achievement and future vocational choices.
Researchers report breakthrough in tuberculosis research Scientists from the PATHONGEN-TRACE project in Germany and France together with colleagues from the Oxford Biomedical Research Centre and the South African National Institute for Communicable Diseases developed a new genetic method, paving the way for a more effective treatment of tuberculosis (TB). The new method enables researchers not only to predict which antibiotics result in resistance but, it allows for a precise selection of compounds which are most effective in the treatment of TB.
NIH begins clinical trial of new medication for alcohol use disorder A clinical trial investigating a potential treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD) was announced by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). The study will assess the safety and efficacy of gabapentin enacarbil (HORIZANT) in extended-release tablets for treating moderate to severe AUD. NIAAA is part of the National Institutes of Health.
Infection preventionists may spend more time collecting data than protecting patients Collecting and reporting hospital infection data to federal health agencies takes more than 5 hours each day, at the expense of time needed to ensure that frontline healthcare personnel are adhering to basic infection prevention practices such as hand hygiene, according to a recent case study, to be presented on Saturday, June 27 at the 42nd Annual Conference of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).
Pilot program in pediatric long-term care facility halves topical antibiotic use A pilot antibiotic stewardship program at a pediatric long-term care facility brought about a 59 percent decrease in use of a topical antibiotic and an 83 percent decrease in orders for antibiotics without proper documentation during a six-month period, according to a new study.
Ebola-hit Sierra Leone quarantines 31 health workers Authorities in Sierra Leone quarantined three doctors and 28 nurses in the capital Freetown when a mother tested positive for Ebola after giving birth, the health ministry said on Thursday.
FDA reviewing safety of Essure birth control implant Federal health regulators are reviewing the safety of an implantable contraception device after receiving reports of unusual side effects from patients, including fatigue, depression and weight gain.
	McDonald's: Fewer Happy Meal orders opting for soda McDonald's says fewer people are picking soda for Happy Meals after it stopped listing the drinks as an option on its menu boards.
	Supreme Court upholds nationwide health care law subsidies The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the nationwide tax subsidies underpinning President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, rejecting a major challenge to the landmark law in a ruling that preserves health insurance for millions of Americans.
Other legal challenges to health overhaul remain If you thought the legal fight over the health care overhaul was finally over, think again. At least four issues related to the Affordable Care Act still are being sorted out in the courts, although none seems to pose the same threat to the law as the challenge to nationwide subsidies that the court rejected on Thursday, or the constitutional case that the justices decided in favor of the law in 2012.
	California vaccine bill clears major legislative hurdle California's Assembly on Thursday approved a hotly contested bill requiring that nearly all public schoolchildren be vaccinated, clearing one of its last major legislative obstacles before the measure heads to the desk of Gov. Jerry Brown.
Children with severe head injuries are casualties of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan During the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. combat support hospitals treated at least 650 children with severe, combat-related head injuries, according to a special article in the July issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.
Tapping into electronic health records to improve care for patients with chronic kidney disease Experts have identified strategies for using electronic health records to improve care for patients with chronic kidney disease. The guidance, which will appear in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (CJASN), may help clinicians and hospitals better manage individual patients with chronic conditions and identify groups of patients most likely to benefit from different treatment strategies.
Obama hails health care ruling as win for 'hard-working' Americans US President Barack Obama on Thursday hailed the Supreme Court's decision to uphold his legacy-gilding health care law, casting it as a win for ordinary Americans.
	Obama health care law survives second Supreme Court fight The Supreme Court sent a clear message Thursday that President Barack Obama's health care overhaul is here to stay, rejecting a major challenge that would have imperiled the landmark law and health insurance for millions of Americans.

Other Sciences news

	Top scientists call for improved incentives to ensure research integrity Scientific controversies, from problems replicating results - such as with the now debunked association between autism and MMR vaccines - to researcher misconduct and sensationalism, have led to speculation of "trouble at the lab," as the Economist put it.
	Group calls for more transparency in science research, announces guidelines An international group of academic leaders, journal editors and funding-agency representatives and disciplinary leaders, including Rick Wilson, the Herbert S. Autrey Chair of Political Science and professor of statistics and psychology at Rice University, has announced guidelines to further strengthen transparency and reproducibility practices in science research reporting.
	Study finds a good appetizer could make your main course less enjoyable A good or mediocre appetizer has the potential to significantly change how the main course is enjoyed, according to one Drexel food science professor.
	Most of America's poor have jobs, study finds The majority of the United States' poor aren't sitting on street corners. They're employed at low-paying jobs, struggling to support themselves and a family.
	Counterfeiters push fashion labels to new heights The presence of counterfeiters in the market can drive innovation in the fashion industry, according to a new study from the University of British Columbia.
	'Summer slide' reduced by letting kids pick their own summer reading At the end of the school year, districts often send stacks of books home with their students in the hopes of combating the "summer slide," the literacy loss experienced during the long break that hits low-income students particularly hard.
Writing program with student interaction creates sense of purpose for seniors A unique program combining a life review writing workshop with conversations between seniors and college students enhances the sense of meaning in life for older adults living independently, finds a new study by NYU's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development. The study is published in the July/August issue of the American Journal of Occupational Therapy.
	Don't freak if you can't solve a math problem that's gone viral It's been quite a year for mathematics problems on the internet. In the last few months, three questions have been online everywhere, causing consternation and head-scratching and blowing the minds of adults worldwide as examples of what kids are expected to know these days.
Commenters exposed to prejudiced comments more likely to display prejudice themselves Comment sections on websites continue to be an environment for trolls to spew racist opinions. The impact of these hateful words shouldn't have an impact on how one views the news or others, but that may not be the case. A recent study published in the journal Human Communication Research, by researchers at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, found exposure to prejudiced online comments can increase people's own prejudice, and increase the likelihood that they leave prejudiced comments themselves.
Welfare reform hitting vulnerable young people in the housing market Young people face considerable challenges navigating the housing market, with those on low and insecure incomes vulnerable and at potential risk of homelessness, according to a new report from the University of St Andrews published today (24 June 2015).
	New research reveals why children move into poverty New research published today by NatCen Social Research and City University London uncovers the family-related factors driving changes in income that shifts a family below the poverty line.
	SHSU professor investigates parent-child visitation in prison It's not "cupcakes and lollipops" for most children who visit a parent in prison, with two-thirds reported to have negative experiences including fear, anger, anxiety, and related reactions, according to a study funded by the National Institute of Justice by Melinda Tasca, Ph.D., of Sam Houston State University.

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