Fwd: Science X Newsletter Tuesday, Sep 22

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From: Newsletter Phys.org <not-for-reply@physorg.com>
Date: Wed, Sep 23, 2015 at 4:16 AM
Subject: Science X Newsletter Tuesday, Sep 22
To: Pascal Alter <pascal.alter@gmail.com>

Dear Pascal Alter,

Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for September 22, 2015:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

- 'Golden' silver nanoparticle looks and behaves like gold
- Physicists break distance record for quantum teleportation
- Study offers explanation for earthquakes setting off distant quakes
- In-home study suggests babies learn to talk more from context then repetition
- Clathrin as a biotech substrate: Immobilization and functionalization
- Study of PEGylated model protein reveals porous structure based on PEG size
- Researchers reveal when global warming first appeared
- Sophisticated computer simulation shows image of molecular dynamics in cells
- Modular platform for biosensor assembly
- Increased activity in older brains may point to new avenues for treating memory loss
- Open-science van der Waals interaction calculations enable mesoscale design and assembly
- Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes can chemically trap, store greenhouse gases more effectively than typical materials
- Ecofriendly catalyst for a certain type of precious metal-mediated chemical reaction discovered
- Researchers set speed records for zinc-based transistors with argon plasma process
- Radio telescopes could spot stars hidden in the galactic center

Nanotechnology news

	'Golden' silver nanoparticle looks and behaves like gold (Phys.org)—In an act of "nano-alchemy," scientists have synthesized a silver (Ag) nanocluster that is virtually identical to a gold (Au) nanocluster. On the outside, the silver nanocluster has a golden yellow color, and on the inside, its chemical structure and properties also closely mimic those of its gold counterpart. The work shows that it may be possible to create silver nanoparticles that look and behave like gold despite underlying differences between the two elements, and could lead to creating similar analogues between other pairs of elements.
	Clathrin as a biotech substrate: Immobilization and functionalization (Phys.org)—The base-pairing properties of DNA, combined with our abilities to create synthetic DNA in the laboratory have led to advances in nanoscale architecture and molecular device designs. Less research has been done with proteins, even though proteins, like DNA, are made of individual subunits whose unique chemical properties can be exploited to functionalize protein sheets or immobilize the proteins on a surface. Certain proteins have desirable properties for molecular devices.
	Modular platform for biosensor assembly Tumor markers are biological substances, usually proteins, that provide early indication of cancerous or benign tumors in the body.
	Phenomenon described by Alan Turing explains anti-reflective insect eyes In 1952, the legendary British mathematician and cryptographer Alan Turing proposed a model that assumes formation of complex patterns through chemical interaction of two diffusing reagents. Russian scientists managed to prove that the corneal surface nanopatterns in 23 insect orders completely fit into this model.

Physics news

	Physicists break distance record for quantum teleportation Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have "teleported" or transferred quantum information carried in light particles over 100 kilometers (km) of optical fiber, four times farther than the previous record.
	Light-based memory chip is the first ever to store data permanently The world's first entirely light-based memory chip to store data permanently has been developed by material scientists at Oxford University and University of Münster in collaboration with scientists at Karlsruhe and Exeter. The device, which makes use of materials used in CDs and DVDs, could help dramatically improve the speed of modern computing.
	First circularly polarized light detector on a silicon chip Invention of the first integrated circularly polarized light detector on a silicon chip opens the door for development of small, portable sensors that could expand the use of polarized light for drug screening, surveillance, optical communications and quantum computing, among other potential applications.
	Researchers set speed records for zinc-based transistors with argon plasma process If you're reading this story on a screen with a liquid crystal display, thank thin-film transistors. Thin-film transistors function like standard semiconductor transistors, but are deposited on top of a layer of glass. In LCD screens, this allows the transistors to be embedded directly in the screen, which improves image stability.
	Harsh conditions can't contain researchers' efforts to test radiation detection systems Researchers from five laboratories and a private company recently spent two days in blistering 100 degree heat testing radiation detection technologies amidst cargo containers.
	Researcher developing software to improve dynamic image capture from super-resolution fluorescent microscopes Techniques such as modifying genes with fluorescent proteins have enabled microscopic images with single-molecule resolution, but MIT researchers are extending techniques designed for acquiring static images to capturing dynamic images with very high resolution in living cells.
Synapses need only few bits Deep learning is possibly the most exciting branch of contemporary machine learning. Complex image analysis, speech recognition and self-driving cars are just a few popular examples of a multitude of new applications where machine learning, and deep learning in particular, show their amazing capabilities.
	Hard X-ray nanoprobe beamline now open for user experiments The Hard X-Ray Nanoprobe takes full advantage of the ultra-bright x-rays produced by NSLS-II, a U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science User Facility. The heart of the beamline is the HXN x-ray microscope, developed at NSLS-II. The microscope produces ultra-high resolution x-ray images by manipulating a sample and a pair of novel nanofocusing optics called multilayer Laue lenses, which are also fabricated at NSLS-II. Precise manipulation of the sample and lenses is achieved using state-of-the-art piezo stages and laser interferometers.

Earth news

	Study offers explanation for earthquakes setting off distant quakes (Phys.org)—A team of researchers with Second University of Naples has developed a model that may help explain how it is that some earthquakes set off other earthquakes up to a thousand miles away. In their paper published in Physical Review Letters, the team describes how they constructed a physical model, watched how it behaved under stress and then came up with their theory.
	Fremantle found to be a 'global hot spot' for meteotsunamis Oceanographers from The University of Western Australia have discovered Fremantle has one of the highest occurrences of meteorological tsunamis (meteotsunamis) in the world.
	A new view of the content of Earth's core There is more oxygen in the core of Earth than originally thought.
	Researchers reveal when global warming first appeared The indications of climate change are all around us today but now researchers have revealed for the first time when and where the first clear signs of global warming appeared in the temperature record and where those signals are likely to be clearly seen in extreme rainfall events in the near future.
Billions of pieces of tiny plastic litter found in San Francisco Bay San Francisco Bay is contaminated with widespread pollution from billions of tiny pieces of plastic in greater concentrations than the Great Lakes, Chesapeake Bay and other major U.S. bodies of water, according to a groundbreaking new study.
	Getting the lead out Caltech geochemist Clair Patterson (1922–1995) helped galvanize the environmental movement 50 years ago when he announced that highly toxic lead could be found essentially everywhere on Earth, including in our own bodies—and that very little of it was due to natural causes.
	Swan River flowing with gold Solid gold particles have been discovered in the Swan River, but don't grab your prospecting kit just yet.
	Are we wiser about tsunamis? Expert says yes and no The world may not be well prepared for the next significant tsunami, reports Northwestern University tsunami expert Emile A. Okal in a new study that includes a "wisdom index" for 17 tsunamis since 2004.
	Fossil fuel divestment movement reaches $2.6 trillion A campaign to abandon fossil fuels to boost the fight against climate change has rapidly picked up steam, with institutions worth $2.6 trillion pledging to divest, a study said Tuesday.
	Chinese continental shelf of exotic origin collided with continental China 100 million years ago It has been axiomatically accepted that the basement of a continental shelf is the offshore extension and geologically part of the same continental lithosphere. While this notion may hold true in places, our analysis of the distribution of Jurassic-Cretaceous granitoids throughout the entire eastern continental China in space and time led us to the conclusion that the basement of the Chinese continental shelf (beneath East China Sea and South China Sea) is of exotic origin geologically unrelated to the continental lithosphere of eastern China. This exotic terrane of a sizeable mass with large compositional buoyancy could be either an oceanic plateau or a micro continent, which was transported by, or along with, the paleo-Pacific plate moving in the course of NW direction and subducting beneath the eastern margin of the continental China in the Mesozoic, responsible for the granitoids with emplacement ages of ~ 190 Ma to ~ 88 Ma.
	Indonesia acts against timber, palm oil firms over haze Indonesia has revoked the licence of a timber supplier and suspended the operations of three palm oil plantation operators over fires that have blanketed Southeast Asia in haze, an official said Tuesday.
	Experts urge Dutch govt to drop greenhouse gas appeal Top global academics, lawyers and doctors are calling on the Dutch government to drop an appeal against a landmark court ruling which orders it to slash greenhouse gases by a quarter by 2020.
	One research vessel multiplies to hundreds In preparation for their Arctic work GEOTRACES linked with "Float Your Boat", an education program with a unique concept. 'Float Your Boat' blends the themes of historic Arctic drift studies, modern GPS technology and hands on science, to engage local communities with work in remote science locations. Scientists currently onboard the Research Vessel Healy spent time last spring recruiting and meeting with school groups to share information about the Arctic, their upcoming science cruise and collecting small student decorated wooden boats that would become part of the project.
	Summer crops in central Europe in poor condition following extremely hot weather A heat wave in late August and lack of rainfall have worsened the yield outlook for summer crops in large parts of central Europe. In Eastern European regions summer crops suffered little consequence as they had reached maturity earlier, according to JRC's yields forecast Bulletin covering the period from 1st August to mid-September.
	Green barriers of cypresses could reduce fire initiation risk Every year fires burn thousands of hectares, destroy entire ecosystems and put the lives of people and animals at risk. Understanding the dynamics of fire would allow a solution to be found for the high number of incidents. Spanish and Italian researchers have studied the flammability of vegetation and shown that cypresses, capable of tolerating severe droughts and high temperatures, could be an effective barrier against fire initiation due to their low degree of ignition.
New resources launched to raise awareness of links between ocean and human health Did you know that the ocean provides half of the oxygen we breathe - enough for every second breath we take? Or that the majority of marine litter is indestructible plastic which lasts virtually forever? Many European citizens are not aware of the ocean's influence on us and our influence on the ocean. In other words, many of us lack a sense of "Ocean Literacy".
	Methane observatories successfully deployed in the Arctic It is not only the space agencies that launch landers with sensors to far away places . Marine science institutions have a lot of unknown ground to cover in their quest for knowledge. Also they are depending on groundbreaking lander and sensor technology to lead them to that knowledge.
	NASA sees formation of Tropical Depression 21W NASA's Aqua satellite passed over a developing tropical low pressure area in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean on September 21 when the latest depression was coming together. The AIRS instrument aboard Aqua used infrared light to determine temperatures of cloud tops and where the strongest storms were located.
	Remnants of Tropical Depression 16E raining over US Southwest The remnants of Tropical Depression 16E (TD16E) have moved over the U.S. Southwest and an infrared image from NOAA's GOES-West satellite showed the associated clouds over Arizona and New Mexico.
	The Karoo Basin and the end Permian mass extinction Earth's biosphere witnessed its greatest ecological catastrophe in the latest Permian, dated to about 251.9 million years ago. The current model for biodiversity collapse states that both marine and terrestrial animals were impacted simultaneously, as a consequence of global climate change.
	Satellite sees Tropical Storm Malia moving away from Hawaiian Islands Tropical Storm Malia is on a northwesterly track and continued to move away from the Hawaiian Islands on Sept. 22 as NOAA's GOES-West satellite captured an image of the storm.
	Terra satellite sees Tropical Storm Ida meandering When NASA's Terra satellite passed over Tropical Storm Ida on September 22, it was meandering and going in circles in the Central Atlantic Ocean.

Astronomy & Space news

	Comet surface changes before Rosetta's eyes In the months leading to the perihelion of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, Rosetta scientists have been witnessing dramatic and rapid surface changes on the Imhotep region, as reported in a paper to be published in Astronomy & Astrophysics
	Radio telescopes could spot stars hidden in the galactic center The center of our Milky Way galaxy is a mysterious place. Not only is it thousands of light-years away, it's also cloaked in so much dust that most stars within are rendered invisible. Harvard researchers are proposing a new way to clear the fog and spot stars hiding there. They suggest looking for radio waves coming from supersonic stars.
	Researchers test health technology on zero gravity flights with NASA A team of doctors and scientists from the University of Oxford have tested a tissue oxygen monitor in microgravity for the first time. Dr Thomas Smith, who leads Oxford's Aerospace Medicine Research Group and led the research, presented the results at an international conference on aviation and space medicine in Oxford on Monday 21st September.
	10 to 1: Bugs win in NASA study Bugs are winning out, and that's a good thing according to NASA's Human Research Program. As part of NASA's One-Year Mission, researchers are studying how microbes living on astronauts' skin, inside their bodies and on the International Space Station impact their health. To prepare for a journey to Mars, it is important to understand how long-duration spaceflight affects microorganisms because changes to this complex ecosystem could be detrimental to future missions.
	Image: Great Exuma Island, Bahamas An astronaut aboard the International Space Station took this photograph of small island cays in the Bahamas and the prominent tidal channels cutting between them. For astronauts, this is one of the most recognizable points on the planet.

Technology news

	Quadcopter and Quadruped story ends with smooth landing An entertaining video is out showing a dog-like quadruped with a tethered quadcopter moving along as a twosome. Just a few seconds into this video would seemingly be enough to inspire any animation whiz kid to come up with a buddy movie featuring a mad caper, where a toy airplane leashes itself on to a toy dog, but that is another story. The point here is that the four-legged robot and quadcopter are cooperating in moving along and the robot enables the flying machine to land safely on the robot's back.
	For 7 years, VW software thwarted pollution regulations Volkswagen became the world's top-selling carmaker trumpeting the environmental friendliness, fuel efficiency and high performance of diesel-powered vehicles that met America's tough Clean Air laws.
	Why Europe isn't creating any Googles or Facebooks Micha Benoliel grew up in France and launched his first technology startup there, but he never forgot the atmosphere of adventure and optimism in San Francisco, where he studied in the early 1990s.
Texas man pleads guilty in NY bitcoin securities fraud case A man involved in what federal authorities have described as the first bitcoin securities fraud case pleaded guilty on Monday.
Uber attracts late night passengers in St. Louis debut Thousands of passengers turned to Uber for rides to and from their homes and workplaces over the weekend as the rival to taxicabs debuted UberX in St. Louis in defiance of regulators.
	French music-streaming service Deezer plans IPO French music-streaming service Deezer said Tuesday it plans to launch an initial public offering on the Paris stock exchange by year's end aiming to consolidate its position in the online music market.
	'Future Mobility Sensing'—better travel data for a smarter city A new smartphone application is currently being tested by the University of Melbourne to gather accurate travel and activity data.
	Video: Can robots make good teammates? Are they our evil overlords, or our personal servants? Another possibility altogether is that they're our dependable co-workers, helping us put together that new Ikea bookcase.
	Want your kids to learn another language? Teach them code Among Malcolm Turnbull's first words as the newly elected leader of the Liberal Party, and hence heading for the Prime Minister's job, were: "The Australia of the future has to be a nation that is agile, that is innovative, that is creative."
	Volkswagen sets aside $7.3 billion over emissions scandal The crisis enveloping Volkswagen AG, the world's top-selling carmaker, escalated Tuesday as the company issued a profit warning following a stunning admission that some 11 million of its diesel vehicles worldwide were fitted with software at the center of a U.S. emissions scandal.
	Starbucks: Mobile order-and-pay now available nationally Starbucks says its mobile app that lets people order and pay in advance will be available nationally starting Tuesday. That means lattes, breakfast sandwiches and other items you want could theoretically be waiting for you by the time you arrive.
	Review: Better photos, animated shots in new iPhones Photography gets even better with Apple's new iPhones.
Bioinformaticians make the most efficient search engine for molecular structures available online "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" is a well-known American TV series in which murder cases are solved with the help of precise forensic science. Although Prof. Sebastian Böcker and his team at the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena, Germany, have nothing to do with CSI, these bioinformaticians are experienced readers of trails. They hunt for molecular structures of metabolites, which are chemical compounds that determine the metabolism of organisms. "Metabolites can provide detailed information about the state of living cells, provided that researchers are successful in identifying and quantifying the multitude of metabolites," Prof. Böcker explains.
New smart robot accelerates cancer treatment research A new smart research robot accelerates research on cancer treatments. The new robot system finds optimal treatment combinations. Today Scientific Reports is publishing an article about the robot, authored by Dr Mats Gustafsson, Professor of Medical Bioinformatics at Uppsala University.
	Cyber security firm offers $1 million for Apple hack Computer security firm Zerodium on Tuesday offered a $1 million (890,000-euro) bounty to hackers who can find a way to breach Apple's latest iOS 9 mobile operating system.
New York regulator issues first bitcoin license to company State regulators have approved their first license to a company dealing in virtual currency such as bitcoin.
	Microsoft launches 'collaborative' new Office software Microsoft launched its new Office suite, touting the key software as a collaborative tool which can work across multiple devices.
Amazon offers Prime membership for $67 for 1 day Amazon is cutting the price of its $99 annual Prime membership program to $67 on Friday for new members to celebrate its original series "Transparent" winning 5 Emmys at the 67th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards.
End of story at Oyster, e-book subscription startup Oyster, the startup seeking to be the "Netflix for e-books" by offering unlimited reading for a monthly fee, says its story is coming to an end.
Judge largely upholds Berkeley cellphone ordinance A federal judge has mostly upheld a new Berkeley ordinance that requires cellphone sellers to warn customers about keeping their cellphones too close to their bodies.
	Dutch team launches free 'Airbnb' site for refugees Three young Dutch start-up entrepreneurs have launched a website to find temporary accommodation for refugees fleeing to Europe, modelled on the popular Airbnb home rental site.
	Washington Post all-in for Facebook Instant Articles The Washington Post said Tuesday it would provide all its content for Facebook's "Instant Articles" service as the social network expands efforts to partner with news organizations.
	Clean tech a top priority as Chinese president lands in US Discussing how U.S. and Chinese experts and businesses can collaborate on nuclear energy, smarter electricity use and other clean technologies is a top agenda item as Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Seattle Tuesday, almost a year after he and President Barack Obama announced their nations would cooperate to fight climate change.
Q&A: A look at Volkswagen's emissions crisis German automaker Volkswagen AG admits that it rigged U.S. emissions tests so it would appear that its diesel-powered cars were emitting fewer nitrogen oxides, which can contribute to ozone buildup and respiratory illness. Here are some questions and answers about the ongoing crisis:
US announces $19M in grants to expand use of body cameras The Department of Justice awarded $19.3 million in grants Monday to dozens of police departments seeking to start using body cameras but turned down a greater number of applicants hoping for federal aid to deploy the technology.
Burberry turns to Snapchat before runway to debut London Fashion Week show The first look at Burberry's latest collection won't be seen on the runway. Instead, the fashions will be previewed on Snapchat in what the designer is calling "the first ever" Snapchat fashion show.
	After outrage, India rethinks draconian social media policy The Indian government backtracked Tuesday on a proposed requirement for all messages sent on social media and mobile chatting apps to be saved for several months as a way of defeating encryption technology.
	The war on online advertising is intensifying, and the ads are losing A new front in the war against online advertising has opened up with the official release of Apple's latest mobile operating system, iOS 9. The most contentious feature was the ability for the mobile version of Safari to allow extensions to block ads.
	Connecting with citizen science apps Years ago, when my daughter got an iPod, her iTunes account became un-affectionately known to the rest of the family as the "iTunes you out" app. Many parents have joined scholars in expressing concerns about how mobile computing and internet technologies might interfere with the human ability to connect to the real world. Yet, the real world includes the virtual world. Technology can help us connect as much as disconnect: it depends on how it is used.
	Scientists discuss opportunities of autonomous driving Professor Hermann Winner and Walther Wachenfeld from the Automotive Engineering research group illustrate the opportunities, risks and challenges of autonomous driving.
	Successful tests may lead to faster creation of new nuclear fuels Idaho National Laboratory recently completed the first successful test of fabrication equipment in the Experimental Fuels Facility (EFF) at INL's Materials and Fuels Complex. Specifically, they finished the first extrusions of depleted uranium—a process of shaping material by forcing it through a die.
	Turnkey solution for a connected, self-shopping experience A few years after they made barcode readers available to their clients, shops and supermarkets across Europe are now getting ready for digital wallet services. But what they may not know is that, somewhere in Porto, a startup has already moved on to the next step: an app that lets customers manage their entire shopping experience, with no need for additional equipment.
	VW CEO says he's 'endlessly sorry' for tarnishing brand Volkswagen AG's emissions scandal crisis escalated Tuesday as the company issued a profit warning, set aside billions to cover the fallout and saw its shares take another battering. The CEO of the world's top-selling carmaker declared he was "endlessly sorry" that the company had squandered worldwide trust in its brand.
Groupon slashing 1,100 jobs in new retrenchment Online deals giant Groupon said Tuesday it was cutting some 1,100 jobs over the coming months in another sign of cooling in the once-hot sector.
	R&D yields new standard for safer ambulances Thanks to a newly updated standard for ambulance design based on research and development by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and two federal partners, emergency runs should soon be much safer for paramedics and other first responders.

Chemistry news

	Study of PEGylated model protein reveals porous structure based on PEG size (Phys.org)—Biopharmaceutical macromolecules are often functionalized with polyethylene glycol (PEG), an inert chain of -(CH2CH2O)- repeating units. PEG can help make a biomolecule more soluble in water, or increase its circulatory half-life or cause the biomolecule to be "invisible" to the immune system. The assumption is that PEG does not affect the functionality of the biomolecule, but prior studies have shown that there is likely some interaction between PEG and proteins.
	A fast cell sorter shrinks to cell phone size Commercial fluorescence activated cell sorters have been highly successful in the past 40 years at rapidly and accurately aiding medical diagnosis and biological studies, but they are bulky and too expensive ($200,000 -$1,000,000) for many labs or doctors' offices. Most significantly, these types of cell sorters can present biohazard concerns for operators and may damage cells or alter their properties, making them unfit for further study. To address these issues, researchers at Penn State have developed a new lab-on-a-chip cell sorting device based on acoustic waves.
	Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes can chemically trap, store greenhouse gases more effectively than typical materials Emissions from the combustion of fossil fuels like coal, petroleum and natural gas tend to collect within Earth's atmosphere as "greenhouse gases" that are blamed for escalating global warming.
	Sophisticated computer simulation shows image of molecular dynamics in cells While many people may think of cholesterol only as the culprit in heart disease and other serious conditions, this miraculous molecule is actually essential to our cells—organizing the fatty acids in the membranes that surround cells to make those barriers stronger.
	Ecofriendly catalyst for a certain type of precious metal-mediated chemical reaction discovered Green chemistry is akin to baking. Both require precision and specific ingredients to produce the desired results. The trick is figuring out exactly which ingredients to use, and in what combinations.
	Open-science van der Waals interaction calculations enable mesoscale design and assembly As molecular-level electronic, photonic and biological devices grow smaller, approaching the nanometer scale, chemists, physicists and materials scientists strive to predict the magnitude of the fundamental intermolecular interactions, and whether new hierarchical combinations of these material components will assemble and function as designed.
	Surprise finding suggests diabetes drug could release rather than prevent blood sugar Nearly all medications have some sort of side effects, some more unpleasant and dangerous than others. They may occur because a treatment affects the body in ways that weren't previously anticipated, or simply because not every patient is identical.
	Chemistry for the methanol economy Unstable crude oil prices and limited oil resources have made the production of petrochemicals from methanol increasingly popular—above all in China. Scientists at ETH Zurich have now deciphered the complex chemistry behind the start of this process.

Biology news

	Dirty, crusty meals fit for (long-dormant) microbes In deserts and other arid lands, microbes often form very thin top layers on soil known as biocrusts, which behave a bit like Rip Van Winkle. He removed himself from a stressful environment by sleeping for decades, and awoke to a changed world; similarly, the biocrust's microbes lie dormant for long periods until precipitation (such as a sudden downpour) awakens them. Understanding more about the interactions between the microbial communities—also called "microbiomes"—in the biocrusts and their adaptations to their harsh environments could provide important clues to help shed light on the roles of soil microbes in the global carbon cycle.
	Is climate change killing American starfish? On the remote rocky shores of the western United States, low tide brings visitors to wave-splashed tide pools to marvel at ocean wonders usually hidden from view.
	AG1 gene controls rice seed sugar availability, survival when underwater A team of scientists from the University of California, Riverside and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), the Philippines, recently published a study unlocking the secret to just how rice seeds might be able to survive when grown under water.
	Burying beetles: Could being a good father send you to an early grave? New research shows beetles that received no care as larvae were less effective at raising a large brood as parents. Males paired with 'low quality' females - those that received no care as larvae - paid the price by dying younger, researchers found.
	New research finds that people emit their own personal microbial cloud We each give off millions of bacteria from our human microbiome to the air around us every day, and that cloud of bacteria can be traced back to an individual. New research focused on the personal microbial cloud—the airborne microbes we emit into the air—examined the microbial connection we have with the air around us. The findings demonstrate the extent to which humans possess a unique 'microbial cloud signature'.
	Correlations and imbalances between mother's state and offspring sex ratios According to a well-known theory in evolutionary biology healthy females should give birth to more males than females. A study funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation shows why this is not always true.
	Love's labors: Study shows male lizards risk becoming lunch for a bird to attract a mate In the animal kingdom, the flashiest males often have more luck attracting a mate. But when your predators hunt by sight, this can pose an interesting problem.
	Research uncovers microsopic key to reducing ocean dead zones Along the northern edge of the Gulf of Mexico is a 6,000-square mile dead zone of oxygen-depleted water filled with dead plants, dead fish and a damaged ecosystem.
	Rare Champagne grapes flourish with global warming After languishing in the shadow of the Chardonnay and Pinot vines that turn out France's famed bubbly, four lesser known Champagne grapes are getting an unlikely boost thanks to climate change.
Sponges akin to redwoods of the sea crowding out corals on Florida reefs I n the absence of coral on Florida's ailing reefs, a titan of the sea is taking over: giant barrel sponges.
	Researchers examine whether beneficial bacteria could rescue threatened amphibians Skin bacteria could be the best defense that frogs and salamanders have for protection against dangerous diseases like chytrid fungus.
	Discovery of the redox-switch of a key enzyme involved in n-butanol biosynthesis Two Korean research teams at the Kyungpook National University (KNU) and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) have succeeded in uncovering the redox-switch of thiolase, a key enzyme for n-butanol production in Clostridium acetobutylicum, one of the best known butanol-producing bacteria.
	Reef fish study reveals migratory mateship New UTS research confirms that, when it comes to rabbitfish couples, appearances can be deceptive, raising fundamental questions about pairing, reproduction and social systems.
	Snake danger on the rise With summer on the way, pet owners are being warned not to let their dogs or cats become one of the estimated thousands of snakebite statistics recorded in Australia each year.
	Yes, size matters Why do whales use echolocation when bacteria do not? Because body size determines available sensing modes, argue researchers from Center for Ocean Life
Scientists create rice variety with high folate stability Researchers from Ghent University succeeded in stabilizing folates in biofortified rice in order to prevent their degradation upon long term storage. They used two strategies: by linking folates with folate binding proteins and by extending the tail of the folate molecules. These approaches can offer a solution to serious health problems caused by folate deficiency in developing countries.
	Scientists optimize breeding management for European minks The European mink (Mustela lutreola) is one of the most endangered mammals in Europe. The reasons for its decline are the destruction of its habitat in riparian areas, competition with the alien American mink and historically, extensive hunting.
	Genomic regions containing two-thirds of all annotated barley genes have been sequenced Researchers generated nearly 16,000 sequences of gene-containing regions for barley, mapping approximately two-thirds of all annotated barley genes.
	Maternal experience brings an evolutionary advantage Using a species of butterfly as an example, researchers from the Department of Environmental Sciences at the University of Basel have demonstrated how insects adapt their offspring to changing environmental conditions. The paper, published in the journal Ecology, shows that females pass on their own experience to their brood, even if this experience was not necessarily ideal. This rapid adaptation has huge implications for our understanding of speciation in insects.
	Which species will survive the Earth's sixth mass extinction? Scientists recently suggested that the Earth's sixth mass extinction has begun. As terrifying as that sounds, surely humans are too smart and too important to get wiped out? Palaeontologists have long tried to shed light on this question by looking for general rules that might predict the survival of a species.
	Study reveals complications of conservation decisions Guam-based research on the native Intsia bijuga tree has been published in the current issue of the Journal of Tropical Forest Science (JTFS). The work was performed within the University of Guam's Western Pacific Tropical Research Center (WPTRC), and was designed to reveal how conservationists would do well to keep an open mind when implementing management decisions.
	Critically endangered Sumatran rhino pregnant: conservationists A rare Sumatran rhino in Indonesia is pregnant with her second baby and is expected to give birth in May, raising new hope for the critically endangered species, conservationists said Tuesday.
	Superbug study reveals how E. coli strain acquired deadly powers A strain of E. coli became a potentially fatal infection in the UK around 30 years ago, when it acquired a powerful toxin, a gene study has revealed.
	Researchers try to halt march of destructive pest preying on tomatoes The rapid spread of a highly destructive invasive species that threatens tomato crops has prompted a Virginia Tech scientist to lead the charge in issuing a set of recommendations, including quarantine measures, designed to thwart the advance of the pest around the globe.
	Tiny endangered songbirds given second chance at survival Seven Florida grasshopper sparrows, among the world's most endangered birds, have been given a second chance at survival in the care of researchers working to save threatened species across the planet.
	US rejects protections for greater sage grouse across West The greater sage grouse, a ground-dwelling bird whose vast range spans 11 Western states, does not need federal protections, the Interior Department said Tuesday, following a costly effort to reverse the species' decline without reshaping the region's economy.
	New weapon against the reef eaters James Cook University scientists in Australia have made a breakthrough in the war against a deadly enemy of the Great Barrier Reef.
	Study shows whale microbiome shares characteristics with both ruminants and predators To some, it may not come as a surprise to learn that the great whales are carnivores, feeding on tiny shrimp-like animals such as krill. Moreover, it might not be surprising to find that the microbes that live in whale guts -the so-called microbiome- resemble those of other meat eaters.
	Lawsuit filed in US on behalf of monkey who snapped selfies US animal rights activists filed an unusual lawsuit on Tuesday on behalf of a macaque monkey who snapped selfie photographs, arguing it owned the photos rather than the nature photographer involved.
	Microalgae increases the survival of juvenile queen conch Tthe Mexican Caribbean is habitat to several species of snails. Historically the most abundant was Strombus gigas, commonly called the pink snail. For years, this snail has been harvested for its shells and meat, but is now threatened, and its capture is prohibited until 2018.
	S. African breeders ask court to end rhino horn trade ban Two South African game owners went to court Tuesday to fight the government's ban on the trade in rhino horn, arguing that legalising the market is key to curbing poaching.
Changes in dairy industry benefit dairy cattle health and welfare and consumers Profound changes in the dairy industry in recent decades have benefited the health and welfare of dairy cows, as well as consumers. A team of dairy science experts provides valuable insights into these changes, as well as the science behind them, and also identify knowledge gaps and further research needs. Their review is published in the current issue of the Journal of Dairy Science.
	New resource will help growers manage the olive fruit fly A new, open-access article in the Journal of Integrated Pest Management aims to support California olive producers with an overview of the olive fruit fly (Bactrocera oleae), which has become the key pest of olives since its introduction in 1998.
	Q&A: What is a sage grouse and why is the bird imperiled? The Interior Department said Tuesday it won't propose federal protections for the greater sage grouse, a chicken-sized bird of the sagebrush that ranges from California to the Dakotas.
	Geolocators used to link breeding and wintering populations of Prothonotary Warblers Prothonotary Warblers are stunningly beautiful and highly migratory birds closely tied to their preferred breeding habitat: swamps and other forested wetlands in the eastern United States. Scientists have noted that Prothonotary Warbler populations have experienced precipitous declines in recent years, prompting new research investigating the little known migratory behavior of this remarkable bird. As part of this effort, researchers from the U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest Research Station, Klamath Bird Observatory, Louisiana Bird Observatory, and Audubon Louisiana attached several geolocators—ultra-lightweight devices that record the time of sunrise and sunset each day—using a back-pack harness on several Prothonotary Warblers to identify their migratory routes and core wintering areas. The information collected by each geolocator was used to estimate the daily longitude and latitude of the bird.

Medicine & Health news

	In-home study suggests babies learn to talk more from context then repetition (Medical Xpress)—A small team of researchers affiliated with MIT and Stanford's Department of Psychology has conducted a very unusual experiment—they have recorded every utterance of a single child as he learned to talk and then used the video to undertake a novel study meant to better understand how we humans learn to speak to other people. They have detailed what they learned in a paper they have had published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
	Researchers grow kidneys and urinary pathways that work in live animals (Medical Xpress)—A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in Japan has succeeded in growing kidneys from stem cells that worked as they were supposed to after being transplanted into rats and pigs. The team outlines their work and results in a paper they have had published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
	Genetic analysis supports prediction that spontaneous rare mutations cause half of autism A team led by researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) this week publishes in PNAS a new analysis of data on the genetics of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). One commonly held theory is that autism results from the chance combinations of commonly occurring gene mutations, which are otherwise harmless. But the authors' work provides support for a different theory.
	Feeling anxious? Check your orbitofrontal cortex and cultivate your optimism A new study links anxiety, a brain structure called the orbitofrontal cortex, and optimism, finding that healthy adults who have larger OFCs tend to be more optimistic and less anxious.
	Researchers identify possible physiological cause of brain deficits with aging Like scratchy-sounding old radio dials that interfere with reception, circuits in the brain that grow noisier over time may be responsible for ways in which we slow mentally as we grow old, according to the results of new studies from UC San Francisco on young and older adults.
	Increased activity in older brains may point to new avenues for treating memory loss Northwestern Medicine scientists have examined activity in a little-studied part of the brain associated with memory and found for the first time the reason that neurons there become more active in old age, findings that may suggest a new target for future therapies to combat memory loss in aging and Alzheimer's disease.
Prion disease detected soon after infection and in surprising place in mouse brains Prion diseases—incurable, ultimately fatal, transmissible neurodegenerative disorders of mammals—are believed to develop undetected in the brain over several years from infectious prion protein. In a new study, National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientists report they can detect infectious prion protein in mouse brains within a week of inoculation. Equally surprising, the protein was generated outside blood vessels in a place in the brain where scientists believe drug treatment could be targeted to prevent disease. The study, from NIH's National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), appears in the Sept. 22 issue of mBio.
	Tonsillectomy for sleep apnea carries risks for some kids: study (HealthDay)—Children who have their tonsils removed to treat sleep apnea are more likely to suffer breathing complications than kids who have the procedure for other reasons, a new review shows.
	Cholecalciferol may help reduce BMD loss after bariatric surgery (HealthDay)—An intervention including cholecalciferol, protein supplementation, and physical exercise reduces bone mineral density loss after bariatric surgery, according to a study published online Sept. 9 in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.
	Dextromethorphan plus sitagliptin promising in type 2 diabetes (HealthDay)—Dextromethorphan combined with sitagliptin shows potential for treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus, according to a study published online Sept. 12 in Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism.
	Two novel cockroach allergen proteins identified (HealthDay)—Two novel allergen proteins from cockroaches have been identified, according to a study published online Sept. 12 in Allergy.
	Researchers find 96 percent of deceased NFL players had CTE (HealthDay)—The latest data from a brain bank that focuses on traumatic head injury show that 87 of 91 deceased former National Football League (NFL) players tested positive for chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
	Hemorrhage post adenotonsillectomy less common with OSA (HealthDay)—For children undergoing adenotonsillectomy (AT), those with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) appear to have more respiratory complications, while hemorrhage appears to be more frequent in children without OSA, according to a review published online Sept. 21 in Pediatrics.
	More men at risk for prostate cancer as a result of less regular screening The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommendation against regular prostate specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer is controversial. While it may reduce the risk of over diagnosis and overtreatment, the reduction in intermediate and high risk cancer diagnoses raises concern because of the potential for delayed diagnoses of important cancers in men who may benefit from treatment, according to investigators reporting in The Journal of Urology.
	Probiotic formula reverses cow's milk allergies by changing gut bacteria of infants The gut bacteria of infants who developed tolerance to cow's milk after treatment with probiotic formula showed significant differences from those who remained allergic, according to a new study published September 22, 2015, in The ISME Journal by scientists from the University of Chicago, Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Naples Federico II, Italy.
As 'abortion pill' turns 15, debate rages on Fifteen years after its approval in the United States, the drug mifepristone is used in nearly a quarter of all abortions, a proportion that has grown steadily even as the national abortion rate has fallen to a historic low.
	New Alzheimer trial to use epilepsy drug that calms brain activity What could be one of the first treatments to delay or prevent Alzheimer's disease received a big boost from the National Institute on Aging, which is putting up $7.5 million to help fund the next round of trials for the drug being developed by a Baltimore start-up and the Johns Hopkins University.
	Gene magnifies the psychological impact of life events, for better and for worse People with a certain type of gene are more deeply affected by their life experiences, a new study has revealed.
	Brain consolidates memory with three-step brainwave Our long-term memory is consolidated when we sleep. Short-term memory traces in the hippocampus, an area deep in the brain, are then relocated to more outer parts of the brain. An international team of neuroscientists, among who Mathilde Bonnefond and Til Ole Bergmann from the Donders Institute at Radboud Universiy, now shows how a three-step brain oscillation plays an important part in that process. Nature Neurosciences publishes the results on September 21st.
Deciphering between emotional, physical hunger Being in tune with our body's natural hunger and fullness cues are the keys to healthy weight management.
Better preparation from physicians will help patients stay on statins What's the best way to get heart patients to properly use statins?
Exercise resources to revolutionise health care education A unique set of resources to train doctors, nurses, and other health professionals to promote and prescribe exercise for clinical treatment and disease prevention is being launched by health care experts at The University of Nottingham.
SCS medical student's research provides insight into infectious disease A history of chicken pox is very likely to predict immunity to varicella zoster, according to latest research from Monash University.
	World first study shows new program improves self-esteem for girls A world-first study has shown a group-based targeted intervention improves self-esteem in teenage girls. Published in the American Journal of Health Promotion, the collaborative Monash University and Monash Health study is the first randomised trial to demonstrate that a group-based intervention improves protective health factors among girls at risk of developing negative mental, physical, and social health outcomes.
	Unexpected link between choroid plexus and chronic pain Aalto University neuroscientists, in collaboration with researchers at Helsinki University Hospital and Harvard Medical School, have found a novel connection between the size of the choroid plexus in the brain and complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS). The findings were recently published in the Scientific Reports online journal.
The use of bisphosphonate drugs is associated with an increased risk of atypical hip fractures The use of bisphosphonates, a group of drugs used to prevent hip breakages in women with osteoporosis, is associated with an increased risk of atypical fractures in this joint, understood as those that occur in less frequent locations. It has been established thus in the PhD thesis by Javier Gorricho-Mendívil, a graduate in pharmacy, and read at the NUP/UPNA-Public University of Navarre. The author advocates encouraging other preventive measures such as "strategies to reduce falls and an active lifestyle to improve bone density and health".
Becoming cyborgs in the battle against prostate cancer Research published recently in Science as Culture suggests that men are surprisingly positive and open to the concept of having cancer-detecting biosensors implanted within their bodies – effectively making them cyborgs.
Energy use feedback key to unlocking savings, if used wisely Using feedback that incorporates goals or incentives and leverages new media and technology appears to be the best way to get people to cut back on their energy use, according to researchers who analyzed dozens of studies on feedback's effectiveness in energy conservation. The research appears in the journal Psychological Bulletin, which is published by the American Psychological Association.
	Diagnostics breakthrough brings viral sequencing to doctors' toolkit Until now, there hasn't been a fast, efficient way to broadly screen for viral infections. A breakthrough genetic testing method promises change this situation by giving clinicians a powerful new tool to detect and sequence viruses. Developed by scientists at the Center for Infection and Immunity (CII) at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, the Virome-Capture-Sequencing platform for Vertebrate viruses (VirCapSeq-VERT) is as sensitive as the gold standard polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays while enabling simultaneous testing for hundreds of different viruses and providing near complete sequence of their genomes.
Androgen deprivation therapy associated with increased risk for fatal heart attack Long term follow up indicates that men with comorbidity, predominately a prior heart attack, who received androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) died earlier, due to a fatal heart attack.
DNR orders often do not align with poor prognosis Although do-not-resuscitate (DNR) orders after in-hospital cardiac arrest were generally aligned with patients' likelihood of favorable neurological survival, almost two-thirds of patients with the worst prognosis did not have DNR orders, according to a study in the September 22/29 issue of JAMA.
	Death and money in the ICU: Pneumonia findings surprise researchers When an older person gets hospitalized for pneumonia, where's the best place to care for them? New research findings about deaths and health care costs in such patients fly in the face of conventional wisdom - and could change where doctors decide to treat them.
Lifestyle focused text messaging results in improvement in cardiovascular risk factors A simple, low-cost automated program of semi-personalized mobile phone text messages supporting lifestyle change led to improvement in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) levels, blood pressure, body mass index, and smoking status in patients with coronary heart disease, according to a study in the September 22/29 issue of JAMA.
New cell type may help explain why some people have dangerous food allergies Researchers have discovered a new cell type that appears to drive life-threatening food allergies and may help explain why some people get severe allergic reactions and others do not.
	Combination drug treatment reduces agitation for patients with probable Alzheimer's disease In a preliminary 10-week randomized trial, patients with probable Alzheimer disease who received the combination medication dextromethorphan-quinidine demonstrated less occurrences and severity of agitation, compared to patients who received placebo, according to a study in the September 22/29 issue of JAMA.
Reduced conflict-related brain activity may indicate risk for psychosis Researchers led by Bradley S. Peterson, MD, director of the Institute for the Developing Mind at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, have shown that lower levels of conflict-related brain activity are associated with a higher risk for later psychosis. The study, in conjunction with colleagues at Columbia University, is available via PubMed in advance of publication by the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.
	Women unsure of breast cancer causes Women appear uncertain about risk factors for breast cancer, despite the disease being the most common cancer for women in Australia, and their second most common cancer cause of death.
Increased chances for early detection of Alzheimer's disease A method for detecting early signs of Alzheimer's disease using amyloid PET imaging works as well as the previously used cerebrospinal fluid sample method. This is the conclusion of a new Lund University study—the most thorough and extensive undertaken in the field so far.
A newly discovered mechanism controls the number of immune cells The proteins CD47 and SIRPα are fundamental to establishing a correct number of immune cells, so-called B lymphocytes. This according to a dissertation by Shrikant Shanital Kolan from Umeå University in Sweden.
	Role of cancer-suppressing gene uncovered University of Adelaide researchers have uncovered the role played by a gene which suppresses the development of cancer.
	Study highlights how former problem drinkers navigate social drinking situations A small, qualitative study published in the journal Health Communication highlights a wide variety of approaches that former problem drinkers take to determine how and whether to tell people in social situations that they don't drink.
	New study maps the progression of Parkinson's disease within the brain Scientists at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital -The Neuro, at McGill University and the McGill University Health Centre, have made advances in understanding the process involved in the progression and spread of Parkinson's disease (PD) within the brain.
Researchers find novel signature in the brains of children with cerebral malaria Cells associated with inflammation and blood clotting accumulate in the brain blood vessels of children affected by a potentially fatal form of malaria called cerebral malaria (CM), potentially contributing to the disease process, an international team of researchers has found, and HIV can exacerbate this development. The work was published this week in mBio, an online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology.
CPAP therapy reduces symptoms of depression in adults with sleep apnea A new study shows that depressive symptoms are extremely common in people who have obstructive sleep apnea, and these symptoms improve significantly when sleep apnea is treated with continuous positive airway pressure therapy.
	Two-drug combination shows promise against one type of pancreatic cancer One form of pancreatic cancer has a new enemy: a two-drug combination discovered by UF Health researchers that inhibits tumors and kills cancer cells in mouse models.
	Simple measurement method improves accuracy in proton beam therapy Proton beams are new high-precision weapons in the fight against cancer. However, uncertainty with regard to the range of the beams has prevented the full exploitation of the potential of this method until now. Researchers all over the world are therefore looking for ways to measure the exact range during a course of treatment. Scientists at the National Center for Radiation Research in Oncology - OncoRay and at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) have succeeded in developing a surprisingly simple solution. Initial preclinical tests have already gone well.
	Researchers find biomarker for autism that may aid diagnostics By identifying a key signaling defect within a specific membrane structure in all cells, University of California, Irvine researchers believe, they have found both a possible reliable biomarker for diagnosing certain forms of autism and a potential therapeutic target.
Scientists identify key morphine regulator that may reduce risk of pain-killer abuse Once used in the 18th century as currency to reverse the trade imbalance between China and Britain, morphine and its pain-killing qualities have been misunderstood (and misused) almost continually ever since.
	'Mind-reading' kids are more discriminating learners To learn about the world around them, young children depend on information provided by others. But that's not always the best strategy: kids will sometimes take everything grown-ups say at face value, even if they're unreliable.
	Study: Diagnosis wrong too often, urgent improvement needed Most people will experience at least one wrong or delayed diagnosis at some point in their lives, a blind spot in modern medicine that can have devastating consequences, says a new report that calls for urgent changes across health care.
	Licensed to swill: 007 set to boost vodka sales Vodka is set for a likely sales boost after receiving the endorsement of hard-drinking high priest of cool James Bond, according to a study published Tuesday.
	Eating more fruits and non-starchy vegetables is associated with less weight gain Increased consumption of fruits and non-starchy vegetables is inversely associated with weight change, according to a study published this week in PLOS Medicine. The longitudinal study, conducted by Monica Bertoia of Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and Brigham & Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, and colleagues, shows differences by type of fruit or vegetable, suggesting that characteristics of these foods influence the strength of their association with weight change.
Around the world, those treated for addiction far more likely to smoke People in addiction treatment programs around the world use tobacco at two to three times the rate of people who are not being treated for addiction, according to a review of research studies from 20 countries other than the United States.
National school-based mental health intervention improves outcomes for at-risk students A national school-based mental health program that is now reaching almost one quarter of all elementary school students in Chile appears to have produced significant improvements in both behavioral and academic outcomes, such as attention problems and school attendance, among participating students. The results of a study by a team of Chilean and U.S. investigators appear in the October issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.
Multi-tasking in the ER: More is not better Even after emergency physicians had acclimated to a new commercial electronic health record (EHR), they increased their tasks performed per minute by nearly 12 percent, increasing the potential for patient safety hazards. The results of a study of one hospital's transition from a homegrown EHR to a commercial EHR were published online Friday in Annals of Emergency Medicine.
	Girls who are impulsive, poor planners may be prone to weight gain (HealthDay)—Girls who are impulsive and have difficulties planning at age 10 may tend to gain more weight as they enter puberty, and binge eating may be a common path to that result, new research suggests.
	Check yourself for signs of skin cancer, doctors advise (HealthDay)—Many busy parents take the time to slather sunscreen on their children before heading outdoors, but they may neglect to protect their own skin. Dermatologists caution that skin cancer can affect anyone—even parents.
	Naturally occurring antibodies promising for neurologic disease (HealthDay)—Naturally occurring monoclonal antibodies show potential for treatment of neurologic diseases, according to a review published online Sept. 21 in JAMA Neurology.
	Harms from unnecessary abx extend beyond resistance (HealthDay)—Use of antibiotics in patients with heart failure exacerbation in the absence of compelling evidence of infection is unnecessary and potentially harmful, according to teachable moment piece published online Sept. 21 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
	Hematologic markers predict nasopharyngeal cancer survival (HealthDay)—Pretreatment neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) may be predictors for survival in nasopharyngeal carcinoma, according to a study published online Sept. 11 in Head & Neck.
	fMRI may take guesswork out of schizophrenia Rx (HealthDay)—Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) might someday help psychiatrists quickly determine which antipsychotic drugs work best for patients with schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, according to research published online Aug. 28 in The American Journal of Psychiatry.
	Leukotriene receptor antagonist monotherapy ups asthma control (HealthDay)—As monotherapy, leukotriene-receptor antagonists (LTRAs) improve asthma control versus placebo, according to a review and meta-analysis published online Sept. 22 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
	T2DM risk with weight gain higher in younger adults (HealthDay)—The risk of developing diabetes is higher in younger adults versus middle-aged adults despite the same duration and degree of weight gain, according to research published online Sept. 10 in Diabetes Care.
	Study shows employers shifting more medical costs to workers Employers are leaving a bigger chunk of the bill for care to workers who use their health insurance, and benefits experts see few signs of this trend slowing.
Stiff sentences over US salmonella outbreak Three people convicted over a nationwide salmonella outbreak were sentenced Monday to tough sentences of up to 28 years in prison, the US Justice Department said.
Senate Dems likely to block bill curbing late abortions Democrats seem certain to block Republican legislation banning most late-term abortions in a Senate showdown with plenty of political significance but little suspense.
Border violence is a public health issue Can collective violence along the U.S.-Mexico border—covering the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas as well as Texas—be considered an "epidemic"? It can, and the issue of violence should be methodologically examined through a public health approach, according to a new paper from Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy.
Age, not post-op infection, more important for kidney transplant success, study finds Infection by virus cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common and major complication following kidney transplantation. Previous studies have related CMV infection with increased kidney transplant failure and reduced patient survival. However, a new study published in the American Journal of Physiology—Renal Physiology reports that the age of the donor and the recipient, not CMV infection, are more important factors in determining transplant success.
	'Cancer seeing' technology is one in a hundred innovations to change our world A groundbreaking piece of medical imaging technology that could revolutionise cancer treatment will be featured as part of a showcase of 100 engineering ideas that have changed our world.
	Matricellular proteins are promising new therapeutic targets for ocular diseases A special issue of Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics highlights the latest research on matricellular proteins, which play a critical role in inflammation and blood vessel formation in the eye and therefore making them key targets for new therapies to treat common ocular disorders such as glaucoma, dry eye disease, and age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Comprehensive review articles and insightful editorials comprise this special issue of Journal of Ocular Pharmacology and Therapeutics, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.
Cartilage regeneration possibilities may improve with fetal cartilage cell transplantation The self-repair of injured cartilage is difficult for several reasons, foremost of which is the lack of blood supply to the tissue. Therapeutic efforts aimed at cartilage repair are often not optimal. Surgical repair techniques often lead to the formation of fibrocartilage, which is weaker and less durable. Although cell transplantation aimed at cartilage repair has been carried out using mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), varying outcomes have resulted, despite the propensity of MSCs to proliferate and differentiate.
Urgent change needed to improve diagnosis in health care or diagnostic errors will likely worsen Most people will experience at least one diagnostic error—an inaccurate or delayed diagnosis—in their lifetime, sometimes with devastating consequences, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The committee that conducted the study and wrote the report found that although getting the right diagnosis is a key aspect of health care, efforts to improve diagnosis and reduce diagnostic errors have been quite limited. Improving diagnosis is a complex challenge, partly because making a diagnosis is a collaborative and inherently inexact process that may unfold over time and across different health care settings. To improve diagnosis and reduce errors, the committee called for more effective teamwork among health care professionals, patients, and families; enhanced training for health care professionals; more emphasis on identifying and learning from diagnostic! errors and near misses in clinical practice; a payment and care delivery environment that supports the diagnostic process; and a dedicated focus on new research.
Team finds novel way to monitor serious blood disorder using a smart phone A researcher from Florida Atlantic University has come up with a unique way to monitor sickle cell disease—a serious blood disorder—using a smart phone. With a $166,935 grant from the National Science Foundation, E. (Sarah) Du, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Ocean and Mechanical Engineering in FAU's College of Engineering and Computer Science, and principal investigator, will develop a portable smart sensor and a phone application for patients to analyze and store the results of their blood tests on a smart phone. This technology will enable them to keep a close watch on any abnormal activities in their blood cells and take important steps to manage this disease with early intervention.
	NIH releases comprehensive resource to help address college drinking CollegeAIM, a new resource to help college officials address harmful and underage student drinking, is now available. The CollegeAIM (Alcohol Intervention Matrix) guide and website was developed by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, part of the National Institutes of Health.
Overweight firefighters more likely to attempt weight loss if advised by doctor Overweight firefighters are twice as likely to attempt to lose weight if their health care provider gives them weight loss advice, according to new research from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) School of Public Health. The results were published in this month's print edition of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
Regenstrief and IU develop innovative ethics-based model for academia-industry collaboration In an era of declining federal government funding for medical research, researchers from the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University Center for Bioethics have developed a set of principles and benchmarks for ensuring that academic-industry partnerships can be conducted with the highest ethical standards.
Researchers publish far-reaching genetic study of 1,000 UK people A unique population-based study of all the genes in 1,000 people born in the UK in 1958 is being made available online by researchers at the Institute of Cancer Research, London, to further understanding of the role gene variation plays in disease.The paper, which will be invaluable for clinical genomics and translational research, makes large-scale gene variation from exome sequence data from the UK general population, openly available for the first-time.
Uninsured are getting harder to sign up The Obama administration says it's getting harder to sign up those remaining uninsured under the president's health care law.
	Pfizer says it could be leader in cancer with many new drugs Drug giant Pfizer is starting 20 clinical trials this year and more soon after on treatments to conquer cancer as it also seeks to gain leadership in one of the hottest, and most lucrative, areas of medicine.
	Germany—East-west divide in life expectancy almost overcome Twenty-five years after reunification, the once considerable differences between life expectancy in eastern and western Germany have almost disappeared for women. East German men have also benefited strongly from unification, but they still lag behind western men. Overall, a clear south-north gradient has developed throughout Germany with regard to life expectancy, which often reflects economic development. Individual regions, such as the Ruhr region and Saarland are considerably lagging behind. These are findings of a study in which researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock carried out a nationwide analysis of the regional trends in life expectancy.
CEOs of Aetna, Anthem make case for health insurance mergers Leaders of two major health insurers planning multibillion dollar acquisitions made their case to Congress that bigger can mean better in their industry, but concerns are being raised in Washington about how these deals will affect consumers and competition.
New clues on the history of the smallpox vaccine virus Smallpox - simply hearing the word evokes images of countless people suffering gruesome deaths throughout recorded history. Known scientifically as variola, the virus had 30 percent mortality rate and survivors were branded with pox scars for life. For millennia, physicians often did more harm than good. Smallpox victims were bled, poked with golden needles, kept in overheated rooms while febrile, and the list goes on. At best, the treatments were uncomfortable; at worst, they killed even faster than the virus.
	Senate blocks anti-abortion bill; new showdown set Senate Democrats thwarted a Republican effort to ban late-term abortions on Tuesday as GOP leaders strained to avoid a government shutdown in eight days over the dispute—all against a tangled backdrop of presidential politics.

Other Sciences news

	Gender affects awarding of research funding Women are still underrepresented in top academic positions. One of the possible explanations for this is the increasing importance of obtaining research funding. Women are often less successful in this than men. Psychology researchers Dr Romy van der Lee and professor Naomi Ellemers investigated whether this difference also occurs at the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO) and examined potential explanations.
	New duck-billed dinosaur found in Alaska, researchers say (Update) Fossils from a unique plant-eating dinosaur found in the high Arctic of Alaska may change how scientists view dinosaur physiology, say Alaska and Florida university researchers.
	Researchers discover new lineage of prehistoric, plankton-eating sharks An international team of scientists has discovered a new lineage of extinct plankton-feeding sharks, Pseudomegachasma, that lived in warm oceans during the age of the dinosaurs nearly 100 million years ago. The fossil sharks had tiny teeth very similar to a modern-day, plankton-eating megamouth shark.
	Clues revealed about an ancient case of leprosy Unidentified remains found in the English countryside and all signs point to the untimely death of a young man. Researchers examined the bones of a supposed victim, which showed signs of leprosy, to search for clues about the arrival of the disease in Britain and its eventual spread throughout Europe.
DNA analysis identifies long-lost remains of executed 1916 rebel, Thomas Kent The long lost remains of Thomas Kent, one of the 16 men executed in 1916 following the Easter Rising, have been identified by scientific DNA analysis.
	Patterns are math we love to look at Why do humans love to look at patterns? I can only guess, but I've written a whole book about new mathematical ways to make them. In Creating Symmetry, The Artful Mathematics of Wallpaper Patterns, I include a comprehensive set of recipes for turning photographs into patterns. The official definition of "pattern" is cumbersome; but you can think of a pattern as an image that repeats in some way, perhaps when we rotate, perhaps when we jump one unit along.
It's not a lack of self-control that keeps people poor When considering poverty, our national conversation tends to overlook systemic causes. Instead, we often blame the poor for their poverty. Commentators echo the claim that people are poor because they have bad self-control and therefore make nearsighted choices. But psychology research says the opposite might be the case: poverty makes it hard for people to care about the future and forces them to live in the present.
	From dig to digital: Australia's iconic dinosaurs as you've never seen them before It's Australia's largest known meat-eating dinosaur but until now we've never seen how Australovenator moved - not even the man who dug it up and named it.
Hell hath no fury like a female superhero scorned (by fans) The devoted followers of comic book heroes are diversifying beyond the likes of Sheldon, Leonard, Raj and Howard as depicted on the CBS Network's "The Big Bang Theory." Rebecca Borah, a pop culture researcher and associate professor of English at the University of Cincinnati, says that's partly what caused the Internet to "Hulk out" after fans flocked to "Avengers: Age of Ultron." Borah is among the UC faculty presenting at the regional conference of the Midwest Popular Culture Association/Midwest American Culture Association which takes place Oct. 1-4, at the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza Hotel downtown.
	Official says Egypt approves radar for Nefertiti tomb quest The Egyptian Antiquities Ministry granted preliminary approval for the use of a non-invasive radar to verify a theory that Queen Nefertiti's crypt may be hidden behind King Tutankhamun's 3,300-year-old tomb in the famous Valley of the Kings, a ministry official said Tuesday.
Archaeologists recover cannon from sunken Confederate ship Marine archaeologists have recovered the fifth cannon from a Confederate warship that's been at the bottom of the Savannah River since the American Civil War, officials said.
	The world's new sustainable development goals On September 25 world leaders will meet in New York to formalise the new Sustainable Development Goals. These 17 goals will guide efforts to reduce poverty and increase well-being, without destroying the Earth. The Conversation is looking at how we got here, and how far we have to go.
Harnessing the power of social media during the GOP debate Dr. Jenny Stromer-Galley, an expert in social media and political campaigns offers insight on how candidates used social media to their advantage during the GOP debate on September 16. She said that Carly Fiorina, one of the winners of the debate, may have demonstrated her political savvy on television, but her campaign was unable to capture that momentum on social media.
	Premium-minded consumers split wine market, wine execs say California's wine industry will continue to split most of its sales above and below the $10-dollar-per-bottle mark, enjoying a rise in overall consumption and a growing emphasis on premium, rather than economy, wines, reported wine industry leaders surveyed by UC Davis.
MMA sport is more than just violence and fighters in a cage Ethnologist Magnus Stenius from Umeå University in Sweden has, in his dissertation on the subject of mixed martial arts (MMA), made a three-year study in Sweden and around the world. He has conducted participant observations in various gyms, has practised MMA himself and has taken part in fights against sparring partners.
New report examines regulation of federally funded research Continuing expansion of federal research regulations and requirements is diminishing the effectiveness of the U.S. scientific enterprise and lowering the return on the federal investment in research by directing investigators' time away from research and toward administrative matters, says a new congressionally mandated report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The report identifies specific actions Congress, the White House, federal agencies, and research institutions should take to reduce the regulatory burden.

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