Volume 10, Number 28 July 11, 2011 Physical sciences Technology Life sciences Neuroscience, psychology, behavior Health and medicine

Physical sciences Dark energy Global warming Paleoclimatology Gravitational lensing, the cosmic microwave background, and dark energy Muon antineutrino disappearance Plate tectonics and mantle plumes Astrochemistry Gaia probe Star dust Quantum criticality Quark-gluon plasma CP symmetry breaking Supernovae Star-forming regions Radio astronomy Quantum superposition of nanometer-scale objects Superfluidity Galaxy chirality Topological insulators Technology Spintronics Graphene Lab-on-a-chip Light dragging Superconductivity Nanotechnology Quantum circuits Quantum memory Supercomputer cloud Biomolecular computer Photovoltaics Quantum computing Controlled fusion Hydrogen storage Photonic chips Life sciences 1000 Genomes Project Eye development MicroRNA and muscle development Small nucleolar RNA and lipotoxicity Cell movement in response to chemoattractants Chaperones and membrane proteins Centromeres Post-translational remodeling of mRNA and aging in C. elegans Ancient photosynthesis Synthetic biology Archaea Pin1 and mitosis Chromosome size across species Jaw designs Cell reprogramming Swi2/Snf2 remodelers and gene transcription Endocytosis Sexual reproduction Cyanobacteria Neuroscience, psychology, and behavior Dietary fats, endocannabinoids, and appetite Autism Brain-imaging studies Intentional forgetting Self-awareness in monkeys Biological motion perception Information flow in the embryonic visual cortex FOXP2 and neural development Brain simulation Memory inhibition by ethanol Memory Neural signal processing Schizophrenia Health and medicine Malaria Multiple sclerosis Drug delivery Autoimmune disease Obesity and inflammation Cardiovascular disease Cancer Cancer biology Antioxidants Nanobiotechnology Thiazolidinedione drungs and adipose stem cells Conversion of white fat to brown fat, obesity, and diabetes Tissue engineering Reactive oxygen species and tumorigenesis Gene therapy Sunburn and inflammation Tuberculosis Synthetic organs Antibiotics Stem cells Stem cells and cancer Universal influenza vaccine AIDS Sleep deprivation and weight gain Alzheimer's disease

Physical sciences

Dark energy

1. July 4, 2011 - Big rips and little rips

Global warming

1. July 4, 2011 - More rain, less snow leads to faster Arctic ice melt
2. July 4, 2011 - Researchers push the boundary with high carbon emission scenarios
3. July 4, 2011 - Global warming pause linked to sulfur in China - also here
4. July 4, 2011 - Why global temperatures held steady for 10 years
5. July 5, 2011 - Sulfur stalls surface temperature rise
6. July 5, 2011 - How hot will Earth be by 2100? The answer's in the clouds
7. July 5, 2011 - Are climate change models too conservative?
8. July 5, 2011 - Asian pollution slowed global warming: study
9. July 6, 2011 - Greenland's ice sheets face new threat
10. July 8, 2011 - Warmer Weather Is Officially the New Normal
11. July 10, 2011 - Ocean's carbon dioxide uptake reduced by climate change - also here, here

Paleoclimatology

1. July 5, 2011 - How hot did Earth get in the past? Scientists uncover new information - also here

Gravitational lensing, the cosmic microwave background, and dark energy

1. July 5, 2011 - Viewpoint: A distorted view of the early universe

Muon antineutrino disappearance

1. July 5, 2011 - The antineutrino vanishes differently

Plate tectonics and mantle plumes

1. July 6, 2011 - Mantle plume propelled India towards Asia
2. July 6, 2011 - New force driving Earth's tectonic plates discovered - also here
3. July 10, 2011 - Plate tectonics affected by mantle hot spots

Astrochemistry

1. July 6, 2011 - Hydrogen peroxide found in space - also here
2. July 6, 2011 - Bleach in space!

Gaia probe

1. July 6, 2011 - Eye of Gaia: Billion-pixel camera to map Milky Way - also here
2. July 7, 2011 - Billion-Pixel Array Will Map the Milky Way

Star dust

1. July 6, 2011 - The making of dust
2. July 7, 2011 - Exploding stars can make good dust factories
3. July 7, 2011 - Missing Supernova Dust Mystery Solved
4. July 7, 2011 - Cosmic Dust, Detected in Colossal Quantities
5. July 8, 2011 - Herschel dusts off hidden cosmic origin
6. July 8, 2011 - Dying stars create dusty galaxies

Quantum criticality

1. July 6, 2011 - A chemical detour to quantum criticality

Quark-gluon plasma

1. July 6, 2011 - When matter melts

CP symmetry breaking

1. July 6, 2011 - Tevatron particles shed light on antimatter mystery

Supernovae

1. July 7, 2011 - Exploding stars can make good dust factories
2. July 7, 2011 - Herschel Helps Solve Mystery of Cosmic Dust Origins
3. July 7, 2011 - Herschel Space Observatory discovers source of cosmic dust in a stellar explosion
4. July 8, 2011 - Herschel Detects a Massive Dust Reservoir in Supernova 1987A
5. July 8, 2011 - Supernovae seed galaxies with massive amounts of dust - also here
6. July 25, 2011 - From Stars to Stardust

Star-forming regions

1. July 7, 2011 - Once More Into the Bleach

Radio astronomy

1. July 7, 2011 - Linked radio telescopes provide SKA teaser
2. July 7, 2011 - Big step forward for SKA radio telescope

Quantum superposition of nanometer-scale objects

1. July 7, 2011 - In two places at once

Superfluidity

1. July 7, 2011 - A new phase for molecular superfluidity

Galaxy chirality

1. July 8, 2011 - The universe may have been born spinning, according to new findings on the symmetry of the cosmos
2. July 8, 2011 - Was the big bang born rotating?
3. July 25, 2011 - Was the universe born spinning?

Topological insulators

1. July 8, 2011 - Unfazed by imperfections

Technology

Spintronics

1. July 4, 2011 - The next generation of computing

Graphene

1. July 5, 2011 - The wonders of graphene on display
2. July 5, 2011 - Graphene quantum dots could lead to low-cost solar cells and OLEDs

Lab-on-a-chip

1. July 5, 2011 - Laser, electric fields combined for new 'lab-on-chip' technologies
2. July 6, 2011 - Researchers apply NMR/MRI to microfluidic chromatography

Light dragging

1. July 5, 2011 - Rotating cylinder puts a new spin on slow light
2. July 6, 2011 - Scientists drag light by slowing it to speed of sound
3. July 6, 2011 - Physicists demonstrate rotated light images

Superconductivity

1. July 6, 2011 - Ultrafast switch for superconductors

Nanotechnology

1. July 6, 2011 - With a simple coating, nanowires show a dramatic increase in efficiency and sensitivity - also here
2. July 7, 2011 - A new way to build nanostructures
3. July 10, 2011 - Nanoscientists build antenna for light - also here

Quantum circuits

1. July 6, 2011 - Mechanical micro-drum cooled to quantum ground state
2. July 6, 2011 - Drumming to a cooler quantum beat

Quantum memory

1. July 6, 2011 - Quantum memory works at room temperature

Supercomputer cloud

1. July 6, 2011 - Rutgers-led Experts Assemble Globe-Spanning Supercomputer Cloud

Biomolecular computer

1. July 6, 2011 - Biomolecular computer can autonomously sense multiple signs of disease

Photovoltaics

1. July 7, 2011 - Double solar world record

Quantum computing

1. July 7, 2011 - Prototype 'optics table on a chip' places microwave photon in two colors at once
2. July 8, 2011 - Building a better quantum computer with lasers and (impure) diamonds

Controlled fusion

1. July 7, 2011 - US joining the Wendelstein 7-X fusion project

Hydrogen storage

1. July 7, 2011 - Rhodium-iron catalyst helps increase yield of hydrogen gas in steam reforming of ethanol

Photonic chips

1. July 10, 2011 - In a major breakthrough, scientists control light propagation in photonic chips - also here

Life sciences

1000 Genomes Project

1. July 4, 2011 - Roots of Disease Found to Vary by Continent

Eye development

1. July 4, 2011 - Insights into the story of the eye

MicroRNA and muscle development

1. July 4, 2011 - Crucial role for molecule in muscle development

Small nucleolar RNA and lipotoxicity

1. July 5, 2011 - (Cellular) Death by Chocolate
2. July 5, 2011 - RNAs regulate cell death
3. July 5, 2011 - Surprising culprits behind cell death from fat and sugar overload

Cell movement in response to chemoattractants

1. July 5, 2011 - The forces of attraction: How cells change direction

Chaperones and membrane proteins

1. July 5, 2011 - A chaperone system guides tail-anchored membrane proteins to their destined membrane

Centromeres

1. July 5, 2011 - Kinetochores prefer the 'silent' DNA sections of the chromosome

Post-translational remodeling of mRNA and aging in C. elegans

1. July 5, 2011 - Researchers flip the switch between development and aging in C. elegans

Ancient photosynthesis

1. July 6, 2011 - Calcified clue to ancient photosynthesis

Synthetic biology

1. July 6, 2011 - Toward a new DNA: thymine out, chlorouracil in

Archaea

1. July 6, 2011 - Old life capable of revealing new tricks after all

Pin1 and mitosis

1. July 6, 2011 - Researchers closer to understanding cell-division gatekeeper enzyme

Chromosome size across species

1. July 6, 2011 - Discovering the bigger picture in chromosomes

Jaw designs

1. July 6, 2011 - Vertebrate jaw design locked 400 million years ago - also here
2. July 6, 2011 - Jaws did not dominate early oceans
3. July 7, 2011 - Vertebrate jaw design locked down early
4. July 7, 2011 - Jaw design 'locked in' 400 million years ago

Cell reprogramming

1. July 6, 2011 - Brain cells made from skin could treat Parkinson's
2. July 8, 2011 - Researchers reprogram brain cells to become heart cells

Swi2/Snf2 remodelers and gene transcription

1. July 7, 2011 - The turn of the corkscrew: Structural analysis uncovers mechanisms of gene expression

Endocytosis

1. July 7, 2011 - Endocytosis is simpler than suspected

Sexual reproduction

1. July 7, 2011 - Sexual reproduction works thanks to ever-evolving host, parasite relationships: study
2. July 7, 2011 - Researcher argues that sex reduces genetic variation
3. July 9, 2011 - 1.5 million sexless years no good for stick insects
4. July 12, 2011 - Sex and the Red Queen hypothesis

Cyanobacteria

1. July 7, 2011 - Getting to know bacteria with 'multiple personalities'

Neuroscience, psychology, and behavior

Dietary fats, endocannabinoids, and appetite

1. July 4, 2011 - Endocannabinoids, body's natural marijuana-like chemicals, make fatty foods difficult to resist - also here
2. July 5, 2011 - Stoner alert: McDonald's gets you legally high
3. July 6, 2011 - Human gut tells brain to overeat fatty foods
4. July 8, 2011 - Fats stimulate binge eating

Autism

1. July 4, 2011 - Exposure to certain antidepressants in pregnancy may modestly increase risk of autism spectrum disorders
2. July 4, 2011 - Balance tips toward environment as heritability ebbs in autism?
3. July 4, 2011 - New Study Implicates Environmental Factors in Autism
4. July 4, 2011 - Fraternal twins with autism: Is risk in the womb? - also here
5. July 5, 2011 - Autism study downplays role of genetics
6. July 5, 2011 - UCSF, Stanford autism study shows surprises
7. July 7, 2011 - Environment blamed for autism
8. July 7, 2011 - Autism Study Criticized
9. July 7, 2011 - Environment plays a big part in autism
10. July 8, 2011 - New information revealed about a protein implicated in autism and similar disorders; could lead to better drug design

Brain-imaging studies

1. July 5, 2011 - Shrinking brain could aid diagnosis of clinical depression
2. July 6, 2011 - Beauty is in the medial orbito-frontal cortex of the beholder, study finds
3. July 6, 2011 - Beauty is in the brain of the beholder
4. July 7, 2011 - How the brain processes humour helps us understand emotions felt by vegetative state patients

Intentional forgetting

1. July 5, 2011 - New research shows that we control our forgetfulness - also here

Self-awareness in monkeys

1. July 5, 2011 - Rhesus monkeys have a form of self awareness not previously attributed to them - also here, here

Biological motion perception

1. July 6, 2011 - Up, down, right, left -- how visual cues help us understand bodily motion - also here

Information flow in the embryonic visual cortex

1. July 6, 2011 - Scientists make brain signal discovery

FOXP2 and neural development

1. July 7, 2011 - 'Language Protein' May Help Build Brain Circuits
2. July 7, 2011 - A gene implicated in speech regulates connectivity of the developing brain
3. July 8, 2011 - Speech gene has say in brain connections

Brain simulation

1. July 7, 2011 - Chips hold the key to understanding the human brain

Memory inhibition by ethanol

1. July 7, 2011 - The biology behind alcohol-induced blackouts - also here

Memory

1. July 8, 2011 - Gene study offers clues on memory puzzle
2. July 8, 2011 - How memory is read out in the brain: MB-V2 nerve cells enable the read-out of associative memories
3. July 8, 2011 - Study demonstrates how memory can be preserved -- and forgetting prevented

Neural signal processing

1. July 8, 2011 - Scientists discover how best to excite brain cells

Schizophrenia

1. July 10, 2011 - De novo mutations provide new genetic clues for schizophrenia

Health and medicine

Malaria

1. July 4, 2011 - Malarial whodunit continues as study implicates
2. July 6, 2011 - Simple rapid diagnostic tests for malaria work well

Multiple sclerosis

1. July 4, 2011 - New Target for Myelin Repair
2. July 6, 2011 - Study: Breastfeeding does not protect against MS relapses
3. July 8, 2011 - Common cough medicine may help treat multiple sclerosis

Drug delivery

1. July 4, 2011 - DNA cages 'can survive inside living cells'
2. July 6, 2011 - Unique gel capsule structure enables co-delivery of different types of drugs

Autoimmune disease

1. July 4, 2011 - Why do women suffer autoimmune diseases more often?
2. July 6, 2011 - Multi-layered armor protects body against immune failure
3. July 10, 2011 - Scientists unlock genetics of joint disorder ankylosing spondylitis
4. July 10, 2011 - Genetic study sheds new light on auto-immune arthritis

Obesity and inflammation

1. July 4, 2011 - Study shows answers for treating obesity-related diseases may reside in fat tissue

Cardiovascular disease

1. July 4, 2011 - Common painkillers linked to irregular heart rhythm: study
2. July 5, 2011 - Satisfaction with the components of everyday life appears protective against heart disease
3. July 5, 2011 - Higher daily dose of aspirin could play key role in preventing heart attacks for those with diabetes
4. July 5, 2011 - Healthy lifestyle associated with low risk of sudden cardiac death in women
5. July 6, 2011 - Review adds salt to a familiar concern
6. July 6, 2011 - Salt-heart disease link questioned
7. July 6, 2011 - Cutting down on salt doesn't reduce your chance of dying
8. July 6, 2011 - Reducing salt doesn't lower risk: study
9. July 6, 2011 - Review raises questions over benefits of cutting salt
10. July 7, 2011 - Not Salt's Fault?
11. July 8, 2011 - Green tea reduces cholesterol risk

Cancer

1. July 5, 2011 - Searching For Fractals May Help Cancer Cell Testing - also here
2. July 5, 2011 - Research in fish provides new clues about deadly form of liver cancer
3. July 5, 2011 - PET scan with [11C]erlotinib may provide noninvasive method to identify TKI-responsive lung tumors
4. July 5, 2011 - ALK rearrangement found in nearly 10 percent of patients in Lung Cancer Mutation Consortium
5. July 5, 2011 - Lung tumors in never-smokers show greater genomic instability than those in smokers
6. July 5, 2011 - High EGFR expression a predictor for improved survival with cetuximab plus chemotherapy
7. July 5, 2011 - EURTAC Phase III study: Erlotinib nearly doubles progression-free survival vs. chemotherapy
8. July 5, 2011 - High folate intake may reduce risk of colorectal cancer
9. July 5, 2011 - No link found between cured meat and pancreatic cancer
10. July 5, 2011 - Researchers characterize biomechanics of ovarian cells according to phenotype at stages of cancer
11. July 6, 2011 - Celecoxib may prevent lung cancer in former smokers
12. July 6, 2011 - Combining therapies appears safe, may benefit patients with advanced liver cancer
13. July 6, 2011 - Elderly Dutch lung patients' survival improved by new treatment options between 2003-2009
14. July 6, 2011 - Researchers link genetic marker to rectal cancer treatment
15. July 6, 2011 - Transcription factor is potential target for liver cancer treatment
16. July 6, 2011 - Colorectal cancer screenings making a difference, CDC says
17. July 7, 2011 - TGen presents lung cancer studies at Amsterdam conference
18. July 7, 2011 - Amrubicin improved response rate and progression-free survival vs. topotecan in Phase III trial
19. July 7, 2011 - Leukemia And Lymphoma Breakthrough: Half-Matched Transplants May Mean Donors For All
20. July 8, 2011 - Can gel shrink some cancer tumors?
21. July 8, 2011 - Pinpointing a tell-tale mark of liver cancer
22. July 8, 2011 - Targeted agent addition to herceptin has positive effect on metastatic HER-2 breast cancer

Cancer biology

1. July 5, 2011 - Metabolic shift may offer early cancer clue
2. July 6, 2011 - First whole-genome lung cancer study set for conference
3. July 6, 2011 - What causes brain cancer? Understanding glioblastoma at the genetic, molecular level
4. July 7, 2011 - Scientists find 'brake-override' proteins that enable development of some cancers
5. July 7, 2011 - Cellular origin of deadly brain cancer is identified - also here

Antioxidants

1. July 5, 2011 - Eggs may help prevent heart disease and cancer

Nanobiotechnology

1. July 5, 2011 - Talk softly but carry a tiny stick: Stroke prevention and recovery with nanotube-delivered siRNA
2. July 6, 2011 - Just add water and treat brain cancer
3. July 7, 2011 - Gold nanoparticles bring scientists closer to a treatment for cancer

Thiazolidinedione drungs and adipose stem cells

1. July 5, 2011 - Diabetes drug side effects traced to fat action

Conversion of white fat to brown fat, obesity, and diabetes

1. July 5, 2011 - Findings in mice have potential to curb obesity, Type 2 diabetes

Tissue engineering

1. July 5, 2011 - Researchers engineer functioning small intestine in laboratory experiments
2. July 6, 2011 - Lab Builds a Fully Functioning Artificial Small Intestine

Reactive oxygen species and tumorigenesis

1. July 6, 2011 - Radical Reversal
2. July 6, 2011 - 'Detox protein' is collaborator in pancreatic and lung cancer development
3. July 6, 2011 - Natural antioxidants could scupper tumour's detox

Gene therapy

1. July 6, 2011 - Gene therapy stimulates protein that blocks immune attack and prevents Type 1 diabetes in mice

Sunburn and inflammation

1. July 6, 2011 - Discovery of why sunburn hurts could lead to new pain relief for inflammatory conditions
2. July 6, 2011 - Sunburn pain-controlling molecule discovered
3. July 6, 2011 - Pain molecule find could take the sting out of sunburn
4. July 7, 2011 - Sunburn offers clues for managing pain

Tuberculosis

1. July 6, 2011 - Combination therapy as good as old regimen to prevent full-blown TB in people with/without HIV

Synthetic organs

1. July 7, 2011 - Surgeons carry out first synthetic windpipe transplant
2. July 7, 2011 - Man gets transplanted windpipe grown from stem cells - also here
3. July 7, 2011 - Cancer patient receives first synthetic organ transplant
4. July 8, 2011 - What's new about new synthetic organs?
5. July 8, 2011 - Synthetic Organ Transplant Success
6. July 8, 2011 - First successful transplantation of a lab-grown windpipe
7. July 8, 2011 - Man receives world's first synthetic windpipe
8. July 8, 2011 - Patient gets world's first artificial trachea
9. July 8, 2011 - Lab-Made Trachea Saves Man
10. July 11, 2011 - Man's New Windpipe is the World's First Synthetic Organ Transplant

Antibiotics

1. July 7, 2011 - Targeting antibiotic resistant bacteria - also here

Stem cells

1. July 7, 2011 - Scientists devise way to sort brain cells for potential transplants
2. July 7, 2011 - Stem cells know where they want to go
3. July 7, 2011 - A drugstore within: Mesenchymal stem cells protect and heal
4. July 7, 2011 - Groundbreaking research uses stem cells to relieve mouth, face pain
5. July 7, 2011 - 'Pure' human blood stem-cell discovery opens door to expanding cells for more clinical use
6. July 7, 2011 - Stem cell injections may offer hope to patients with no other options
7. July 7, 2011 - Found: the mother of all blood cells
8. July 8, 2011 - Single stem cell capable of regenerating the entire blood system found

Stem cells and cancer

1. July 7, 2011 - To combat deadly brain cancer, target the stem cells

Universal influenza vaccine

1. July 7, 2011 - Universal flu vaccine a step closer thanks to discovery of natural antibody

AIDS

1. July 8, 2011 - Entry prohibited for AIDS viruses: Peptide triazole inhibitors disrupt cell-free HIV-1
2. July 8, 2011 - Drug designer: New tool reveals mutations that cause HIV-drug resistance - also here

Sleep deprivation and weight gain

1. July 8, 2011 - Can too little sleep make you gain weight?

Alzheimer's disease

1. July 9, 2011 - Advances in research into Alzheimer's disease

Copyright © 2011 by Charles Daney, All Rights Reserved