Science News SciGuru.com

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• The New Species of Borneo’s Enigmatic Primate with a Toxic Bite Discovered
• Origin of life emerged from cell membrane bioenergetics
• MRI Can Screen Patients for Alzheimer's Disease or Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration, Using Penn-designed Model
• Scientists help explain scarcity of anti-matter

The New Species of Borneo’s Enigmatic Primate with a Toxic Bite Discovered Posted: 31 Dec 2012 06:52 AM PST An international team of scientists studying the elusive nocturnal primate the slow loris in the jungles of Borneo have discovered an entirely new species. The team’s analysis of the primate’s distinctive facial fur markings, published in the American Journal of Primatology, reveals the existence of one entirely new species, while two species, previously considered as possible sub-species, are being officially recognized as unique. read more

Origin of life emerged from cell membrane bioenergetics Posted: 30 Dec 2012 06:09 PM PST A coherent pathway which starts from no more than rocks, water and carbon dioxide and leads to the emergence of the strange bioenergetic properties of living cells, has been traced for the first time in a major hypothesis paper in Cell this week. At the origin of life the first protocells must have needed a vast amount of energy to drive their metabolism and replication, as enzymes that catalyse very specific reactions were yet to evolve. Most energy flux must have simply dissipated without use. read more

MRI Can Screen Patients for Alzheimer's Disease or Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration, Using Penn-designed Model Posted: 30 Dec 2012 05:58 PM PST When trying to determine the root cause of a person's dementia, using an MRI can effectively and non-invasively screen patients for Alzheimer's disease or Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration (FTLD), according to a new study by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Using an MRI-based algorithm effectively differentiated cases 75 percent of the time, according to the study, published in the December 26th, 2012, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. read more

Scientists help explain scarcity of anti-matter Posted: 30 Dec 2012 05:50 PM PST A collaboration with major participation by physicists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison has made a precise measurement of elusive, nearly massless particles, and obtained a crucial hint as to why the universe is dominated by matter, not by its close relative, anti-matter. The particles, called anti-neutrinos, were detected at the underground Daya Bay experiment, located near a nuclear reactor in China, 55 kilometers north of Hong Kong. read more

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Newsletter for Monday 31 December

 

 

TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY

NEWSLETTER - DECEMBER 31

Before you look at today's web page, see if you can answer some of these questions about the events that happened on this day. Some of the names are very familiar. Others will likely stump you. Tickle your curiosity with these questions, then check your answers on today's web page.

On 31 Dec, the year ends and it's a good time to look at a selection of notable articles from the past twelve months. Today's Science Store pick is The Best American Science Writing 2007, by Gina Kolata and Jesse Cohen. Similar books include: The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2007 The Best of Technology Writing 2007 Science Magazine's State of the Planet 2006-2007  State of the Universe 2007: New Images, Discoveries, and Events Yesterday's pick: Global Warming, The Complete Briefing. For picks from earlier newsletters, see the Today in Science Science Store home page.

Quotations for Today

(The five-ton  IBM Mark I computer of 1943 sounded "...like a roomful of ladies knitting." - Jeremy Bernstein, American physicist and writer (born 1929) (On our difficulty in completely understanding the Maya) "It is, perhaps, as irrational to expect a satisfactory penetration of the mystic and emotional aura of the Maya philosophy of time by a creature of the twentieth-century Western culture as it is to hope for a balanced, sympathetic and understanding study of the ecstasy of St. Francis from the pen of a militant atheist of our materialistic age. Our outlooks are too far from those of the Maya and, on top of that terrible handicap, there are so many aspects of the problem which are imperfectly known or completely unknown to us. The atheistic student of St. Francis has at his disposal incomparably richer sources than we can ever dream of having." Sir Eric Thompson, English ethanographer (born 31 Dec 1898) "The road to medical knowledge is through the pathological museum and not through an apothecary's shop." - William Withey Gull, English physician (born 31 Dec 1816)

QUIZ

Births

Robert Grant Aitken, born 31 Dec 1864, was an American astronomer who specialized in the study of certain stars, of which he discovered more than 3,000. He worked at the Lick Observatory from 1895 to 1935, becoming director from 1930. What type of stars did he systematically survey?

A Flemish anatomist, born 31 Dec 1514, was a university teacher who insisted on conducting detailed dissections on human cadavers personally. His De humani corporis fabrica (On the structure of the human body) provided detailed information for anatomists. He was the teacher of Gabriel Fallopius, who in turn tutored Hieronymous Fabricius, who then taught William Harvey. This lineage made the most dramatic reassessment of the anatomy and function of the human body that had occurred for centuries, and thus can be said to have started the modern science of medicine. Can you name this anatomist?

Deaths

An English astronomer (1646-1719) established the Greenwich Observatory and was appointed the first Astronomer Royal (1675-1719). He was devoted to astronomical measurement, with the task of accurately providing the positions of stars for use in navigation. Can you name the first Astronomer Royal?

Events

On 31 Dec of a certain year, the "drunkometer," the first breath test for car drivers, invented by Dr Rolla N. Harger of Indiana University School of Medicine, was officially introduced in Indianapolis. It was the first successful machine for testing human blood alcohol content by breath analysis. In what decade was the drunkometer introduced?

On 31 Dec 1911, a scientist received her second Nobel prize. Can you name this scientist?

Answers

When you have your answers ready to all the questions above, you'll find all the information to check them, and more, on the December 31 web page of Today in Science History. Or, try this link first for just the brief answers.

Fast answers for the previous newsletter for December 30:  Coca-Cola®; Robert Boyle; blue moon; tungsten.

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ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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NOAA lists ringed and bearded ice seal populations under the Endangered Species Act Posted: 30 Dec 2012 03:08 PM PST NOAA Fisheries has announced its final listing decision for four subspecies of ringed seals and two distinct population segments (DPSs) of bearded seals under the Endangered Species Act. Specifically, in line with the proposal, NOAA will list as threatened the Beringia and Okhotsk DPSs of bearded seals and the Arctic, Okhotsk, and Baltic subspecies of ringed seals. The Ladoga subspecies of ringed seals will be listed as endangered. The species that exist in U.S. waters (Arctic ringed seals and the Beringia DPS of bearded seals) are already protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Scientists challenge current theories about natural habitats and species diversity Posted: 30 Dec 2012 11:30 AM PST How can a square meter of meadow contain tens of species of plants? And what factors determine the number of species that live in an ecosystem? This has been selected as one of the 25 most important unresolved questions in science, both for its importance in understanding nature and due to the value of natural ecosystems for humankind. The value of goods and services provided by natural ecosystems is estimated to exceed the GDP of our planet.

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ScienceDaily: Top Health News

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Rare genetic faults identified in families with bowel cancer Posted: 30 Dec 2012 02:59 PM PST Rare DNA faults in two genes have been strongly linked to bowel cancer by researchers, who sequenced the genomes of people from families with a strong history of developing the disease.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top Health News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
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ScienceDaily: Most Popular News

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• NOAA lists ringed and bearded ice seal populations under the Endangered Species Act
• Rare genetic faults identified in families with bowel cancer
• Teenagers without Internet access at home are educationally disadvantaged, UK study suggests
• Scientists challenge current theories about natural habitats and species diversity

NOAA lists ringed and bearded ice seal populations under the Endangered Species Act Posted: 30 Dec 2012 03:08 PM PST NOAA Fisheries has announced its final listing decision for four subspecies of ringed seals and two distinct population segments (DPSs) of bearded seals under the Endangered Species Act. Specifically, in line with the proposal, NOAA will list as threatened the Beringia and Okhotsk DPSs of bearded seals and the Arctic, Okhotsk, and Baltic subspecies of ringed seals. The Ladoga subspecies of ringed seals will be listed as endangered. The species that exist in U.S. waters (Arctic ringed seals and the Beringia DPS of bearded seals) are already protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Rare genetic faults identified in families with bowel cancer Posted: 30 Dec 2012 02:59 PM PST Rare DNA faults in two genes have been strongly linked to bowel cancer by researchers, who sequenced the genomes of people from families with a strong history of developing the disease.

Teenagers without Internet access at home are educationally disadvantaged, UK study suggests Posted: 30 Dec 2012 02:56 PM PST A major in-depth study examining how teenagers in the UK are using the internet and other mobile devices says the benefits of using such technologies far outweigh any perceived risks.

Scientists challenge current theories about natural habitats and species diversity Posted: 30 Dec 2012 11:30 AM PST How can a square meter of meadow contain tens of species of plants? And what factors determine the number of species that live in an ecosystem? This has been selected as one of the 25 most important unresolved questions in science, both for its importance in understanding nature and due to the value of natural ecosystems for humankind. The value of goods and services provided by natural ecosystems is estimated to exceed the GDP of our planet.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Most Popular News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

ScienceDaily: Top Science News

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NOAA lists ringed and bearded ice seal populations under the Endangered Species Act Posted: 30 Dec 2012 03:08 PM PST NOAA Fisheries has announced its final listing decision for four subspecies of ringed seals and two distinct population segments (DPSs) of bearded seals under the Endangered Species Act. Specifically, in line with the proposal, NOAA will list as threatened the Beringia and Okhotsk DPSs of bearded seals and the Arctic, Okhotsk, and Baltic subspecies of ringed seals. The Ladoga subspecies of ringed seals will be listed as endangered. The species that exist in U.S. waters (Arctic ringed seals and the Beringia DPS of bearded seals) are already protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top Science News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

ScienceDaily: Living Well News

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Teenagers without Internet access at home are educationally disadvantaged, UK study suggests Posted: 30 Dec 2012 02:56 PM PST A major in-depth study examining how teenagers in the UK are using the internet and other mobile devices says the benefits of using such technologies far outweigh any perceived risks.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Living Well News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610

ScienceDaily: Top News

---

• NOAA lists ringed and bearded ice seal populations under the Endangered Species Act
• Rare genetic faults identified in families with bowel cancer
• Scientists challenge current theories about natural habitats and species diversity

NOAA lists ringed and bearded ice seal populations under the Endangered Species Act Posted: 30 Dec 2012 03:08 PM PST NOAA Fisheries has announced its final listing decision for four subspecies of ringed seals and two distinct population segments (DPSs) of bearded seals under the Endangered Species Act. Specifically, in line with the proposal, NOAA will list as threatened the Beringia and Okhotsk DPSs of bearded seals and the Arctic, Okhotsk, and Baltic subspecies of ringed seals. The Ladoga subspecies of ringed seals will be listed as endangered. The species that exist in U.S. waters (Arctic ringed seals and the Beringia DPS of bearded seals) are already protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Rare genetic faults identified in families with bowel cancer Posted: 30 Dec 2012 02:59 PM PST Rare DNA faults in two genes have been strongly linked to bowel cancer by researchers, who sequenced the genomes of people from families with a strong history of developing the disease.

Scientists challenge current theories about natural habitats and species diversity Posted: 30 Dec 2012 11:30 AM PST How can a square meter of meadow contain tens of species of plants? And what factors determine the number of species that live in an ecosystem? This has been selected as one of the 25 most important unresolved questions in science, both for its importance in understanding nature and due to the value of natural ecosystems for humankind. The value of goods and services provided by natural ecosystems is estimated to exceed the GDP of our planet.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610