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Plastics in electrical waste: disposal or recycling?
Vector of Schmallenberg virus identified
Agreement of Alcohol Use Among Roommates
A wandering mind reveals mental processes and priorities
Disabling cancer cells' defenses against radiation
Researchers develop graphene supercapacitor holding promise for portable electronics
Suppressing Feelings of Compassion Makes People Feel Less Moral
Rising ocean temperatures harm protected coral reefs
Blood Vessel Disease of Retina May be Marker of Cognitive Decline
Pleurectomy/decortication proposed preferred surgical procedure

Plastics in electrical waste: disposal or recycling?

Posted: 16 Mar 2012 06:57 AM PDT

Every year, the editors of the scientific journal "Environmental Science & Technology", select the best papers among their peer-reviewed contributions, which numbered more than 1500 in 2011 alone. This year, a contribution by Empa researchers has been awarded the title "Best Paper" in the Policy Analysis category. The scientists studied the proportion of restricted substances found in plastic components from waste electrical and electronic equipment.

Vector of Schmallenberg virus identified

Posted: 16 Mar 2012 06:49 AM PDT

Belgian scientists have found out how the infamous Schmallenberg virus is transmitted from animal to animal. The culprits are biting midges, the same that transmit bluetongue in Europe. This was proven in a joint effort by researchers from the Antwerp institute of Tropical Medicine (ITG) and the Belgian Veterinary and Agrochemical Research Centre (VAR).

Agreement of Alcohol Use Among Roommates

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 06:27 PM PDT

In case you missed it, the cameras were rolling at the APS 23rd Annual Convention in Washington, DC. Watch Grace Jackson from New York University present her poster session research on “Agreement of Alcohol Use: A Year-Long Study of College Roommates.”

A wandering mind reveals mental processes and priorities

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 01:17 PM PDT

Odds are, you're not going to make it all the way through this article without thinking about something else.

In fact, studies have found that our minds are wandering half the time, drifting off to thoughts unrelated to what we're doing — did I remember to turn off the light? What should I have for dinner?

A new study investigating the mental processes underlying a wandering mind reports a role for working memory, a sort of a mental workspace that allows you to juggle multiple thoughts simultaneously.

Disabling cancer cells' defenses against radiation

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 12:54 PM PDT

Researchers at Winship Cancer Institute are developing a technique to remove cancer cells' defenses against radiation. Radiation primarily kills cells by inducing DNA damage, so the aim of the technique is to sensitize cells to radiation by disabling their ability to repair DNA. The technique sneaks RNA molecules into cells that shut down genes needed for DNA repair.

The still-experimental method could potentially allow oncologists to enhance the tumor-killing effects of radiation, while using lower doses and reducing damage to healthy tissues.

Researchers develop graphene supercapacitor holding promise for portable electronics

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 12:42 PM PDT

Electrochemical capacitors (ECs), also known as supercapacitors or ultracapacitors, differ from regular capacitors that you would find in your TV or computer in that they store sustantially higher amounts of charges.

Suppressing Feelings of Compassion Makes People Feel Less Moral

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 09:50 AM PDT

It’s normal to not always act on your sense of compassion—for example, by walking past a beggar on the street without giving them any money. Maybe you want to save your money or avoid engaging with a homeless person. But even if suppressing compassion avoids these costs, it may carry a personal cost of its own, according to a new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. After people suppress compassionate feelings, an experiment shows, they lose a bit of their commitment to morality.

Rising ocean temperatures harm protected coral reefs

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 09:41 AM PDT

Special conservation zones known as marine protected areas provide many direct benefits to fisheries and coral reefs. However, such zones appear to offer limited help to corals in their battle against global warming, according to a new study.

To protect coral reefs from climate change, marine protected areas need to be complemented with policies that can meaningfully reduce greenhouse gas emissions, researchers said.

Blood Vessel Disease of Retina May be Marker of Cognitive Decline

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 09:31 AM PDT

Women 65 or older who have even mild retinopathy, a disease of blood vessels in the retina, are more likely to have cognitive decline and related vascular changes in the brain, according to a multi-institutional study led by scientists at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF).

The findings suggest that a relatively simple eye screening could serve as a marker for cognitive changes related to vascular disease, allowing for early diagnosis and treatment, potentially reducing the progression of cognitive impairment to dementia.

Pleurectomy/decortication proposed preferred surgical procedure

Posted: 15 Mar 2012 09:12 AM PDT

Patients with early stage malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), a cancer that develops in the lining of the lungs, may be eligible for aggressive multi-modality therapy involving surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. There are two main approaches, and controversy has existed about which approach is superior. One is called extrapleural pnemonectomy (EPP), a very extensive surgery where surgeons remove the entire diseased lung, lung lining (pleura), part of the membrane covering the heart (pericardium) and part of the diaphragm.