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• Splitting the Unsplittable: An atom split using quantum mechanics precision
• New coating for pancreatic islets may offer new hope for diabetics
• Practical tool can 'take pulse' of blue-green algae status in lakes
• How religion promotes confidence about paternity
• Antidepressant helps relieve pain from chemotherapy, study finds
• The Mysterious Arc of Venus
• Differences Between Westerners and East Asians Extend to Pictures on Popular Social Networking Site
• Giant Black Hole Kicked Out of Home Galaxy
• High blood caffeine levels in older adults linked to avoidance of Alzheimer's disease
• New Immune Therapy Shows Promise In Kidney Cancer
• New breast cancer drug halts tumor growth better than standard therapy
• Physicists Close in on a Rare Particle-Decay Process
• Wallflowers of the Earth system

Splitting the Unsplittable: An atom split using quantum mechanics precision Posted: 05 Jun 2012 06:49 AM PDT Researchers from the University of Bonn have just shown how a single atom can be split into its two halves, pulled apart and put back together again. While the word "atom" literally means "indivisible," the laws of quantum mechanics allow dividing atoms - similarly to light rays - and reuniting them. The researchers want to build quantum mechanics bridges by letting the atom touch adjacent atoms while it is being pulled apart so that it works like a bridge span between two pillars. read more

New coating for pancreatic islets may offer new hope for diabetics Posted: 05 Jun 2012 04:58 AM PDT A novel type of multi-functional, cyto-protective material developed by University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers allows pancreatic islets in mice and humans to maintain viability and β-cell functionality for at least 96 hours in vitro. The ultrathin polymeric coating, based on hydrogen-bonded polyphenol, also demonstrates the ability to modulate pro-inflammatory cytokine synthesis, according to a study published in the online edition of Advanced Functional Materials. read more

Practical tool can 'take pulse' of blue-green algae status in lakes Posted: 04 Jun 2012 04:01 PM PDT Scientists have designed a screening tool that provides a fast, easy and relatively inexpensive way to predict levels of a specific toxin in lakes that are prone to blue-green algal blooms. read more

How religion promotes confidence about paternity Posted: 04 Jun 2012 02:22 PM PDT Religious practices that strongly control female sexuality are more successful at promoting certainty about paternity, according to a study published in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study analyzed genetic data on 1,706 father-son pairs in a traditional African population—the Dogon people of Mali, West Africa—in which Islam, two types of Christianity, and an indigenous, monotheistic religion are practiced in the same families and villages. read more

Antidepressant helps relieve pain from chemotherapy, study finds Posted: 04 Jun 2012 02:15 PM PDT The antidepressant drug duloxetine, known commercially as Cymbalta, helped relieve painful tingling feelings caused by chemotherapy in 59 percent of patients, a new study finds. This is the first clinical trial to find an effective treatment for this pain. read more

The Mysterious Arc of Venus Posted: 04 Jun 2012 02:09 PM PDT When Venus transits the sun on June 5th and 6th, an armada of spacecraft and ground-based telescopes will be on the lookout for something elusive and, until recently, unexpected: The Arc of Venus. "I was flabbergasted when I first saw it during the 2004 transit," recalls astronomy professor Jay Pasachoff of Williams College. "A bright, glowing rim appeared around the edge of Venus soon after it began to move into the sun." For a brief instant, the planet had turned into a "ring of fire." read more

Differences Between Westerners and East Asians Extend to Pictures on Popular Social Networking Site Posted: 04 Jun 2012 12:54 PM PDT For millions of Facebook users, choosing which photo to use for an online profile is an important decision. Should it be lighthearted or professional, personal or more abstract? According to a study by researchers at the UT Dallas Center for Vital Longevity and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the photos we select may reflect individual preferences, but they also appear to reflect more deeply rooted, unconscious cultural differences. read more

Giant Black Hole Kicked Out of Home Galaxy Posted: 04 Jun 2012 12:46 PM PDT Astronomers have found strong evidence that a massive black hole is being ejected from its host galaxy at a speed of several million miles per hour. New observations from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory suggest that the black hole collided and merged with another black hole and received a powerful recoil kick from gravitational wave radiation. read more

High blood caffeine levels in older adults linked to avoidance of Alzheimer's disease Posted: 04 Jun 2012 12:40 PM PDT Those cups of coffee that you drink every day to keep alert appear to have an extra perk – especially if you're an older adult. A recent study monitoring the memory and thinking processes of people older than 65 found that all those with higher blood caffeine levels avoided the onset of Alzheimer's disease in the two-to-four years of study follow-up. Moreover, coffee appeared to be the major or only source of caffeine for these individuals. read more

New Immune Therapy Shows Promise In Kidney Cancer Posted: 04 Jun 2012 12:36 PM PDT An antibody that helps a person’s own immune system battle cancer cells shows increasing promise in reducing tumors in patients with advanced kidney cancer, according to researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. read more

New breast cancer drug halts tumor growth better than standard therapy Posted: 04 Jun 2012 12:19 PM PDT A new cancer treatment that links chemotherapy with an agent that homes in on specific breast cancer cells was significantly better than the current drug regimen at keeping patients' advanced tumors from progressing, according to results from a Phase III clinical trial led by Kimberly Blackwell, M.D., of the Duke Cancer Institute. Participants with invasive breast cancer who took the investigational drug, called trastuzumab emtansine, or T-DM1, also had fewer and less harsh side effects than study participants who received a standard treatment. read more

Physicists Close in on a Rare Particle-Decay Process Posted: 04 Jun 2012 12:05 PM PDT In the biggest result of its kind in more than ten years, physicists have made the most sensitive measurements yet in a decades-long hunt for a hypothetical and rare process involving the radioactive decay of atomic nuclei. If discovered, the researchers say, this process could have profound implications for how scientists understand the fundamental laws of physics and help solve some of the universe's biggest mysteries—including why there is more matter than antimatter and, therefore, why regular matter like planets, stars, and humans exists at all. read more

Wallflowers of the Earth system Posted: 04 Jun 2012 08:40 AM PDT In cities, the presence of algae, lichens, and mosses is not considered desirable and they are often removed from roofs and walls. It is, however, totally unfair to consider these cryptogamic covers, as the flat growths are referred to in scientific terms, just a nuisance. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry have discovered that these mostly inconspicuous looking growths take up huge amounts of atmospheric carbon dioxide and nitrogen and fix it at the earth’s surface. read more

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