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Is it Bell's palsy or a stroke? Emergency physicians have the answer
Scientists identify key to learning new words
Study suggests some chronic fatigue syndrome patients may benefit from anti-herpesvirus drug treatment
Neuroscientists plant false memories in the brain
Study finds behavior of the turbulent flow of superfluids is opposite that of ordinary fluids
Effect of obesity on patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer
Novel 'top-down' mechanism repatterns developing brain regions
New Study Refutes Existence and Clinical Potential of Very Small Embryonic-Like Stem Cells
Researchers Get Better Metrics on Laser Potential of Key Material
New nuclear fuel-rod cladding could lead to safer power plants

Is it Bell's palsy or a stroke? Emergency physicians have the answer

Posted: 26 Jul 2013 06:57 AM PDT

Emergency physicians correctly identified nearly 100 percent of patients with Bell's palsy, the symptoms of which are nearly identical to potentially life-threatening diseases such as stroke and brain tumors. The results of a study of 6 years of California patient records were published online yesterday in Annals of Emergency Medicine ("Potential Misdiagnoses of Bell's Palsy in the Emergency Department").

Scientists identify key to learning new words

Posted: 26 Jul 2013 06:46 AM PDT

For the first time scientists have identified how a pathway in the brain which is unique to humans allows us to learn new words.

The average adult's vocabulary consists of about 30,000 words. This ability seems unique to humans as even the species closest to us - chimps - manage to learn no more than 100.

Study suggests some chronic fatigue syndrome patients may benefit from anti-herpesvirus drug treatment

Posted: 26 Jul 2013 06:40 AM PDT

Many experts believe that chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) has several root causes including some viruses. Now, lead scientists Shara Pantry, Maria Medveczky and Peter Medveczky of the University of South Florida’s Morsani College of Medicine, along with the help of several collaborating scientists and clinicians, have published an article in the Journal of Medical Virology suggesting that a common virus, Human Herpesvirus 6 (HHV-6), is the possible cause of some CFS cases.

Neuroscientists plant false memories in the brain

Posted: 25 Jul 2013 12:10 PM PDT

The phenomenon of false memory has been well-documented: In many court cases, defendants have been found guilty based on testimony from witnesses and victims who were sure of their recollections, but DNA evidence later overturned the conviction.

In a step toward understanding how these faulty memories arise, MIT neuroscientists have shown that they can plant false memories in the brains of mice. They also found that many of the neurological traces of these memories are identical in nature to those of authentic memories.

Study finds behavior of the turbulent flow of superfluids is opposite that of ordinary fluids

Posted: 25 Jul 2013 11:59 AM PDT

A superfluid moves like a completely frictionless liquid, seemingly able to propel itself without any hindrance from gravity or surface tension. The physics underlying these materials — which appear to defy the conventional laws of physics — has fascinated scientists for decades.

Effect of obesity on patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer

Posted: 25 Jul 2013 11:50 AM PDT

Obesity increases health risks for many things. Researchers wanted to know the impact of obesity on outcomes of patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer. In the September issue of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer’s journal, the Journal of Thoracic Oncology (JTO), researchers conclude that obese patients had superior outcomes early on in the study, but then experienced increased hazards.

Novel 'top-down' mechanism repatterns developing brain regions

Posted: 25 Jul 2013 10:05 AM PDT

Dennis O'Leary of the Salk Institute was the first scientist to show that the basic functional architecture of the cortex, the largest part of the human brain, was genetically determined during development. But as it so often does in science, answering one question opened up many others. O'Leary wondered what if the layout of the cortex wasn't fixed? What would happen if it were changed?

New Study Refutes Existence and Clinical Potential of Very Small Embryonic-Like Stem Cells

Posted: 25 Jul 2013 09:52 AM PDT

Scientists have reported that very small embryonic-like stem cells (VSELs), which can be isolated from blood or bone marrow rather than embryos, could represent an alternative to mouse and human embryonic stem cells for research and medicine. But their very existence is hotly debated, and a study appearing online on July 24th in the ISSCR's journal Stem Cell Reports, published by Cell Press, provides strong evidence against the existence of VSELs capable of turning into different cell types.

Researchers Get Better Metrics on Laser Potential of Key Material

Posted: 25 Jul 2013 09:44 AM PDT

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed more accurate measurements of how efficiently a polymer called MEH-PPV amplifies light, which should advance efforts to develop a new generation of lasers and photonic devices.

New nuclear fuel-rod cladding could lead to safer power plants

Posted: 25 Jul 2013 07:22 AM PDT

In the aftermath of Japan’s earthquake and tsunami in March 2011, the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant was initially driven into shutdown by the magnitude 9.0 quake; its emergency generators then failed because they were inundated by the tsunami. But the greatest damage to the complex, and the greatest release of radiation, may have been caused by explosions of hydrogen gas that built up inside some of the reactors.