Τρίτη 31 Δεκεμβρίου 2013

Science News SciGuru.com

Science News SciGuru.com

Link to Science News from SciGuru.com

Study identifies potential new strategy to improve odds of corneal transplant acceptance

Posted: 30 Dec 2013 08:35 AM PST

For the estimated 10 percent of patients whose bodies reject a corneal transplant, the odds of a second transplant succeeding are poor. All that could change, however, based on a UT Southwestern Medical Center study that has found a way to boost the corneal transplant acceptance rate.

read more

ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

ScienceDaily: Latest Science News


'Runaway' mechanism spreads intermediate-depth earthquakes

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:19 PM PST

Researchers find immense heating at high pressures helps spread intermediate-depth quakes.

Newsletter for Tuesday 31 December


TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY
NEWSLETTER - 31 DECEMBER


Book of the Day
A Palette of Particles On 31 Dec 1929, Jeremy Bernstein was born, an American physicist, educator and writer widely known for the clarity of his writing for the lay reader on the major issues of modern physics. He was a staff writer for the New Yorker for over 30 years until 1993. Today's Science Store pick is: A Palette of Particles, by Jeremy Bernstein, published in Apr 2013. From molecules to stars, much of the cosmic canvas can be painted in brushstrokes of primary color: the protons, neutrons, and electrons we know so well. But for meticulous detail, we have to dip into exotic hues—leptons, mesons, hadrons, quarks. Bringing particle physics to life as few authors can, Jeremy Bernstein here unveils nature in all its subatomic splendor.

In this graceful account, Bernstein guides us through high-energy physics from the early twentieth century to the present, including such highlights as the newly discovered Higgs boson. Beginning with Ernest Rutherford’s 1911 explanation of the nucleus. An eyewitness to developments at Harvard University and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, Bernstein laces his story with piquant anecdotes of such luminaries as Wolfgang Pauli, Murray Gell-Mann, and Sheldon Glashow. Bernstein draws readers into the excitement of a field where the more we discover, the less we seem to know. It is available New from $11.32. Used from $7.75. (As of time of writing.).

For picks from earlier newsletters, see the Today in Science History Science Store home page.

Quotations for Today
Thumbnail of Sir William  Withey Gull
The road to a clinic goes through the pathologic museum and not through the apothecary's shop.
- Sir William Withey Gull, English physician (born 31 Dec 1816). quote icon
Thumbnail of Hermann  Boerhaave
For chemistry is no science form'd à priori; 'tis no production of the human mind, framed by reasoning and deduction: it took its rise from a number of experiments casually made, without any expectation of what follow'd; and was only reduced into an art or system, by collecting and comparing the effects of such unpremeditated experiments, and observing the uniform tendency thereof. So far, then, as a number of experimenters agree to establish any undoubted truth; so far they may be consider'd as constituting the theory of chemistry.
- Hermann Boerhaave, Dutch physician, botanist and chemist (born 31 Dec 1668). quote icon
Thumbnail of Sir Charles  Galton Darwin
The evolution of the human race will not be accomplished in the ten thousand years of tame animals, but in the million years of wild animals, because man is, and always will be, a wild animal.
- Sir Charles Galton Darwin, English mathematical physicist (died 31 Dec 1962). quote icon

Quiz
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.
Births
Thumbnail of Robert Grant  Aitken
On 31 Dec 1864, Robert Grant Aitken was born, 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.
question mark icon What type of stars did he systematically survey?
Thumbnail of Andreas  Vesalius
On 31 Dec 1514, a Flemish anatomist was born, 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 taught Gabriel Fallopius, who in turn tutored Hieronymous Fabricius, who then taught William Harvey. This lineage can be said to have started the modern science of medicine.
question mark icon Can you name this anatomist?
Deaths
Thumbnail of John  Flamsteed
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.
question mark icon Can you name the first Astronomer Royal?
Thumbnail of Sir Charles Galton Darwin
Sir Charles Galton Darwin (1887-1962), grandson of Charles Darwin, was an English mathematical physicist, who was director of the National Physical Laboratory (1938-1949). He wrote The Next Million Years, a pessimistic study of the sociological implications of population explosion. From 1953 until his death, he was president of a society espousing a radical solution to population control.
question mark  icon Of what society was Charles Dalton Darwin the president?
Events
Thumbnail of
On 31 Dec 1935, a U.S. patent was issued to Charles Darrow (assigned to Parker Brothers, Inc.). The patent titled it a “Board Game Apparatus” and described it as “intended primarily to provide a game of barter, thus involving trading and bargaining” in which “much of the interest in the game lies in trading and in striking shrewd bargains.” Illustrations included with the patent showed the playing board and pieces and other associated paper and card materials.
question mark icon What was this game patented by Charles Darrow?
Thumbnail of
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.
question mark icon In what decade was the drunkometer introduced?

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 • neutrino • Robert Boyle • Italian, who as a Jew was denied an academic career under Mussolini • blue moon • tungsten.

Feedback
If you enjoy this newsletter, the website, or wish to offer encouragement or ideas, please send feedback by using your mail reader Reply button.

Your click on a StumbleUpon, Google+ or Facebook social button on the site webpages is also a welcome sign of appreciation. Thank you for using them.

Copyright
To find citations for quotations go to the corresponding webpage by clicking on the “quotes” balloon icon. Sources for the thumbnails appear on today's webpage with the corresponding item.

� This newsletter is copyright 2013 by todayinsci.com. Please respect the Webmaster's wishes and do not put copies online of the Newsletter � or any Today in Science History webpage. (If you already have done so, please remove them. Thank you.) Offline use in education is encouraged such as a printout on a bulletin board, or projected for classroom viewing. Online, descriptive links to our pages are welcomed, as these will provide a reader with the most recent revisions, additions and/or corrections of a webpage. For any other copyright questions, please contact the Webmaster by using your mail reader Reply button.

--
If you do not want to receive any more newsletters, Unsubscribe

To update your preferences and to unsubscribe visit this link

Δευτέρα 30 Δεκεμβρίου 2013

ScienceDaily: Top Science News

ScienceDaily: Top Science News


Walking the walk: What sharks, honeybees and humans have in common

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:19 PM PST

In the first study of human hunter-gatherer movement patterns, a team led by UA anthropologist David Raichlen has found that the tribe's movements while foraging can be described by a mathematical pattern called a Lévy walk -- a pattern that also is found in the movements of many other animals, from sharks to honey bees.

Gene that influences the ability to remember faces identified

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:14 PM PST

New findings suggest the oxytocin receptor, a gene known to influence mother-infant bonding and pair bonding in monogamous species, also plays a special role in the ability to remember faces. This research has important implications for disorders in which social information processing is disrupted, including autism spectrum disorder. In addition, the finding may lead to new strategies for improving social cognition in several psychiatric disorders.

ScienceDaily: Top News

ScienceDaily: Top News


Researchers have breakthrough on how persistent bacteria avoid antibiotics

Posted: 29 Dec 2013 08:20 AM PST

The mechanism by which some bacteria are able to survive antibacterial treatment has been revealed for the first time.  Their work could pave the way for new ways to control such bacteria. 

Surgery vs. non-invasive treatment -- which is better for herniated discs?

Posted: 27 Dec 2013 01:18 PM PST

For patients with herniated discs in the lower (lumbar) spine, surgery leads to greater long-term improvement in pain, functioning, and disability compared to nonsurgical treatment, concludes an eight year follow-up study.

Researchers point to digital gains in human recognition

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 03:16 PM PST

Human beings are highly efficient at recognizing familiar faces, even from very poor quality images.

Fate of eels

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 11:31 AM PST

The European eel is one of the world's many critically endangered species. Comprehensive protection is difficult because many details of the eel's complex life cycle remain unknown. In a multidisciplinary study, biologists and oceanographers recently demonstrated the crucial influence of ocean currents on eel recruitment. They did so by using, among others, a state-of-the-art ocean model, in combination with genetic studies.

Extensive use of antibiotics in agriculture creating public health crisis, study shows

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 08:53 AM PST

Citing an overabundance in the use of antibiotics by the agriculture and aquaculture industries that poses a threat to public health, an economics professor has proposed a solution in the form of user fees on the non-human use of antibiotics.

New genetic risk factor for type 2 diabetes revealed

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 08:53 AM PST

An international team of researchers in Mexico and the United States has uncovered a new genetic clue that contributes to an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, particularly the elevated risk among Mexican and other Latin American populations.

New drug candidates show promise for cure for Chagas disease

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 08:53 AM PST

A team of Canadian researchers has developed a class of compounds which may help eradicate a neglected tropical disease that is currently hard to kill in its chronic form.

Using maths, researchers seek to improve success in transplants

Posted: 24 Dec 2013 03:35 PM PST

Given that 10.5 % of patients who receive a transplant reject the new organ, researchers are working in the design of a tool capable of preventing this problem. The process consists in knowing the type of proteins in charge of metabolizing the drugs (enzymes) for each patient which would, helped by a mathematical model, allow to establish the exact dose needed of the immunosuppressive drugs required.

New approach to vertex connectivity could maximize networks' bandwidth

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:19 PM PST

Computer scientists are constantly searching for ways to squeeze ever more bandwidth from communications networks. Now a new approach to understanding a basic concept in graph theory, known as "vertex connectivity," could ultimately lead to communications protocols -- the rules that govern how digital messages are exchanged -- that coax as much bandwidth as possible from networks.

Walking the walk: What sharks, honeybees and humans have in common

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:19 PM PST

In the first study of human hunter-gatherer movement patterns, a team led by UA anthropologist David Raichlen has found that the tribe's movements while foraging can be described by a mathematical pattern called a Lévy walk -- a pattern that also is found in the movements of many other animals, from sharks to honey bees.

Gene that influences the ability to remember faces identified

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:14 PM PST

New findings suggest the oxytocin receptor, a gene known to influence mother-infant bonding and pair bonding in monogamous species, also plays a special role in the ability to remember faces. This research has important implications for disorders in which social information processing is disrupted, including autism spectrum disorder. In addition, the finding may lead to new strategies for improving social cognition in several psychiatric disorders.

Cone snails are for life, not just at Christmas

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:13 PM PST

Those who fly to tropical shores this Christmas in search of sea and sun may be unaware that an exotic shell picked from the beach could potentially bring relief to many thousands of people suffering life-threatening illnesses. 

Attacking fungal infection, one of world's major killers

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:13 PM PST

Fungal infections take more than 1.3 million lives each year worldwide, nearly as many as tuberculosis, in addition to contributing to blindness, asthma and other major health problems. A researcher has made it his mission to reduce the death toll and severe disability that fungi can cause.

Neurobiology: The logistics of learning

Posted: 20 Dec 2013 08:36 AM PST

Learning requires constant reconfiguration of the connections between nerve cells. Two new studies now yield new insights into the molecular mechanisms that underlie the learning process.

ScienceDaily: Most Popular News

ScienceDaily: Most Popular News


Researchers have breakthrough on how persistent bacteria avoid antibiotics

Posted: 29 Dec 2013 08:20 AM PST

The mechanism by which some bacteria are able to survive antibacterial treatment has been revealed for the first time.  Their work could pave the way for new ways to control such bacteria. 

Surgery vs. non-invasive treatment -- which is better for herniated discs?

Posted: 27 Dec 2013 01:18 PM PST

For patients with herniated discs in the lower (lumbar) spine, surgery leads to greater long-term improvement in pain, functioning, and disability compared to nonsurgical treatment, concludes an eight year follow-up study.

Researchers point to digital gains in human recognition

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 03:16 PM PST

Human beings are highly efficient at recognizing familiar faces, even from very poor quality images.

Fate of eels

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 11:31 AM PST

The European eel is one of the world's many critically endangered species. Comprehensive protection is difficult because many details of the eel's complex life cycle remain unknown. In a multidisciplinary study, biologists and oceanographers recently demonstrated the crucial influence of ocean currents on eel recruitment. They did so by using, among others, a state-of-the-art ocean model, in combination with genetic studies.

Extensive use of antibiotics in agriculture creating public health crisis, study shows

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 08:53 AM PST

Citing an overabundance in the use of antibiotics by the agriculture and aquaculture industries that poses a threat to public health, an economics professor has proposed a solution in the form of user fees on the non-human use of antibiotics.

New genetic risk factor for type 2 diabetes revealed

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 08:53 AM PST

An international team of researchers in Mexico and the United States has uncovered a new genetic clue that contributes to an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, particularly the elevated risk among Mexican and other Latin American populations.

New drug candidates show promise for cure for Chagas disease

Posted: 26 Dec 2013 08:53 AM PST

A team of Canadian researchers has developed a class of compounds which may help eradicate a neglected tropical disease that is currently hard to kill in its chronic form.

Using maths, researchers seek to improve success in transplants

Posted: 24 Dec 2013 03:35 PM PST

Given that 10.5 % of patients who receive a transplant reject the new organ, researchers are working in the design of a tool capable of preventing this problem. The process consists in knowing the type of proteins in charge of metabolizing the drugs (enzymes) for each patient which would, helped by a mathematical model, allow to establish the exact dose needed of the immunosuppressive drugs required.

New approach to vertex connectivity could maximize networks' bandwidth

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:19 PM PST

Computer scientists are constantly searching for ways to squeeze ever more bandwidth from communications networks. Now a new approach to understanding a basic concept in graph theory, known as "vertex connectivity," could ultimately lead to communications protocols -- the rules that govern how digital messages are exchanged -- that coax as much bandwidth as possible from networks.

Walking the walk: What sharks, honeybees and humans have in common

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:19 PM PST

In the first study of human hunter-gatherer movement patterns, a team led by UA anthropologist David Raichlen has found that the tribe's movements while foraging can be described by a mathematical pattern called a Lévy walk -- a pattern that also is found in the movements of many other animals, from sharks to honey bees.

Gene that influences the ability to remember faces identified

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:14 PM PST

New findings suggest the oxytocin receptor, a gene known to influence mother-infant bonding and pair bonding in monogamous species, also plays a special role in the ability to remember faces. This research has important implications for disorders in which social information processing is disrupted, including autism spectrum disorder. In addition, the finding may lead to new strategies for improving social cognition in several psychiatric disorders.

Cone snails are for life, not just at Christmas

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:13 PM PST

Those who fly to tropical shores this Christmas in search of sea and sun may be unaware that an exotic shell picked from the beach could potentially bring relief to many thousands of people suffering life-threatening illnesses. 

Attacking fungal infection, one of world's major killers

Posted: 23 Dec 2013 03:13 PM PST

Fungal infections take more than 1.3 million lives each year worldwide, nearly as many as tuberculosis, in addition to contributing to blindness, asthma and other major health problems. A researcher has made it his mission to reduce the death toll and severe disability that fungi can cause.

Neurobiology: The logistics of learning

Posted: 20 Dec 2013 08:36 AM PST

Learning requires constant reconfiguration of the connections between nerve cells. Two new studies now yield new insights into the molecular mechanisms that underlie the learning process.