ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Elephant behavior and conservation issues
• New 'magnetic yeast' marks step toward harnessing Nature's magnetic capabilities
• Mutated plants may be better for biofuels
• Lake Chad: Inhabitants adapt to lower water levels
• Nowhere to hide: Tigers threatened by human destruction of groundcover
• Developing sustainable power
• Overfishing threatens the survival of seabirds
• The Brazilian rainforest : Caught between biodiversity and business
• Initial genetic analysis reveals Iceman Ötzi predisposed to cardiovascular disease
• Tomb exploration reveals first archaeological evidence of Christianity from the time of Jesus
• How cells make the most of limited resources
• Ice Age coyotes were supersized compared to coyotes today, fossil study reveals

Elephant behavior and conservation issues Posted: 28 Feb 2012 04:09 PM PST Researchers are using fieldwork and genetics research to uncover insights into elephant population genetics and social behavior as well as how human activities alter elephants' social and genetic structures.

New 'magnetic yeast' marks step toward harnessing Nature's magnetic capabilities Posted: 28 Feb 2012 04:09 PM PST Researchers have developed a method for inducing magnetic sensitivity in an organism that is not naturally magnetic -- yeast. Their technology could potentially be used to magnetize a variety of different cell types in medical, industrial and research applications.

Mutated plants may be better for biofuels Posted: 28 Feb 2012 12:21 PM PST A new study says genetic mutations in plants could make it easier to break down plant cellulose to the sugars that are fermented into biofuels.

Lake Chad: Inhabitants adapt to lower water levels Posted: 28 Feb 2012 11:05 AM PST Lake Chad used to be one of the biggest lakes in the world, but its volume has been reduced to a tenth of what it was in the 1960s. The way this lake has dried up has become a symbol of climate change in action. It's true that the lake's water level has always changed, but this hasn't diminished the major changes to the lifestyle of the inhabitants of the lake's shoreline.

Nowhere to hide: Tigers threatened by human destruction of groundcover Posted: 28 Feb 2012 11:05 AM PST A new study is the first of its kind to systematically investigate the use of different land cover types for tiger habitat.

Developing sustainable power Posted: 28 Feb 2012 09:39 AM PST Scientists suggest that renewable energy is a viable option for electrical power in developing and emerging nations. Researchers point out that in most of these nations, the demand for energy far exceeds the generating capacity.

Overfishing threatens the survival of seabirds Posted: 28 Feb 2012 09:38 AM PST From gannets to seagulls, puffins to penguins, all seabirds suffer the same drop in birth rates when the supply of fish drops to less than a third of maximum capacity. Below the critical level of one third of the fish biomass, the birds — and the stability of the entire ecosystem —- come under threat.

The Brazilian rainforest : Caught between biodiversity and business Posted: 28 Feb 2012 09:38 AM PST Brazil is exporting more and more agricultural produce: soya beans and beef in particular, but also corn, rice and sugar. Taken together, these exports represent half of Brazil's total today. The increase in the export of commodities brings both a higher degree of economic dependency and a threat to the Amazon rainforest.

Initial genetic analysis reveals Iceman Ötzi predisposed to cardiovascular disease Posted: 28 Feb 2012 09:38 AM PST The famous Iceman mummy known as Ötzi was genetically predisposed to cardiovascular diseases, according to recent studies. Not only was this genetic predisposition demonstrable in the 5,000-year-old ice mummy, there was also already a symptom in the form of arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries.

Tomb exploration reveals first archaeological evidence of Christianity from the time of Jesus Posted: 28 Feb 2012 07:21 AM PST An examination via robotic camera of an Herodian era tomb near Jerusalem has yielded ossuary engravings that strongly imply Christian culture, including an icon that seems to invoke the Jonah story, the most popular icon in third century CE Roman tomb -- previously the earliest Christian images. The tomb is in close proximity to the controversial "Jesus Tomb," which contained an ossuary engraved "Jesus son of Joseph."

How cells make the most of limited resources Posted: 28 Feb 2012 07:20 AM PST The bacterium that causes atypical pneumonia is helping scientists uncover how cells make the most of limited resources. By measuring all the proteins this bacterium produces, scientists have found that the secret is fine-tuning.

Ice Age coyotes were supersized compared to coyotes today, fossil study reveals Posted: 27 Feb 2012 12:27 PM PST Coyotes today are pint-sized compared to their Ice Age counterparts, finds a new fossil study. Between 11,500 and 10,000 years ago -- a mere blink of an eye in geologic terms -- coyotes shrunk to their present size. The sudden shrinkage was most likely a response to dwindling food supply and changing interactions with competitors, rather than warming climate, researchers say.

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ScienceDaily: Top Health News

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• Researchers test sugary solution to Alzheimer's disease
• Stopping hormone therapy might help breast cancer to regress
• Molecular duo dictate human weight and energy levels
• Potential solution to melanoma's resistance to vemurafenib
• Open your eyes and smell the roses: Activating the visual cortex improves our sense of smell
• Eat your broccoli: Another mechanism discovered by which sulforaphane prevents cancer
• Cold air chills heart's oxygen supply, making snow shoveling dangerous for some people
• Initial genetic analysis reveals Iceman Ötzi predisposed to cardiovascular disease
• Newly emerging staph strain transits more easily among humans
• Study compares traits of autism, schizophrenia
• Stress changes how people make decisions
• Better health another reason for getting a degree
• Eye movement not engaged in 'arms race'
• Sperm cannot detect smells: End of 'Lily of the Valley phenomenon' in sperm research?
• How the brain responds to deceptive advertising
• How accurate are rapid flu tests?
• How immune system's 'first responders' target infection
• Could rosemary scent boost brain performance?

Researchers test sugary solution to Alzheimer's disease Posted: 28 Feb 2012 04:10 PM PST Slowing or preventing the development of Alzheimer's disease, a fatal brain condition expected to hit one in 85 people globally by 2050, may be as simple as ensuring a brain protein's sugar levels are maintained, according to researchers.

Stopping hormone therapy might help breast cancer to regress Posted: 28 Feb 2012 04:09 PM PST As soon as women quit hormone therapy, their rates of new breast cancer decline, supporting the hypothesis that stopping hormones can lead to tumor regression, according to a new report.

Molecular duo dictate human weight and energy levels Posted: 28 Feb 2012 04:09 PM PST Researchers have discovered a key cellular mechanism that may help the brain control how much we eat, what we weigh, and how much energy we have.

Potential solution to melanoma's resistance to vemurafenib Posted: 28 Feb 2012 03:58 PM PST Researchers have found that the XL888 inhibitor can prevent resistance to the chemotherapy drug vemurafenib, commonly used for treating patients with melanoma.

Open your eyes and smell the roses: Activating the visual cortex improves our sense of smell Posted: 28 Feb 2012 03:55 PM PST A new study reveals for the first time that activating the brain's visual cortex with a small amount of electrical stimulation actually improves our sense of smell.

Eat your broccoli: Another mechanism discovered by which sulforaphane prevents cancer Posted: 28 Feb 2012 11:05 AM PST Researchers have discovered yet another reason why the "sulforaphane" compound in broccoli and other cruciferous vegetables is so good for you -- it provides not just one, but two ways to prevent cancer through the complex mechanism of epigenetics.

Cold air chills heart's oxygen supply, making snow shoveling dangerous for some people Posted: 28 Feb 2012 09:39 AM PST People with heart disease may not be able to compensate for their bodies' higher demand for oxygen when inhaling cold air, according to researchers, making snow shoveling and other activities dangerous for some.

Initial genetic analysis reveals Iceman Ötzi predisposed to cardiovascular disease Posted: 28 Feb 2012 09:38 AM PST The famous Iceman mummy known as Ötzi was genetically predisposed to cardiovascular diseases, according to recent studies. Not only was this genetic predisposition demonstrable in the 5,000-year-old ice mummy, there was also already a symptom in the form of arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries.

Newly emerging staph strain transits more easily among humans Posted: 28 Feb 2012 08:43 AM PST Using genome sequencing and household surveillance, scientists have pieced together how a newly emerging type of Staphylococcus aureus bacteria has adapted to transmit more easily among humans. Their new study underscores the need for vigilance in surveillance of S. aureus.

Study compares traits of autism, schizophrenia Posted: 28 Feb 2012 08:43 AM PST A professor is studying the differences between the social impairments found in autism and schizophrenia to help develop better treatments for people with both disorders. Autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia are distinct disorders with unique characteristics, but they share similarities in social dysfunction.

Stress changes how people make decisions Posted: 28 Feb 2012 08:43 AM PST Trying to make a big decision while you're also preparing for a scary presentation? You might want to hold off on that. Feeling stressed changes how people weigh risk and reward. A new article published in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, reviews how, under stress, people pay more attention to the upside of a possible outcome.

Better health another reason for getting a degree Posted: 28 Feb 2012 08:40 AM PST Attaining at least a bachelor's degree after 25 years of age is associated with better midlife health, new research shows.

Eye movement not engaged in 'arms race' Posted: 28 Feb 2012 08:40 AM PST We make our eye movements earlier or later in order to coordinate with movements of our arms, neuroscientists have found. Their study points to a mechanism in the brain that allows for this coordination and may have implications for rehabilitation and prosthetics.

Sperm cannot detect smells: End of 'Lily of the Valley phenomenon' in sperm research? Posted: 28 Feb 2012 07:20 AM PST Scientists have now discovered that sperm do not function like olfactory cells -- a finding that casts doubt on the assumption that scents play a role in fertilization.

How the brain responds to deceptive advertising Posted: 28 Feb 2012 07:20 AM PST Several specific regions of our brains are activated in a two-part process when we are exposed to deceptive advertising, according to new research. The work opens the door to further research that could help us understand how brain injury and aging may affect our susceptibility to fraud or misleading marketing.

How accurate are rapid flu tests? Posted: 27 Feb 2012 05:47 PM PST A new study has put the accuracy of rapid influenza diagnostic tests (RIDTs) under the microscope. The meta-analysis of 159 studies showed three key findings: that RIDTs can be used to confirm the flu, but not to rule it out; that test accuracy is higher in children than it is in adults; and that RIDTs are better at detecting the more common influenza A virus than they are at detecting influenza B.

How immune system's 'first responders' target infection Posted: 27 Feb 2012 01:28 PM PST Researchers have discovered previously unsuspected aspects of the chemokine guidance system used by the body's first line of defense against infection.

Could rosemary scent boost brain performance? Posted: 24 Feb 2012 04:43 PM PST Hailed since ancient times for its medicinal properties, we still have a lot to learn about the effects of rosemary. Now researchers have shown for the first time that blood levels of a rosemary oil component correlate with improved cognitive performance.

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Newsletter for Wednesday 29 February

 

TODAY IN SCIENCE HISTORY NEWSLETTER - 29 FEBRUARY

Feature for Today

On 29 Feb 1880, miners boring from each end the St. Gotthard Tunnel met, after years of difficult construction work. The tunnel being five miles long, the challenges were enormous, but technology of the later 19th century had improved beyond the stage of picks and shovels. It had to... even just supplying fresh air or moving the excavated rock without suffocating steam engine smoke were problems to be solved. You can read how it was done in an article in this book of the period, The Conductor and Brakeman.

Book of the Day

On 29 Feb 1860 Herman Hollerith was born, the American inventor of a tabulating machine that was an important predecessor of computers, especially in the era of punched cards. Today's Science Store pick is the comprehensive biography Herman Hollerith: Forgotten Giant of Information Processing, by Geoffrey Austrian. Available Used from $2.22 (as of time of writing). Yesterday's pick: Linus Pauling in His Own Words: Selections From his Writings, Speeches and Interviews, by Barbara Marinacci. For picks from earlier newsletters, see the Today in Science Science Store home page.

Quotations for Today
	"The History of Evolution is the real source of light in the investigation of organic bodies. It is applicable at every step, and all our ideas of the correlation of organic bodies will be swayed by our knowledge of the history of evolution. To carry the proof of it into all branches of research would be an almost endless task." (1828) - Karl Ernst von Baer, Prussian-Estonian embryologist (born 29 Feb 1792)
	"Let us only imagine that birds had studied their own development and that it was they in turn who investigated the structure of the adult mammal and of man. Wouldn't their physiological textbooks teach the following? 'Those four and two-legged animals bear many resemblances to embryos, for their cranial bones are separated, and they have no beak, just as we do in the first live or six days of incubation; their extremities are all very much alike, as ours are for about the same period; there is not a single true feather on their body, rather only thin feather-shafts, so that we, as fledgelings in the nest, are more advanced than they shall ever be ... And these mammals that cannot find their own food for such a long time after their birth, that can never rise freely from the earth, want to consider themselves more highly organized than we?'" - Karl Ernst von Baer, Prussian-Estonian embryologist (born 29 Feb 1792)

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
	Herman Hollerith, born 29 Feb 1860, was an American inventor of a tabulating machine that was an important precursor of the electronic computer. For a certain event in 1890, he invented several punched-card machines to automate the sorting of data. The machine which read the cards used a pin going through a hole in the card to make an electrical connection with mercury placed beneath. The resulting electrical current activated a mechanical counter. For what event did Hollerith invent his machines?
	On 29 Feb 1792, Karl Ernst von Baer was born, the Prussian-Estonian embryologist who discovered the mammalian egg (1827) and the notochord. He established the new science of comparative embryology. What is the notochord?
Events
	On 29 Feb 1940, Ernest O. Lawrence delivered his Nobel Prize acceptance speech in Berkeley, California, rather than Sweden so that he would not lose any time away from his research effort and its funding. What was the goal of his research at the time?
	On 29 Feb 1936, in the journal Nature, Niels Bohr published a model to explain the effect of bombarding particles on a nucleus. By what name was this model known?
	On 29 Feb 1880, miners boring from each end of the St. Gotthard Tunnel met, 7,795 meters from the north entrance at 11 a.m. Which two European countries did it link?

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 February 29 web page of Today in Science History. Or, try this link first for just the brief answers. Fast answers for the previous newsletter for February 28: René-Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur; Chemistry; the body louse; tuberculosis; the decade including the year 1935.

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