Science News

(Gravitas PR) A cheap and simple way of making vaccines stable -- even at tropical temperatures -- has been proven to work by scientists at Oxford University.The British technology, developed by specialist manufacturer Nova Bio-Pharma Technologies, removes the need for fridges, freezers and associated health infrastructure. It has the potential to revolutionize vaccination efforts -- particularly in the developing world where infectious diseases kill millions of people every year.

(DOE/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory) Jets of particles streaming from black holes in far-away galaxies operate differently than previously thought, according to a study published today in Nature. The new study reveals that most of the jet's light -- gamma rays, the universe's most energetic form of light -- is created much farther from the black hole than expected and suggests a more complex shape for the jet.

(Case Western Reserve University) Ardiem Medical Inc. has obtained a non-exclusive license to make and sell neuromodulation devices based on intellectual property developed at Case Western Reserve University's Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) Center in Cleveland.

(Rice University) When Earth was young, it exhaled the atmosphere. During a period of intense volcanic activity, lava carried light elements from the planet's molten interior and released them into the sky. However, some light elements got trapped inside the planet. In this week's issue of Nature, a Rice University-based team of scientists is offering a new answer to a longstanding mystery: what caused Earth to hold its last breath?

(University of California - Berkeley) Using an atom interferometer, UC Berkeley scientists have tested one of the foundations of Einstein's general theory of relativity: that time slows down in a gravitational field. Their experiment proves that Einstein was correct with 10,000 times more precision than previous experiments. They achieve this precision by comparing the interference between matter waves separated by 4/1000 inch.

(Penn State) Human genomes from Southern African Bushmen and a Bantu individual, Archbishop Tutu, have been sequenced by scientists seeking a greater understanding of human genetic variation and its effect on human health. Knowing the full range of human genetic variation is needed in order to learn how genes affect health. The study revealed that, on average, there are more genetic differences between any two Bushmen in the study than between a European and an Asian.

(American Chemical Society) Two of the nation's leading scientific societies jointly pledged today to seek the advancement of Hispanic/Chicano and Native American people in the chemical sciences. These ethnic groups have long been underrepresented in the chemical sciences and many in the scientific community believe their increased participation could help jumpstart American innovation and increase US competitiveness in the global marketplace.

(The Science Coalition) On the first anniversary of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act -- the economic stimulus -- the nation's research universities today provided nearly 100 examples of how a relatively small element of the measure is paying outsize short- and long-term dividends for the nation. Of the $787 billion contained in the ARRA, $21.5 billion is allocated for research and science infrastructure.

(University of Missouri-Columbia) What if it were possible to go to the store and buy a kit to quickly and accurately diagnose cancer, similar to a pregnancy test? A University of Missouri researcher is developing a tiny sensor, known as an acoustic resonant sensor, that is smaller than a human hair and could test bodily fluids for a variety of diseases, including breast and prostate cancers.

(University of Colorado at Boulder) Two University of Colorado at Boulder physicists are part of a collaborative team working with the US Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York that have created the hottest temperature matter ever measured in the universe -- 7.2 trillion degrees Fahrenheit.

(Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona) An international consortium of scientists, including Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona researcher Deodoro Oliveira, have sequenced the genome of three species of parasitoid wasps of the genus Nasonia. The research offers new basic information on the genetic mechanisms of evolution. It is also of great importance for the control of agricultural pests and of insect-borne diseases.

(Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft) With its ten new Research Units, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft is intensifying interdisciplinary and multiple-location collaboration among researchers pursuing specific scientific questions and new avenues of research. The DFG Senate approved the units and funding of approximately 22.2 million euros for an initial three-year funding period. The DFG now funds a total of 209 research units, the majority of which are scheduled to run for a medium term of six years.

(Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) Food packaging and other disposable plastic items could soon be composted at home along with organic waste thanks to a new sugar-based polymer. The degradable polymer is made from sugars known as lignocellulosic biomass, which come from non-food crops such as fast-growing trees and grasses, or renewable biomass from agricultural or food waste.

(Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona) Researchers at Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and University of Stockholm have created a computer modeling of the structural malfunctioning of the ApoE4 protein when it enters into contact with the amyloid beta molecule, the main cause of Alzheimer's disease. The research, published in PLoS Computational Biology, supports experimental evidence that links ApoE4 with this pathology and opens up new exploration possibilities in understanding and fighting against the disease.

(ESO) After years of successful concealment, the most primitive stars outside our Milky Way galaxy have finally been unmasked. New observations using ESO's Very Large Telescope have been used to solve an important astrophysical puzzle concerning the oldest stars in our galactic neighborhood -- which is crucial for our understanding of the earliest stars in the universe.

(Wiley-Blackwell) Initial results of a study conducted at 100 centers worldwide indicate that belatacept, a first-in-class co-stimulation blocker can prevent the immune system rejecting new organs. The results also suggest that it may provide similar patient and graft survival to cyclosporine but with fewer side effects and superior kidney function after 12 months. The study, published today in the American Journal of Transplantation, provides the first findings to come from BENEFIT.

(University of Michigan Health System) In the dominoes that make up human cells, researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center have traced another step of the process that stops cells from becoming cancerous.

(Science-Metrix) This discussion paper examines the relationship between geopolitical factors and scientific activity based on publication data from a 30-year period. Using bibliometric methods, the analysis concentrates on movements in the geopolitics of knowledge creation. The evolution of scientific outputs of the countries of the former USSR and Eastern Bloc is examined followed by that of the Middle East. The paper then looks at how the global map of science has been reshaped in Asia's favor.