http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Intervals of regional warmth and cold in the past are linked to the El Niņo phenomenon and the so-called "North Atlantic Oscillation" in the Northern hemisphere's jet stream, according to a team of climate scientists. These linkages may be important in assessing the regional effects of future climate change. http://www.physorg.com/news178459644.html Space & Earth Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:10:05 EST news178459644 What are the bare essentials of life, the indispensable ingredients required to produce a cell that can survive on its own? Can we describe the molecular anatomy of a cell, and understand how an entire organism functions as a system? http://www.physorg.com/news178459055.html Biology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:10:02 EST news178459055 Darwin suggested that the action of natural selection can produce new species, but 150 years after the publication of his famous book, 'On the Origin of Species', debate still continues on the mechanisms of speciation. New research finds sexual selection to greatly enlarge the scope for adaptive speciation by triggering a positive feedback between mate choice and ecological diversification that can eventually eliminate gene flow between species. http://www.physorg.com/news178458331.html Biology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:00:07 EST news178458331 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new generation of ultrasmall transistors and more powerful computer chips using tiny structures called semiconducting nanowires are closer to reality after a key discovery by researchers at IBM, Purdue University and the University of California at Los Angeles. http://www.physorg.com/news178459486.html Nanotechnology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:00:05 EST news178459486 (PhysOrg.com) -- The copper sequestering drug tetrathiomolybdate (TM) has been shown in studies to be effective in the treatment of Wilson disease, a disease caused by an overload of copper, and certain metastatic cancers. That much is known. Very little, however, is known about how the drug works at the molecular level. http://www.physorg.com/news178458552.html Chemistry Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:00:03 EST news178458552 (PhysOrg.com) -- Advances in computerized modeling and prediction of group behavior, together with improvements in video game graphics, are making possible virtual worlds in which defense analysts can explore and predict results of many different possible military and policy actions, say computer science researchers at the University of Maryland in a commentary published in the November 27 issue of the journal Science. http://www.physorg.com/news178458781.html Technology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 14:00:01 EST news178458781 Poachers "wiped out" the entire elephant herd in Sierra Leone's only wildlife park, wildlife managers said Thursday after police said they had arrested a gang of 10 poachers. http://www.physorg.com/news178459834.html Biology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 12:11:10 EST news178459834 (PhysOrg.com) -- Whitehead researchers have developed a new approach for genetics in human cells and used this technique to identify specific genes and proteins required for pathogens. http://www.physorg.com/news178454319.html Biology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 10:39:54 EST news178454319 (PhysOrg.com) -- When spider mites attack a bean plant, the plant responds by producing odours which attract predatory mites. These predatory mites then exterminate the spider mite population, thus acting as a type of 'bodyguard' for the plant. However, if the plant is simultaneously attacked by whiteflies, insects that are related to aphids, the plant becomes less attractive to the predatory mites and therefore more vulnerable to spider mites. http://www.physorg.com/news178451189.html Biology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:47:54 EST news178451189 (PhysOrg.com) -- A flute playing robot unveiled by Waseda University last year has been joined by a robot saxophonist in a Classical music duet. The aim of the project was to design robots that could respond to each other's visual and aural cues. http://www.physorg.com/news178442951.html Electronics Thu, 26 Nov 2009 09:30:01 EST news178442951 (PhysOrg.com) -- European space agencies and an aerospace giant are developing a new re-entry heat shield that will use superconductor magnets to generate a magnetic field strong enough to deflect the superhot plasma formed during re-entry of returning spacecraft. They plan to test the new technology by attaching a test module to a missile and using a Russian submarine to fire it into space. http://www.physorg.com/news178442290.html Physics Thu, 26 Nov 2009 07:50:01 EST news178442290 (AP) -- A third to a half of the Sony Corp. TV sets sold annually will be packed with 3-D features by the year ending March 2013, a senior executive said Thursday. http://www.physorg.com/news178440806.html Technology Thu, 26 Nov 2009 07:30:01 EST news178440806 Forget the Transformers and Astroboy: Japan's latest robots don't save the world -- they cook snacks, play with your kids, model clothes, and search for disaster victims. http://www.physorg.com/news178439624.html Electronics Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:34:40 EST news178439624 MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) and other drug-resistant bacteria could face annihilation as low-temperature plasma prototype devices have been developed to offer safe, quick, easy and unfailing bactericidal cocktails. http://www.physorg.com/news178438994.html Physics Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:24:08 EST news178438994 (AP) -- A top Russian space official says there is no space for tourists wishing to fly to the International Space Station. http://www.physorg.com/news178438842.html Space & Earth Thu, 26 Nov 2009 06:23:52 EST news178438842 Q. Our 6-year-old PC computer is dying a slow death and we are considering moving to a new iMac but have a few concerns. First, of all, we have several Word documents on our disk drive now that we want to keep and add to as well as many pictures that will be kept as well. What capabilities are available to transfer these files to an iMac? Is there a Word program for Apple? Finally, do you think our decision to change to Apple is the way to go, overall? http://www.physorg.com/news178394620.html Technology Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:40:01 EST news178394620 This year, I've grouped my list of Top 10 tech toys into price ranges. Keep in mind that the prices listed are the suggested retail, and you may be able to find better deals. http://www.physorg.com/news178394200.html Electronics Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:50:01 EST news178394200 US magazine publishers Time Inc., Conde Nast and Hearst are preparing to launch an online newsstand described as an "iTunes for magazines," according to published reports. http://www.physorg.com/news178393781.html Technology Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:40:01 EST news178393781 Sometimes you really can believe your eyes. That's what NASA's STEREO (Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory) spacecraft are telling researchers about a controversial phenomenon on the sun known as the "solar tsunami." http://www.physorg.com/news178395416.html Space & Earth Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:17:45 EST news178395416 (PhysOrg.com) -- On Sol 2095 (Tuesday, Nov. 24), Spirit performed a set of diagnostic actions related to a stall of the right-rear wheel on the previous drive, three days earlier. http://www.physorg.com/news178393606.html Space & Earth Wed, 25 Nov 2009 18:00:03 EST news178393606 (PhysOrg.com) -- Oak Ridge National Laboratory has announced plans to conduct a series of deep energy retrofit research projects with the potential to improve the energy efficiency in selected homes by as much as 30 to 50 percent. http://www.physorg.com/news178389728.html Technology Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:20:02 EST news178389728 (AP) -- New cars have been tuning themselves for the better part of two decades now, so it should feel less impressive that Gibson has built a guitar that can smoothly do the same. http://www.physorg.com/news178391604.html Electronics Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:13:43 EST news178391604 (PhysOrg.com) -- For the first time, scientists at The University of Western Ontario have shown that insects exposed to repeated periods of cold will trade reproduction for immediate survival. http://www.physorg.com/news178391046.html Biology Wed, 25 Nov 2009 17:05:32 EST news178391046 (PhysOrg.com) -- A research team has shown that blocking the degradation of two naturally occurring cannabinoids in the endocannabinoid signaling pathway of the brain produces marijuana-like behavioral effects in mice, according to new findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. http://www.physorg.com/news178389839.html Medicine & Health Wed, 25 Nov 2009 16:59:31 EST news178389839 It is well known that some animal species use camouflage to hide from predators. Individuals that are able to blend in to their surroundings and avoid being eaten are able to survive longer, reproduce, and thus increase their fitness (pass along their genes to the next generation) compared to those who stand out more. This may seem like a good strategy, and fairly common in the animal kingdom, but who ever heard of a plant doing the same thing? http://www.physorg.com/news178382633.html Biology Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:44:31 EST news178382633 (PhysOrg.com) -- A cancer vaccine carried into the body on a carefully engineered, fingernail-sized implant is the first to successfully eliminate tumors in mammals, scientists report this week in the journal Science Translational Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news178382282.html Medicine & Health Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:38:42 EST news178382282 Imagine the Earth's crust as the planet's skin: Some areas are old and wrinkled while others have a fresher, more youthful sheen, as if they had been regularly lathered with lotion. http://www.physorg.com/news178381626.html Space & Earth Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:27:50 EST news178381626 (PhysOrg.com) -- Peering through the thick dust clouds of our galaxy's "bulge" (the myriads of stars surrounding its center), a team of astronomers has unveiled an unusual mix of stars in the stellar grouping known as Terzan 5. Never observed anywhere in the bulge before, this peculiar "cocktail" of stars suggests that Terzan 5 is in fact one of the bulge's primordial building blocks, most likely the relic of a dwarf galaxy that merged with the Milky Way during its very early days. http://www.physorg.com/news178377940.html Space & Earth Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:28:26 EST news178377940 Photosynthetic organisms need to cope with a wide range of light intensities, which can change over timescales of seconds to minutes. Too much light can damage the photosynthetic machinery and cause cell death. Scientists at the Carnegie Institution were part of a team that found that specific proteins in algae can act as a safety valve to dissipate excess absorbed light energy before it can wreak havoc in cells. http://www.physorg.com/news178378035.html Biology Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:28:05 EST news178378035 When cells are confronted with an invading virus or bacteria or exposed to an irritating chemical, they protect themselves by going off their DNA recipe and inserting the wrong amino acid into new proteins to defend them against damage, scientists have discovered. http://www.physorg.com/news178377237.html Biology Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:14:44 EST news178377237