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. An article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science written by a team of ecologists, including Robert Booth, assistant professor of earth and environmental science at Lehigh University, examines some of the potential problems with current prediction methods and calls for the use of a range of approaches when predicting the impact of climate change on organisms. http://www.physorg.com/news176555677.html Biology Wed, 04 Nov 2009 11:30:01 EST news176555677 Scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine and the University of California, San Francisco have developed and experimentally tested a technique to predict new target diseases for existing drugs. http://www.physorg.com/news176544956.html Medicine & Health Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:17:08 EST news176544956 Automated methods for discovering astrophysical phenomena by sifting through massive amounts of cosmological data are being developed by researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, Johns Hopkins University and the University of Washington under a new three-year, $1.6 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. http://www.physorg.com/news175776639.html Space & Earth Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:00:01 EST news175776639 (PhysOrg.com) -- Medical clinics the world over could benefit from new software* created at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, where a team of scientists has found a way to improve the efficiency of a pneumonia vaccine testing method developed at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). http://www.physorg.com/news175281412.html Medicine & Health Tue, 20 Oct 2009 18:17:23 EST news175281412 Researchers at MIT and San Camillo Hospital in Venice, Italy, have shown that motor impairments in stroke patients can be understood as impairments in specific combinations of muscle activity, known as synergies. http://www.physorg.com/news175268896.html Medicine & Health Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:49:14 EST news175268896 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Columbia University have developed a statistical method that accurately predicts how an organism will respond to dozens of commonly used drugs. This clinical and conceptual advance moves medical science a step closer to an era of personalized medicine -- one where doctors could prescribe treatments based on an individual patient's genome. http://www.physorg.com/news174731485.html Biology Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:00:01 EST news174731485 Patients who received the less-invasive endovascular repair of an abdominal aortic aneurysm had a lower risk of death in the first 30 days after the procedure compared to patients who an open repair, but both procedures had similar rates of death after two years, according to a study in the October 14 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on surgical care. http://www.physorg.com/news174661874.html Medicine & Health Tue, 13 Oct 2009 15:50:02 EST news174661874 (PhysOrg.com) -- Charles Aquadro, professor of molecular biology and genetics, researches how fruit flies provide clues to humans' own genetic footprints of adaptation. http://www.physorg.com/news174649873.html Biology Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:20:20 EST news174649873 (PhysOrg.com) -- Challenge a simple pocket calculator at arithmetic and you may be left in the dust. But even the most sophisticated computer cannot match the reasoning of a youngster who looks outside, sees a fresh snowfall, and knows how to bundle up for the frosty outdoors. http://www.physorg.com/news174067286.html Technology Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:01:55 EST news174067286 The age at which a person takes a first drink may influence genes linked to alcoholism, making the youngest drinkers the most susceptible to severe problems. http://www.physorg.com/news172513742.html Medicine & Health Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:40:03 EST news172513742 Michigan Technological University researchers have linked three genes to the most common type of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), generally known as Lou Gehrig's disease. http://www.physorg.com/news171719836.html Medicine & Health Wed, 09 Sep 2009 12:57:58 EST news171719836 Leafy green vegetables such as lettuce, Asian greens, and spinach can accumulate high concentrations of nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N), which are potentially harmful if consumed by humans. To measure NO3-N concentration in plant tissue, many laboratories use ion selective electrodes (ISEs). Relatively inexpensive and portable ISE nutrient monitoring devices, including the Cardy NO3-N meter, are widely used to measure fresh plant sap NO3-N levels. Although conventional means of measuring plant tissue NO3-N are accurate and reliable, they often require sophisticated equipment and trained technicians and can be time-consuming, expensive, and impractical outside of a laboratory setting. http://www.physorg.com/news171633837.html Biology Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:20:02 EST news171633837 Newly published research suggests that government use of torture has increased worldwide despite international norms discouraging it. http://www.physorg.com/news171192705.html Other Sciences Thu, 03 Sep 2009 10:50:02 EST news171192705 Going back to the drawing board is much easier now that researchers have developed a new type of design program called FEAsy. http://www.physorg.com/news171039417.html Technology Tue, 01 Sep 2009 15:57:26 EST news171039417 (PhysOrg.com) -- A newly designed computational method has proven its usefulness in counting copies of duplicated genome sequences and in doing initial assessments of their contents, according to a study to be published Aug. 30 in Nature Genetics. The number of copies of particular DNA segments can differ from one person to the next. http://www.physorg.com/news170860501.html Medicine & Health Sun, 30 Aug 2009 14:16:37 EST news170860501 (PhysOrg.com) -- Two Japanese computer scientists have developed a way to crack the WPA encryption between wireless routes and devices in 60 seconds. http://www.physorg.com/news170679777.html Technology Fri, 28 Aug 2009 12:03:28 EST news170679777 (PhysOrg.com) -- Biomedical researchers at the University of Arkansas and University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock have developed a special contrast-imaging agent that is capable of molecular mapping of lymphatic endothelial cells and detecting cancer metastasis in sentinel lymph nodes. The new material could be used as a more efficient and less toxic alternative to nanoparticles and fluorescent labels used in the non-invasive, targeted molecular detection of normal cells, such as immune-related cells, and abnormal cells, such as cancer cells and bacteria. Findings were published in Nature Nanotechnology. http://www.physorg.com/news170521101.html Nanotechnology Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:58:52 EST news170521101 A research team led by Associate Professor Jonathan Sebat, Ph.D., of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) has developed a sensitive and accurate way of identifying gene copy number variations (CNVs). The method, which is described in a paper published online ahead of print in Genome Research, uses new DNA sequencing technologies to look for regions of the genome that vary in copy number between individuals in the population. Capable of detecting a wide range of different classes of CNVs, large and small, this method allows researchers to extract more genetic information from the complete genome sequence of an individual. http://www.physorg.com/news170342066.html Medicine & Health Mon, 24 Aug 2009 14:30:01 EST news170342066 Television and radio broadcasts used to be free. Stick an antenna in the air and that's still true even though much of it has now gone digital. As technology advanced, we got better delivery methods of those free signals such as cable and satellite TV. These methods brought better pictures and sound, more channels, more choices, more variety and more cost. Of course a lot of that programming such as HBO and other premium channels were never really free in the first place so I'm not counting those. But there's still a lot of that originally free content that you now must pay for but I guess that's the price we pay for that better delivery service. Fortunately there are still some exceptions out there. http://www.physorg.com/news169405329.html Technology Thu, 13 Aug 2009 22:10:03 EST news169405329 (PhysOrg.com) -- Anyone who has watched videos of the Apollo astronauts moving across the surface of the moon has noticed the unusual loping gait they sometimes adopted and their slow, almost graceful, movements. Now a new analysis by MIT researchers shows why astronauts moved around this way in their heavy Apollo-era space suits - and provides a mathematical method for evaluating new spacesuit designs for the moon and Mars and their effects on the efficiency of locomotion. http://www.physorg.com/news169394997.html Space & Earth Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:11:17 EST news169394997 Going out like a brilliant flame is one way to get attention. If physicians could watch tumor cells committing a form of programmed suicide called apoptosis, a desired effect of workhorse cancer treatments such as chemotherapy and radiotherapy, they could more quickly pick the most effective treatment. Now scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have found a way to do just that, by lighting up cells as they die. http://www.physorg.com/news166711615.html Medicine & Health Mon, 13 Jul 2009 13:47:29 EST news166711615 They are a group of drugs which millions of people rely on to keep pain at bay but they can have unwanted side-effects which are sometimes more serious than the original health problem. Now scientists at The University of Nottingham are taking part in the largest-ever study on the safety of Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDS) that has ever been performed. http://www.physorg.com/news166369545.html Medicine & Health Thu, 09 Jul 2009 14:46:36 EST news166369545 Though the solar industry today predominately produces solar panels made from crystalline silicon, they remain relatively expensive to make. New players in the solar industry have instead been looking at panels that can harvest energy with CIGS (copper-indium-gallium-selenide) or CIGS-related materials. CIGS panels have a high efficiency potential, may be cheaper to produce and would use less raw materials than silicon solar panels. But unfortunately, manufacturing of CIGS panels on a commercial scale has thus far proven to be difficult. http://www.physorg.com/news166192650.html Nanotechnology Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:38:04 EST news166192650 A research paper co-written by a Virginia Tech faculty member explains a 60-year mystery behind a rare bat's nose that is unusually large for its species. The findings soon will be published in the scientific trade journal, Physical Review Letters. http://www.physorg.com/news166182701.html Physics Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:30:07 EST news166182701 Differences in growth factor (GF) signaling may cause the poor prognosis in some breast cancer cases. A new study, published in the open access journal BMC Medical Genomics, suggests that some estrogen receptor-positive breast cancers respond poorly to tamoxifen because of increased GF signaling. http://www.physorg.com/news165005770.html Medicine & Health Wed, 24 Jun 2009 04:00:01 EST news165005770 Researchers at the University of Leeds have devised a more accurate method of dating ancient human migration - even when no corroborating archaeological evidence exists. http://www.physorg.com/news163342792.html Biology Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:00:16 EST news163342792 While today's law enforcement officers don't wear utility belts full of crimefighting gadgets like Batman, they do rely on a variety of state-of-the-art technologies to do their jobs efficiently and safely. Two of these devices -down-the-road (DTR) radar used in speed enforcement and the ballistic chronograph, which measures the speed of bullets -- soon should be more useful tools thanks to recent research conducted by the Office of Law Enforcement Standards (OLES) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. http://www.physorg.com/news162129877.html Physics Thu, 21 May 2009 13:05:28 EST news162129877 The Stowers Institute's Hawley Lab and Molecular Biology Facility have developed a "whole-genome sequencing approach" to mapping mutations in fruit flies. The novel methodology promises to reduce the time and effort required to identify mutations of biological interest. The work was published in the May issue of the journal Genetics. http://www.physorg.com/news160751592.html Medicine & Health Tue, 05 May 2009 14:16:47 EST news160751592 New guidelines from the American Academy of Pediatrics should eliminate one of the many stresses of bringing a preterm or low birth weight infant home from the hospital. http://www.physorg.com/news160056549.html Medicine & Health Mon, 27 Apr 2009 13:09:50 EST news160056549 (PhysOrg.com) -- Organic semiconductors are promising building blocks for many devices, from LEDs to transistors, offering potential advantages such as cost-effectiveness, flexibility, and high performance. Currently, most research in organic semiconductors has focused on p-channel semiconductors, which transport positively charged holes, rather than n-channel semiconductors, which transport negatively charged electrons. The choice of semiconductor depends on the application, and many applications require a combination of both types. However, the few n-channel semiconductors that exist today have performance that lags considerably behind their p-channel counterparts. http://www.physorg.com/news159789536.html Physics Fri, 24 Apr 2009 10:59:38 EST news159789536