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. According to a recent Washington Post study, approximately 20% of U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan are psychologically damaged. Among them are a substantial number with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and the high rate of suicide among PTSD sufferers has become unacceptable to Army commanders and the soldiers' families. http://www.physorg.com/news171120245.html Medicine & Health Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:25:42 EST news171120245 A new mathematical tool from Dr. Eran Halperin of TAU's Blavatnik School of Computer Science aims to protect genetic privacy while giving genomic data to researchers. http://www.physorg.com/news170937537.html Medicine & Health Mon, 31 Aug 2009 11:39:30 EST news170937537 (PhysOrg.com) -- Evidence that early modern humans living on the coast of the far southern tip of Africa 72,000 years ago employed pyrotechnology - the controlled use of fire - to increase the quality and efficiency of their stone tool manufacturing process, is being reported in the Aug. 14 issue of the journal Science. An international team of researchers, including three from the Institute of Human Origins at Arizona State University, deduce that "this technology required a novel association between fire, its heat, and a structural change in stone with consequent flaking benefits." Further, their findings ignite the notion of complex cognition in these early engineers. http://www.physorg.com/news169391684.html Other Sciences Thu, 13 Aug 2009 14:16:19 EST news169391684 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new tool developed by scientists at The University of Manchester will allow farmers to see under the soil to check how efficiently crop roots are using water and nutrients. http://www.physorg.com/news169143345.html Space & Earth Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:40:01 EST news169143345 (AP) -- Hundreds of General Motors' California dealers will let consumers haggle over the prices of new cars and trucks through the eBay online marketplace under a trial that begins Tuesday. http://www.physorg.com/news169102235.html Technology Mon, 10 Aug 2009 05:52:26 EST news169102235 (PhysOrg.com) -- New experiments by Oxford University scientists reveal that New Caledonian crows can spontaneously use up to three tools in the correct sequence to achieve a goal, something never before observed in non-human animals without explicit training. http://www.physorg.com/news168701856.html Biology Wed, 05 Aug 2009 14:38:26 EST news168701856 A new diagnostic tool developed by Van Andel Research Institute (VARI) scientists has shown promising results when used with patients of pancreatic cancer, one of the deadliest forms of cancer due to the difficulty of diagnosing it in its early stages. The method, which studies carbohydrate structures in the bloodstream, could lead to the development of blood tests that can detect cancer more effectively. http://www.physorg.com/news168526022.html Medicine & Health Mon, 03 Aug 2009 14:00:02 EST news168526022 (PhysOrg.com) -- A new open source, Web 2.0-inspired solution for building and managing business relationships online promises to level the playing field for small- and medium-sized enterprises. http://www.physorg.com/news168258378.html Technology Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:50:01 EST news168258378 One of the most well-known psychological tools is the Rorschach Inkblot Test. A viewer looks at ten inkblots, one at a time, and describes what they see. The rationale behind this test is the idea that certain aspects of the subject's personality will be exposed as they are interpreting the images, allowing for the possible diagnosis of various psychological disorders. However, does the inkblot really reveal all? http://www.physorg.com/news168178994.html Medicine & Health Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:23:14 EST news168178994 (PhysOrg.com) -- An award-winning invention by Stanford doctoral students Richard Gaster and Drew Hall may change who diagnoses diseases ranging from flu to the Human Immunodeficiency Virus. The invention, called the NanoLab, is a miniature, portable bioassay that can identify several disease proteins simultaneously without doctors, technicians or special lab equipment. With this technology, the inventors hope that individuals can literally take health care into their own hands. http://www.physorg.com/news167661319.html Technology Fri, 24 Jul 2009 14:00:01 EST news167661319 (PhysOrg.com) -- The whole listening experience in cars, cinemas, theatres, and even during videoconferences, is likely to improve radically thanks to a new set of tools for application development being assembled by European researchers. http://www.physorg.com/news167656377.html Technology Fri, 24 Jul 2009 12:13:44 EST news167656377 The often-used one-size-fits-all approach to policies aimed at achieving sustainable social-ecological systems needs to be updated with a diagnostic tool to help scholars from multiple disciplines better frame the question and think through the variables, asserts social scientist and political economist Elinor Ostrom. http://www.physorg.com/news167578673.html Other Sciences Thu, 23 Jul 2009 14:38:14 EST news167578673 (PhysOrg.com) -- In 1997, an episode of the popular Pokemon cartoon gained worldwide attention when more than 800 Japanese children with photosensitive seizure conditions were admitted to the hospital after viewing the cartoon or the subsequent news coverage of it. http://www.physorg.com/news167495445.html Technology Wed, 22 Jul 2009 15:31:23 EST news167495445 Several cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers showed good accuracy in identifying patients with mild cognitive impairment who progressed to Alzheimer disease, according to a study in the July 22/29 issue of JAMA. http://www.physorg.com/news167415910.html Medicine & Health Tue, 21 Jul 2009 17:26:02 EST news167415910 Genetics researchers have unveiled a powerful new resource for scientists and health providers studying human illnesses--a reference standard of deletions and duplications of DNA found in the human genome. Drawn from over 2,000 healthy persons, the study provides one of the deepest and broadest sets of copy number variations (CNVs) available to date, along with a new research tool for diagnosing and identifying genetic problems in patients. http://www.physorg.com/news166887935.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:20:03 EST news166887935 A study published this week in the open access journal PLoS Medicine has found that of six interventions promoting exercise in adults in Australia, encouraging the use of pedometers - simple step counting devices that can be used as a motivational tool - and promoting physical activity through mass media campaigns are the most cost-effective in terms of the money spent for the health benefits they result in. Considered as a package, researchers at the University of Queensland also conclude that these six interventions could reduce death and illness from heart disease, stroke, cancer and diabetes in Australia, with an overall cost saving for the health sector. http://www.physorg.com/news166768728.html Medicine & Health Tue, 14 Jul 2009 05:50:01 EST news166768728 The University of Alberta now has a permanent connection to the agricultural life of millions of people in a vast region of Brazil. A newly discovered fungus that helps plants grow in dry soil has been named in honour of the U of A for its help with the research. http://www.physorg.com/news166703646.html Biology Mon, 13 Jul 2009 11:34:22 EST news166703646 As swine flu spreads across America, good data can make all the difference in controlling it. http://www.physorg.com/news166276586.html Other Sciences Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:01:28 EST news166276586 Carbon nanotubes, one of the original engineered nanomaterials, also may prove to be among the most versatile, as numerous teams of investigators continue to develop novel nanotube-based therapeutic and diagnostic tools. Over the past month, three new research papers have highlighted the potential of nanotubes as weapons against cancer. http://www.physorg.com/news165512511.html Nanotechnology Tue, 30 Jun 2009 06:50:03 EST news165512511 Meckel's diverticulum (MD) is the most frequent congenital abnormality of the small bowel and it is often difficult to diagnose. It is usually asymptomatic but approximately 4% are symptomatic with complications such as bleeding, intestinal obstruction, and inflammation. Daniela Codrich et al presents a case of Meckel's diverticulum masked by a long period of intermittent recurrent subocclusive episodes. Their foundings will be published on June 14, 2009 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology. http://www.physorg.com/news164999515.html Medicine & Health Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:50:01 EST news164999515 Predation is one of the most fundamental and fascinating interactions in nature, and sharks are some of the fiercest predators on Earth. However, their hunting pattern is difficult to study because it is rarely observed in the wild. As a result, shark predatory behavior has remained much of a mystery. Now, researchers from the United States and Canada are using geographic profiling -- a criminal investigation tool used to track a connected series of crimes and locate where serial criminals live -- to examine the hunting patterns of white sharks in South Africa. http://www.physorg.com/news164886597.html Biology Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:50:01 EST news164886597 Blood flow and respiratory rates can synch with music, indicating that music could one day be a therapeutic tool for blood pressure control and rehabilitation, according to a study by Italian researchers published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. http://www.physorg.com/news164907639.html Medicine & Health Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:41:07 EST news164907639 An online decision tool created in part by a graduate student at the University of California Irvine helps men diagnosed with prostate cancer sort through an intimidating flurry of possible treatments and customize treatment plans of their own, according to a study in the current issue of Interfaces, a journal of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences. http://www.physorg.com/news164290302.html Medicine & Health Mon, 15 Jun 2009 13:11:59 EST news164290302 Recent genetic studies have revealed several new sites of genes that are risk factors for developing rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The strongest association with anti-citrullinated protein antibody (ACPA)-positive RA (ACPAs are autoantibodies detected in RA that are used as a major diagnostic tool) has been found for the HLA-DRB1 gene, and this site seems to play a central role in susceptibility to the disease in Caucasian populations. Previous studies have shown a high increase in the risk of ACPA-positive RA associated with smoking in those who have certain variations of the HLA-DRB1 gene. There are several types of such alleles related to a particular amino acid sequence known as shared epitope (SE). ACPAs occur in about 60 percent of RA patients and are closely linked to the presence of SE alleles. In fact, SE alleles are the strongest genetic risk factor for ACPA-positive RA. http://www.physorg.com/news163095549.html Medicine & Health Mon, 01 Jun 2009 17:19:36 EST news163095549 As reported this week in the open-access journal PLoS Biology, an international team of scientists studying a rare genetic disease has discovered that a bundle of proteins already known to be important for keeping chromosomes together also plays an important role in regulating gene expression in humans. In addition to shedding light on the biological roles of these proteins, the research may lead to the development of better diagnostic tools for Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS), a multisystem developmental disease. http://www.physorg.com/news162625388.html Biology Wed, 27 May 2009 06:43:35 EST news162625388 Computers have been used for years to facilitate learning at a distance. A new European research programme shows that computers can also enhance collaborative, face-to-face learning and problem solving. http://www.physorg.com/news162215962.html Technology Fri, 22 May 2009 13:00:37 EST news162215962 Although engineers, scientists and manufacturers are still in the process of building all of the instruments that will fly aboard NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, they had to figure out long ago, how it was going to "unfold" in space. That's because the Webb Telescope is so big that it has to be folded up for launch. Now, animators have made that "unfolding" come to life in two new videos. http://www.physorg.com/news161446078.html Space & Earth Wed, 13 May 2009 15:08:31 EST news161446078 According to a new study led by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, there are several factors that contribute to children missing immunization visits. http://www.physorg.com/news160733239.html Medicine & Health Tue, 05 May 2009 09:07:39 EST news160733239 Google on Monday unveiled software tools that let people search the Internet using pictures or chronologically organize results of queries for news. http://www.physorg.com/news159520657.html Technology Tue, 21 Apr 2009 08:19:40 EST news159520657 (PhysOrg.com) -- Last year Joel Sadler and his classmates faced a daunting challenge in their Biomedical Device Design and Evaluation course: Create a low-cost, high-performance prosthetic knee joint for amputees in the developing world. Dubbed the JaipurKnee Project, the team aimed to help rectify lives ravaged by war and diseases such as diabetes. http://www.physorg.com/news159030845.html Medicine & Health Wed, 15 Apr 2009 16:15:28 EST news159030845