ScienceDaily: Top Science News

http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/top_news/top_science/ Top science news, featured on ScienceDaily's home page.en-usFri, 01 Mar 2013 15:26:39 ESTFri, 01 Mar 2013 15:26:39 EST60http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gifhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/news/top_news/top_science/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily.http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123314.htm New research has uncovered a mechanism that regulates the reproduction of plants, providing a possible tool for engineering higher yielding crops.Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:33:33 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123314.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123308.htm A new study is the first to show that dust and other aerosols from one side of the world influence rainfall in the Sierra Nevada.Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:33:33 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123308.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123048.htm Scientists looking for clues about why Earth did not warm as much as scientists expected between 2000 and 2010 now thinks the culprits are hiding in plain sight -- dozens of volcanoes spewing sulfur dioxide.Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:30:30 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123048.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123042.htm A continental-scale chemical survey in the waters of the eastern US and Gulf of Mexico is helping researchers determine how distinct bodies of water will resist changes in acidity.Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:30:30 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301123042.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301122512.htm The interplay between an infection during pregnancy and stress in puberty plays a key role in the development of schizophrenia, as behaviorists demonstrate in a mouse model. However, there is no need to panic.Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:25:25 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/03/130301122512.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228171504.htm A paleontologist and his team have discovered a new species of herbivorous dinosaur and published the first fossil evidence of prehistoric crocodyliforms feeding on small dinosaurs.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 17:15:15 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228171504.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228155624.htm Two biologists at Washington University in St. Louis were delighted to discover a meticulous dataset on a plant-pollinator network recorded by Illinois naturalist Charles Robertson between 1884 and 1916. Re-collecting part of Robertson's network, they learned that although the network has compensated for some losses, battered by climate change and habitat loss it is now weaker and less resilient than in Robertson's time.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 15:56:56 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228155624.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228155622.htm Researchers studying data from 600 fields in 20 countries have found that managed honey bees are not as successful at pollinating crops as wild insects, primarily wild bees, suggesting the continuing loss of wild insects in many agricultural landscapes has negative consequences for crop harvests.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 15:56:56 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228155622.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228155430.htm NASA's Van Allen Probes mission has discovered a previously unknown third radiation belt around Earth, revealing the existence of unexpected structures and processes within these hazardous regions of space.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 15:54:54 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228155430.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228124138.htm New research on bacteria examines how primordial cells could have evolved without protein machinery or cell walls. While the vast majority of bacteria have cell walls, many bacteria can switch to a wall-free existence called the L-form state, which could mirror the structure of primordial cells. A new study reveals how bacteria in this L-form state divide and proliferate, shedding light on how the earliest forms of cellular life may have replicated.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 12:41:41 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228124138.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228124132.htm Much to the chagrin of parents who think their kids should spend less time playing video games and more time studying, time spent playing action video games can actually make dyslexic children read better, new research suggests. In fact, 12 hours of video game play did more for reading skills than is normally achieved with a year of spontaneous reading development or demanding traditional reading treatments.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 12:41:41 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228124132.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228113447.htm A new model suggests that inhospitable hydrodgen-sulfide rich waters could have delayed the spread of complex life forms in ancient oceans. The research considers the composition of the oceans 550-700 million years ago and shows that oxygen-poor toxic conditions, which may have delayed the establishment of complex life, were controlled by the biological availability of nitrogen.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 11:34:34 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228113447.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228113436.htm Using new technology at the telescope and in laboratories, researchers have discovered an important pair of prebiotic molecules in interstellar space. The discoveries indicate that some basic chemicals that are key steps on the way to life may have formed on dusty ice grains floating between the stars.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 11:34:34 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228113436.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228113401.htm An international team of scientists have discovered a meteorite with a mass of 18 kilograms embedded in the East Antarctic ice sheet, the largest?such meteorite found in the region since 1988.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 11:34:34 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228113401.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228103341.htm Astronomers have obtained what is likely the first direct observation of a forming planet still embedded in a thick disc of gas and dust. If confirmed, this discovery will greatly improve our understanding of how planets form and allow astronomers to test the current theories against an observable target.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 10:33:33 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228103341.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093833.htm The acceleration of a free electron by a laser is a long-time goal of solid-state physicists. Physicists have established that an electron beam can be accelerated by a laser in free space. This has never been done before at high energies and represents a significant breakthrough, and may have implications for fusion as a new energy source.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 09:38:38 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093833.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093829.htm In a significant advance for brain-computer interfaces, engineers have developed a novel wireless, broadband, rechargeable, fully implantable brain sensor that has performed well in animal models for more than a year.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 09:38:38 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093829.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093823.htm Researchers have electronically linked the brains of pairs of rats for the first time, enabling them to communicate directly to solve simple behavioral puzzles. A further test of this work successfully linked the brains of two animals thousands of miles apart -- one in Durham, N.C., and one in Natal, Brazil.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 09:38:38 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093823.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093509.htm The salinity difference between fresh water and salt water could be a source of renewable energy. However, power yields from existing techniques are not high enough to make them viable. A solution to this problem may now have been found. Researchers have discovered a new means of harnessing this energy: osmotic flow through boron nitride nanotubes generates huge electric currents, with 1,000 times the efficiency of any previous system.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 09:35:35 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228093509.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228080242.htm Order tends towards disorder. This is also true for quantum states. Measurements show that in quantum mechanics this transition can be quite different from what we experience in our daily lives.Thu, 28 Feb 2013 08:02:02 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130228080242.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227183502.htm Bearded capuchin monkeys deliberately place palm nuts in a stable position on a surface before trying to crack them open, revealing their capacity to use tactile information to improve tool use.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 18:35:35 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227183502.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227183311.htm For the first time, scientists have shown that transplanted eyes located far outside the head in a vertebrate animal model can confer vision without a direct neural connection to the brain. Biologists used a frog model to shed new light -- literally -- on one of the major questions in regenerative medicine and sensory augmentation research.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 18:33:33 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227183311.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227151306.htm Researchers have achieved a major advance in understanding how genetic information is transcribed from DNA to RNA by providing the first step-by-step look at the biomolecular machinery that reads the human genome.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 15:13:13 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227151306.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134425.htm Unique fossils literally 'lift the lid' on ancient creature's head to expose one of the earliest examples of food manipulating limbs in evolutionary history, dating from around 530 million years ago.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:44:44 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134425.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134340.htm After four years of confinement to a wheelchair, Rick Constantine, 58, is now walking again after undergoing an unconventional surgery to restore the use of his leg.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:43:43 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134340.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134336.htm As a bird sings, some neurons in its brain prepare to make the next sounds while others are synchronized with the current notes?a coordination of physical actions and brain activity that is needed to produce complex movements. The finding that may lead to new ways of understanding human speech production.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:43:43 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134336.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134334.htm A new study reports that a viral predator of the cholera bacteria has stolen the functional immune system of bacteria and is using it against its bacterial host. This provides the first evidence that this type of virus, the bacteriophage, can acquire an adaptive immune system. The study has implications for phage therapy, the use of phages to treat bacterial diseases.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:43:43 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227134334.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227132544.htm Two X-ray space observatories, NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) and the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton, have teamed up to measure definitively, for the first time, the spin rate of a black hole with a mass 2 million times that of our sun.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 13:25:25 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227132544.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227121903.htm While water bottles may tout BPA-free labels and personal care products declare phthalates not among their ingredients, these assurances may not be enough. According to a new study, we may be exposed to these chemicals in our diet, even if our diet is organic and we prepare, cook, and store foods in non-plastic containers. Children may be most vulnerable.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 12:19:19 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227121903.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227102022.htm A look at how the brain processes information finds distinct pattern in autistic children. Using EEGs to track the brain's electrical cross-talk, researchers found structural difference in brain connections. Compared with neurotypical children, those with autism have multiple redundant connections between neighboring brain areas at expense of long-distance links. The study, using "network analysis" like with airlines or electrical grids, may help in understanding some classic autistic behaviors.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 10:20:20 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227102022.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227101951.htm Oocytes of lions, tigers and other cat species survive the preservation in liquid nitrogen. Scientists have now succeeded in carrying out cryopreservation of felid ovary cortex.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 10:19:19 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227101951.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227101929.htm Older people who have low expectations for a satisfying future may be more likely to live longer, healthier lives than those who see brighter days ahead, according to new research.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 10:19:19 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227101929.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085944.htm A new study offers the first evidence of source memory in a nonhuman animal. The findings have fascinating implications, both in evolutionary terms and for future research into the biological underpinnings of memory, as well as the treatment of diseases marked by memory failure such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's, or disorders such as schizophrenia, PTSD and depression.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 08:59:59 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085944.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085942.htm Scientists are using a novel fabrication process to create ultra-efficient solar energy rectennas capable of harvesting more than 70 percent of the sun's electromagnetic radiation and simultaneously converting it into usable electric power.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 08:59:59 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085942.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085842.htm Continuing a tradition stretching back more than 25 centuries, astronomers have used the new 2.3-meter 'Aristarchos' telescope, sited at Helmos Observatory (2340m high) in the Pelοponnese Mountains in Greece, to determine the distance to and history of an enigmatic stellar system, discovering it to likely be a binary star cocooned within an exotic nebula.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 08:58:58 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085842.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085838.htm Pregnant women should avoid taking vitamin D supplements, new research suggests. Substitution appears to raise the risk of children developing a food allergy after birth.Wed, 27 Feb 2013 08:58:58 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130227085838.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226194006.htm A study finds an increased risk of narcolepsy in children and adolescents who received the A/H1N1 2009 influenza vaccine (Pandemrix) during the pandemic in England.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:40:40 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226194006.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226141233.htm An international team led by the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) has documented a 78 percent decline in the number of nests of the critically endangered leatherback sea turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) at the turtle's last stronghold in the Pacific Ocean.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:12:12 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226141233.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226134259.htm Researchers are testing the power of holography to artificially stimulate cells in the eye, with hopes of developing a new strategy for bionic vision restoration. Computer-generated holography, they say, could be used in conjunction with a technique called optogenetics, which uses gene therapy to deliver light-sensitive proteins to damaged retinal nerve cells. In conditions such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP), these light-sensing cells degenerate and lead to blindness.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 13:42:42 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226134259.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226120551.htm Plentiful food can accelerate the spread of infections, scientists have shown in a study of water fleas. Scientists studying bacterial infections in tiny water fleas have discovered that increasing their supply of food can speed up the spread of infection.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 12:05:05 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226120551.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226114023.htm Glass doesn't have to be brittle. Scientists propose a way of predicting whether a given glass will be brittle or ductile -- a property typically associated with metals like steel or aluminum -- and assert that any glass could have either quality.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:40:40 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226114023.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226114021.htm Scientists have developed a new method that better preserves the units necessary to power lightning-fast electronics, known as qubits. Hole spins, rather than electron spins, can keep quantum bits in the same physical state up to 10 times longer than before, the report finds.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:40:40 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226114021.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226113830.htm Fresh insights into the protective seal that surrounds the DNA of our cells could help develop treatments for inherited muscle, brain, bone and skin disorders. Researchers have discovered that the proteins within this coating -- known as the nuclear envelope -- vary greatly between cells in different organs of the body.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:38:38 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226113830.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226113828.htm Researchers have demonstrated a stretchable lithium-ion battery -- a flexible device capable of powering their innovative stretchable electronics. The battery can stretch up to 300 percent of its original size and still function -- even when stretched, folded, twisted and mounted on a human elbow. The battery enables true integration of electronics and power into a small, stretchable package that is wirelessly rechargeable.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 11:38:38 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226113828.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226101454.htm Firefighters now have a new tool that could help save lives. A team of researchers have developed a new technique using digital holography that can "see" people through intense flames -- the first time a holographic recording of a live person has been achieved while the body is moving. The new technique allows imaging through both.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 10:14:14 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226101454.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226101400.htm Scientists have long been dreaming about building a computer that would work like a brain. This is because a brain is far more energy-saving than a computer, it can learn by itself, and it doesn't need any programming. Scientists are experimenting with memristors -- electronic microcomponents that imitate natural nerves.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 10:14:14 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226101400.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226092142.htm Researchers have successfully generated human kidney cells from human embryonic stem cells in vitro1. Specifically, they produced the renal cells under artificial conditions in the lab without using animals or organs. This has not been possible until now.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 09:21:21 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226092142.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226092128.htm Researchers have succeeded in showing experimentally that vacuums have properties not previously observed. According to the laws of quantum mechanics, it is a state with abundant potentials. Vacuums contain momentarily appearing and disappearing virtual pairs, which can be converted into detectable light particles.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 09:21:21 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226092128.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226081155.htm During sleep, our brains store what we have learned during the day a process even more effective in children than in adults, new research shows.Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:11:11 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130226081155.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225181536.htm Results of a major study aimed at assessing the efficacy of the Mediterranean diet in the primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases show that such a diet supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil or tree nuts reduces by 30 percent the risk of suffering a cardiovascular death, a myocardial infarction or a stroke.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 18:15:15 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225181536.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225162231.htm Researchers have found significantly higher levels of toxic metals in children with autism, compared to typical children. They hypothesize that reducing early exposure to toxic metals may help lessen symptoms of autism, though they say this hypotheses needs further examination.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:22:22 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225162231.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153130.htm For decades scientists around the world have attempted to regenerate primary liver cells known as hepatocytes because of their numerous biomedical applications, including hepatitis research, drug metabolism and toxicity studies, as well as transplantation for cirrhosis and other chronic liver conditions. But no lab in the world has been successful in identifying and growing liver stem cells in culture -- using any available technique -- until now.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:31:31 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153130.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153128.htm The world has suffered from severe regional weather extremes in recent years, such as the heat wave in the United States in 2011. Behind these devastating individual events there is a common physical cause, propose scientists in a new study. It suggests that human-made climate change repeatedly disturbs the patterns of atmospheric flow around the globe's Northern hemisphere through a subtle resonance mechanism.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:31:31 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153128.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153126.htm Particles from the upper atmosphere trapped in a deep pile of Antarctic snow hold clear chemical traces of global meteorological events, climate scientists from France have found. Anomalies in oxygen found in sulfate particles coincide with several episodes of the world-wide disruption of weather known as El Nino and can be distinguished from similar signals left by the eruption of huge volcanoes, the team reports.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:31:31 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153126.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153124.htm Scientists have concluded that during the Late Archaic, maize (corn) was a primary component in the diet of people living in the Norte Chico region of Peru, an area of remarkable cultural florescence in 3rd millennium B.C. Up until now, the prevailing theory was that marine resources, not agriculture and corn, provided the economic engine behind the development of civilization in the Andean region of Peru.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:31:31 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153124.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153122.htm Environmental exposure to bisphenol A (BPA), a widespread chemical found in plastics and resins, may suppress a gene vital to nerve cell function and to the development of the central nervous system, according to a new study.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 15:31:31 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225153122.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225131618.htm Even dying stars could host planets with life -- and if such life exists, we might be able to detect it within the next decade. This encouraging result comes from a new theoretical study of Earth-like planets orbiting white dwarf stars. Researchers found that we could detect oxygen in the atmosphere of a white dwarf's planet much more easily than for an Earth-like planet orbiting a Sun-like star.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 13:16:16 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225131618.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225131532.htm People become more politically liberal immediately after practising a spiritual exercise such as meditation, researchers have found.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 13:15:15 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225131532.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225122045.htm New maps by scientists show how rising sea temperatures are likely to affect all coral reefs in the form of annual coral bleaching events under different emission scenarios. If carbon emissions stay on the current path most of the world's coral reefs (74 percent) are projected to experience coral bleaching conditions annually by 2045, results of the study show.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 12:20:20 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225122045.htmhttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225112510.htm Low-birth-weight babies with a particular brain abnormality are at greater risk for autism, according to a new study that could provide doctors a signpost for early detection of the still poorly understood disorder.Mon, 25 Feb 2013 11:25:25 ESThttp://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/02/130225112510.htm

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Leaving NKorea, Rodman calls Kims 'great leaders'

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman speaks to the media at the Pyongyang Airport in Pyongyang, before he leaves North Korea Friday, March 1, 2013. Ending his unexpected round of basketball diplomacy in North Korea on Friday, Rodman called leader Kim Jong Un an "awesome guy" and said his father and grandfather were "great leaders." (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman speaks to the media at the Pyongyang Airport in Pyongyang, before he leaves North Korea Friday, March 1, 2013. Ending his unexpected round of basketball diplomacy in North Korea on Friday, Rodman called leader Kim Jong Un an "awesome guy" and said his father and grandfather were "great leaders." (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, left, and former NBA star Dennis Rodman watch North Korean and U.S. players in an exhibition basketball game at an arena in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013. Rodman arrived in Pyongyang on Monday with three members of the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team to shoot an episode on North Korea for a new weekly HBO series. (AP Photo/VICE Media, Jason Mojica)

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman speaks to the media at the Pyongyang Airport in Pyongyang, before he leaves North Korea Friday, March 1, 2013. Ending his unexpected round of basketball diplomacy in North Korea on Friday, Rodman called leader Kim Jong Un an "awesome guy" and said his father and grandfather were "great leaders." (AP Photo/Kyodo News) JAPAN OUT, MANDATORY CREDIT, NO LICENSING IN CHINA, HONG KONG, JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND FRANCE

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman, left, speaks to the media at the airport in Pyongyang, before he leaves North Korea Friday, March 1, 2013. Rodman hung out with North Korea's Kim Jong Un during his improbable journey to Pyongyang, watching the Harlem Globetrotters with the leader and later drinking and dining on sushi with him.(AP Photo/Kim Kwang Hyon)

Former NBA star Dennis Rodman speaks to the media at the Pyongyang Airport before he leaves North Korea Friday, March 1, 2013. Rodman hung out with North Korea's Kim Jong Un during his improbable journey to Pyongyang, watching the Harlem Globetrotters with the leader and later drinking and dining on sushi with him.(AP Photo/Kim Kwang Hyon)

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) ? Ending his unexpected round of basketball diplomacy in North Korea on Friday, ex-NBA star Dennis Rodman called leader Kim Jong Un an "awesome guy" and said his father and grandfather were "great leaders" ? an assessment that got short shrift from the U.S. government.

Rodman, the highest-profile American to meet Kim since he inherited power from father Kim Jong Il in 2011, watched a basketball game with the authoritarian leader Thursday and later drank and dined on sushi with him.

At Pyongyang's Sunan airport on his way to Beijing, Rodman said it was "amazing" that the North Koreans were "so honest." He added that Kim Jong Il and Kim Il Sung, North Korea's founder, "were great leaders."

"He's proud, his country likes him ? not like him, love him, love him," Rodman said of Kim Jong Un. "Guess what, I love him. The guy's really awesome."

At Beijing's airport, Rodman pushed past waiting journalists without saying anything.

Rodman's agent, Darren Prince, sent a text message to The Associated Press saying Rodman will be in New York on Sunday "to do some major press interviews and talk about his trip in North Korea as well as discussing what's accurate and inaccurate from the press the past few days."

Rodman's visit to North Korea began Monday and took place amid tension between Washington and Pyongyang. North Korea conducted an underground nuclear test just two weeks ago, making clear the provocative act was a warning to the United States to drop what it considers a "hostile" policy toward the North.

The State Department on Friday distanced itself from Rodman's visit and his praise for Kim, saying he doesn't represent the United States.

"The North Korean regime has a horrific human rights record, quite possibly the worst human rights situation in the world," spokesman Patrick Ventrell told reporters in Washington. He accused the regime of depriving their people of food, shelter, water and maintaining prison gulags.

Ventrell also took aim at Pyongyang for its grand treatment of the visiting basketball stars.

"Clearly you've got the regime spending money to wine and dine foreign visitors, when they should be feeding their own people," he said.

Rodman traveled to Pyongyang with three members of the professional Harlem Globetrotters basketball team, Ryan Duffy, a correspondent with the New York-based VICE media company, and a production crew to shoot an episode on North Korea for a new weekly HBO series.

Kim, a diehard basketball fan, told the former Detroit Pistons and Chicago Bulls star that he hoped the visit would break the ice between the United States and North Korea, said Shane Smith, founder of VICE, which calls itself a global youth media company.

Dressed in a blue Mao suit, Kim laughed and slapped his hands on a table during the game at Jong Ju Yong Gymnasium as he sat nearly knee to knee with Rodman. Rodman, the man who once turned up in a wedding dress to promote his autobiography, wore a dark suit and dark sunglasses, but still had on his nose rings and other piercings. A can of Coca-Cola sat on the table before him in photos shared with AP by VICE.

Smith, after speaking to the VICE crew in Pyongyang, said Kim and Rodman "bonded" and chatted in English, though Kim primarily spoke in Korean through a translator.

Thursday's game ended in a 110-110 tie, with two Americans playing on each team alongside North Koreans. After the game, Rodman addressed Kim in a speech before a crowd of tens of thousands of North Koreans and told him, "You have a friend for life," VICE spokesman Alex Detrick told AP.

At an "epic feast" later, the leader plied the group with food and drinks and round after round of toasts were made, Duffy said in an email to AP.

Duffy said he invited Kim to visit the United States, a proposal met with hearty laughter from the North Korean leader.

Kim said he hoped sports exchanges would promote "mutual understanding between the people of the two countries," the official Korean Central News Agency said.

Ventrell said the U.S. wanted North Korea to come into line with their international obligations and to stop ballistic missile tests and their nuclear programs. "We're not going to read into this sort of theater one way or another," he said.

North Korea and the U.S. fought on opposite sides of the three-year Korean War, which ended in a truce in 1953. The foes never signed a peace treaty, and do not have diplomatic relations.

Rodman's trip is the second attention-grabbing American visit this year to North Korea. Google's executive chairman, Eric Schmidt, made a four-day trip in January to Pyongyang, but did not meet the North Korean leader.

The Obama administration had frowned on the trip by Schmidt, who was accompanied by former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, but has avoided criticizing Rodman's outing, saying it's about sports.

_____

Associated Press writers Matthew Pennington in Washington and Brian Mahoney in New York contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-03-01-AS-NKorea-Rodman/id-9b9b511ea9d54e3e9ac42d8027a55888

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EA Games Invites Gay Gamers To LGBT Gaming Event In New York ...

EA Games, makers of The Sims and Medal of Honor, has been pretty good toward gay gamers: The company incorporated gay characters and plotlines into Star Wars: The Old Republic and Mass Effect 3, posted an It Gets Better video on its YouTube channel, and just signed onto an amicus brief supporting same-sex marriage.

But on March 7, the gaming giant is leveling up with a event in New York that will address LGBT issues in gaming. Co-sponsored by HRC, The Full Spectrum will look at the advent of queer game characters and scenarios, handling homophobia in gaming, and creating an inclusive workplace for LGBT employees, amongother topics.

In addition to gaming insiders, the event boasts an appearance from Super Bowl champ Brendon Ayanbadejo, who will talk about fostering an ?inclusive culture and supporting the legalization of same-sex marriage despite harsh criticism and opposition.?

Maybe he can give some tips for Madden ?14?

source: Kotaku

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Source: http://www.queerty.com/ea-games-invites-gay-gamers-to-lgbt-gaming-event-in-new-york-20130302/

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Sony HQ in Tokyo Sold for Y111 Billion ? Real Estate Japan | Tokyo ...

Electronics giant, Sony Corp., announced that it has sold its Tokyo office building to Nippon Building Fund and to an unnamed Japanese institutional investor for 111 billion yen.

This decision came after the company announced that it was also planning to sell its office in Manhattan for more than $1 billion.

The Tokyo headquarters was completed in 2011 and the site where it was built was once known as the company?s ?holy land,? where also the Trinitron TV was launched.

The 25-story building houses 5,000 workers on Sony?s TV and audio division. Although the building was? officially sold to investors, Sony has made it clear that the division would remain in the central Tokyo building for 5 years?under a leasing agreement.

According to Sony representatives, the company is revamping its business portfolio and the sale of the building is part of this reorganization.? The corporate overhaul involves thousands of job cuts, the sale of its chemical division and an investment in Olympus to help maintain its place in the global market.

The company?s stock plummeted below 1,000 yen a share in the previous year for the first time since the Walkman was released. The stock has since come back, going up 3.56% at 1,338 yen on Thursday in Tokyo. Because of the strong yen, the slow demand on key export markets and the fierce competition from other firms outside Japan, Sony decided to take appropriate action, starting with corporate reorganization and reanalyzing their business strategies.

Source: JapanTodayPhoto by?mk7?via Creative Commons?

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Source: http://www.realestate.co.jp/2013/03/01/sony-hq-in-tokyo-sold-for-y111-billion/

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'Rain Man'-like brains mapped at using MRIs and network analysis

Feb. 28, 2013 ? Combining hospital MRIs with the mathematical tool known as network analysis, a group of researchers at UC San Francisco and UC Berkeley have mapped the three-dimensional global connections within the brains of seven adults who have genetic malformations that leave them without the corpus callosum, which connects the left and right sides of the brain.

These "structural connectome" maps, described in the upcoming April 15, 2013 issue of the journal Neuroimage, reveal new details about the condition known as agenesis of the corpus callosum, which is one of the top genetic causes of autism and was part of the mysterious brain physiology of Laurence Kim Peek, the remarkable savant portrayed by Dustin Hoffman in the 1987 movie "Rain Man."

While some people born with agenesis of the corpus callosum are of normal intelligence and do not have any obvious signs of neurologic disease, approximately 40 percent of people with the condition are at high risk for autism. Given this, the work is a step toward finding better ways to image the brains of people with the condition, said Pratik Mukherjee, MD, PhD, a professor of radiology and biomedical imaging at UCSF who was the co-senior author of the research.

Understanding how brain connectivity varies from person to person may help researchers identify imaging biomarkers for autism to help diagnose it and manage care for individuals. Currently autism is diagnosed and assessed based on cognitive tests, such as those involving stacking blocks and looking at pictures on flip cards.

While the new work falls short of a quantitative measure doctors could use instead of cognitive testing, it does offer a proof-of-principle that this novel technique may shed light on neurodevelopment disorders.

"Because you are looking at the whole brain at the network level, you can do new types of analysis to find what's abnormal," Mukherjee said.

The Connection between the Brain Hemispheres and Autism Agenesis of the corpus callosum can arise if individuals are born missing DNA from chromosome 16 and often leads to autism.

Scientists have long puzzled over what the link is between this disorder and the autistic brain, said co-senior author of the paper Elliott Sherr, MD, PhD, professor of neurology and genetics especially since not all people with this malformation develop autism.

Doctors believe this is because the brain has a rich capacity for rewiring in alternative ways.

Pursuing this question, Mukherjee and Sherr turned to MRI and the mathematical technique of network analysis, which has long supported fields like civil engineering, helping urban planners optimize the timing of traffic lights to speed traffic. This is the first time network analysis has been applied to brain mapping for a genetic cause of autism.

The brain offers a significantly complicated challenge for analysis because, unlike the streets of a given city, the brain has hundreds of billions of neurons, many of which make tens of thousands of connections to each other, making its level of connectivity highly complex.

By comparing the seven rain man-like brains to those of 11 people without this malformation, the scientists determined how particular structures called the cingulate bundles were smaller and the neurons within these bundles were less connected to others in the brain. They also found that the network topology of the brain was more variable in people with agenesis of the corpus callosum than in people without the malformation.

The article, "The structural connectome of the human brain in agenesis of the corpus callosum" is authored by Julia P. Owen, a postdoctoral fellow at UCSF, with co-authors Yi-Ou Li, Etay Ziv, Zoe Strominger, Jacquelyn Gold, Polina Bukhpun, Mari Wakahiro, Eric J. Friedman, Elliott H. Sherr and Pratik Mukherjee. It appears in the April 15, 2013 issue of the journal Neuroimage, and is now published online ahead of print.

This work was funded by the National Institutes of Health through grant #R01NS060776, #R01NS060776 and #R01NS058721. Additional support was provided by a grant from the UCSF Sandler Program for Breakthrough Biomedical Research.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), via Newswise.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. Julia P. Owen, Yi-Ou Li, Etay Ziv, Zoe Strominger, Jacquelyn Gold, Polina Bukhpun, Mari Wakahiro, Eric J. Friedman, Elliott H. Sherr, Pratik Mukherjee. The structural connectome of the human brain in agenesis of the corpus callosum. NeuroImage, 2013; 70: 340 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2012.12.031

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/strange_science/~3/1eptrw-_e7s/130228171357.htm

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Dust from Africa affects snowfall in California

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? One of the driest spots on Earth ? the Sahara desert ? is increasingly responsible for snow and rain half a world away in the western U.S., a new study released Thursday found.

It's no secret that winds carrying dust, soot and even germs make transcontinental journeys through the upper atmosphere that can affect the weather thousands of miles away. Yet little is known about the impact of foreign pollutants on the West Coast, which relies on mountain snowmelt for its water needs.

Previous studies hinted these jet-setting particles may retard rainfall in the Sierra Nevada mountains in Northern California by reducing the size of water droplets in clouds. But scientists who flew through storm clouds in an aircraft, measured rain and snow and analyzed satellite imagery found the opposite: Far-flung dust and germs can help stimulate precipitation.

During the 2011 winter, a team from the University of California, San Diego and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration traced particles suspended in clouds over the Sierra to distant origins ? from the skies over the arid Sahara that later mingled with other pollutants in China and Mongolia before crossing the Pacific.

The days with the most particles in the clouds were also "days when we see the most snow on the ground," said study leader Kimberly Prather, an atmospheric chemistry professor at UC San Diego, whose study was published online Thursday in the journal Science.

Scientists believe wafting dust, grit and microbes ? including bacteria and viruses ? can spur the formation of ice crystals in clouds that in turn can influence how much rain or snow falls.

For years, governments and utilities in California and other Western states have used cloud seeding, in which a chemical vapor is sprayed into clouds, in a bid to increase rainfall.

The new study shows how "Mother Nature has figured out how to give us more precipitation" and that may lead to changes in cloud-seeding efforts, which can be hit-or-miss, Prather said.

David J. Smith at the NASA Kennedy Space Center said it was refreshing to see measurements from the ground, air and orbit to tackle how airborne particles affected Northern California snowfall.

"Such a comprehensive approach is the only way to thoroughly examine global transport" of particles, Smith, who had no role in the research, said in an email.

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Online:

Science: http://www.sciencemag.org

___

Follow Alicia Chang at http://twitter.com/SciWriAlicia

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/dust-africa-affects-snowfall-california-201755519.html

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Supreme Court divided on Voting Rights Act (cbsnews)

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