feed info

168,089 articles from ScienceDaily

Children with trisomy 13 and 18 and their families appear happy

Children with trisomy 13 or 18, who are for the most part severely disabled and have a very short life expectancy, and their families lead a life that is happy and rewarding overall, contrary to the usually gloomy predictions made by the medical community at the time of diagnosis, according to a study of parents who are members of support...


SUNDAY 22. JULY 2012


Diamond in the rough: Half-century puzzle solved

A team of mineral physicists has for the first time confirmed through high-pressure experiments the structure of cold-compressed graphite, a form of carbon that is comparable in hardness to its cousin, diamond, but only requires pressure to synthesize. The researchers believe their findings could open the way for a super hard material that can withstand great force and can be used -- as...

Lighting up the plant hormone 'command system'

Light is not only the source of a plant's energy, but also an environmental signal that instructs growth. As a result, a plant's sensitivity to light is of great interest to scientists and their research on this issue could help improve crop yields down the road. Similarly understanding a plant's temperature sensitivity could also help improve agriculture and feed more people. Two new papers...

New clues to the early Solar System from ancient meteorites

In order to understand Earth's earliest history -- its formation from Solar System material into the present-day layering of metal core and mantle, and crust -- scientists look to meteorites. New research focuses on one particularly old type of meteorite called diogenites. These samples were examined using an array of techniques, including precise analysis of certain elements for important clues...

Medusa reimagined: Reverse engineering a jellyfish with ability to swim

When one observes a jellyfish pulsating through the ocean, Greek mythology probably doesn't immediately come to mind. But the animal once was known as the medusa, after the snake-haired mythological creature its tentacles resemble. The mythological Medusa's gaze turned people into stone, and now, thanks to recent advances in bio-inspired engineering, a team of researchers have flipped that fable...

New method for associating genetic variation with crop traits

A new technique will allow plant breeders to introduce valuable crop traits even without access to the full genome sequence of that crop. The technique links important agronomic traits in crop plants with active regions of the genome. Instead of requiring knowledge of the crop's complete genome, it identifies only expressed...

Working toward an AIDS-free generation

Ending the global HIV/AIDS pandemic may be possible by implementing a multifaceted global effort that expands testing, treatment, and prevention programs, as well as meets the scientific challenges of developing an HIV vaccine and possibly a cure.

Benefits of HIV drugs rise, but less than previously believed

The percentage of HIV patients taking antiretroviral drugs who experienced the full benefit of the drugs jumped from 45 percent of 72 percent during the past decade, a figure that is lower than previous estimates. The findings are considered important for HIV prevention efforts since patients whose virus is in tight control are less likely to transmit the infection to...

New line of approach for combination therapy against Melanoma

A melanoma is a malignant form of skin cancer and is one of the most aggressive types of tumors there is. Treatment is particularly difficult, because melanomas are usually resistant against conventional chemotherapy treatments. Medical researchers have now found a new line of approach in which to treat these aggressive skin cancers, namely by combating the interaction between the protein MDM4 and...


SATURDAY 21. JULY 2012


Researchers produce first complete computer model of an organism

In a breakthrough effort for computational biology, the world's first complete computer model of an organism has been completed, researchers report. A team used data from more than 900 scientific papers to account for every molecular interaction that takes place in the life cycle of Mycoplasma genitalium, the world's smallest free-living...

U.S. experiences warm and dry June; drought expands to 56% of lower 48

The average temperature for the contiguous U.S. during June was 71.2°F, 2.0°F above the 20th century average, ranking as the 14th warmest June on record. Scorching temperatures during the second half of the month broke or tied over 170 all-time temperature records in cities across America. June temperatures also contributed to a record-warm first half of the year and the warmest 12-month period...

June global temperatures fourth highest on record

The globally averaged temperature for June 2012 marked the fourth warmest June since record keeping began in 1880. The combined average temperature over global land and ocean surfaces was 61.03°F, 1.13°F above the 20th century average. June 2012 also marks the 36th consecutive June and 328th consecutive month with a global temperature above the 20th century average. The last below-average...

Dairy researchers identify bacterial spoilers in milk

Our days of crying over spoiled milk could be over, thanks to food scientists. Milk undergoes heat treatment -- pasteurization -- to kill off microbes that can cause food spoilage and disease, but certain bacterial strains can survive this heat shock as spores and cause milk to curdle in...

Fifty metric tons of marine debris from Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

NOAA Ship Oscar Elton Sette arrived back in its homeport of Honolulu a few days ago after a month in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument. The team of 17 scientists collected nearly 50 metric tons of marine debris, which threatens monk seals, sea turtles and other marine life in the coral reef ecosystem, in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands...

Sweat glands grown from newly identified stem cells

To date, few fundamentals have been known about the most common gland in the body, the sweat glands that are essential to controlling body temperature, allowing humans to live in the world’s diverse climates. Now, in a tour de force, researchers have identified, in mice, the stem cell from which sweat glands initially develop as well as stem cells that regenerate adult sweat...