Kahp Suh and his colleagues from Seoul National University have developed a technique for aligning nanotubes over large areas based on the flow of a nanotube-containing solution through nanochannels. This technique is especially attractive because of its simplicity; no external stimuli such as the application of an electric field or syringe pumping are required to align the nanotubes.

After enduring months on the coldest, driest and windiest continent on Earth, researchers today closed out the inaugural season on an unprecedented, multiyear effort to retrieve the most detailed record of greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere over the last 100,000 years.

A new chemical synthesis method based on a catalyst worth many times the price of gold and providing a far more efficient and economical method than traditional ones for designing and manufacturing extremely novel pharmaceutical compounds is described by its University at Buffalo developers in a review article in the current issue of Nature.

A new NIST laboratory will evaluate tests, materials, mechanical properties and standards for hydrogen pipelines. The facility will include the nation's biggest hydrogen test chamber.

NIST researchers are working to improve even more the performance of air-source heat pumps -- which already typically deliver up to three times more heating energy to a home than the electric energy they consume -- by providing engineers with computer-based tools for optimizing heat exchanger designs.

The regulation of the biological fixation of nitrogen in hydric stress conditions varies with the different species of legume plants studied. This was the conclusion of Ruben Ladrera Fernández researcher from the Public University of Navarra in his PhD thesis, "Models of regulation of nitrogen fixation in response to drought: Soya and Medicago."

With time to spare before Valentine's Day, you consider a number of grand ways to demonstrate your affection. But what if it's the night before and you still don't have a gift? A timely study by researchers from Stanford, Berkeley, and the University of Chicago proves that, when the gift-giving deadline approaches, our perspective shifts from gifts with positive outcomes -- something that will...

Defective sperm cells do not pass through the body unnoticed. A new University of Missouri study provides evidence that the body recognizes and tags defective sperm cells while they undergo maturation in the epididymis, a sperm storage gland attached to the testis. According to researchers, only the best sperm that have the highest chance of succeeding in fertilization will survive the production...

A discovery by Queen's biologists and their students sheds new light on the genetic roots of obesity -- a condition that is increasing dramatically in North America and has been linked to heart disease, diabetes and some forms of cancer.

Companies recognized for exemplary diversity may follow a core set of motives and behaviors, but best practices alone do not always contribute to a high level of diversity, according to a RAND Corporation study released today.

Researchers have found the brain region that controls the decision to halt your midnight exploration of the refrigerator and commence enjoyment of that leftover chicken leg.

The most detailed 3-D seismic images yet of the Chicxulub impact crater may modify a theory explaining the "KT Extinction Event" that wiped out most life on Earth, including the dinosaurs. According to research appearing in Nature Geosciences, the asteroid landed in deeper water than previously assumed and therefore released about 6.5 times more water vapor into the atmosphere, possibly making it...

The sports culture surrounding football and wrestling may be fueling aggressive and violent behavior not only among teen male players but also among their male friends and peers on and off the field, according to a Penn State study.

Stanford researchers describe a patient's case in a brief report to be published in the Jan. 24 issue of The New England Journal of Medicine on the technique they developed, based on 25 years of research by Samuel Strober, MD, professor of immunology and rheumatology. The journal issue also includes two reports from other research groups, describing their efforts to achieve organ transplantation...

Your shopping buddy turns to you and asks, "Which one of these would you get?" Or, you're talking with your spouse about which candidate you'd like to vote for before switching on the nightly news. Turns out simply being asked to make a choice -- especially if you're in a hurry or have something on your mind - will make you like the next thing you see more, says a new study from the Journal of...

In early 2007 a marine chemist reported in the Journal of Natural Products that a new natural compound derived from an uncommon deep-sea sponge was extremely effective at inhibiting cancer cell growth. Karl Scheidt, a Northwestern University synthetic chemist, made the molecule in the lab and discovered the reported structure was incorrect. He then determined the real structure of neopeltolide,...

RNA interference represents an innovative new strategy for using small RNA molecules to silence specific genes associated with disease processes, and a series of review articles describing the state-of-the-art and potential therapeutic applications of RNAi and microRNAs will begin with two review papers in the January 2008 issue (Volume 19, No. 1) of Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal...

Electronic voting technology, especially touch screen systems, easily pass the tests of voter confidence and satisfaction, but users still make too many mistakes and ask too often for help, says a major new study led by the University of Maryland and conducted with the University of Rochester and the University of Michigan.

It's not always best to be first, finds a new study from the Journal of Consumer Research. Researchers from Purdue, Indiana University, and UConn examine how consumers will evaluate new products when they are released by an existing brand (known as "brand extension"). They find that many products may actually benefit from having competition, entering the market as followers rather than as the...

Researchers at NIST and the University of Minnesota have demonstrated a video method that may make it possible to make remote, noninvasive measurements of the interaction of fluids and solid surfaces, data important to a host of phenomena including blood coursing through vessels, lubricated cartilage sliding against joints, and ink jets splashing on paper.

When we hear studies asserting that American students rank near the bottom of all students from the world's economically-advanced nations in math and science, questions inevitably arise. Is that true? Who or what should get the blame for that and what do we do about it?

The education world is under more scrutiny than ever before. Reports, political platforms, test result comparisons, and various articles in newspapers and magazines all criticize a field that just a generation or so ago was considered an unabashed American success. Educators, students and parents each experience significant fear as it relates to the education system, fearing such things as job...

A new study from Northwestern introduces personality types used frequently in consumer research to the realm of self-improvement. According to the research, people are better able to exercise self-control when they choose goal-pursuit strategies -- such as diets or money management -- that "fit" with a promotion or prevention focus. "Self-control is not just about doing the right things, but also...

Some brainy animal species, besides humans, campaign across sophisticated and far-flung social networks.