| Smart enough to know better: Intelligence is not a remedy for racism Posted: 10 Aug 2013 09:53 PM PDT Smart people are just as racist as their less intelligent peers — they're just better at concealing their prejudice, according to a new study.  |
| Research shows negative effects of half-siblings Posted: 10 Aug 2013 09:53 PM PDT Adolescents who have half-siblings with a different father are more likely to have used drugs and had sex by age 15 than those who have only full siblings, according to new research.  |
| Thinking about family matters linked to stress for working moms, not dads Posted: 10 Aug 2013 09:53 PM PDT Although working mothers and fathers are almost as likely to think about family matters throughout the day, only for mothers is this type of mental labor associated with increased stress and negative emotions, according to new research.  |
| Nanodrug targeting breast cancer cells from the inside adds weapon: Immune system attack Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:37 AM PDT A unique nanoscale drug that can carry a variety of weapons and sneak into cancer cells to break them down from the inside has a new component: a protein that stimulates the immune system to attack HER2-positive breast cancer cells.  |
| Combined therapy could repair and prevent damage in Duchenne muscular dystrophy, study suggests Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:37 AM PDT New research on two promising gene therapies suggests that combining them into one treatment not only repairs muscle damage caused by Duchenne muscular dystrophy, but also prevents future injury from the muscle-wasting disease. The work is the first to look at the approach in aged mice, a key step toward clinical trials in patients.  |
| Chemists develop 'fresh, new' approach to making alloy nanomaterials Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:37 AM PDT Chemists have figured out how to synthesize nanomaterials with stainless steel-like interfaces. Their discovery may change how the form and structure of nanomaterials are manipulated, particularly those used for gas storage, heterogeneous catalysis and lithium-ion batteries.  |
| Fresh analysis of dinosaur skulls shows three 'species' are actually one Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:36 AM PDT A new analysis of dinosaur fossils has revealed that a number of specimens of the genus Psittacosaurus -- once believed to represent three different species -- are all members of a single species. The differences among the fossil remains that led other scientists to label them as separate species in fact arose from how the animals were buried and compressed, the study found.  |
| On the trail of dark energy: Physicists propose Higgs boson 'portal' Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:36 AM PDT One of the biggest mysteries in contemporary particle physics and cosmology is why dark energy, which is observed to dominate energy density of the universe, has a remarkably small (but not zero) value. Now, two physicists suggest that the Higgs boson could provide a possible "portal" to physics that could help explain some of the attributes of the enigmatic dark energy and help resolve the cosmological constant problem.  |
| The 'genetics of sand' may shed new light on evolutionary process over millions of years Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:36 AM PDT An evolutionary ecologist is using "grains of sand" to understand more about the process of evolution. The fossils of microscopic aquatic creatures called planktonic foraminifera, often less than a millimeter in size, can be found in all of the world's oceans. The remains of their shells now resemble grains of sand to the naked eye and date back hundreds of millions of years.  |
| Successful treatment of triple negative breast cancer by modulation of the OGF-OGFr axis Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:36 AM PDT Human triple-negative breast cancer can be treated by modulation of the opioid growth factor (OGF) - OGFr pathway. OGF suppresses cell growth by 20 percent within 24 hours in a receptor-mediated manner. Blockade of OGFr using low dosages of the opioid antagonist naltrexone causes a compensatory increase in OGF and results in 35 percent reductions in cell number within 72 hours. These data demonstrate a novel biological pathway for treatment of this deadly breast cancer.  |
| Cigarette taxation helps to reduce drinking among groups considered vulnerable Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:35 AM PDT A new study has examined the effects of cigarette taxation on alcohol consumption. Results suggest that increases in cigarette taxes are associated with modest to moderate reductions in alcohol consumption among vulnerable groups. Vulnerable groups include hazardous drinkers, young adult smokers, and smokers in the lowest income category.  |
| Piano fingers: How players strike keys depends on how muscles are used for keystrokes that occur before and after Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:33 AM PDT Researchers have long been aware of a phenomenon in speech called coarticulation, in which certain sounds are produced differently depending on the sounds that come before or after them. A new study suggests that piano paying also involves coarticulation, with hand muscle contractions differing depending on the sequence of notes played.  |
| Cultural mythologies strongly influence women's expectations about being pregnant Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:30 AM PDT Morning sickness, shiny hair, and bizarre and intense cravings for pickles and ice cream — what expectations do pregnant women impose on their bodies, and how are those expectations influenced by cultural perspectives on pregnancy?  |
| Children who overestimate their popularity less likely to be bullies Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:30 AM PDT Children who overestimate their popularity are less likely to be bullies than those who underestimate or hold more accurate assessments of their social standing, finds new research.  |
| People have more empathy for battered dogs than human adult, but not child, victims Posted: 10 Aug 2013 03:30 AM PDT People have more empathy for battered puppies and full grown dogs than they do for some humans — adults, but not children, finds new research.  |
| The skinny on cocaine Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:50 AM PDT Chronic cocaine use may reduce the body's ability to store fat, new research suggests.  |
| New treatment for brittle bone disease found Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:50 AM PDT A new treatment for children with brittle bone disease has been developed.  |
| The day before death: A new archaeological technique gives insight into the day before death Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:50 AM PDT For more than a century archaeologists have carefully brushed and shoveled away the soil surrounding human skeletons. It was thought that the soil was without any value -- but now ground-breaking research from Danish scientists show that that the soil holds the key to very detailed information about the individual in the grave.  |
| Tahiti: A very hot biodiversity hot spot in the Pacific Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:50 AM PDT Picturesque Tahiti may be the hottest spot for evolution on the planet. A recent biological survey of tiny predatory beetles has found that over 100 closely related species evolved on the island in about 1.5 million years. Given Tahiti's small area, slightly more than 1000 square kilometers, this adaptive radiation is the geographically densest species assemblage in the world.  |
| Perseid meteors to light up summer skies Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:48 AM PDT The evening of 12 August and morning of 13 August see the annual maximum of the Perseids meteor shower. This year prospects for watching this natural firework display are particularly good.  |
| New hope for improved TB treatments Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:48 AM PDT Researchers have identified new markers of tuberculosis (TB) that may help in the development of new diagnostic tests and treatments.  |
| Ancient glass beads provide evidence of industry and trade routes at the time of the Romans Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:48 AM PDT Scientists have demonstrated techniques used to produce ancient glazed beads. The raw materials for ancient glass beads found in former Rhaetian settlements in Bavaria clearly did not originate from this region, researchers say.  |
| New insights into the polymer mystique for conducting charges Posted: 09 Aug 2013 08:46 AM PDT With its ever-escalating pursuit of high efficiency and low cost, the electronics industry prizes understanding specific behaviors of polymers. Now there's help in appreciating the polymer mystique related to the emerging field of molecular conduction in which films of charge-transporting large molecules and polymers are used within electronic devices.  |
