Earth | Page 1092 | Science Codex

A mineral way to catalysis?

Catalytic materials, which lower the energy barriers for chemical reactions, are used in everything from the commercial production of chemicals to catalytic converters in car engines. However, with current catalytic materials becoming increasingly expensive, scientists are exploring viable alternatives.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge have now discovered that the sulphide material iron pyrite, commonly known as 'Fool's Gold', may hold the answer. Their findings were published online today, 10 February, in Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics.

3-D laser map shows earthquake zone before and after

Geologists have a new tool to study how earthquakes change the landscape--down to a few inches. It's giving scientists insights into how earthquake faults behave.

In this week's issue of the journal Science, a team of scientists from the United States, Mexico and China reports the most comprehensive before-and-after picture yet of an earthquake zone, using data from the magnitude 7.2 event that struck near Mexicali, Mexico, in April 2010.

AAOS focuses on disaster responders, both yesterday's and tomorrow's

When mass-casualty events occur, orthopaedic surgeons travel throughout the world to treat wounded patients in countries devastated by war, natural disaster and poverty. In 2010, 500 U.S. orthopaedic surgeons traveled to Haiti to help treat hundreds of thousands of victims following a catastrophic earthquake on that Caribbean island. And while the effort was generally successful in treating the broken bones, fractures and other orthopaedic injuries associated with earthquakes, not all of the volunteers were adequately prepared to work in a devastated country.

Study finds that red blood cell transfusion decreases fatigue in women with acute postpartum anemia

DALLAS (Feb. 10, 2012) — In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting ™, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that show that in women with acute postpartum anemia, due to excessive blood loss during delivery, red blood cell transfusion led to a statistically significant decrease in physical fatigue. While excessive blood loss during delivery caused severe physical fatigue, the effect of red blood cell transfusion on this fatigue was small.

Ocean microbe communities changing, but long-term environmental impact is unclear

CORVALLIS, Ore. – As oceans warm due to climate change, water layers will mix less and affect the microbes and plankton that pump carbon out of the atmosphere – but researchers say it's still unclear whether these processes will further increase global warming or decrease it.

The forces at work are enormous and the stakes huge, said Oregon State University scientists in an article to be published Friday in the journal Science.

3-D laser map shows earthquake before and after

Geologists have a new tool to study how earthquakes change the landscape down to a few inches, and it's giving them insight into how earthquake faults behave. In the Feb. 10 issue of the journal Science, a team of scientists from the U.S., Mexico and China reports the most comprehensive before-and-after picture yet of an earthquake zone, using data from the magnitude 7.2 event that struck near Mexicali, northern Mexico in April, 2010.

Cell death unleashes full force of human antiviral system

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Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel bridges genotype-phenotype gap

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Researchers find important 'target' playing role in tobacco-related lung cancers

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'Flipped classroom' teaching model gains an online community

Cambridge, Mass. - February 8, 2012 - Researchers at Harvard University have launched the Peer Instruction (PI) Network, a new global social network for users of interactive teaching methods.

PI, developed by Eric Mazur, Area Dean for Applied Physics and Balkanski Professor of Physics and Applied Physics at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), is an innovative evidence-based pedagogy designed to improve student engagement and success.

Storm warning: Financial tsunami heading this way

In today's global village, national coffers are more interconnected than ever before. And as the current economic crisis has proven, a downturn in one country can travel in a wave across the globe, like a financial tsunami. Now, researchers from Tel Aviv University, in collaboration with the Kiel Institute of World Economy in Germany, have developed a market "seismograph" — a new methodology that measures the interconnections between stock markets across the globe.

Heavy lifting for cancer research

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Study indicates that induced labor may not lower risk of infection or respiratory problems in newborns

DALLAS (Feb. 9, 2012) — In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting ™, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report findings that suggest that induction of labor in patients who suffer a rupture of membranes between the 34th and 37th week of gestation (before the onset of labor) does not reduce the risk of infection or respiratory problems in the newborn.

Utilizing risk-adjustment strategies to navigate an equitable road toward health-care reform

A paper authored by Jonathan Weiner, DrPH, and colleagues from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, appearing in the February 8, issue of Health Affairs, describes why health reform could lead to favorable or adverse risk selection across health plans. The article reviews provisions within the Affordable Care Act legislation and discusses key risk- adjustment implementation issues for states establishing health insurance exchanges.

Global glaciers and ice caps are shedding billions of tons of mass annually

Earth's glaciers and ice caps outside of the regions of Greenland and Antarctica are shedding roughly 150 billion tons of ice annually, according to a new study led by the University of Colorado Boulder.