Culture

Department of Chemistry, Zhengzhou University, China-Research, has shown the enhanced cellulose-hydrogen production from bio-pretreated corn stalk by mixed culture in batch tests and a 5 L bioreactor, respectively. The study is reported in Issue 54(8) (April, 2009) of Chinese Science Bulletin based on its important academic significance as well as potential commercial and environmental benefits in the future.

CORVALLIS, Ore. – The judicial appointments of former president George W. Bush suggests that his motivation for appointing nontraditional judges was driven more by ideology and strategy than concerns for diversity, a new analysis shows.

The examination of all the federal judicial appointments over the two terms of the Bush presidency show that while he did make a number of diverse appointments, especially with Hispanics, overall the federal courts did not gain in the number of minority judges during Bush's tenure.

Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washinton DC (26 June 2009) – A complex picture is emerging about the controversial Academies programme. Researchers analyse and report findings about Academies in a special issue of the journal Management in Education (MIE), published today by SAGE. Amongst the issues addressed are whether Academies are leading to improved student performance and higher levels of student satisfaction.

Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC (26 June, 2009) – Combating high blood pressure is a global challenge. But while developed countries have enjoyed reductions in cardiovascular disease over recent decades, Latin America has been less fortunate. In fact new research published in the journal Therapeutic Advances in Cardiovascular Disease shows that high blood pressure is on the increase in many Latin American countries, a situation set to worsen unless immediate action is taken.

The El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon has been shown to have a significant effect on the results of the Ashes cricket series. When the series is held in Australia, the Australian Cricket team is more likely to succeed after El Nino years, while the England cricket team has a historically better record following La Nina years (the opposite phase), according to a study published today in Weather.

MADISON -- With the caloric needs of the planet expected to soar by 50 percent in the next 40 years, planning and investment in global agriculture will become critically important, according a new report released today (June 25).

The report, produced by Deutsche Bank, one of the world's leading global investment banks, in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, provides a framework for investing in sustainable agriculture against a backdrop of massive population growth and escalating demands for food, fiber and fuel.

"It's important to develop a good, accurate animal model to test these new therapies," said R. Michael Roberts, Curator's Professor of Animal Science and Biochemistry and a researcher in the Bond Life Sciences Center. "Cures with stem cells are not right around the corner, but the pig could be an excellent model for testing new therapies because it is so similar to humans in many ways."

Rape trial juries need better guidance in the courtroom — and a better understanding of rape victims — to help them reach their verdict.

Professor Vanessa Munro of The University of Nottingham and Dr Louise Ellison of the University of Leeds found jurors have a poor understanding of the various ways in which women might react when raped, the levels and types of injuries they might sustain and the different behaviours they might display in the witness box.

"We were astounded when our customer, Markus Wild, approached us and we were not at all certain whether mathematics could offer a solution for the very complex problem of volume optimization of gemstones," says Dr. Anton Winterfeld from the Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWM. Jointly with his colleague Dr. Peter Klein, he will receive one of the 2009 Joseph von Fraunhofer prizes for the development of GemOpt, a new industrial process for the volume-optimized utilization of colored gemstones.

Over the years, research has shown that Latino youth face numerous risk factors when integrating into American culture, including increased rates of alcohol and substance use and higher rates of dropping out of school.

But a new study from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill shows adolescents who actively embrace their native culture – and whose parents become more involved in U.S. culture – stand a greater chance of avoiding these risks and developing healthier behaviors overall.

Investigators at Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute, Oakland, California found a way to obtain large numbers of hematopoietic stem cell from human term placenta. The results, which appear in the July 2009 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, describe detailed report on quantification, characterization, engraftment capacity, and most importantly, practical way to obtain hematopoietic stem cells from placenta in numbers that are several-fold higher than could be obtained from cord blood.

June 24, 2009 – Despite recent declines in cigarette use in the U.S., nicotine dependence has remained steady among adults and has actually increased among some groups. The finding by researchers at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health suggests that public health initiatives have been far more successful in preventing Americans from taking up smoking than in persuading hard-core smokers to stop. The study is available online in the American Journal of Public Health and will be published in the August 2009 issue.

In December 2007 a team of experts, led by The University of Nottingham, unveiled an extraordinary set of high-resolution images that gave an insight into the plan of the Roman town of Venta Icenorum at Caistor St Edmund in Norfolk.

The new research demonstrated that Caistor is a site of international importance — and tomorrow there will be an event to showcase the work and to clarify some of the mysteries of this buried roman town and highlight the impact of the research in developing Caistor as a cultural resource for Norfolk.