Tech | Page 1674 | Science Codex

Light controls matter, matter controls X-rays

Like playing a game of scissors-paper-rock, a team of scientists led by Thornton E. (Ernie) Glover of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's Advanced Light Source (ALS), Linda Young of Argonne National Laboratory, and Ali Belkacem of Berkeley Lab's Chemical Sciences Division has used laser light to control x-ray beams – by first changing the material medium through which the x-rays pass.

As a new generation of powerful light sources comes online, intense x-ray beams may be able to control matter directly and allow one beam of x-rays to control another.

More economical process for making ethanol from nonfood sources

SAN FRANCISCO, March 25, 2010 — Scientists in Wisconsin are reporting discovery of a way to lower the cost of converting wood, corn stalks and leaves, switch grass, and other non-food biomass materials into ethanol fuel. They describe their process, which reduces amounts of costly enzymes needed to break down tough fibrous cellulose matter in biomass for fermentation into alcohol, here today at the 239th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS).

Many factors contribute to adolescents' decision-making autonomy

Decision making within families is an important way for young people to gain independence and responsibility, and adolescence is a time of increasing autonomy. A longitudinal study by Penn State researchers in the College of Health and Human Development concludes that teens have more say in certain areas than in others, and that some teens have more autonomy than others.

New boreal forest biomass maps produced from radar satellite data

Having a large-scale boreal forest biomass inventory would allow scientists to understand better the carbon cycle and to predict more accurately Earth's future climate. However, obtaining these maps has been wrought with difficulty – until now.

Child sexual abuse: A risk factor for pregnancy

A new study carried out by Prof. Rachel Lev-Wiesel and Dr. Tzachi Ben Zion has found that women who were victims of sexual abuse in childhood reported higher levels of depression and symptoms of post-trauma during pregnancy.

Women bear caregiving responsibility in cases of dependency in Spain

Bathing and showering: Underappreciated sources of water pollution from medicines

SAN FRANCISCO, March 24, 2010 — That bracing morning shower and soothing bedtime soak in the tub are potentially important but until now unrecognized sources of the hormones, antibiotics, and other pharmaceuticals that pollute the environment, scientists reported here today at the 239th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society. The first-ever evaluation, they said, could lead to new ways to control environmental pollution from active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), which has been the source of growing concern.

New Tulane University study says diabetes at epidemic proportions in China

A large population-based study of diabetes in China conducted by investigators from Tulane University and their colleagues in China has concluded that the disease has reached epidemic proportions in the adult population of China. The study estimates that 92.4 million adults age 20 or older (9.7 percent of the population) have diabetes and 148.2 million adults (15.5 percent) have prediabetes, a key risk factor for the development of overt diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The results are published in the March 25 edition of The New England Journal of Medicine.

Transition into adult health care is a rocky road for 20 somethings

Young adults, a generally healthy population, are increasingly flocking to emergency departments (EDs) instead of outpatient clinics for medical treatment. Young adults remain the most likely age group to lack health insurance and often lose their insurance during this pivotal transition period between adolescence and adulthood.

UCSF study finds clinic-based HIV prevention is effective in reducing risk behaviors

UCSF researchers have shown that delivering HIV prevention services to people living with HIV in clinical settings can sharply reduce their sexual risk behaviors.

The findings are available now in the online edition of the journal "AIDS and Behavior" and are scheduled for publication in an upcoming print issue.

Children with food allergies should carry 2 doses of emergency medicine

Boston, Mass. – In a large six-year review of emergency department (ED) data, researchers at Children's Hospital Boston, in collaboration with Massachusetts General Hospital, found that many children with severe food-related allergic reactions need a second dose of epinephrine, suggesting that patients carrying EpiPens should carry two doses instead of one.

Scientists believe birds can teach us about healthy eating

KINGSTON, R.I. – March 24, 2010 – Want to know what kinds of foods prevent disease? Then watch what migratory birds eat during their stopovers on Block Island.

Two University of Rhode Island scientists believe that birds choose certain berries because they offer protection against oxidative stress that occurs during long flights. Oxidative stress can lead to inflammation and a variety of diseases in birds and humans.

NIA researchers find gene to explain mouse embryonic stem cell immortality

Researchers at the National Institute on Aging (NIA), part of the National Institutes of Health, have discovered a key to embryonic stem (ES) cell rejuvenation in a gene—Zscan4—as reported in the March 24, 2010, online issue of Nature. This breakthrough finding could have major implications for aging research, stem cell biology, regenerative medicine and cancer biology.

Even soil feels the heat

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Twenty years of field studies reveal that as the Earth has gotten warmer, plants and microbes in the soil have given off more carbon dioxide. So-called soil respiration has increased about one-tenth of 1 percent per year since 1989, according to an analysis of past studies in today's issue of Nature.

New CO2 'scrubber' from ingredient in hair conditioners

SAN FRANCISCO, March 24, 2010 — Relatives of ingredients in hair-conditioning shampoos and fabric softeners show promise as a long-sought material to fight global warming by "scrubbing" carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the flue gases from coal-burning electric power generating stations, scientists reported today at the 239th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS).