News

May 14, 2012 10:22 AM EDT

Bio-hybrid Device Acts as 'Thermostat' to Control Systemic Inflammation in Sepsis

A small, external bioreactor holding human cells pumped out an anti-inflammatory protein to prevent organ damage and other complications in a rat with acute inflammation caused by bacterial products in a model of sepsis, according to a report from researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School o...

CHI-Fold Proteins
May 14, 2012 09:57 AM EDT

Discovery of Plant Proteins May Boost Agricultural Yields and Biofuel Production

Scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies and Iowa State University discovered a family of plant proteins that play a role in the production of seed oils, substances important for animal and human nutrition, biorenewable chemicals and biofuels.

Protein
May 14, 2012 09:45 AM EDT

New Study Discovers Powerful Function of Single Protein that Controls Neurotransmission

Scientists at Weill Cornell Medical College have discovered that the single protein -- alpha 2 delta -- exerts a spigot-like function, controlling the volume of neurotransmitters and other chemicals that flow between the synapses of brain neurons. The study, published online in Nature, shows how bra...

May 14, 2012 09:33 AM EDT

New Twist on Ancient Math Problem Could Improve Medicine, Microelectronics

A hidden facet of a math problem that goes back to Sanskrit scrolls has just been exposed by nanotechnology researchers at the University of Michigan and the University of Connecticut.

May 14, 2012 09:20 AM EDT

Cancer in the Elderly: Research Fails to Keep up with Demographic Change

New research showing that almost half of 13,000 patients with head and neck cancers had other health-related problems at the same time is one of the presentations in a special session at the 31st conference of the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO 31).. The session will highlight...

NASA Boeing
May 14, 2012 09:10 AM EDT

Sonic Boom Heads for a Thump

NASA's aeronautical innovators are one step closer to confidently crafting a viable commercial airliner that can fly faster than the speed of sound, yet produce a sonic boom that is quiet enough not to bother anyone on the ground below.

Battery
May 14, 2012 08:51 AM EDT

New Nanostructure for Batteries Keeps Going and Going ...

For more than a decade, scientists have tried to improve lithium-based batteries by replacing the graphite in one terminal with silicon, which can store 10 times more charge. But after just a few charge/discharge cycles, the silicon structure would crack and crumble, rendering the battery useless.

Namibia
May 14, 2012 08:34 AM EDT

Earth Observatory: Etosha Pan, Namibia

This astronaut photograph shows the white, salt-covered floor in the northwest corner of the Etosha Pan, a great dry lake in northern Namibia. Two rivers, the Ekuma and Oshigambo, transport water from the north down to the Pan. In a relatively rare event shown in this image, water from recent rains ...

Forest
May 14, 2012 08:24 AM EDT

Time, Place and How Wood is Used Are Factors in Carbon Emissions from Deforestation

A new study from the University of California, Davis, provides a deeper understanding of the complex global impacts of deforestation on greenhouse gas emissions.

Sheffield
May 14, 2012 08:17 AM EDT

Research Maps the City's Heat

Steel - the traditional industry for which the UK city of Sheffield is so well known - could help provide a green alternative for heating the city's homes and businesses, alongside other renewable energy sources.

Sunset
May 14, 2012 07:41 AM EDT

Farewell to the Sun

The crew of the French-Italian Concordia research base in the Antarctic saw their last rays of Sun for over four months last weekend. Near the South Pole, the outpost will now continue its research and run self-sufficiently in darkness until September.

Astroids
May 14, 2012 07:25 AM EDT

Meteorite Discovery Spurs Hunt For More Pieces

Meteorite fragments were recently scattered around Sutter's Mill in California, the same region where the first nugget of gold was found that sparked the Gold Rush in 1848. Scientists believe the meteorites may hold answers to unsolved mysteries about our solar system and the origins of molecules ne...

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