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Updated: 8 min 57 sec ago
Years of smoking associated with lower Parkinson's risk, not number of cigarettes per day
(American Academy of Neurology) Researchers have new insight into the relationship between Parkinson's disease and smoking. Several studies have shown that smokers have a lower risk of developing Parkinson's disease. A new study published in the March 10, 2010, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, shows that smoking for a greater number of years may reduce the risk of the disease, but smoking a larger number of cigarettes per day may not reduce the risk.
Game on? Video-game ownership may interfere with young boys' academic functioning
(Association for Psychological Science) According to new findings, owning a video-game system may hamper academic development in some children. Boys who received a video-game system immediately had significantly lower reading and writing scores after four months than boys receiving a video-game system at the end of the experiment. Further analysis revealed that the time spent playing video games may link the relationship between owning a video-game system and reading and writing scores.
Prehistoric response to global warming informs human planning today
(University at Buffalo) Since 2004, University at Buffalo anthropologist Ezra Zubrow has worked intensively with teams of scientists in the Arctic regions of St. James Bay, Quebec, northern Finland and Kamchatka to understand how humans living 4,000 to 6,000 years ago reacted to climate changes.
Harvard School of Public Health unveils comprehensive, public online library of firearms research
(Harvard School of Public Health) A new firearms research database launched by the Harvard School of Public Health makes scholarly articles more accessible to reporters, law enforcement, public health officials, policymakers and the general public.
UC Riverside to host 3-day international meeting on drought
(University of California - Riverside) To compare drought impact and mitigation at the international level, UC Riverside has organized a meeting that will bring together senior drought experts and policy makers from five drought-plagued regions: Spain, Australia, South Africa, Mexico and California. The "International Drought Symposium: Integrating Science and Policy" will take place March 24-26, 2010, at the Riverside Marriott Hotel, 3400 Market St., Riverside, Calif. Topics to be covered include economics, agronomy, hydrology, ecology, technology, policy and water management.
Confidence is key to gauging impressions we make
(Washington University in St. Louis) The gift of "seeing ourselves as others see us" comes in handy when judging how we've made a first impression. Yet many come away with little or no clue about how that first impression was perceived. A new study suggests confidence is a key indicator of how well we've assessed impressions left behind.
Leonardo's anatomical sketches fascinate modern-day anatomist
(University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio) Leonardo da Vinci's sketches of human anatomy are a true source of inspiration to Ron Philo, Ph.D., who teaches anatomy to bioscience students at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Dr. Philo and Martin Clayton of the Print Room at Windsor Castle, England, have co-authored an art catalog of the medieval sketches.
Brain mechanism may explain alcohol cravings that drive relapse
(Cell Press) New research provides exciting insight into the molecular mechanisms associated with addiction and relapse. The study, published by Cell Press in the March 11 issue of the journal Neuron, uncovers a crucial mechanism that facilitates motivation for alcohol after extended abstinence and opens new avenues for potential therapeutic intervention.
Study explores belief in rumor that Obama is Muslim
(University of Georgia) Exposure to news media has long been thought to help create a more informed and politically educated citizenry, but a new University of Georgia study finds that media exposure did little to correct a significant misperception during the most recent presidential campaign.
Pottery leads to discovery of peace-seeking women in American Southwest
(University of Missouri-Columbia) University of Missouri researcher Todd VanPool believes pottery found throughout the North American Southwest comes from a religion of peace-seeking women in the violent, 13th-century American Southwest. These women sought to find a way to integrate newly immigrating refugees and prevent the spread of warfare that decimated communities to the north.
Genomatix gives a hand in the analysis of Wayne State's sequencing projects
(Genomatix Software GmbH) The C.S. Mott Center for Human Growth and Development at the Wayne State University School of Medicine installed a Genomatix Mining Station and a Genomatix Genome Analyzer last year at their labs in order to support the analysis of NextGen Sequencing data. Professor Stephen Krawetz , Director of Translational Reproductive Systems is utilizing the Genomatix systems to help analyze the cis and epigenetic elements that control many reproductive events, including cell-fate.
Patient and doctor expectations from joint replacement surgeries not always aligned
(Hospital for Special Surgery) While physicians strive to set realistic expectations for patients undergoing knee and hip joint replacements, a new study reported by Hospital for Special Surgery researchers reveals that doctor and patient expectations are sometimes not aligned.
Research streamlines data processing to solve problems more efficiently
(North Carolina State University) Researchers at North Carolina State University have developed a new analytical method that opens the door to faster processing of large amounts of information, with applications in fields as diverse as the military, medical diagnostics and homeland security.
BIDMC scientist Christopher Evans, Ph.D., honored by Orthopedic Research Society
(Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center) Christopher Evans, Ph.D., director of the Center for Advanced Orthopedic Studies at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Maurice Edmond Mueller Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Harvard Medical School, was presented with the 2010 Arthur Steindler Award at this week's annual meeting of the Orthopedic Research Society in New Orleans.
GenY workers want their cake and to eat it too
(SAGE Publications) Managing the young generation of workers -- sometimes called GenY, GenMe, or Millennials -- is a hot topic, covered in the popular press and discussed in numerous books and seminars. However, most of these discussions are based on perceptions and anecdote rather than hard data, partially because no one had established that GenY differed in work values from previous generations.
Life is shorter for men, but sexually active life expectancy is longer
(University of Chicago Medical Center) At age 55, men can expect another 15 years of sexual activity, but women that age should expect less than 11 years, according to a study by University of Chicago researchers published early online March 10 by the British Medical Journal. Men in good or excellent health at 55 can add 5 to 7 years to that number. Equally healthy women gain slightly less, 3 to 6 years.
Decoding the long calls of the orangutan
(Wiley-Blackwell) Research into the long calls of male orangutans in Borneo has given scientists new insight into how these solitary apes communicate through dense jungle. An acoustic analysis of the calls, published today in Ethology, reveals that the calls not only serve to attract females, but also contain information on the identity and the context of the caller.
Vilcek prizes in biomedical science awarded
(Vilcek Foundation) The Vilcek Foundation is pleased to announce the granting of the 2010 Vilcek Prize for Biomedical Science and the Vilcek Prize, for Creative Promise. Both prizes are awarded only to foreign-born American citizens to reflect the guiding philosophy, values, and mission of the Vilcek Foundation and its founders -- Dr. Jan and Marica Vilcek -- who immigrated to this country from Czechoslovakia in the 1960s.
After a fight with a partner, brain activity predicts emotional resiliency
(Harvard University) Neural activity in the lateral prefrontal cortex can predict whether an individual will still be upset on the day after a conflict with his or her partner, according to new research from a psychologist at Harvard University. The findings point to the brain region's role in emotion regulation, and suggest that greater activity in this area might lead to improvement in day-to-day mood.
Positive prevention toolkit aims to assist global training of HIV/AIDS caregivers
(University of California - San Francisco) The toolkit, developed by the UCSF Center for AIDS Prevention Studies, includes proven prevention interventions for HIV-positive individuals. Toolkit materials are developing country focused and can be adapted for use in African settings. Available on the Web, on CD-ROM and in English and Portuguese, the toolkit is being implemented in Mozambique on a national level.
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