news 2013

A social network designed in 2006 by a young Yale professor to link Hispanic scientists now boasts more than 6,500 members and has not only spurred research collaborations, but has increased interest in science among Hispanic students, particularly those of Puerto Rican descent, a new paper claims.

Weather forecasters on exoplanet GJ 1214b would have an easy job. Today's forecast: cloudy. Tomorrow: overcast. Extended outlook: more clouds. That's the implication of a study led by researchers in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago who have definitively characterized the atmosphere of a super-Earth class planet orbiting another star for the first time.

University of Washington For us writers in the UW News office , the year's end gives us some time to think about the big research news stories of the year. Those that drove up page views, flooded our servers (thank you UW web team for keeping us afloat!), and generated interesting reader responses in the comments section.

How do we come to recognize expertise in another person and integrate new information with our prior assessments of that person's ability? The brain mechanisms underlying these sorts of evaluations-which are relevant to how we make decisions ranging from whom to hire, whom to marry, and whom to elect to Congress-are the subject of a new study by a team of neuroscientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech).

26 Dec 2013 Researchers from Arthritis Research UK Centre for Genetics and Genomics at The University of Manchester have helped discover a further 42 genetic markers associated with rheumatoid arthritis in the largest international study to date on the topic. Scientists in 38 separate institutions across seven countries contributed data from their own studies so that a much more powerful single combined analysis could be performed that examined over 10 million genetic markers in over 100,000 individuals, 29,880 of whom have rheumatoid arthritis.

Highest intakes are found in regions lying along the old Silk Road - from East Asia, through Central Asia to Eastern Europe and the Middle East Dr John Powles The global average salt intake in 2010 was around 10 grams per person per day, corresponding to 4 grams per day of sodium, according to a study published today in the BMJ Open.

For the first time, astronomers have observed a massive starless cloud, providing the answer to a long held question: How do some stars grow to be behemoths when the vast majority are much smaller? In the new study, published in the Astrophysical Journal , astronomers used the ALMA telescope in Chile, South America, to survey the cores of some of the darkest, coldest, and densest clouds in our Galaxy to search for the telltale signs of star formation.

Scientists from across the world have "scanned the horizon" in order to identify potentially significant medium and long-term threats to conservation efforts.

Scientists have taken an important step towards new malaria treatments by identifying a way to stop malaria parasites from multiplying. In a study published in Nature Chemistry , they show that blocking the activity of an enzyme called NMT in the most common malaria parasite prevents mice from showing symptoms and extends their lifespan.

Researchers create largest evolutionary 'timetree' of land plants to investigate traits that permit survival in cold climates MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (12/22/2013) —A team of researchers studying plants has assembled the largest dated evolutionary tree , using it to show the order in which flowering plants evolved specific strategies, such as the seasonal shedding of leaves, to move into areas with cold winters.

Superconductivity and magnetic fields are normally seen as rivals - very strong magnetic fields normally destroy the superconducting state. Physicists have now demonstrated that a novel superconducting state is only created in the material CeCoIn 5 when there are strong external magnetic fields. This state can then be manipulated by modifying the field direction.

Media coverage of star's double mastectomy falls short on the science, which could influence the public's medical decisions, say UAlberta researchers. Angelina Jolie joins her husband Brad Pitt for a film premiere June 2, 2013, her first public appearance after undergoing a preventive double mastectomy.

20 Dec 2013 Scientists from The University of Manchester – part of Manchester Cancer Research Centre believe they have discovered a new way to make chemotherapy treatment more effective for pancreatic cancer patients. Pancreatic cancer is an aggressive cancer with poor prognosis and limited treatment options and is highly resistant to chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Stanford engineers are working to create a flu vaccine that could be produced more quickly and offer broader protection than what is available today. Every year the approach of flu season sets off a medical guessing game with life or death consequences. There are many different strains of flu and they vary from year to year, so each season health authorities must make an educated guess and tell manufacturers which variants of the flu their vaccines should target.

Researchers at the University of Leeds have shown that greater dietary fibre intake is associated with a lower risk of both cardiovascular disease and coronary heart disease. Dr Victoria Burley, from the School of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Leeds and senior author of the study, said: “It has previously been difficult to demonstrate the long-term influence of diet on heart attacks or strokes.

Researchers investigating whether children and young adults are exposed to advertising from major alcohol brands on the three most popular social networks - Facebook, YouTube and Twitter - find that some channels and brands don't have, or use, age restrictions.

New research has solved a mystery as to why some birds choose not to reproduce, and instead help to guard the nests of their close relatives. This occurs in about nine percent of all bird species. The University of Melbourne collaborated in a study led by ANU and Cambridge University. The findings showed non-breeders helped drive off birds like cuckoos, which lay their eggs in the nests of other birds.

New research has found some birds choose not to reproduce so they can guard the nests of their close relatives. "One of the mysteries of evolutionary biology is why, in about nine per cent of bird species, some individuals choose to forgo reproduction and help others raise young," says Dr Naomi Langmore of the ANU Research School of Biology.

Even as it works to promote education on campus and around the globe, Yale University is dedicated to advancing knowledge about the natural world, human society, disease, and dysfunction - the better to develop new technologies and better approaches to help address the important issues facing humankind.

An international team led by researchers from Karolinska Institutet has identified a new gene related to the Van der Woude syndrome, the most common syndrome with cleft lip and palate. The study is published in the scientific periodical American Journal of Human Genetics and can lead the way to improved genetic diagnostic of individuals and families with orofacial clefts.