Tech

Scientists are reporting first use of a new method that may make it easier for manufacturers to recover, recycle, and reuse nanoparticles, some of which ounce for ounce can be more precious than gold. The method, which offers a solution to a nagging problem, could speed application of nanotechnology in new generations of solar cells, flexible electronic displays, and other products, the scientists suggest. Their study appears in ACS' Langmuir, a bi-weekly journal.

Scientists in Alaska have discovered that lingering oil from the 1989 Exxon Valdez spill is still being ingested by some wildlife more than 20 years after the disaster. The research, published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, uses biomarkers to reveal long-term exposure to oil in harlequin ducks and demonstrates how consequences of oil spills are measured in decades rather than years.

Providence, RI--- Whether it's an exploding fireball in "Star Wars", a swirling maelstrom in "Pirates of the Caribbean" or beguiling rats turning out gourmet food in "Ratatouille", computer-generated effects have opened a whole new world of enchantment in cinema. All such effects are ultimately grounded in mathematics, which provides a critical translation from the physical world to computer simulations.

Obese women who have bariatric surgery before getting pregnant are at significantly lower risk for developing dangerous hypertensive disorders during pregnancy than those who don't, according to a study of medical insurance records by Johns Hopkins experts.

Hypertensive disorders in pregnancy — which include gestational hypertension, preeclampsia and eclampsia — complicate an estimated 7 percent of pregnancies in the United States. Researchers say they are much more common in obese women, who make up a third of women of childbearing age.

Patients who do not have health care insurance, or those with insurance but financial concerns about accessing health care, are more likely to delay seeking emergency care for a heart attack, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.

This release is available in http://chinese..org/zh/emb_releases/2010-04/jaaj-sfw040910.php">Chinese.

An analysis of blood samples taken before, during and after an epidemic wave of influenza A(H1N1) in Singapore in 2009 finds variation in infection risks and antibody levels, with younger age groups and military personnel having higher infection rates than other groups, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.

This release is available in http://chinese..org/zh/emb_releases/2010-04/jaaj-uoc040910.php">Chinese.

An analysis of prescription and clinical claims data suggests that the use of certain anticonvulsant medications may be associated with an increased risk of suicide, attempted suicide or violent death, according to a study in the April 14 issue of JAMA.

Warren Kindzierski, University of Alberta researcher in the School of Public Health, says people living in the communities of Fort McMurray, Fort Mckay and Fort Chipewyan should feel confident that the air they are breathing is safe.

Kindzierski's research has found that, despite ongoing development, it's apparent that there is little or no pattern to the changes in concentrations of various air pollutants across the oil sands region over the past 10 years.

Academia is sometimes viewed as an "ivory tower" environment with little connection to the real world, but new research from North Carolina State University should help academics striving to overcome that reputation. A new paper lays out guidelines that can be used to develop and implement partnerships between academics and local communities to foster research efforts that address social problems.

The engineers from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at the University of California, San Diego who are at the forefront of the latest "silicon revolution" will, for another year, dominate two of the most influential annual academic conferences focused on advanced wireless communications technologies — IMS 2010 and RFIC 2010.

UCLA researchers sought to compare how two different approaches to providing follow-up care to health fair participants impacted blood-pressure control.

Pathogens can now be easily tracked in time and space as they evolve, an advance that could revolutionize both public health and inform national security in the fight against infectious diseases. Developed by researchers that include scientists at the American Museum of Natural History, Supramap (supramap.osu.edu) is a new, powerful, web-based application that maps genetic mutations like those among the different strains of avian influenza onto the globe.

A new study from North Carolina State University shows that size plays a key role in determining the structure of certain hollow nanoparticles. The researchers focused on nickel nanoparticles, which have interesting magnetic and catalytic properties that may have applications in fields as diverse as energy production and nanoelectronics.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Biofuels processors who mill switchgrass into fine bits to help its flowability should be able to save time, energy and money by not doing so, a Purdue University study shows.

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The American Academy of Neurology has issued a new guideline to help determine when people with Alzheimer's disease or another type of dementia should stop driving. The guideline is published in the April 12, 2010, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, and will be presented April 12, 2010, at the American Academy of Neurology's Annual Meeting in Toronto.