Tech

With more than half of all adults allergic to poison ivy, oak and sumac, scientists are reporting an advance toward an inexpensive spray that could reveal the presence of the rash-causing toxic oil on the skin, clothing, garden tools, and even the family cat or dog. Using the spray, described in ACS' The Journal of Organic Chemistry would enable people to wash off the oil, or avoid further contact, in time to sidestep days of misery.

What does a yoghurt look like over time? The food industry will soon be able to answer this question using a new fluid simulation tool developed by the Department of Computer Science (DIKU) at the University of Copenhagen as part of a broad partnership with other research institutions. An epoch-making shift in the way we simulate the physical world is now a reality.

Southfield, MI - - Understanding and evaluating art has widely been considered as a task meant for humans, until now. Computer scientists Lior Shamir and Jane Tarakhovsky of Lawrence Technological University in Michigan tackled the question "can machines understand art?" The results were very surprising. In fact, an algorithm has been developed that demonstrates computers are able to "understand" art in a fashion very similar to how art historians perform their analysis, mimicking the perception of expert art critiques.

Simon Chapman, Professor of Public Health at the University of Sydney thinks the extra publicity that celebrities provide can help promote public health. He acknowledges that celebrities are not experts but says, unlike many experts, they "often speak personally and bring compelling authenticity to public discourse."

CHICAGO—In today's fast-paced society, consumers often reach for nutrition bars when looking for a healthy on-the-go snack. A new study in the September issue of the Journal of Food Science published by the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) found that partially replacing canola oil with fish oil in nutrition bars can provide the health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids without affecting the taste.

Philadelphia, PA, September 24, 2012 – PSA screening has resulted in improved prostate cancer survival, but the high rate of diagnosis and treatment side effects raise concerns about overtreatment. In the quest to prevent overtreatment, "active surveillance" has emerged as a plausible option, encouraged for men whose tumors may not need immediate treatment and may never progress to more serious illness. Appropriate criteria for selecting patients for active surveillance are continuously debated.

Think of the poor hamster on the treadmill. Steadily picking up speed and caught up by the momentum, unable to stop until it is overwhelmed and sent tumbling, crashing out of control inside the spinning wheel.

That's the analogy John Yackel, head of the Department of Geography, makes when he considers the annual summer ice melt in the Arctic, which he's been closely monitoring for the past 15 years, documenting the ice cover as it has steadily shrunk in the wake of Arctic and global warming.

This press release is available in Spanish.

Getting a head start on stopping soil copper buildup will now be a bit easier, thanks to studies by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientists. This research could help Pacific Northwest farmers develop long-term irrigation management strategies to protect crops from potentially dangerous soil copper levels.

Going forward, the researchers would like to increase the field of view of the device so that they can image the full lesion along with its border to healthy tissue. They are also working on speeding up the post-processing of the optical signal to enable live vasculature display, and improving the portability of the system, which currently occupies an area about half the size of an office desk. "We believe that in the future our method will help to simplify non-invasive dermatological in vivo diagnostics and allow for in-depth treatment monitoring," says Blatter.

WASHINGTON--Refueling U.S. Navy vessels, at sea and underway, is a costly endeavor in terms of logistics, time, fiscal constraints and threats to national security and sailors at sea.

In Fiscal Year 2011, the U.S. Navy Military Sea Lift Command, the primary supplier of fuel and oil to the U.S. Navy fleet, delivered nearly 600 million gallons of fuel to Navy vessels underway, operating 15 fleet replenishment oilers around the globe.

From Seawater to CO2

Alexandria, VA – Diesel-soaked clothing, 90-hour work weeks, and the constant groaning of a multimillion-dollar oil rig towering overhead: Welcome to life in Williston, N.D., home of the United States' latest oil boom. In this month's issue of EARTH Magazine, R. Tyler Powers, a young geologist thrust into the middle of the new boomtown, offers his perspective on what life is like today in the new Wild West.

Europe accounted for two thirds of the world-wide newly installed photovoltaic (PV) capacity in 2011, with 18.5 GW. Its overall PV capacity totalled 52 GW. The yearly electricity produced by PV could power a country with the electricity demand of Austria, which corresponds to 2% of the EU's electricity needs. These are some of the highlights of the 2012 Photovoltaics Status Report published today by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre.

The study summarises and evaluates the current activities regarding manufacturing, policies and market implementation world-wide.

Susannah Briskin, MD, a pediatric sports medicine specialist with University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, is the co-author of an updated report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) strongly cautioning against home trampolines. The report provides updated data on the number of and types of injuries caused by trampolines.

The new report's key recommendation against recreational trampoline use remains consistent with AAP's previous policy statement from 1999 and reaffirmed in 2006.

Susannah Briskin, MD, a pediatric sports medicine specialist with University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, is the co-author of an updated report from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) strongly cautioning against home trampolines. The report provides updated data on the number of and types of injuries caused by trampolines.

The new report's key recommendation against recreational trampoline use remains consistent with AAP's previous policy statement from 1999 and reaffirmed in 2006.

Breast milk provides important nutrients and immune factors to help meet the nutritional needs of infants and minimize the risk of illness and other complications. However, breast milk alone may not fully meet the nutritional needs of premature infants.