SciTech Daily

March 16, 2012

Experimental Evidence that Fetal Exposure to Cell Phones Affects Behavior

Cell phone use may cause behavioral disorders in offspring

By exposing pregnant mice to radiation from a cell phone, a new study provides the first experimental evidence that fetal exposure to radiofrequency radiation from cell phones affects the brain development of offspring, potentially leading to hyperactivity. Exposure to radiation from cell phones during pregnancy affects the brain development of offspring, potentially leading to hyperactivity, [...]

March 16, 2012

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Similarities Between Acorn Worm and Vertebrate Brain

A new study shows that Saccoglossus kowalevskii, a sea dwelling, bottom-feeding acorn worm, has a similarities to humans although the worms are separated from vertebrates by over 500 million years of evolution. Biologists may need to rethink where to look for evolutionary changes responsible for the origin of vertebrates, including humans, as a result of [...]

March 16, 2012

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Sex Deprived Fruit Flies Consume More Alcohol

Sexually deprived male fruit flies are driven to excessive alcohol consumption

While studying male fruit flies, researchers discovered that sexually deprived flies will consume more alcohol than sexually satisfied male flies and that the flies’ behavior changes as the levels of neuropeptide F in the brain change. Sexually deprived male fruit flies exhibit a pattern of behavior that seems ripped from the pages of a sad-sack [...]

March 16, 2012

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Behavior in Curious honeybees Similar to Humans

dopamine play a role in personality variations among bees

Experiments show that scouting bees, much like novelty-seeking humans, have differences in brain activity in genes related to dopamine and glutamate signaling between neurons. Genomic analysis of the bees revealed significant differences between scouts and non-scouts in the abundance of specific mRNAs and researchers were able to increase and decrease the bees scouting tendencies by [...]

March 16, 2012

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Ultracold Atoms as Quantum Simulators

By following the dynamics of a quantum system of strongly correlated ultracold atoms in an optical lattice, a team of physicists has demonstrated the superiority of a dynamical quantum simulator over state-of-the-art numerical calculations. The key prospect of a quantum simulator is to access new physics that the best known classical algorithms can no longer [...]

March 16, 2012

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Making Graphene-Based Supercapacitors with DVD Discs

By coating a DVD disc with a film of graphite oxide that is then laser treated inside a LightScribe DVD drive to produce graphene electrodes, researchers were able to demonstrate high-performance graphene-based electrochemical capacitors that can be charged and discharged a hundred to a thousand times faster than conventional batteries. Electrochemical capacitors (ECs), also known [...]

March 16, 2012

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Quasars Acting as Gravitational Lenses Viewed by Hubble

Quasars, which are powered by supermassive black holes, are among the brightest objects in the universe and make it nearly impossible for astronomers to estimate the mass of the host galaxy. Researchers are now using the Hubble Space Telescope and gravitational lensing to estimate the mass of a quasar’s host galaxy. Astronomers using NASA’s Hubble [...]

March 16, 2012

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Hummingbirds Notice Location, Not Flower Color

Hummingbirds pay no attention to flower color

A new study suggests that hummingbirds are more interested in the location of the flower than the actual color of it. The published research states that while presenting the hummingbirds with artificial flowers as a food source, observations confirmed that color made no difference in their selection process. Hummingbirds pay no attention to what color [...]

March 15, 2012

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Smokers Likely to Quit Because of Social Disapproval, Not Fear

A new study based in the UK shows that fear provoked by graphic images had no effect on smokers’ intentions to stop smoking and that smokers were more willing to consider quitting because of negative attitudes towards their habit. In 2008 the United Kingdom became one of the first countries in Europe to make it [...]

March 15, 2012

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Examining Membrane Proteins by X-Ray Laser

Scientists embedded tiny protein crystals in an oily solution

New research at SLAC’s Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS) has shown a promising new way to collect data on membrane proteins in the human body. The method involves embedding tiny protein crystals in an oily paste and then hitting them with a powerful X-ray laser to determine the protein’s structure. Many membrane proteins serve as [...]

March 15, 2012

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New Nanofabrication Process for Metamaterials

new nanofabrication process for use in creating metamaterials

The development of metamaterials continues to move forward as physicists at Harvard have used short and powerful laser pulses to create 3-D patterns of tiny silver dots within a material, which are essential for building futuristic devices like invisibility cloaks. Researchers in applied physics have cleared an important hurdle in the development of advanced materials, [...]

March 15, 2012

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Locomotion Restored in Mice with Huntington’s-Like Condition

stem cells could help restore the muscle coordination deficits

A new study showed that locomotion could be restored in mice with a Huntington’s-like condition by using GABA neurons forged from human embryonic stem cells. The study shows that the cells integrated into the brain, projected to the right target and effectively reestablished the broken communication network, restoring motor function. MADISON – Huntington’s disease, the [...]