Clark Science Center Intranet

Building 'invisible' materials with light
A new technique which uses light like a needle to thread long chains of particles could help bring sci-fi concepts such as cloaking devices one step closer to reality.

New species of mayfly discovered in India
Scientists have discovered a new species of mayfly in the southern Western Ghats, a mountain range along the west coast of India. The larvae have light-brown heads with light-yellow antennae, and they grow to be about 4-5 millimeters in length. Adults are also about five millimeters long, and the ma...

Hepatitis C virus genotype 1 most prevalent worldwide
In one of the largest prevalence studies to date, researchers from the UK provide national, regional, and global genotype prevalence estimates for the hepatitis C virus. Findings indicate that genotype 1 is the most prevalent worldwide, with over 83 million patients infected of which one-third resid...

Dinosaurs fell victim to perfect storm of events, study shows
Dinosaurs might have survived the asteroid strike that wiped them out if it had taken place slightly earlier or later in history, scientists say. They found that in the few million years before a 10km-wide asteroid struck what is now Mexico, Earth was experiencing environmental upheaval. This includ...

New oral drug regimens cure hardest-to-treat hepatitis C infected patients, c...
Two new pill-only antiviral drug regimens could provide shorter, more effective treatment options with fewer side effects for the majority of patients infected with hepatitis C, even those most difficult to treat, according to the results of two studies. Around 150 million people worldwide have chro...

Lifestyle choices may affect long-term heart health of childhood cancer survi...
Following a healthy lifestyle may lower childhood cancer survivors? risk of developing the metabolic syndrome, a study shows. The findings indicate that children with cancer and adults who had cancer when they were children should receive information about how their lifestyle may influence their lon...

Six new genetic risk factors for Parkinson's found
Using data from over 18,000 patients, scientists have identified more than two dozen genetic risk factors involved in Parkinson's disease, including six that had not been previously reported. "Unraveling the genetic underpinnings of Parkinson's is vital to understanding the multiple mechanisms invol...

Surgical safety program greatly reduces surgical site infections for heart op...
A common postoperative complication after open heart operations -- infection at the surgical site -- has been reduced by 77 percent at a Canadian hospital through its participation in the American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP®), according to a new case...

New tools help neuroscientists analyze 'big data'
New technologies for monitoring brain activity are generating unprecedented quantities of information. That data may hold new insights into how the brain works -- but only if researchers can interpret it. To help make sense of the data, neuroscientists can now harness the power of distributed comput...

'Holy grail' of battery design achieved: Stable lithium anode
Researchers report that they have taken a big step toward accomplishing what battery designers have been trying to do for decades -- design a pure lithium anode. All batteries have three basic components: an electrolyte to provide electrons, an anode to discharge those electrons, and a cathode to re...

Climate change and air pollution will combine to curb food supplies
Many studies have shown the potential for global climate change to cut food supplies. But these studies have, for the most part, ignored the interactions between increasing temperature and air pollution -- specifically ozone pollution, which is known to damage crops. A new study shows that these int...

New, noncommittal mechanism of drug resistance discovered
Microorganisms like bacteria and fungi can evade treatment by acquiring mutations in the genes targeted by antibiotics or antifungal drugs. These permanent mutations were once thought to be the only way for drug resistant strains to evolve. Now a new study has shown that microorganisms can use a tem...

Drugs used to treat lung disease work with body clock
Scientists have discovered why medication to treat asthma and pneumonia can become ineffective. The findings show that drugs widely used to treat lung diseases work with the body clock. The research found out that cells lining the lung airways have their own body clock which is the time-keeper for l...

New drug target can break down cancer's barrier against treatment
Targeting a molecule in blood vessels can make cancer therapy significantly more effective, according to research. Researchers have found that a molecule, called focal adhesion kinase (FAK), signals the body to repair itself after chemotherapy or radiotherapy, which kill cancer cells by damaging DNA...

Fire ecology manipulation by California native cultures
Before the colonial era, 100,000s of people lived on the land now called California, and many of their cultures manipulated fire to control the availability of plants they used for food, fuel, tools, and ritual. Contemporary tribes continue to use fire to maintain desired habitat and natural resourc...

Epigenetic changes can drive cancer, study shows
A mouse model has been created providing the first in vivo evidence that epigenetic alterations alone can cause cancer. Epigenetic alterations don't change the DNA sequence but how it is 'read.' In particular, DNA methylation, the addition of a methyl group (or molecule), is an epigenetic switch tha...

Trees save lives, reduce respiratory problems
In the first broad-scale estimate of air pollution removal by trees nationwide, scientists have calculated that trees are saving more than 850 human lives a year and preventing 670,000 incidences of acute respiratory symptoms. The study considered four pollutants for which the U.S. EPA has establish...

Changes in agriculture increase high river flow rates
Researchers have examined how changes in rainfall amounts and an increase in the amount of acreage used to grow such crops as corn and soybeans can affect the volume of river water flow in the U.S. Midwest.

New brain pathways for understanding type 2 diabetes and obesity uncovered
Researchers have identified neural pathways that increase understanding of how the brain regulates body weight, energy expenditure, and blood glucose levels ? a discovery that can lead to new therapies for treating Type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Scalping can raise ticket prices
A new study finds that resale markets like Craigslist can add value to tickets sold by concert venues and Ticketmaster.