November 16, 2006, 8:45 PM CT

Origin Of Appalachian Mountains

Geologists have developed a new theory to explain how and when the Appalachian Mountain range was created. Their research redraws the map of the planet from 420 million years ago.

The scientists recently discovered a piece of the Appalachian Mountains in southern Mexico, a location geologists long had assumed was part of the North American Cordillera. The Cordillera is a continuous sequence of mountain ranges that includes the Rocky Mountains. It stretches from Alaska to Mexico and continues into South America.

For the past decade, geologists have collected information from Mexico's Acatlán Complex, a rock outcropping the size of Massachusetts. As they uncovered each new piece of data from the complex, evidence contradicting earlier assumptions about the origins of that part of Mexico emerged.

"It was a story that had the Appalachians written all over it," said Damian Nance, Ohio University professor of geological sciences and lead author of an article detailing the findings, which was published in the recent issue of Geology. "This will change the way geologists look at Mexico".

It also changes existing theory regarding the creation of the Appalachians, which has radically altered scientists' understanding of the planet's geography, said Nance. Age data, newly unearthed fossils and chemical analysis of the rocks show that the complex is much younger than previously thought. It records a pivotal part of the Appalachian story not preserved elsewhere.........

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November 16, 2006, 7:50 PM CT

Money Causes Changes For Better And Worse

Money changes everything, and that includes changing people's motivations for the better and their behavior toward others for the worse, as per a new study reported in the international journal Science.

Florida State University psychology graduate student Nicole Mead in Tallahassee, Fla was among a group of scientists who observed that the concept of money brings about a state of self-sufficiency that allows people to work harder and more independently to achieve personal goals but makes them more socially insensitive in the process.

"Money changes people's motivations," Mead said. "They want to work really hard to achieve their goals. Consequently, they are less focused on other people. In this sense, money can be a barrier to social intimacy".

Kathleen Vohs, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Minnesota, is the lead author of "The Psychological Consequences of Money," which would be reported in the Nov. 17 issue of Science. Mead and Miranda Goode, a doctoral student at the University of British Columbia, are co-authors.

Mead helped design and conduct five of nine laboratory experiments, most of which involved having participants complete many different tasks while being exposed to "play" money or other visual references to money. The scientists observed that those exposed to reminders of money worked longer on tasks before asking for help and were less helpful toward others. They also preferred to play alone, work alone and put more physical distance between themselves and a new acquaintance.........

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November 16, 2006, 6:59 PM CT

Satellite phones get a makeover

With Verizon Wireless and Sprint's release of the KRZR, life just gets sexier and sexier in the land of mobile phones, but what about the necessary-but-oh-so-utilitarian-looking land of satellite phones?

Effective immediately, satellite phones have joined the world of the beautiful. Globalstar, Inc., a leading provider of mobile satellite phones, has introduced the new GSP-1700 mobile satellite telephone.

The newly designed GSP-1700 telephone is nearly half the weight of the company's current satellite handset and close to 45 percent smaller. A new lithium-ion battery is designed to provide users with four hours of talk time and 36 hours of standby time. The GSP-1700's lightweight ergonomic design embodies the ruggedness of the current Globalstar phone while integrating convenience-oriented features such as a new five-mode color display and Bluetooth headset capability. The phone supports six operating languages and is available in three vibrant faceplate colors, using durable high-luster or metallic finishes. The GSP-1700 is being manufactured by QUALCOMM and incorporates a data solution and EV-DO network capability.........

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November 16, 2006, 4:59 AM CT

Key To Controlling Gypsy Moth Spread

Controlling population peaks on the edges of the gypsy moth range may help to slow their invasion into virgin territory, according to a team of researchers.

"Slowing the spread of the gypsy moth is a priority in forest management in the U.S.," says Ottar Bjornstad, associate professor of entomology and biology, Penn State. "Understanding the underlying patterns in the spread of invasive species is important for successful management".

The accidental release of the gypsy moth in 1869 in Massachusetts has led to an infestation covering more than 386,000 square miles of the U.S. Northeast. Native to Europe and Asia, gypsy moths are currently found from Maine to North Carolina and west into Wisconsin where they defoliate trees and occasionally, cause extensive damage to northern deciduous forests.

"We analyzed historical data on the spread of the gypsy moth in the U.S. and found that its invasion has been characterized by regular periods of rapid spread interspersed between periods of little expansion," says Bjornstad. "This is the first identification of pulsed invasions for an invading species".

Bjornstad; Derek M. Johnson, Department of Biology, University of Louisiana, and Andrew M. Liebhold and Patrick C. Tobin, U.S. Forest Service, used historical, county-level quarantine records as well as forest service data from more than 100,000 pheromone traps set along the expanding gypsy moth population front for their theoretical model. The pheromone trap data were collected from 1988 to 2004.........

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November 16, 2006, 4:54 AM CT

Grid computing 'Mappa mundi'

Visitors to Supercomputing '06 in Tampa, Florida this week will be the first to see a new interactive map that shows nine of the world's largest computing Grids. The map, developed by scientists from GridPP in the UK and the European particle physics laboratory, CERN, in Geneva, uses Google Earth to pinpoint Grid sites on six continents, showing more than 300 sites overall. Like the medieval 'mappa mundi', which showed what was known of the world at the time, this is one of the first attempts to show the whole scientific Grid world.

Laurence Field, who works at CERN for the Enabling Grids for E-sciencE project, has been leading work on the map. He explains, "Today there are many production Grids being used for science, several of which have a strong regional presence. A number of of them are using different middleware, which can artificially limit scientific collaboration. The Grids shown on the map are all taking part in the Open Grid Forum's Grid Interoperation Now (GIN) group, which is trying to bridge the differences and enable seamless interoperation between the various infrastructures".

Gidon Moont from Imperial College London, developed the interface with Google Earth. It was then adapted by the GIN group, and will be shown on CERN's stand and the UK e-Science stand at Supercomputing.........

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November 15, 2006, 5:12 AM CT

No Link Found Between Viagra and HIV Infection

Erectile dysfunction (ED) medications known as Phosphodiesterase type 5 (PDE-5) inhibitors have been used by millions of men as safe and effective management options linked to high rates of patient and partner satisfaction. Recent reports have appeared, however, that some individuals have misused this class of drug, combining them with narcotics such as methamphetamines. These reports further note that such individuals may be, in particular, at an increased risk for HIV. If such claims of a large and expanding use of PDE-5 inhibitors are correct, this would signify an important public health concern.

A comprehensive, multi-disciplinary conference funded by the National Institutes of Health sought to determine whether the drug class of PDE-5 inhibitors was contributing to an overall increase in HIV infection. The results of this conference appear in the latest issue of The Journal of Sexual Medicine.

Convincing evidence was not found to support the conclusion that PDE-5 inhibitor use is a risk factor for HIV infection. For the large majority of men, PDE-5 inhibitor use is conducted in a stable, committed partner relationship. Under such circumstances, the risk of HIV infection is relatively small. Clinicians and educators did emphasize, however, the importance of safe sex practices for those engaging in risky sexual relations.........

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November 15, 2006, 4:40 AM CT

Holiday Season Could Ring In 'Heartburn Season'

Making merry is often synonymous with overindulging whether from holiday feasts or rich desserts or alcoholic beverages ringing in the holiday season as "heartburn season".

Heartburn generally caused by naturally occurring acids splashing back up from the stomach is often marked by a characteristic burning sensation that sufferers describe as rolling up into their chest. Fatty foods play a starring role in this process.

"Most of the time heartburn is a nuisance, not a tremendous threat to your health," said Dr. Stuart Spechler, professor of internal medicine in digestive and liver diseases at UT Southwestern Medical Center. "I tell most of my patients that it's going to be a tradeoff is the food going to taste good enough to suffer through the heartburn?

"If you know you're going to eat something that ordinarily gives you heartburn, there are medications that you can take before eating that food that might help".

Prevention now emphasized

For decades, the plop-plop-fizz-fizz approach of antacids taken after people already were experiencing heartburn was the only therapy available. Emphasis has since shifted to prevention.

Those who are planning to indulge in foods likely to cause them heartburn can now take a histamine receptor blocker (H2 blockers), which slow the production of stomach acid and are generally available over the counter.........

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November 14, 2006, 5:04 AM CT

Ice-breaker Polarstern to explore uncharted seafloor

Huge areas of sea floor (around 3,250 km²) have been freed up by the collapse 4 years ago of the Larsen B platform along the Antarctic Peninsula - leaving a blank spot on Antarctic maps. Polarstern, the research flagship of the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research, will shortly conduct there the first major biological research, studying living communities, from microbes to whales, including bottom fish and squids.

THE ITINERARY

DEPARTURE - NOVEMBER 23, 2006: CAPE TOWN.

The Polarstern leaves Cape Town, South Africa, heading towards the Weddell Sea.

DECEMBER 4/5 TO DECEMBER 14, 2006: NEUMAYER STATION.

The Polarstern stops in the Atka Bay in order to supply the German Neumayer Research Station.

DECEMBER 14 TO JANUARY 26, 2006: ANTARCTIC PENINSULA.

The first investigations, on living resources (CCAMLR), take place on the western side of the Antarctic Peninsula, around the South Shetland Islands (3). The subsequent ecological work (CAML) is located around the Larsen A/B area. If the sea ice is not penetrable, an alternative area around Joinville Island will be used instead (4).

ARRIVAL - JANUARY 30, 2007: PUNTA ARENAS.

The Polarstern will end its expedition in Punta Arenas, Chile on January 30, 2007 (5).........

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November 14, 2006, 4:55 AM CT

Sibling relationships reflect family dynamics

Most children in the United States grow up with sisters and brothers. Connections that commonly last a lifetime, these relationships can be strained at times, particularly during childhood. New research concludes that sibling ties are best understood in the context of their families, and that efforts to improve relationships should take into account not just the siblings, but the family as a whole.

This research also observed that, overall, sisters feel closer to their siblings than do brothers, and that relationships between sisters and brothers become closer in later adolescence. Further, for all siblings, discord is highest when the first-born child is about 13 and the second-born is about 10.

As published in the November/December 2006 issue of the journal Child Development, scientists at Pennsylvania State University interviewed mothers, fathers, and first- and second-born children in 200 white, working- and middle-class, two-parent families. During the course of the study, first-born children ranged from 10 to 19 years of age, with an average age of 12 at the start of the study and 17 at the end. Second-born children ranged from 7 to 17 years of age during the study, with an average age of 9 at the start and 15 at the end.

Among the study's key findings are:........

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November 14, 2006, 4:32 AM CT

Young Children Don't Believe Everything They Hear

Childhood is a time when young minds receive a vast amount of new information. Until now, it's been thought that children believe most of what they hear. New research sheds light on children's abilities to distinguish between fantasy and reality.

Through conversation, books, and the media, young children are continually exposed to information that is new to them. Much of the information they receive is factual (e.g., the names of the planets in the solar system), but some information is not based in truth and represents nonexistent entities (e.g., the Easter bunny). Children need to figure out which information is real and which is not. By age 4, children consistently use the context in which the new information is presented to determine whether or not it is real.

That's one of the major findings in new studies conducted by researchers at the Universities of Texas and Virginia and published in the November/December 2006 issue of the journal Child Development.

In three studies, about 400 children ages 3 to 6 heard about something new and had to say whether they thought it was real or not. Some children heard the information defined in scientific terms ("Doctors use surnits to make medicine"), while others heard it defined in fantastical terms ("Fairies use hercs to make fairy dust"). The researchers found that children's ability to use contextual cues to determine whether the information is true develops significantly between the ages of 3 and 5.........

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