ScienceDaily: Top News

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• An extra second has been added to 2016 on Dec 31
• Novel diet therapy helps children with crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis reach remission
• Low levels of manganese in welding fumes cause neurological problems
• Fenofibrate may reduce heart disease risk in some patients with type 2 diabetes
• Evidence on movement of potato famine pathogen
• State, regional differences in melanoma rates 2003 vs 2013
• Rate of death, heart attack after noncardiac surgery decreases, although risk of stroke increases
• Genetic complexity of cancer cells within the same tumor
• New treatment for glioblastoma multiforme
• Economics of forest biomass raise hurdles for rural development
• Cycling in bed is safe for ICU patients, study suggests
• While painful, surge pricing is still a good deal
• Fewer kids visited ERs for asthma after indoor smoking bans
• Traffic noise reduces birds' response to alarm calls
• The late effects of stress: New insights into how the brain responds to trauma
• Quasi noise-free digital holography
• Minuscule amounts of impurities in vacuum greatly affecting OLED lifetime
• New pharmacon allows testicular tumors to shrink
• Widespread 'gray zone' of animals transitioning from one species to two
• Reducing radiation successfully treats HPV-positive oropharynx cancers and minimizes side effects

An extra second has been added to 2016 on Dec 31 Posted: 28 Dec 2016 06:33 PM PST On December 31, 2016, a "leap second" will be added to the world's clocks at 23 hours, 59 minutes and 59 seconds Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). This corresponds to 6:59:59 pm Eastern Standard Time, when the extra second will be inserted at the U.S. Naval Observatory's Master Clock Facility in Washington, DC.

Novel diet therapy helps children with crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis reach remission Posted: 28 Dec 2016 02:11 PM PST Pediatric patients with active Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis can reach remission with diet alone.

Low levels of manganese in welding fumes cause neurological problems Posted: 28 Dec 2016 02:11 PM PST Welders exposed to airborne manganese at estimated levels well under federal safety standards develop neurological problems, according to a new study. Current safety standards may not adequately protect welders from the dangers of the job.

Fenofibrate may reduce heart disease risk in some patients with type 2 diabetes Posted: 28 Dec 2016 12:59 PM PST A new study shows that the drug fenofibrate might reduce the risk of cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes who have high levels of triglycerides and low levels of 'good' cholesterol, despite being treated with statins.

Evidence on movement of potato famine pathogen Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:44 AM PST New research delves into the movement and evolution of the pathogen that caused the Irish potato famine in the 1840s, which set down roots in the United States before attacking Europe.

State, regional differences in melanoma rates 2003 vs 2013 Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:44 AM PST A new research letter compares melanoma death and incidence by states and in four geographic regions. Melanoma death and incidence rates vary among states, partly because of demographic differences.

Rate of death, heart attack after noncardiac surgery decreases, although risk of stroke increases Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:44 AM PST Medical researchers have examined national trends in perioperative cardiovascular outcomes and mortality after major noncardiac surgery.

Genetic complexity of cancer cells within the same tumor Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:44 AM PST A new study dramatically illustrates the complexity of cancer by identifying more than 2,000 genetic mutations in tissue samples of esophageal tumors. The findings reveal that even different areas of individual tumors have various genetic patterns.

New treatment for glioblastoma multiforme Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:44 AM PST Medical researchers have developed a new pharmacological agent to treat glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the deadliest brain cancer.

Economics of forest biomass raise hurdles for rural development Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:44 AM PST The use of residual forest biomass for rural development faces significant economic hurdles that make it unlikely to be a source of jobs in the near future, according to an analysis by economists.

Cycling in bed is safe for ICU patients, study suggests Posted: 28 Dec 2016 11:44 AM PST Researchers have demonstrated that physiotherapists can safely start in-bed cycling sessions with critically ill, mechanically ventilated patients early on in their ICU stay.

While painful, surge pricing is still a good deal Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:26 AM PST New research shows price hikes in ride-sharing services such as Uber and Lyft during peak use times, such as New Year’s Eve, can actually benefit both drivers and consumers.

Fewer kids visited ERs for asthma after indoor smoking bans Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:26 AM PST Emergency rooms in communities with indoor smoking bans reported a 17 percent decrease in the number of children needing care for asthma attacks, according to new research.

Traffic noise reduces birds' response to alarm calls Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:24 AM PST Pollution can take many forms -- including noise. Excess noise in the environment from sources such as traffic can have negative effects on animals that rely on sound to communicate and get information about their surroundings. A new study shows that traffic noise makes birds less responsive to alarm calls that would otherwise alert them to dangers such as predators.

The late effects of stress: New insights into how the brain responds to trauma Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:24 AM PST A new study has shown how a single instance of severe stress can lead to delayed trauma. A stressful incident can lead to increased electrical activity in a brain region known as the amygdala. This activity is delayed and is dependent on a molecule known as the N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor (NMDA-R), a protein on nerve cells known to be crucial for memory functions.

Quasi noise-free digital holography Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:24 AM PST Noise originating from the coherent nature of laser light is the scourge of digital holography, always causing holographic images to be of lower quality than conventional photographs. Now scientists have practically eliminated this noise by using a two-stage algorithm. The output obtained exhibited both qualitative and quantitative improvement over recently developed de-noising techniques. In particular, the algorithm reduced noise in background regions by 98 percent and in signal regions by 92 percent.

Minuscule amounts of impurities in vacuum greatly affecting OLED lifetime Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:24 AM PST Reproducibility is a necessity for science but has often eluded researchers studying the lifetime of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Recent research from Japan sheds new light on why: impurities present in the vacuum chamber during fabrication but in amounts so small that they are easily overlooked.

New pharmacon allows testicular tumors to shrink Posted: 28 Dec 2016 07:24 AM PST A new active pharmaceutical ingredient may help against severe forms of testicular cancer, which only respond inadequately to other therapies. In mice, the substance kills degenerated cells and allows testicular tumors to shrink.

Widespread 'gray zone' of animals transitioning from one species to two Posted: 27 Dec 2016 12:02 PM PST New research characterizes the ability of populations to interbreed and exchange genes as a function of the level divergence of their genomes.

Reducing radiation successfully treats HPV-positive oropharynx cancers and minimizes side effects Posted: 26 Dec 2016 06:09 PM PST Human papillomavirus-positive oropharynx cancers (cancers of the tonsils and back of the throat) are on rise. After radiation treatment, patients often experience severe, lifelong swallowing, eating, and nutritional issues. However, new clinical trial research shows reducing radiation for some patients with HPV-associated oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas can maintain high cure rates while sparing some of these late toxicities.