science wire

Women donate less to charity than men in some contexts
Given the chance, women are more likely than men to opt out of a request to give a charitable donation, a group of economists have found. The issue of which gender is more generous has been debated for years. A new field experiment conducted by scholars at the University of Chicago and University of California, Berkeley shows that when it's easy to avoid making a donation, such as not responding to a door-to-door solicitor, women are less likely than men to give.

Driving and hands-free talking lead to spike in errors
UAlberta pilot study shows driving while talking on a hands-free cellular device leads to more driving errors than driving alone. Talking on a hands-free device while behind the wheel can lead to a sharp increase in errors that could imperil other drivers on the road, according to new research from the University of Alberta.

Two researchers named Shaw scientists
The Greater Milwaukee Foundation has chosen two University of Wisconsin-Madison researchers for 2013 Shaw Scientist Awards. The foundation announced that a panel of prominent scientists from around the country selected Randall Goldsmith , assistant professor of chemistry, and Rupa Sridharan , assistant professor of cell and regenerative biology, for the honor, which supports young scientists engaged in groundbreaking research in the fields of biochemistry, biological sciences and cancer research.

Gold shovels dig into another transformative building at Stanford
The McMurtry Building for the Department of Art and Art History is the latest project in the developing arts district.

Gov. Dayton signs into law request by U of M to fund tuition freeze, enhance critical research
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (05/24/2013) —A two-year tuition freeze and increased funding for critical research at the University of Minnesota are now reality, thanks to an investment in the state's future made by university leaders, Gov.

Copper on the Brain
The value of copper has risen dramatically in the 21 st century as many a thief can tell you, but in addition to the thermal and electrical properties that make it such a hot commodity metal, copper has chemical properties that make it essential to a healthy brain.

UAlberta leaders to receive province’s highest honour

The art of holistic health care
Interdisciplinary exhibition shows the powerful possibilities when art and medicine put their strengths together.

Stanford scholar sheds light on Greek immigrant’s rags-to-riches story
Immigrant Spyros Skouras became a top Hollywood executive and American philanthropist, but his life story was buried for years in the Stanford University Libraries' Department of Special Collections.

UCLA live-tweets surgery to implant brain pacemaker while patient strums guitar
A team of UCLA Health System brain specialists implanted a brain pacemaker in a 39-year-old man on Thursday.

GHLI Fellows to aid in improving health care abroad this summer
Four Yale students have been selected as Global Health Leadership Institute (GHLI) Fellows, and will work with country delegations attending the GHLI Conference, to be held June 9-14 at the University.

Depression raises diabetics’ risk of severe low blood sugar episodes
Patients with diabetes who are depressed are much more likely to develop episodes of dangerously low blood sugars, or hypoglycemia, than are those who are not depressed, a new study has found. These episodes typically occur when the drugs used to control high blood sugars drive down blood sugar levels too low.

SDSC’s CIPRES Science Gateway Receives $1.5 Million National Science Foundation Award
NSF Grant to Make Supercomputers More Accessible to Phylogeneticists The San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) at the University of California, San Diego has received a $1.5 million award from the

World’s top scientists: California & nations must act now on environment
Responding to a challenge by California Gov.

Software Assurance Marketplace to host exposition
Software Assurance Marketplace Operations Officer Brooklin Gore (left) and Chief Technology Officer Myron Livny in the server room of the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery building, where the software security tests will be run.

Award designers’ creativity snowballs into fitting tribute

U-M’s ISR awards $250,000 to young, innovative researchers
ANN ARBOR-The University of Michigan Institute for Social Research has awarded more than $250,000 in fellowships to 54 graduate students and researchers in its ongoing effort to support young scholars and innovative social science research.

Investing in the Future: UC San Diego’s Federal Research Funding Among Top 10 in Nation Despite Camp
A study by the National Science Foundation naming the top 10 universities receiving the most federal funding for research and development ranked UC San Diego in 8th place out of 896 colleges that received federal R&D money during the 2011 fiscal year.

Clinical trial aims to prevent type 2 diabetes through medication
Posted under: For UW Employees , Health and Medicine , News Releases , Research , Science , UW and the Community A clinical trial at the Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System and the

Scientists urge action on global climate change
California Gov. Jerry Brown accepted a consensus statement signed by 520 scientists, including 48 from Stanford, that sounds the alarm on climate change and offers recommendations for solving global environmental challenges.

What sparks corporate philanthropy? From Super Bowls to natural disasters
Corporate giving to local charities spikes during "mega-events" such as the Olympics or Super Bowl, and when natural disasters hit close to home, says a new study on philanthropy.

Crime-fighting platform wins President’s Challenge
Nucleik, Flume, PlenOptika, and TerraTek share $100,000 to advance social ventures (Harvard Gazette) By Lauren Marshall and Kate Range Harvard Gazette Harvard President Drew Faust congr

LGBTQ kids in Calgary now have a camp to call their own
(Calgary) For sexual and gender minority youth, summer camp is more than a rite of passage—it may be the one safe space that can save their lives.

Campus to share expertise with Middle Eastern research center
The University of California, Berkeley, plans to share scientific and engineering expertise with the Middle East's first major international research center, which is a unique collaboration among sci

A trailblazer for social justice in Alberta and beyond

Help wanted: Public needed to uncover clues in natural history collections
Like bugs? Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes at natural history museums? Interested in helping scientists understand our changing environment? These are just some of the reasons why people should join a project led by the University of California, Berkeley's Essig Museum of Entomology.

Prevention Research Center aims to help families and their children
With research and programs aimed at changing risky behaviors, Penn State's Prevention Research Center promotes well-being in children, teens, and families.

National Science Foundation Awards $550,000 for Creation of State-of-the-Art Crowdsourcing Techniques
AUSTIN, Texas — The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a University of Texas at Austin School of Information faculty member $550,000 to explore ways to make crowdsourcing more viable and lower the risk for potential adopters.

Mosquito behavior may be immune response, not parasite manipulation
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Malaria-carrying mosquitos appear to be manipulated by the parasites they carry, but this manipulation may simply be part of the mosquitos' immune response, according to Penn State entomologists. "Normally, after a female mosquito ingests a blood meal, she matures her eggs and does not take another one until the meal is digested," said Lauren J. Cator, postdoctoral fellow in entomology and a member of the Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Penn State.

From Mike Duffy to Rob Ford: when politicians make news
An embattled mayor is beset by questions about a video allegedly showing him smoking crack cocaine.

Footwear’s (carbon) footprint
Study finds the bulk of shoes' carbon footprint comes from manufacturing processes. A typical pair of running shoes generates 30 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions, equivalent to keeping a 100-watt light bulb on for one week, according to a new MIT-led lifecycle assessment. But what's surprising to researchers isn't the size of a shoe's carbon footprint, but where the majority of that footprint comes from.

Bradbury Science Museum partnering in national Blue Star Museums program

New documentary on cabled ocean observatory airs on UWTV
A new half-hour documentary, “ Down to the Volcano ,” that explores the ocean depths off the Washington coast, airs Wednesday at 9:30 p.m. The video tells the story of the Visions '11 cruise and gives viewers a taste for what to expect from an expedition this summer.

Los Alamos National Laboratory begins pumping tests on chromium plume
The chromium originated from cooling towers at a Laboratory power plant and was released from 1956 to 1972. Data will be used to help determine final remedy LOS ALAMOS, N.M., May 22, 2013—Los Alamos National Laboratory will begin pumping tests this summer at two groundwater monitoring wells located on Lab property within a chromium plume in the regional aquifer.

Scav Hunt 2013 in pictures
Graham Rosby raps between laps in the 'freestyle biathlon,' alternating 25-yard freestyle swims with 30-second freestyle rap verses.

Whirlpools on the Nanoscale Could Multiply Magnetic Memory
"We spent 15 percent of home energy on gadgets in 2009, and we're buying more gadgets all the time," says Peter Fischer of the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).

Research Opportunities Plentiful for Next Generation Batteries
In the opening scene of the iconic movie of the 1960s, The Graduate , Benjamin Braddock, at a party to celebrate his college degree, is given one word of advice for his future: "Plastics." Were youn

Los Alamos director echoes cyber concerns
Director Charlie McMillan told a gathering of energy executives that securing the electrical grid is a major concern now and it's only becoming more serious.

Carnegie Mellon Joins Launch of NSF-Sponsored Alliance To Mentor African-American Computer Scientists
Press Release: Carnegie Mellon Joins Launch of NSF-Sponsored Alliance To Mentor African-American Computer Scientists-Carnegie Mellon News - Carnegie Mellon University Includes Competition Using C

Breathing exercises help veterans find peace after war, Stanford scholar says
Research by Stanford scholar Emma Seppala at the Center for Compassion and Altruism Research and Education found that post-traumatic stress disorder decreased in veterans who participated in a weeklong breathing, yoga and meditation workshop, and remained lower a year later.

Stanford visiting artist Robert Henke to perform a ’musical machine’
Musician Robert Henke, Stanford's 2013 Mohr Visiting Artist, will perform a computer-driven musical performance Thursday and Friday at Bing Concert Hall Studio.

Stanford humanities scholars harness the power of crowdsourcing
Researchers at Stanford's Center for Spatial and Textual Analysis are incorporating the knowledge and resources of the public into three digital humanities research projects.

UCLA life scientists present new insights on climate change and species interactions
UCLA life scientists provide important new details on how climate change will affect interactions between species in research published online May 21 in the Journal of Animal Ecology.

The new retirement: No retirement?
ANN ARBOR-For growing numbers of Americans, the new retirement may really mean no retirement. That's the conclusion of an article in the current issue of the ISR Sampler, the annual magazine of the University of Michigan Institute for Social Research.

U.S. health care: Does more spending yield better health?
ANN ARBOR-Health care spending is much higher for older Americans than for younger adults and children, on average, and analysts have said that increasing spending leads to longer life expectancy. But new research from the University of Michigan indicates that aging populations could view things differently.

UC San Diego Receives Grand Challenges Explorations Grant For Groundbreaking Research in Global Heal
The University of California, San Diego School of Medicine announced today that it is a Grand Challenges Explorations winner, an initiative funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Venture fund based at Harvard celebrates first year in business

Getting to the bottom of the zombie ant phenomenon
The cadaver of a zombie ant clings to a leaf in the tropical understory. Emerging from its head are spores of the parasitic fungus that killed it.

New Center Targets Ocean Contaminants and Human Health
Scripps scientists lead two separate projects to track potentially toxic chemicals in marine life and their impacts on human health Capitalizing on UC San Diego's unique ability to address environ

NoBody’s Perfect documentary screening, panel discussion to tackle art, disability, sexuality
How do you show what life is like for people with disabilities without slipping into an overly sentimental narrative about “triumph” and “inspiration” – without, as dire

The future of nanotechnology: Bringing more research to market
MEDIA ADVISORY DATE: 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m., May 22 and 23, 2013.

Connecting kids with the wonders of astronomy

Experts To Focus on Safety Strategies for US Infrastructure at Carnegie Mellon’s Washington Speaker Series
Press Release: Experts To Focus on Safety Strategies for US Infrastructure at Carnegie Mellon's Washington Speaker Series-Carnegie Mellon News - Carnegie Mellon University : Chriss Swaney / 41

The tea party and the politics of paranoia
Posted under: News Releases , Politics and Government , Research , Social Science Members of tea party claim the movement springs from and promotes basic American conservative principles such as limited government and fiscal responsibility.

Research suggests modular design competence can benefit new product development
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - A new research study suggests that supplier integration into the new product development process can be more beneficial if buyers increase their competency in modular design. Penn State Smeal College of Business faculty member Veronica H. Villena and her colleague Fabrizio Salvador of the IE Business School in Madrid examined the ways modular design competence can mitigate costs and challenges associated with supplier integration while making best use of the benefits.

U-M Water Center awards $570K in Great Lakes restoration grants
Jim Erickson, U-M News Service, (734) 647-1842, ericksn [a] umich (p) edu, Jennifer Read, U-M Water Center, (734) 769-8898, jenread [a] umichg (p) edu ANN ARBOR-The new University of Michiga

Married Penn State Guggenheim Fellows a rarity
Guggenheim Fellows Judith Kroll and David Rosenbaum. The married recipients will use their fellowships to do research at UCLA in Los Angeles.

UCLA Health System takes steps in anticipation of strike
UCLA Health System has taken numerous steps to protect patient safety in anticipation of a strike expected to begin at 4 a.m. on Tuesday, May 21.

Penn Medicine Study Raises Questions About Added Costs and Physician Resources
With little evidence to guide them, many hospital intensive care units (ICUs) have been employing critical care physicians at night with the notion it would improve patients' outcomes.

Fowler Museum celebrates 50th anniversary with year of special exhibitions, programs
The Fowler Museum at UCLA will honor its 50th anniversary with a series of special exhibitions and programs beginning in fall 2013 and running through fall 2014.

Salil Vadhan named Simons Investigator
Award offers computer scientist a 5-year appointment with $100,000 of research support per year The Simons Foundation has appointed Salil Vadhan , Vicky Joseph Professor of Computer Science an

Vigorous athletic activity is safe with implanted arrhythmia devices
There has long been concern that people with implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) should not participate in any kind of strenuous sports activity for fear that their devices could fail.

No-treatment approach may be best choice for older prostate cancer patients
Older prostate cancer patients with other underlying health conditions should think twice before committing to surgery or radiation therapy for their cancer, according to a multi-center study led by researchers from the UCLA Department of Urology. The study reports 14-year survival outcomes for 3,000 men diagnosed with prostate cancer between 1994 and 1995.

Amazon River exhales virtually all carbon taken up by rain forest
The Amazon rain forest, popularly known as the lungs of the planet, inhales carbon dioxide as it exudes oxygen. Plants use carbon dioxide from the air to grow parts that eventually fall to the ground to decompose or get washed away by the region's plentiful rainfall. Until recently people believed much of the rain forest's carbon floated down the Amazon River and ended up deep in the ocean.

Stanford physicists develop revolutionary low-power polariton laser
Stanford physicists have created a new method of producing coherent matter beams. The new laser system would use a hundredth the power of conventional lasers and could one day be used in many places from consumer goods to quantum computers. Lasers are an unseen backbone of modern society. They're integral to technologies ranging from high-speed Internet services to Blu-ray players.

The Golden Gate returns to Stanford May 30
Stanford celebrates a remarkable collaboration: Vikram Seth's sonnets become sound in Conrad Cummings' opera, which has been called one of the best of the new century.

Studying the unseen activity in bacteria chatter and a nation's bereavement
  Princeton University senior Sofia Quinodoz took on two theses that in essence pertain to unseen and not fully understood actions nonetheless felt by those they afflict.

New Doctor of Physical Therapy Learned Benefits of Program Long Before Graduation
Nashwa Khalil knew the benefits of physical therapy long before she enrolled in the doctor of physical therapy program at Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Scholar’s heart is in Aboriginal communities

Third Century Initiative funds its first Global Challenge projects
ANN ARBOR-Nadine Naber was in Egypt last year researching the country's revolution when she observed that women's groups spent most of their time dealing with emergencies-sexual violence, protests, blackouts, food shortages.

Planes, trains and automobiles: faster, stronger, lighter
New technique advances carbon-fiber composites. These days, aerospace engineering is all about the light stuff: building airplanes with lighter wings, fuselage and landing gear in an effort to reduce fuel costs. Advanced carbon-fiber composites have been used in recent years to lighten planes' loads.

Gov. Jerry Brown to address 2013 political science graduates

Latest news on planned strike by patient-care workers unions at UC, UCLA
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) union, which represents more than 12,500 University of California patient care employees, has asked its members to strike at UC medical centers May 21–22.

Getting to the bottom of how oceans breathe
UAlberta researcher receives $5M to study how carbon dioxide moves from the surface to the floor of the Labrador Sea.

Faculty Senate explores the future of the doctoral degree

Engineers’ new nanoscavenger purifies water, gets retrieved by magnet
A new nanoparticle developed by Stanford engineers offers promising advancement in the way water is purified.

Stanford adds two new freshman living, learning programs
ITALIC, which will focus on the arts, and SIMILE, which will concentrate on science, will open in the fall, offering freshmen a new way to combine living and learning in a thematic, residence-based educational program while meeting undergraduate requirements.

Youth bullying because of perceived sexual orientation widespread and damaging
Bullying because of perceived sexual orientation is widely prevalent among school-aged youths, according to a study led by Dr. Donald Patrick, professor of health services at the UW School of Public Health.  The study was published online May 16 in the American Journal of Public Health. The research team analyzed responses collected in 2010 from more than 24,000 youths in a Washington state survey conducted in public school grades eight through 12.

New YaleNews website celebrates classroom teaching

Gene modification technology developed at University of Minnesota and Iowa State University receives patents
MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (05/17/2013) —The USPTO has issued two patents for technology developed jointly by researchers at the University of Minnesota and Iowa State University that allows scientists to modify genes to create specific traits. The patents (US 8,440,431 and US 8,440,432) were issued on May 14, 2013 and are based on TAL effector nucleases that "read" DNA and make pinpoint cuts in targeted genes.

U-M experts available to discuss Canadian earthquake felt in Michigan today
ANN ARBOR-Earthquakes Canada reported that a magnitude 5.2 earthquake occurred at 9:43 a.m. ET today northwest of Ottawa, Canada, and was followed 10 minutes later by an aftershock of magnitude 4.1.

Playing doctor in the digital age
Computer game uses real hospital situations to teach medical students the importance of communicating as a team.

Merit E. Janow Appointed Dean of Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs
Columbia University President Lee C. Bollinger has appointed Merit E. Janow as the next dean of the University's School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), effective July 1.

Penn Medicine Study Suggests New Role for ECMO in Treating Patients With Cardiac Arrest
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), a procedure traditionally used during cardiac surgeries and in the ICU that functions as an artificial replacement for a patient's heart and lungs, has also been used to resuscitate cardiac arrest victims in Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea. Now, a novel study of this technique in the U.S. has been completed by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania , indicating a potential role for this intervention to save patients who are unable to be resuscitated through conventional measures.

More Sub-Saharan Africans Living Longer but With Limited Function
The number of adults living beyond age 45 in sub-Saharan Africa is rapidly expanding, yet many of these older men and women experience physical illnesses and disabilities that limit their ability to function, according to a study by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and in Malawi.

In a bowl of breakfast cereal, principles of attraction on display
Andong He saw a phenomenon at work in his breakfast bowl that he couldn't explain. It prompted this question: How does cereal shape influence the way cereals floating in the milk join?

Strong standards for school snacks increase lunches and revenue
Schools that implement strong nutrition standards for snacks sold at school increase student meal participation and school revenue, according to a study by the Yale Rudd Center and the Harvard School of Public Health.

Mathematicians Analyze Social Divisions Using Cell Phone Data
Differences divide us. Human society fractures along lines defined by politics, religion, ethnicity, and perhaps most fundamentally, language. Although these differences contribute to the great variety of human lives, the partitions they create can lead to conflict and strife, impeding efforts toward social justice and economic development.

Yale Cancer Center carves new path in immunotherapy
Cancer immunotherapy is showing promise in treating patients with a variety of advanced, metastatic tumors, as evidenced by two newly unveiled studies from Yale Cancer Center. The research will be formally presented at the 2013 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in Chicago, but abstracts were made public by ASCO in advance of the meeting.

Preventive mastectomy: understanding Angelina Jolie's decision
Actress Angelina Jolie's revelation that she has undergone a preventive mastectomy to reduce her risk of breast cancer is all over the news, drawing attention to mutations in genes BRCA 1 and BRCA 2 that dramatically elevate some women's risk for the disease.

Royal Navy Officer Becomes Journalist
Aboard the frigate HMS Argyll, Christopher Harress (JRN'13) reported on humanitarian efforts in Sierra Leone and two major drug busts in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

Kids, especially boys, perceive sadness of depressed parents
ANN ARBOR-Children of depressed parents pick up on their parents' sadness-whether mom or dad realizes their mood or not. A new University of Michigan study indicates that children who have at least one parent suffering from depression are very skilled at picking up on facial cues. Boys living in this environment are highly sensitive to facial expressions of sadness, said Nestor Lopez-Duran, assistant professor of psychology and one the study's authors.

Cracking the code of art’s meaning
Grad student exhibit explores how meaning emerges from the complicated relationship between art, artist and viewer.

Beautiful "flowers" self-assemble in a beaker
: Caroline Perry , (617) 496-1351 These false-color SEM images reveal microscopic flower structures created by manipulating a chemical gradient to control crystalline self-assembly.

Bach to the blues,our emotions match music to colors
Whether we're listening to Bach or the blues, our brains are wired to make music-color connections depending on how the melodies make us feel, according to new research from the University of California, Berkeley.

Larry Yore to receive U of M's Outstanding Achievement Award

U-M anthropologist named 2013 National Geographic Emerging Explorer
Vivianne Schnitzer, U-M News Service, (734) 763-0368, vsh [a] umich (p) edu or Caroline Braun, National Geographic, (202) 862-8281, cbraun [a] ngs (p) org ANN ARBOR-Jason De León, assistant

Artificial Forest for Solar Water-Splitting
In the wake of the sobering news that atmospheric carbon dioxide is now at its highest level in at least three million years, an important advance in the race to develop carbon-neutral renewable energy sources has been achieved.

Nanotechnology could help fight diabetes
Injectable nanogel can monitor blood-sugar levels and secrete insulin when needed. Injectable nanoparticles developed at MIT may someday eliminate the need for patients with Type 1 diabetes to constantly monitor their blood-sugar levels and inject themselves with insulin. The nanoparticles were designed to sense glucose levels in the body and respond by secreting the appropriate amount of insulin, thereby replacing the function of pancreatic islet cells, which are destroyed in patients with Type 1 diabetes.

Invasive Crazy Ants Are Displacing Fire Ants, Researchers Find
AUSTIN, Texas — Invasive "crazy ants" are displacing fire ants in areas across the southeastern United States, according to researchers at The University of Texas at Austin.

Penn Medicine Reveals New Potential Therapy for Advanced Cancers
In the largest clinical trial to date to examine the efficacy of PARP inhibitor therapy in BRCA 1/2 carriers with diseases other than breast and ovarian cancer, the oral drug olaparib was found to be effective against advanced pancreatic and prostate cancers. Results of the study, led by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer, Israel, will be presented during the American Society of Clinical Oncology's annual meeting in Chicago in early June (Abstract #11024).

Cuatro Corridos: New Chamber Opera Takes Look at Issue of Sex Trafficking Along Border
"Cuatro Corridos," the new chamber opera by UC San Diego soprano Susan Narucki and Mexican author Jorge Volpi, earned rave reviews for its May 8 premiere on campus.

UC San Diego Creates Center for Brain Activity Mapping
Responding to President Barack Obama's "grand challenge" to chart the function of the human brain in unprecedented detail, the University of California, San Diego has established the Center for Brain Activity Mapping (CBAM).

Socrates Fellow Brings Coral Research to Local High School
Coral reef health is the scientific specialty of Aaron Hartmann, a sixth year Ph.D. student at Scripps Institution of Oceanography.

Larson Institute hosts international friction workshop
Josh Jones of Oklahoma-based Blastrac showed off a machine designed to remove tire rubber, residue and surface contamination from asphalt surfaces to improve skid resistance, micro textures and macro textures.

Newly Described Type of Immune Cell and’T cells Share Similar Path to Maturity, According to New Penn Study
Labs around the world, and a core group at Penn, have been studying recently described populations of immune cells called innate lymphoid cells (ILCs).

New Penn Medicine Research Identifies Infection and Sepsis-Related Mortality Hotspots Across the U.S
In the past, researchers have sought to determine the geographic distribution of many life-threatening conditions, including stroke and cardiac arrest.

A new laser paradigm: An electrically injected polariton laser
ANN ARBOR-Engineering researchers at the University of Michigan have demonstrated a paradigm-shifting "polariton" laser that's fueled not by light, but by electricity.

U-M conference: Future of liberal arts at research universities
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT DATE: May 22-24, 2013 EVENT: At a time when the value of the liberal arts is under much debate, more than 50 deans at large research universities around the country wil

Brain rewires itself after damage or injury, life scientists discover
When the brain's primary "learning center" is damaged, complex new neural circuits arise to compensate for the lost function, say life scientists from UCLA and Australia who have pinpointed the regions of the brain involved in creating those alternate pathways — often far from the damaged site.

The music of the Arab Spring finds a home on the Stanford campus
Stanford scholars broadcast Middle Eastern music and culture on two KZSU radio shows, Arabology and Mediterraneans: Music of the Middle East, North Africa, and Beyond.

Q&A: Steven Chu on returning to Stanford, his time as U.S. Energy Secretary
After six years as the secretary of energy, Nobel laureate Steven Chu is returning to Stanford University as a professor of physics and molecular and cellular physiology.

Turning Up the Heat on Biofuels
The production of biofuels from lignocellulosic biomass would benefit on several levels if carried out at temperatures between 65 and 70 degrees Celsius.

Secrets of life on Earth, Mars bubbling in 2.7 billion-year-old water
A team of scientists from the University of Toronto and Manchester University in the United Kingdom have gone three kilometres beneath the surface of the Canadian Shield to find some of the oldest fluids in our planet's history. The waters are rich in clues about lives lived without sunlight on Earth and possibly on Mars.

Tropical air circulation drives fall warming on Antarctic Peninsula
The eastern side of the Antarctic Peninsula, a finger of the southern polar continent that juts toward South America, has experienced summer warming of perhaps a half-degree per decade - a greater rate than possibly anywhere else on Earth - in the last 50 years, and that warming is largely attributed to human causes.

Documents that Changed the World: ‘What is the Third Estate?’ 1789
Joe Janes reached back two centuries to a self-published pamphlet in pre-revolutionary France for the latest installment of his podcast series, “ Documents that Changed the World.” In

Lights, Action, Camera, Roll-em: the Silent Films of the La Jolla Cinema League
San Diego-with its spectacular coastal vistas, wide sandy beaches, and perpetually balmy weather-has long been a draw as a filming location for Hollywood motion picture studios.

Cultivating research for better canola
UAlberta's canola breeding program receives $3.1 million to support research into improving Canada's top revenue crop.

Dr. Roy Herbst has new post as the Ensign Professor of Medical Oncology
Dr. Roy S. Herbst, recently designated as the Ensign Professor of Medical Oncology, is nationally recognized for his leadership and expertise in lung cancer treatment and research.

Making frequency-hopping radios practical
New hardware could lead to wireless devices that identify and exploit unused transmission frequencies, using radio spectrum much more efficiently.

Guide adds new voices to history of Gettysburg battle
This Confederate artillery location on Benner's Hill played a key role on day-one at the Battle of Gettysburg.

Twin epidemics: HIV and Hepatitis C in the urban Northeast
A new Yale study looks at the scope and consequences of a burgeoning health problem in the cities of the U.S. Northeast: concurrent infection with both HIV and Hepatitis C (HCV). The study appears online in the May 14 issue of the Public Library of Science (PLoS One). HIV and HCV are the two most prevalent chronic viral infections in the United States.

Los Alamos National Laboratory selects three small businesses for environmental work

Engineering Tissue to Rebuild Damaged Bones and Organs
From the chimera in Greek mythology to the sphinx in ancient Egypt, humans have imagined making creatures from pieces of different organisms for millennia. Tissue engineering, the innovative field that uses engineering principles to develop biological substitutes for cells or even major organs, is just the latest version, says Gordana Vunjak-Novakovic , the Mikati Foundation Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Medical Sciences.

Wireless signals could transform brain trauma diagnostics
New technology developed at the University of California, Berkeley, is using wireless signals to provide real-time, non-invasive diagnoses of brain swelling or bleeding.

Stanford professor and former NASA official on the Kepler space telescope
Scott Hubbard, a consulting professor of aeronautics and astronautics, helped guide the Kepler mission when he served as director of NASA Ames Research Center.

Engineers monitor heart with paper-thin flexible ’skin’
Engineers combine layers of flexible materials into pressure sensors to create a wearable heart monitor thinner than a dollar bill.

Renowned U of’T Alzheimer’s researcher wins prestigious international health award
World-renowned molecular geneticist Professor Peter St George-Hyslop , director of the University of Toronto's Tanz Centre for Research in Neurodegenerative Diseases , has won one of Europe's top health awards for his pioneering work on the roots of neurodegenerative diseases.

UCLA Architecture and Urban Design launches ’Extreme IDEAS’ series
UCLA Architecture and Urban Design (A.UD) will carry the narrative of modern architecture in Los Angeles forward from its influential past to the future with " Extreme IDEAS: Architecture at the Int

Warming in central China greater than most climate models indicated
Temperatures in central China are 10 to 14 degrees Fahrenheit hotter today than they were 20,000 years ago, during the last ice age, UCLA researchers report — an increase two to four times greater than many scientists previously thought.

Research Helps Paint Finer Picture of Massive 1700 Earthquake
In 1700, a massive earthquake struck the west coast of North America. Though it was powerful enough to cause a tsunami as far as Japan, a lack of local documentation has made studying this historic event challenging.

New PhD program in molecular engineering marks historic first for UChicago
The University of Chicago will offer an engineering PhD for the first time, emphasizing the development of solutions to technological problems of society based on molecular-level science.

Symposia feature undergraduate research

Alba Holgado, ’a rare workplace treasure,’ wins Amy J. Blue Award
Alba Holgado, digital course management at Robert Crown Law Library, is one of three recipients of the 2013 Amy J. Blue Award.

Stanford adds walkers, bikers to incentive-based study to relieve traffic congestion
Stanford research offering cash incentives to drivers for avoiding rush hour has helped the university fulfill an agreement with Santa Clara County.

Engineer John Hutchinson elected to the Royal Society
Honor recognizes his expertise in solid mechanics and materials engineering, especially buckling and cracking John W. Hutchinson , Abbott and James Lawrence Professor of Engineering and

U-M launches new center to transform mobility
Francine Romine, (734) 763-4668, fromine [a] umich (p) edu or David Lampe, (734) 647-7768, drlampe [a] umich (p) edu or Bernie DeGroat (734) 647-1847, bernied [a] umich (p) edu ANN ARBOR-The

UAlberta awards first BSc north of 60 in Canada

Investing in a strong Canada-China relationship

UChicago to evaluate effects of increased math tutoring in Chicago Public Schools
Up to 1,000 adolescent boys in 12 Chicago Public Schools will receive individualized, daily math tutoring in their regular school day beginning next fall, as part of a new UChicago-supported program designed to boost school performance and reduce violent crimes.

Car wars: Advanced vehicles show range of technologies
The 21st Century Automotive Challenge will give visitors a chance to check out vehicles powered by a number of alternative energy sources, including electricity, compressed natural gas and biodiesel.

Brian Mulhall, From the Navy to the Law
Brian C. Mulhall, who is graduating from the Law School , learned a lesson in a middle school summer wrestling program that became central to the way he approaches life.

Software Developer Combines Technology Skills With Journalism in New Dual-Degree Program
Over the course of a six-year career designing online banking software for the British financial firm HSBC, Rashmi Raman would often find herself trolling the Columbia Journalism School website and dreaming of the possibilities.

College Graduate Starts Volunteer Program to Comfort Elderly
The aging and frail nun, a resident at the Terence Cardinal Cooke Health Care Center on Fifth Avenue, was quickly declining.

Documentary film portrays UW–Madison mindfulness research
MADISON – Groundbreaking research at the University of Wisconsin–Madison is the focus of the new documentary film, “Free the Mind,” which debuts in Madison tomorrow, May 15.

Nursing Graduate Well Schooled in Cancer Care
Alfredo Axtmayer II will have a unique perspective to share with his patients when he becomes a nurse practitioner with a specialty in oncology.

After 60 Years of Public Service, Diplomat Finally Earns His Ph.D
Most scholars earn a Ph.D. then go on to a career in their chosen field and publish some books.

Two Engineers Harness Solar Power to Help Sandy Victims
Back in 2010, when graduation still seemed remote and intangible, Rob van Haaren and Garrett Fitzgerald agreed to celebrate their Ph.Ds—whenever they might finish—by piloting a pair of motorcycles from New York City to California.

Columbia to House El Diario Photo Archive
So much of New York's history has been lived, sung and reported in Spanish. With the great migration of the 1950s, what had long been a relatively small Latino community in New York became a thriving center of Puerto Rican life and culture.

Faculty Q&A With Martin Chalfie
When he received his A.B. from Harvard in 1969, Martin Chalfie wasn't sure what he would do next. His worst grades had been in physics and chemistry, and a summer research project had failed, so science seemed out of reach. He had a series of short-term jobs and then spent two years teaching high school algebra, chemistry and social science in Connecticut.

Alexander Vardy Named First Jack Keil Wolf Chair in Electrical Engineering
Electrical engineering Professor Alexander Vardy, a renowned researcher in information and coding theory, has been appointed as the first Jack Keil Wolf Endowed Chair in Electrical Engineering at the University of California, San Diego.

Survivor Beach to ’SUP-port’ Quest to Conquer Cancer June 2
UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center will host the 7th annual Survivor Beach on Sunday, June 2. The event, which has become a La Jolla tradition, will feature a stand-up paddleboard (SUP) competition, beach festival with food trucks and more.