science wire

Better response plans needed for children exposed to domestic violence
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Each year, millions of children are exposed to domestic violence, a traumatic experience that has been associated with cognitive, behavioral, social and emotional problems in childhood as well as a higher incidence of depression and premature death in adulthood. Numerous studies over the past two decades also have indicated that exposure to domestic violence (EDV) places children at higher risk of abuse and neglect.

Social welfare cuts ultimately come with heavy price, researchers say
CHAMPAIGN, Ill.

Getting news from the Internet not as divisive as many assume
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - The Internet is changing the way people get their news, but there's little proof that it is fragmenting or polarizing the news audience the way many assume, says professor David Tewksbury , the head of the University of Illinois department of communication.

Maps of miscanthus genome offer insight into grass evolution
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - Miscanthus grasses are used in gardens, burned for heat and energy, and converted into liquid fuels. They also belong to a prominent grass family that includes corn, sorghum and sugarcane. Two new, independently produced chromosome maps of Miscanthus sinensis (an ornamental that likely is a parent of Miscanthus giganteus , a biofuels crop) are a first step toward sequencing the M. sinensis genome.

Computing the best high-resolution 3-D tissue images
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Real-time, 3-D microscopic tissue imaging could be a revolution for medical fields such as cancer diagnosis, minimally invasive surgery and ophthalmology.

Peacekeeping forces often barrier to lasting peace, research shows
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -  Could peacekeepers actually be a detriment to ending a war and finding long-term peace? An analysis of conflicts since World War II shows that that's the case more often than not, say two experts on the subject. “In general, peacekeeping actually reduces the occurrence of diplomatic efforts aimed at settling conflicts,” according to co-authors J. Michael Greig, a professor of political science at the University of North Texas, and Paul F. Diehl, the Henning Larsen Professor of Political Science at the UI.

Optimizing biofuel supply chain is a competitive game
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - As biofuel production has increased - particularly ethanol derived from corn - a hotly contested competition for feedstock supplies has emerged between the agricultural grain markets and biofuel refineries.

Report examines bullying victims, perpetrators and countermeasures
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - A new report by researchers at the University of Illinois offers sobering information about bullying.

Organ donor campaign shows teenagers respond to simple over flashy
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -  Illinois in 2006 joined other states in creating a first-person, legally binding consent registry for organ donation.

Engineering professor awarded Guggenheim Fellowship
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - University of Illinois professor Huimin Zhao has received a 2012 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship.

U. of I. psychology professor receives APA distinguished scientist award

New antibiotic could make food safer and cows healthier
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Food-borne diseases might soon have another warrior to contend with, thanks to a new molecule discovered by chemists at the University of Illinois. The new antibiotic, an analog of the widely used food preservative nisin, also has potential to be a boon to the dairy industry as a treatment for bovine mastitis.

When women stop breastfeeding linked to child care options, study shows
CHAMPAIGN, lll.

’The Irish Way’ in shaping America’s cities is subject of historian’s new book
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Immigrants arrived by the millions between 1890 and 1920, a surge mostly from eastern and southeastern Europe.

Breastfed babies less likely to be picky eaters as toddlers
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Babies who are breastfed exclusively for their first six months of life may be less likely to become picky eaters as preschoolers, according to a recent study of 129 mothers and their children.

Science museum event launches neuroscience education program

Team aims to make sugarcane, sorghum into oil-producing crops
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - With the support of a $3.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, researchers will take the first steps toward engineering two new oil-rich crops.

Researcher tracks agricultural overuse of bug-killing technology
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - High corn prices are leading many growers to plant corn every year and to overuse pesticides and other bug-killing technology to maximize yields, researchers report.

Rare fungus kills endangered rattlesnakes in southern Illinois
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - A small population of rattlesnakes that already is in decline in southern Illinois faces a new and unexpected threat in the form of a fungus rarely seen in the wild, researchers report. The eastern massasauga rattlesnake ( Sistrurus catenatus catenatus ), a candidate for protection under the federal Endangered Species Act, suffers from habitat loss and environmental stresses wherever it is found, said University of Illinois comparative biosciences visiting instructor and wildlife veterinarian Matthew Allender, who led the health investigation.

U. of I. program targets growing obesity rate among Midwest Hispanics
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Hispanics living in the Midwest have the highest obesity rates among Latinos in the U.S., and in Illinois, the percentage of obese Latino children 6-11 years of age has doubled since 2001, standing now at 24 percent.

Carbon storage project combines innovation and outreach
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Geologists are hoping to learn a great deal about geologic carbon sequestration from injecting 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide into sandstone 7,000 feet beneath Decatur, Ill.

Bloodthirsty ants swarm Insect Fear Film Festival

Illinois professor elected to National Academy of Engineering
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Photonics pioneer James J. Coleman has been elected to membership in the National Academy of Engineering.

It’s not solitaire: Brain activity differs when one plays against others
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - Researchers have found a way to study how our brains assess the behavior - and likely future actions - of others during competitive social interactions. Their study, described in a paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, is the first to use a computational approach to tease out differing patterns of brain activity during these interactions, the researchers report.

Risk-based passenger screening could make air travel safer
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Anyone who has flown on a commercial airline since 2001 is well aware of increasingly strict measures at airport security checkpoints.

Attack or retreat? Circuit links hunger and pursuit in sea slug brain
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - If you were a blind, cannibalistic sea slug, living among others just like you, nearly every encounter with another creature would require a simple cost/benefit calculation: Should I eat that, do nothing or flee? In a new study, researchers report that these responses are linked to a simple circuit in the brain of the sea slug Pleurobranchaea .

Enhancing cognition in older adults also changes personality
CHAMPAIGN, lll.

From field to biorefinery: Computer model optimizes biofuel operations
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - Research into biofuel crops such as switchgrass and Miscanthus has focused mainly on how to grow these crops and convert them into fuels. But many steps lead from the farm to the biorefinery, and each could help or hinder the growth of this new industry. A new computer model developed at the University of Illinois can simplify this transition, researchers say.

Particle-free silver ink prints small, high-performance electronics
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - University of Illinois materials scientists have developed a new reactive silver ink for printing high-performance electronics on ubiquitous, low-cost materials such as flexible plastic, paper or fabric substrates.

Family debt hurts children’s chances for success in college, study says
CHAMPAIGN, Ill.

New technique makes it easier to etch semiconductors
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Creating semiconductor structures for high-end optoelectronic devices just got easier, thanks to University of Illinois researchers. The team developed a method to chemically etch patterned arrays in the semiconductor gallium arsenide, used in solar cells, lasers, light emitting diodes (LEDs), field effect transistors (FETs), capacitors and sensors.

Self-healing electronics could work longer and reduce waste
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - When one tiny circuit within an integrated chip cracks or fails, the whole chip - or even the whole device - is a loss.

Antimicrobials, perfumes, drugs pose challenges for sewage treatment
CHAMPAIGN, lll. - Think of it like sourdough. Or beer. Or yogurt. These popular products are all created through a process that involves using bacteria to systematically break down organic matter.

Let’s do the twist: Spiral proteins are efficient gene delivery agents
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Clinical gene therapy may be one step closer, thanks to a new twist on an old class of molecules. A group of University of Illinois researchers, led by professors Jianjun Cheng and Fei Wang, have demonstrated that short spiral-shaped proteins can efficiently deliver DNA segments to cells.

Federal health care reform law holds hope for mental health services
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Uninsured adults with serious mental illnesses may have a harder time finding care because state budgetary cutbacks are dramatically affecting services and staffing levels at community mental health agencies in Illinois and other states.

Book addresses need for more infrastructure for Latino mental health
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - It was an alarming message: A Spanish speaking woman in the Champaign area was on the brink of suicide, and a bilingual mental health professional was urgently needed for crisis intervention, but none could be found.

First Professional Science Master’s graduates are finding jobs

Eight Illinois faculty members elected fellows of AAAS

Parental response to sexual abuse varies by age of victim, suspect
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Parents are more likely to blame or doubt a child victim of sexual abuse when the suspected perpetrator is an adolescent rather than an adult, according to a new study that examined child molestation cases in four states. The findings also suggest that, regardless of the age of the perpetrator, parental blame/doubt toward the victim significantly increases if the victim is an adolescent.