science wire

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.

New YaleNews website celebrates classroom teaching

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.

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.

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.

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.

Yale science outreach: Inspiring the next generation of scientists
At age 14, Michael Wilner knew he wanted a career in forensic science. In addition to his studies at New Haven's Hill Regional Career High School, he wanted a rigorous, hands-on experience to help him determine if working in a lab was truly right for him.

Research in the News: Real-time brain feedback can help people overcome anxiety
People provided with a real-time readout of activity in specific regions of their brains can learn to control that activity and lessen their anxiety, according to new findings published online in the journal Translational Psychiatry.

Science Xplained: Ice cream chemistry
Ainissa Ramirez, associate professor of mechanical engineering, describes the science behind a tasty bit of chemistry - ice cream.

Bulldogs Racing places first in major hybrid racecar contest

NIH study provides clarity on supplements for protection against blinding eye disease
Adding omega-3 fatty acids did not improve a combination of nutritional supplements commonly recommended for treating age-related macular degeneration (AMD), a major cause of vision loss among older Americans, according to a study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The plant-derived antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin also had no overall effect on AMD when added to the combination; however, they were safer than the related antioxidant beta-carotene, according to the study published online May 5 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Three Yale faculty elected to the National Academy of Sciences
Three Yale faculty members were among 105 new members and foreign associates elected April 30 to the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, one of science's most prestigious honors.

Research in the news: Illuminating the immune system
Two illuminating studies of the immune system have been published by leading researchers in the Department of Immunobiology of Yale School of Medicine. A team led by Ruslan Medzhitov, professor of immunobiology and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, found that the body's ability to tolerate infectious disease pathogens is as important as the immune system's ability to fight them.

Deep in Texas, a plant-eating feathered dinosaur reemerges
A recently identified feathered dinosaur found deep in West Texas reinforces an emerging view that creatures like it were more diverse and widespread in North America than previously thought, according to a new study. The species - a turkey-sized herbivore called Leptorhynchos gaddisi - belongs to a broader group of bird-like dinosaurs characterized by toothless beaks and long, slender claws, said researchers, who analyzed fossils found near Big Bend National Park at a site dating to about 75 million years ago.

Growing new arteries, bypassing blocked ones
Scientific collaborators from Yale School of Medicine and University College London (UCL) have uncovered the molecular pathway by which new arteries may form after heart attacks, strokes and other acute illnesses - bypassing arteries that are blocked.

Imminent emergence of 17-year cicada creates buzz at Yale Peabody Museum
This spring will mark the return of the 17-year cicada, as nymphs of this common species emerge in late May - for the first time since 1996 - from colonies in forested regions in south-central Connecticut.

Salovey and six Yale faculty join Springsteen as new AAAS members
Seven Yale faculty members, including President-elect Peter Salovey, have been elected as members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the nation's most prestigious honorary societies.

Soon-to-be doctors to showcase their original research on May 7
Students pursuing an M.D. at Yale School of Medicine must fulfill a graduation requirement that is rare at the nation's medical schools: They must complete a dissertation based on original research that they have conducted with a full-time faculty mentor.

Autism risk spotted at birth in abnormal placentas
Researchers at the Yale School of Medicine have figured out how to measure an infant's risk of developing autism by looking for abnormalities in his/her placenta at birth, allowing for earlier diagnosis and treatment for the developmental disorder. The findings are reported in the April 25 online issue of Biological Psychiatry.

Mineralogist at Peabody Museum confirms meteorite fall in Wolcott
An object that fell through the roof of a house in Wolcott on April 19 was confirmed to be a meteorite by Stefan Nicolescu, mineralogy collections manager at the Yale Peabody Museum of Natural History.

Six faculty members to be applauded for their outstanding teaching

Yale undergrads uncover antifreeze secrets of a Siberian beetle
In 2011, Yale undergraduates asked a question: How does a Siberian beetle survive some of the cruelest winters on earth? Their answer appears on the cover of the April 26 issue of the Journal Biological Chemistry in the form of a peculiarly shaped protein with an ability to prevent ice from forming.

Yale accredited to train specialists in addiction medicine
Yale University has been newly accredited to train physicians in the practice of addiction medicine.

Earth -- live and on the Web
The human population booms. Natural resources dwindle. The planet warms.

YSPH's Melinda Pettigrew: Researching novel approaches to combat a common childhood infection
Otitis media, more commonly know to generations of parents and their children as an ear infection, is a painful fact of infancy, with nearly 80 percent of youngsters becoming infected by age 3.

Drug discovery symposium tracks journey from laboratory to clinic
The myriad efforts to translate Yale research into new therapies will be featured at the third annual "Yale Talks About Drug Discovery and Translational Medicine" symposium to be held April 13 from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at West Campus.

’Minding the Baby’ planning for expansion with new funding
Minding the Baby (MTB), a Yale-led community program that helps at-risk young families form healthy bonds with their infants, is poised to become a self-sustaining model that can be replicated in communities nationwide, thanks to a new $55,000 grant from the Donaghue Foundation.

Yale and AACR call on physicians to urge newly diagnosed cancer patients to quit smoking
Yale Cancer Center experts in collaboration with the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) are calling on physicians to routinely recommend that patients stop smoking after a diagnosis of cancer.

Memorial service for former School of Nursing dean Donna Diers

Melanoma survivors still forego sunscreen and use tanning beds
Some melanoma survivors continue to use indoor tanning beds and forego using sunscreen, according to Yale Cancer Center research that was presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Ann

Blavatnik Family Foundation to provide $10 million grant for immunobiology research at Yale
Scientists at Yale University will test a new theory of inflammation and chronic disease, thanks to a $10 million grant from the Blavatnik Family Foundation, the charitable organization headed by American industrialist and philanthropist Len Blavatnik. The grant supports the work of immunobiologists Ruslan Medzhitov and Richard Flavell, who have posed a unifying theory to describe how inflammation can impact the body's homeostatic control mechanisms to trigger the onset of disease.

Scientists engineer space-age molecules from nature’s blueprints
The enzyme needed to introduce the key micronutrient selenium into bacteria looks something like a space station with 10 different docking stations.

Book: Brain Imaging: What it Can (and Cannot) Tell Us About Consciousness
YaleNews features works recently or soon to be published by members of the University community. Descriptions are based on material provided by the publishers. Authors of new books may forward publishers' book descriptions to us by email.

Celebrating stem cell discoveries
Scientists and officials gathered at New Haven's Omni Hotel on June 2 for StemCONN 013, a symposium celebrating Connecticut's successful discoveries in stem cell research.

In last great age of warmth, CO2 at work -- but hardly alone
Warming patterns during Earth's last period of prolonged global warmth differed dramatically from modern temperature patterns, according to new research by a Yale University scientist and colleagues. Cloud feedbacks, ocean mixing, or other dynamic factors must have played a greater role in Pliocene warming than commonly recognized, the scientists argue, and these must be accounted for in order to make meaningful predictions about Earth's future climate.

Yale Community Health Care Van returns to the Green with health screenings and more

A reflection on the state of autism
As the country marks April 2 as World Autism Awareness Day, and April as National Autism Awareness Month, Yale Child Study Center Director Fred Volkmar reflects on some major advances, and discusses some of the challenges still facing autism diagnosis, treatment, and research.

Wendy Silverman is appointed to the Alfred A. Messer Professorship
Wendy K. Silverman, newly named as the inaugural Alfred A. Messer Professor of Child Psychiatry, focuses her research on child and adolescent anxiety disorders.

Robert Schoelkopf is named Sterling Professor of Applied Physics and Physics
Robert J. Schoelkopf, recently appointed as Sterling Professor of Applied Physics and Physics, focuses his research on the development of superconducting devices for quantum information processing, which might eventually lead to revolutionary advances in computing.

Harkness Tower will turn blue to raise awareness about autism

Yale panel explores future of Medicare
A panel of policy experts and influential pundits - including David Brooks of The New York Times - will meet at Yale on April 2 to consider the uncertain prospects of Medicare.

Hunger-spiking neurons could help control autoimmune diseases
Neurons that control hunger in the central nervous system also regulate immune cell functions, implicating eating behavior as a defense against infections and autoimmune disease development, Yale School of Medicine researchers have found in a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences (PNAS).

Two Yale professors honored for ’a lifetime of significant contributions’ to psychology
Susan Nolen-Hoeksema and Allan R. Wagner will be honored with lifetime achievement awards by the Association for Psychological Science (APS).

Ban on food stamps leads to hunger, HIV risk among former drug felons
Convicted drug offenders who are denied government food benefits upon release from prison are at greater risk of engaging in dangerous, sexual risk behaviors in order to obtain food, Yale researchers have found. Their pilot study appears in the journal AIDS Education and Prevention. Each year, nearly three-quarters of a million people are released from U.S. prisons.

Senator Blumenthal and Yale panel will discuss climate change

Amputations due to ischemia more likely in blacks and Hispanics than in whites
Non-white patients with severe circulatory problems, or ischemia, are significantly more likely than white patients to undergo lower-limb amputation regardless of economic and additional health factors, a Yale study has found. The study appears in the March 20 issue of JAMA Surgery , a publication of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Yale physicist will offer insights into search for Higgs Boson particle
The discovery of the Higgs Boson particle is the focus of the next talk in the Graduate School's In the Company of Scholars lecture series.

Botín Foundation partners with Yale to examine creativity, emotion
Yale University has announced an agreement with the Botín Foundation to advance research in the area of emotional intelligence.

Researchers trick bacteria to deliver a safer vaccine
Vaccines that employ weakened but live pathogens to trigger immune responses have inherent safety issues but Yale researchers have developed a new trick to circumvent the problem - using bacteria's own cellular mistakes to deliver a safe vaccine.

Industry self-regulation permits junk food ads in programming popular with children
Loopholes in industry self-regulation allow food companies to continue to reach large numbers of children with advertising for unhealthy products - such as fast food, candy, and cookies - during "tween" programs and popular children's holiday specials. The study by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity is published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Binge drinking and your brain: Raising risk of dependence
The brains of chronically heavy drinkers have twice the capacity of those of light drinkers to consume a chemical that may add to impairment and some other effects of alcohol, Yale School of Medicine researchers have found. This added capacity may also increase the vulnerability to alcohol dependence, according to the study, which appears in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

No attention-boosting drugs for healthy kids, doctors urge
Doctors at Yale School of Medicine and the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) have called upon their fellow physicians to limit or end the practice of prescribing memory-enhancing drugs to healthy children whose brains are still developing.

Stronger support needed for healthy beverage practices in child care
Support is needed in child care centers to help meet existing water policies and new water requirements included in the 2010 Child Nutrition Reauthorization Act, according to a study published by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity. The study, published in the March/April 2013 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, is the first to document availability and accessibility of water in compliance with state and federal policy, and accreditation standards in child care centers.

Flip of a single molecular switch makes an old brain young
The flip of a single molecular switch helps create the mature neuronal connections that allow the brain to bridge the gap between adolescent impressionability and adult stability. Now Yale School of Medicine researchers have reversed the process, recreating a youthful brain that facilitated both learning and healing in the adult mouse.

LED Café -- where art and science meet
Yale's vast art collection includes celebrated works by van Gogh, Cezanne, Hopper, and Rothko. But the flashiest new canvas on campus hangs on a wall - and ceiling - in the School of Engineering & Applied Science (SEAS).

For this doctor, hope amidst fear is the best medicine
Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa may not be able to cure his patients' brain cancer, but there is one thing that the internationally renowned neurosurgeon and neuroscientist can provide them with: hope.

Pose your questions to science essayist Carl Zimmer on Yale Tumblr
Science writer and blogger Carl Zimmer '87 will be ed at Yale for a YouTube video, and Yale Tumblr is inviting members of the public to submit questions about the scientific issues they'd most like to hear him discuss.

Yale psychologist to discuss ’The Secrets of Your Dog’s Mind’
Laurie R. Santos, associate professor of psychology, will be one of the featured guests for a live chat on "The Secrets of Your Dog's Mind," which will hosted by Science magazine at 3 p.m. on Thursday, Feb.

Pioneering Yale immunologist Ruslan Medzhitov receives inaugural NIH award
Renowned Yale immunologist Ruslan Medzhitov has been awarded the inaugural Lurie Prize in the Biomedical Sciences from the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health (FNIH).

New Wellness Center to treat the body as well as the mind
One out three people seeking mental health care at Connecticut Mental Health Center (CMHC) in New Haven can't identify their primary care doctor.

Food banks addressing obesity with nutrition-related policies
Food banks are altering their nutrition-related policies and practices to address concerns about the rise in obesity and diet-related diseases among individuals struggling to afford food, according to a study by the Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity.

Art and science converge in multidisciplinary art performance
A scientist's biology lecture on flight goes awry when she reveals her own extreme experiments in "Theory of Flight" - the next offering in the new Franke Lectures in Science and the Humanities.

Yale astrophysicist elected head of American Astronomical Society
Astrophysicist C. Megan Urry, chair of Yale's physics department, has been elected the next president of the world's premier astronomical society.

Panel at Yale to look at doping in competitive cycling

New video gallery helps broadcast media promote unbiased coverage of obesity
The Yale Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity has launched a new, free resource to aid members of broadcast media in the creation and delivery of fair, unbiased video coverage of obesity and weight-related topics on television, video, and online.

Show captures the ’horrors’ (and ’joys’) of medical school
A zombie-themed television series was the inspiration for this year's Second Year Show, titled "The Walking Med," which will be staged on Friday, Feb. 22, by the Yale School of Medicine's Class of 2015. Proceeds from the show, an annual tradition at the medical school, will benefit the Hunger & Homelessness Charities.

Barbara Guthrie appointed the new Independence Foundation Professor of Nursing
Barbara Guthrie, recently designated as the Independence Foundation Professor of Nursing, focuses her research on health promotion and risk reduction programs for adolescent girls from diverse ethnic, social, and environmental backgrounds.

Jay Humphrey named to the inaugural John C. Malone Professorship
Jay D. Humphrey, newly appointed as the inaugural John C. Malone Professor of Biomedical Engineering, studies vascular mechanics and mechanobiology.

Scientists revisit biochemical basis for depression
Symptoms of depression and anxiety can be induced in mice by increasing levels of acetylcholine, suggesting that depression may have different biochemical roots than previously believed, Yale School of Medicine researchers report the week of Feb. 11 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Research in the News: International team reconstructs the ancestor of placental mammals
The common ancestor of more than 5,000 contemporary placental mammals such as rats, whales, and humans was a small, insect-eating animal that appeared after the dinosaurs went extinct 65 million years ago, an international team of researchers report in the Feb.

In conversation with: Elizabeth Bradley, college master with a global reach
Elizabeth Bradley started her career on the faculty at Yale in 1996 and currently serves in a variety of roles at the University, including professor of public health, faculty director for the Global Health Initiative and the Global Health Leadership Institute, and master of Branford College.

Vanderlick named to second term as dean of engineering school

Are ’food addicts’ stigmatized?
In the first studies to examine what the public thinks about people with an addiction to food, researchers at the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity at Yale found that while this addiction is less vulnerable to public stigma than others, it could increase the stigma already associated with obesity.

Dr. Michael Caty is appointed the Robert Pritzker Professor
Michael G. Caty, the newly named Robert Pritzker Professor of Pediatric Surgery, is a noted pediatric surgeon whose clinical interests include neonatal surgery, thoracic surgery, intestinal mot

Anne Eichmann named the Ensign Professor
Anne Eichmann, newly designated as the Ensign Professor of Cardiology, is noted for her research exploring the factors that determine where the cells in blood vessels and lymphatic vessels grow, as well as understanding how the vascular and nervous systems influence each other's growth and function.

Martin Schwartz appointed the Robert Berliner Professor
Martin A. Schwartz, the newly named Robert Berliner Professor of Cardiology, is a noted cardiovascular researcher whose studies of cell adhesion and behavior has led to new insights into arthrosclerosis and heart disease. A professor of medicine (cardiology) and of cell biology, he is affiliated with the Vascular Biology and Therapeutics Program and a member of the Yale Cardiovascular Research Center (YCVRC).

Dr. Hugh Taylor is named the Anita O’Keeffe Young Professor
Hugh S. Taylor, the newly appointed Anita O'Keeffe Young Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Services, is a noted clinician, scientist and educator whose clinical research is in the areas of infertility, endometriosis, menopause and DES (diethylstilbestrol) exposure.

Yale, DeLauro make the case for science
Yale President Richard Levin called her "a great friend of science and a great friend of Yale." President-elect Peter Salovey called her "a passionate supporter of the investment in the future of American science and engineering." Of herself, U.S. Rep.

Even adaptable viruses have trouble surviving erratic temperatures
Viruses such as those that cause the common cold are some of the most hardy and adaptable things on earth, but even they have trouble surviving the unpredictable and sudden temperature changes predicted by climate change models. A simple RNA virus subjected to random temperature fluctuations within a window of just 8 degree C showed inability to adapt to this environmental change, according to research by Yale University and University of Florida scientists published Jan.

Kathleen Carroll appointed the Albert E. Kent Professor of Psychiatry
Kathleen M. Carroll, recently named as the Albert E. Kent Professor of Psychiatry, focuses her research on methods to improve the effectiveness of addiction treatment.

George Lister is the new Jean McLean Wallace Professor of Pediatrics
George Lister, recently appointed as the Jean McLean Wallace Professor of Pediatrics, focuses his research on the factors affecting infants at risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).

Predicting survival among those aging with HIV infection
A new collaborative study led by Yale, the VA Healthcare System, and the North American Cohort Collaboration supports the accuracy of an index used for predicting mortality as patients with HIV age.

In conversation: George Daniel Mostow, geometer of the Nth dimension
In awarding Yale's George Daniel Mostow its 2013 Wolf Foundation Prize in mathematics - one of the field's premier global awards - the foundation offered this crisp assessment: "Few mathematicians,"

Genetic landscape of common brain tumors holds key to personalized treatment
Nearly the entire genetic landscape of the most common form of brain tumor can be explained by abnormalities in just five genes, an international team of researchers led by Yale School of Medicine scientists report online in the Jan. 24 edition of the journal Science. Knowledge of the genomic profile of the tumors and their location in the brain make it possible for the first time to develop personalized medical therapies for meningiomas, which currently are only managed surgically.

Research in the News: Tracking changes in biodiversity worldwide
Yale's Walter Jetz and an international group of scientists have proposed a system for monitoring recent changes in global biodiversity as part of a broader effort to preserve ecological richness.

Readmission risk increases in month after hospital discharge
Following hospitalization for heart attacks, heart failure, or pneumonia, patients are at high risk of being readmitted for a broad spectrum of medical conditions in the month following hospital discharge, research at Yale School of Medicine shows.

Emergency room redux for many patients after hospitalization
After a hospitalization, patients face many challenges as they transition home. A new study of this vulnerable period published by Yale School of Medicine researchers in JAMA found that a substantial number of patients return to the emergency department soon after leaving the hospital, and, while such patients are not usually readmitted, the study raises concerns that many more patients require acute medical care after hospital discharge than previously recognized.

A world of digital pain: Yale professors discuss cyberbullying on Facebook
Just how common is cyberbullying on Facebook? Yale's Marc Brackett, director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, and Robin Stern, psychotherapist and research scientist for the center, wil

Book: Why Smile?: The Science Behind Facial Expressions
YaleNews features works recently or soon to be published by members of the University community. Descriptions are based on material provided by the publishers.

Economics chair Benjamin Polak named new Yale provost

FDA supports Yale/Medtronic medical device surveillance initiative
In an effort to develop enhanced methods to evaluate the safety of medical devices, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has established a five-year cooperative agreement with Yale University, in partnership with Medtronic, Inc.

Mostow, master of geometry, wins top Israeli honor
George Daniel Mostow, a Yale professor emeritus renowned for his contributions in geometry, has been awarded a 2013 Wolf Foundation Prize, often called the Nobel Prize of Israel.

Ovarian cancer stem cell study puts targeted therapies within reach
Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have identified a key link between stem cell factors that fuel ovarian cancer's growth and patient prognosis. The study, which paves the way for developing novel targeted ovarian cancer therapies, is published online in the current issue of Cell Cycle. Lead author Yingqun Huang , associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences, and her colleagues have demonstrated a connection between two concepts that are revolutionizing the way cancer is treated.

Study suggests affect of fructose on brain may promote overeating
The brain processes fructose and glucose, the two forms of simple sugars, differently - impacting appetite, feelings of satisfaction, fullness, and potential weight gain, according to a study by Yale School of Medicine researchers published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Glucose, but not fructose, suppresses brain activity in regions that promote the desire to eat, whereas fructose feeding may promote overeating through its inability to effectively suppress food-seeking behavior, the scientists found.

The ’bystander effect’ in crime also applies to medicine
The "bystander effect," which refers to people standing by and doing nothing while an emergency situation takes place, can also apply to medical care, according to two Yale doctors. Their "Perspectives" piece appears in the Jan. 3 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine. The "bystander effect" became widely known and studied after the murder of a young Queens, New York woman, Kitty Genovese, who was returning home from work in the pre-dawn hours of March 13, 1964.

Scientist named one of '10 people who mattered this year'
Microbiologist Jo Handelsman has been named one of the "366 Days: Nature's 10" people who "mattered" in 2012 by Nature Magazine.

Faculty embraces plan to expand online education

Museum visitors learn how climate change affects their own backyards

Top 10 of 2012: Science & Health
Based on the interest and attention they gathered at Yale and beyond, here are the year's top 10 Science & Health stories: 1. Yale scientists explain how ketamine vanquishes depression within hours Hands-down, the most-read story of the year - with 14,000-plus readers - looked at how a party drug known as "Special K" could dramatically lower depression.

Top 10 stories of 2012: Across the board

Asperger’s Disorder and Violence
Fred Volkmar, M.D., director of the Yale Child Study Center offers a statement on the recent school shootings and the mental health issues it has raised.

Despite hype, costly prostate cancer treatment offers little relief from side effects
Prostate cancer patients receiving the costly treatment known as proton radiotherapy experienced minimal relief from side effects such as incontinence and erectile dysfunction, compared to patients undergoing a standard radiation treatment called intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT), Yale School of Medicine researchers report in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Yale chemist wins $3.6 million from military for breast cancer research
Yale chemist David A. Spiegel has been awarded $3.6 million from the U.S. Department of Defense for new work expected to push the boundaries of breast cancer research.

Asteroid that killed the dinosaurs also wiped out the ’Obamadon’
The asteroid collision widely thought to have killed the dinosaurs also led to extreme devastation among snake and lizard species, according to new research - including the extinction of a newly identified lizard Yale and Harvard scientists have named Obamadon gracilis .

Yale GHLI partnership continues for training of Chinese psychiatrists

Kelly Brownell named the James Rowland Angell Professor
Kelly Brownell, recently appointed the James Rowland Angell Professor of Psychology, is a renowned expert on the causes and prevention of obesity and other nutrition problems.

Aaron Dollar appointed the John J. Lee Assistant Professor

Dr. Jordan Pober named the inaugural Bayer Professor of Translational Medicine
Jordan Pober, recently appointed as the inaugural Bayer Professor of Translational Medicine, conducts research aimed at understanding the functions of vascular endothelial cells in inflammatory and i

Engineers get $2.6 million for power generation project
The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded two Yale engineering researchers more than $2.6 million to develop a low-cost power generation system that relies on waste heat for fuel.

Micro fuel cells made of glass -- power for your iPad?
Engineers at Yale University have developed a new breed of micro fuel cell that could serve as a long-lasting, low-cost, and eco-friendly power source for portable electronic devices, such as tablet computers, smart phones, and remote sensors. The researchers describe their novel device in a paper published online in the journal Small.

Book: Transforming Ethnographic Knowledge
YaleNews features works recently or soon to be published by members of the University community. Descriptions are based on material provided by the publishers.

Seven Yale researchers named to leading scientific society
Four Yale faculty members have been named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) for their distinguished efforts to advance science.

Research in the News: Yale researcher says whooping cough vaccines effective, despite outbreaks
Despite recent outbreaks of pertussis (whooping cough) - a highly contagious bacterial disease that is preventable by the current pertussis vaccines - Yale researcher Eugene Shapiro maintains in an editorial that the vaccines are effective and should still be administered. Shapiro said that although acellular vaccines may be suboptimal, they are still quite effective and should be focused on pregnant women, infants, and caregivers.

Yale leaders in HIV/AIDS research to discuss state of pandemic