Yearly Archives: 2007

Number Of Published Science And Engineering Articles Flattens, But US Influence Remains Strong:

A new National Science Foundation (NSF) report finds the number of U.S. science and engineering (S&E) articles in major peer-reviewed journals flattened in the 1990s, after more than two decades of growth, but U.S. influence in world science and technology remains strong.

Art And Music For The Birds:

Nature is a valued source of inspiration for artists. But what have artists offered the natural world? Would a bird even like rock and roll? Conceptual sculptor Elizabeth Demaray, an assistant professor of fine arts at Rutgers University–Camden, is testing the musical tastes of our fine feathered friends with an exhibition featuring four 10-foot red perches offering what are considered to be the best in classical, rock, country, and jazz for local birds.

Genetic Diversity In Honeybee Colonies Boosts Productivity:

Why do queen honeybees mate with dozens of males? Does their extreme promiscuity, perhaps, serve a purpose? An answer to this age-old mystery is proposed in the July 20 issue of Science magazine by Cornell scientists: Promiscuous queens, they suggest, produce genetically diverse colonies that are far more productive and hardy than genetically uniform colonies produced by monogamous queens.

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Student Results Show Benefits Of Math And Science Partnerships:

Students’ performance on annual math and science assessments improved in almost every age group when their schools were involved in a program that partners K-12 teachers with their colleagues in higher education.

The End Of Barroom Brawls: Study Shows Alcohol Can Reduce Aggression:

The link between alcohol and aggression is well known. What’s not so clear is just why drunks get belligerent. What is it about the brain-on-alcohol that makes fighting seem like a good idea? And do all intoxicated people get more aggressive? Or does it depend on the circumstances?

Great Expectations: Why The Placebo Effect Varies From Person To Person:

Why do some people experience a “placebo effect” that makes them feel better when they receive a sham treatment they believe to be real — while other people don’t respond at all to the same thing, or even feel worse?

Erectile Dysfunction: Group Psychotherapy Can Help:

Taking part in group psychotherapy can help men who have erectile dysfunction to over come their problem, and adding sildenafil to group therapy was more effective that sildenafil alone. In addition, group psychotherapy was more effective than taking sildenafil on its own, a Cochrane Systematic Review has found.

Does Harry Potter Parody Government Response To Terror?:

Could Harry Potter be guarding the secrets of the British government’s post 9/11 response to the terrorist threat” Judith Rauhofer of the University of Central Lancashire seems to think so. Rauhofer has made a study of JK Rowling’s fictional child wizard and suggests, in a research paper published today in Inderscience’s International Journal of Liability and Scientific Enquiry, that the author draws several subtle parallels with contemporary society. She believes this is part of the adult appeal of the books.

Evidence Found For Novel Brain Cell Communication:

An article published July 16, 2007, in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, provides strong evidence for a novel type of communication between nerve cells in the brain. The findings may have relevance for the prevention and treatment of epilepsy, and possibly in the exploration of other aspects of brain functions, from creative thought processes to mental illnesses such as schizophrenia.

Rat Study Describes Brain Region Connected To Declarative Memory:

Research with experimental rats carried out by the Institute of Neuroscience of the UAB describes the brain region connected to how our declarative memory functions. According to this experiment, part of the prefrontal cortex plays a key role in the social transmission of food preference. Results from the research could be useful to find new treatment for diseases that affect the memory, such as Alzheimer’s disease.

Synthetic Adhesive Mimics Sticking Powers Of Gecko And Mussel:

Geckos are remarkable in their ability to scurry up vertical surfaces and even move along upside down. Their feet stick but only temporarily, coming off of surfaces again and again like a sticky note. But put those feet underwater, and their ability to stick is dramatically reduced.

Monkeys Don’t Go For Easy Pickings: Study Shows Primates Consider More Than Distance When Searching For Food:

Animals’ natural foraging decisions give an insight into their cognitive abilities, and primates do not automatically choose the easy option. Instead, they appear to decide where to feed based on the quality of the resources available and the effect on their social group, rather than simply selecting the nearest food available.

Foxes Get Frisky In The Far North: First Genetic Evidence Of Polyandry With Multiple Paternity Found:

Bees do it, chimps do it… Now it seems Arctic foxes do it, too. New research looking at the DNA fingerprints of canids in the Far North has revealed that foxes once thought to be monogamous are in fact quite frisky.

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