- May 29, 2013
- 08:25 AM
- 44 views
Gas, Knuckles, And The Little Blue Pill
by Mark Lasbury in As Many Exceptions As Rules
Recent studies have shed a little more light on the state of gas in your body. Besides the obvious, gas bubbles play a role in cracking your knuckles and in decompression sickness after scuba diving. A 2013 study indicates that drugs that regulate nitric oxide generation for vasodilation have a tendency to increase the chances of decompression sickness. This means you might want to skip the Viagra if you plan on diving. In terms of joint manipulation, a study shows that despite the annoying soun........ Read more »
Blatteau, J., Brubakk, A., Gempp, E., Castagna, O., Risso, J., & Vallée, N. (2013) Sidenafil Pre-Treatment Promotes Decompression Sickness in Rats. PLoS ONE, 8(4). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0060639
deWeber, K., Olszewski, M., & Ortolano, R. (2011) Knuckle Cracking and Hand Osteoarthritis. The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine, 24(2), 169-174. DOI: 10.3122/jabfm.2011.02.100156
- May 29, 2013
- 08:13 AM
- 50 views
Angelina Jolie doesn't trust medical imaging
by Know Your Images in Know Your Images
Angelina Jolie shocked us all with her decision to remove both her breasts in order to prevent breast cancer. Her breast cancer risk was calculated based on genetics and was 87%. Now it is 5%. I have to agree that this woman is brave! However, I think a very intense screening could have been done with very good results. There are several methods to detect breast cancer: (digital) mammography, tomosynthesis, breast MRI, ultrasound, positron emission tomography and even microwave imaging. Some wit........ Read more »
Warner, E. (2004) Surveillance of BRCA1 and BRCA2 Mutation Carriers With Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Ultrasound, Mammography, and Clinical Breast Examination. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 292(11), 1317-1325. DOI: 10.1001/jama.292.11.1317
Kriege M, Brekelmans CT, Boetes C, Besnard PE, Zonderland HM, Obdeijn IM, Manoliu RA, Kok T, Peterse H, Tilanus-Linthorst MM.... (2004) Efficacy of MRI and mammography for breast-cancer screening in women with a familial or genetic predisposition. The New England journal of medicine, 351(5), 427-37. PMID: 15282350
- May 29, 2013
- 07:38 AM
- 49 views
Plants Frozen Under a Glacier for 400 Years Can Come Back to Life
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
From 1550 to 1580, the period of cooling known as the Little Ice Age hit Ellesmere Island, in extreme northern Nunavut, Canada. As temperatures plunged, most of the island was swallowed by the advance of glaciers. The vegetation that had blanketed the terrain—mostly mosses and lichens—was buried under dozens of feet of ice.... Read more »
Joseph Stromberg. (2013) Plants Frozen Under a Glacier for 400 Years Can Come Back to Life. Smithsonian Magazine. info:/
- May 29, 2013
- 07:09 AM
- 35 views
Stress Depends on How Many Roles We Play
by Katja Keuchenius in United Academics
Sociology Professor Benjamin Cornwell of the American Cornell University analyzed time-diary data of 7.662 respondents from the 2010 American Time Use Survey and found that ‘switching dynamics’ is disproportionately stressful for women... Read more »
Cornwell, B. (2013) Switching Dynamics and the Stress Process. Social Psychology Quarterly, 76(2), 99-124. DOI: 10.1177/0190272513482133
- May 29, 2013
- 04:46 AM
- 34 views
the social organism
by Ignacio Gallo in populations, function and meaning
The Social Organism is a 20-page essay published by Herbert Spencer in 1860. Nowadays Spencer is mainly known for having invented the phrase "survival of the fittest" to describe Charles Darwin's process of Natural Selection, and in particular for applying this concept to social phenomena in his Principles of Sociology. For this reason Spencer is usually [...]... Read more »
Andreski, S., & Spencer, H. (1971) The Man Versus the State, with Four Essays on Politics and Society. Man, 6(2), 313. DOI: 10.2307/2798298
H., F. (1903) Mutual Aid, a Factor of Evolution. Nature, 67(1731), 196-197. DOI: 10.1038/067196a0
- May 29, 2013
- 04:28 AM
- 65 views
Where Does Identity Come From?
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
A fascinating new neuroscience experiment probes an ancient philosophical question—and hints that you might want to get out more... Read more »
Jason Castro. (2013) Where Does Identity Come From?. Scientific American. info:/
- May 29, 2013
- 03:57 AM
- 45 views
Impulsivity and uric acid
by Paul Whiteley in Questioning Answers
A few years back I posted about an interesting body of research on purine metabolism in relation to the autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) and how some work from the likes of Mary Coleman and Ted Page had reported high levels of uric acid to be coincidentally present in cases of ASD.The gout @ Wikipedia As with other research angles, the initial interest in this finding of hyperuricosuria - elevated urinary uric acid - and autism did not seem to last. Just like the dusty research d........ Read more »
Sutin AR, Cutler RG, Camandola S, Uda M, Feldman NH, Cucca F, Zonderman AB, Mattson MP, Ferrucci L, Schlessinger D.... (2013) Impulsivity is Associated with Uric Acid: Evidence from Humans and Mice. Biological psychiatry. PMID: 23582268
- May 29, 2013
- 03:47 AM
- 43 views
Should you help a person with OCD do their checks?
by Christian Jarrett in BPS Research Digest
Imagine you and your partner are about to enjoy a meal together. They have obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and get incredibly anxious until they've completed a time-consuming sequence of checks and rituals involving their cutlery. Do you offer to help with the checks in the hope of assuaging their anxiety?
The process of helping an OCD patient in this way is called "accommodation" and though it may be motivated by compassion and empathy, the authors of a new paper say that it can be a bar........ Read more »
Boeding, S., Paprocki, C., Baucom, D., Abramowitz, J., Wheaton, M., Fabricant, L., & Fischer, M. (2013) Let me check that for you: Symptom accommodation in romantic partners of adults with Obsessive–Compulsive Disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 51(6), 316-322. DOI: 10.1016/j.brat.2013.03.002
- May 29, 2013
- 02:54 AM
- 14 views
Future dads of the world relax! Stressing now could affect the health of your future kids
by Caitlin Kirkwood in The Synaptic Scoop
Parents pass on a unique genetic makeup to their children. Little Johnny is a blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy with a one-of-a-kind thumbprint all because it is encoded in the DNA provided by his parents. But did you know that the quality of the DNA you pass on to your children can be impacted by stressful events in your life such as disease, malnutrition, and old age, ultimately influencing the way your children’s bodies respond to stress? That is what a new study looking at the impact of pa........ Read more »
Rodgers AB, Morgan CP, Bronson SL, Revello S, & Bale TL. (2013) Paternal Stress Exposure Alters Sperm MicroRNA Content and Reprograms Offspring HPA Stress Axis Regulation. The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 33(21), 9003-12. PMID: 23699511
- May 29, 2013
- 02:21 AM
- 23 views
Cryptosporidium, the understudied killer
by Kasra Hassani in The Parasite Diary
Diarrhea is the second major killer of children under the age of 5 in developing countries (second to pneumonia). We know much less than we should about the causative agents, severity, burden etc. of diarrhea in developing countries. Funded by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, A Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS) picked up the task […]... Read more »
Kotloff, K., Nataro, J., Blackwelder, W., Nasrin, D., Farag, T., Panchalingam, S., Wu, Y., Sow, S., Sur, D., Breiman, R.... (2013) Burden and aetiology of diarrhoeal disease in infants and young children in developing countries (the Global Enteric Multicenter Study, GEMS): a prospective, case-control study. The Lancet. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(13)60844-2
Elliott, D., & Clark, D. (2000) Cryptosporidium parvum Induces Host Cell Actin Accumulation at the Host-Parasite Interface. Infection and Immunity, 68(4), 2315-2322. DOI: 10.1128/IAI.68.4.2315-2322.2000
- May 29, 2013
- 01:40 AM
- 40 views
JUST PUBLISHED: Treating Anxiety by Modifying Negative Cognitive Biases
by Mark Rubin in The University of Newcastle's School of Psychology Newsline
Dr Sirous Mobini and colleagues have recently published a integrative review of the literature investigating the treatment of anxiety using cognitive bias modification.
Cognitive theories of social anxiety indicate that negative biases in thinking play a key role in causing and maintaining social anxiety. On the basis of these cognitive theories, research has shown that individuals with social anxiety interpret ambiguous social situations in a negative (or less passive) manner.
Cognitive Bi........ Read more »
Mobini, S., Reynolds, S., & Mackintosh, B. (2012) Clinical Implications of Cognitive Bias Modification for Interpretative Biases in Social Anxiety: An Integrative Literature Review. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 37(1), 173-182. DOI: 10.1007/s10608-012-9445-8
- May 29, 2013
- 12:05 AM
- 28 views
ACL Question Remains: Allo- or Auto-?
by Nicole Cattano in Sports Medicine Research (SMR): In the Lab & In the Field
Take Home Message: There is still no clear answer as to whether to use an autograft or allograft bone-patellar tendon-bone ACL reconstruction.
Patients and clinicians often need to consider what surgical options they prefer when undergoing anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction. Many physicians and researchers have investigated the benefits of either an auto- or allo- bone-patellar tendon-bone graft, however, conclusive evidence as to which is the best option has yet to be determine........ Read more »
Kraeutler, M., Bravman, J., & McCarty, E. (2013) Bone-Patellar Tendon-Bone Autograft Versus Allograft in Outcomes of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction: A Meta-analysis of 5182 Patients. The American Journal of Sports Medicine. DOI: 10.1177/0363546513484127
- May 28, 2013
- 11:36 PM
- 21 views
The [Lawyer’s] Billable Hour – Part 2: The Nuanced and [Un]savory Relationship Between Time, Money, and Happiness
by Dan DeFoe in Psycholawlogy
People who bill their time in the form of an hourly wage, i.e. “billable hour”, develop a “money mindset”. Instead of focusing on time, which activates a more emotional mindset, the money mindset focuses on the goal of maximizing the economic value of time. Persons with mindsets oriented toward time, compared to the economic [...]The post The [Lawyer’s] Billable Hour – Part 2: The Nuanced and [Un]savory Relationship Between Time, Money, and Happiness appeared first on Psy........ Read more »
DeVoe, S., & House, J. (2012) Time, money, and happiness: How does putting a price on time affect our ability to smell the roses?. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48(2), 466-474. DOI: 10.1016/j.jesp.2011.11.012
- May 28, 2013
- 09:44 PM
- 42 views
Interpreting Anti-Obesity Campaigns with a History of Disordered Eating
by Andrea in Science of Eating Disorders
Advertisements bemoaning the evils of obesity, begging us to eat healthier and to exercise, surround us every day. Big corporations and governments alike have jumped on the anti-obesity bandwagon, crafting public service announcements aimed at correcting what is being framed as an epidemic. For many, these messages are likely generic reminders to strive for health, if they are noticed at all. But what about individuals with eating disorders? A recent (2012) study by Catling & Malson (f........ Read more »
Catling, L, & Malson, H. (2012) Feeding a fear of fatness? A preliminary investigation of how women with a history of eating disorders view anti-obesity health promotion campaigns. Psychology of Women Section Review, 14(1). info:/
- May 28, 2013
- 07:00 PM
- 51 views
Flipping the Baby Switch
by Rebecca Schwarzlose in Garden of the Mind
Rewind to last night. It was bedtime. My infant daughter was screaming and struggling in my lap while I tried to rock her to sleep. She pulled and twisted the skin on my face. She sunk her tiny teeth into my shoulder and chest. Exasperated, I rose from the rocker and started pacing around the nursery. Her tense little body instantly relaxed. Within ten seconds she was quiet and still. Within two minutes she was asleep.... Read more »
Esposito G, Yoshida S, Ohnishi R, Tsuneoka Y, Rostagno Mdel C, Yokota S, Okabe S, Kamiya K, Hoshino M, Shimizu M.... (2013) Infant Calming Responses during Maternal Carrying in Humans and Mice. Current biology : CB, 23(9), 739-45. PMID: 23602481
- May 28, 2013
- 04:31 PM
- 50 views
Shape-shifting Nanoparticles Flip from Sphere to Net in Response to Tumor Signal
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
Scientists at the University of California, San Diego, have designed tiny spherical particles to float easily through the bloodstream after injection, then assemble into a durable scaffold within diseased tissue. An enzyme produced by a specific type of tumor can trigger the transformation of the spheres into netlike structures that accumulate at the site of a cancer, the team reports in the journal Advanced Materials this week.... Read more »
Susan Brown. (2013) Shape-shifting Nanoparticles Flip from Sphere to Net in Response to Tumor Signal. UC San Diego News Center. info:/
- May 28, 2013
- 03:38 PM
- 31 views
Staying Sticky, a Frog's Journey
by Melissa Chernick in Science Storiented
Climbing is good. It allows for gaining access to habitats that would otherwise be unavailable. And while this access is important (otherwise, why climb in the first place?), equally important is not falling to a gruesome death. This means that your method of adhesion to the surface you are climbing needs to be effective. For example, on rough surfaces, friction pads and claws work rather well. Smooth surfaces and overhangs offer a bit more of a challenge. If you want to climb one of these surfa........ Read more »
Crawford, N., Endlein, T., & Barnes, W. (2012) Self-cleaning in tree frog toe pads; a mechanism for recovering from contamination without the need for grooming. Journal of Experimental Biology, 215(22), 3965-3972. DOI: 10.1242/jeb.073809
- May 28, 2013
- 03:14 PM
- 57 views
Exploring the universal glue
by Perikis Livas in Tracing Knowledge
Our visible universe is built mostly of glue, which generates roughly 98 percent of visible mass. Now, an experiment is gearing up to study novel manifestations of that glue.... Read more »
Kandice Carter. (2013) Exploring the universal glue. Symmetry Magazine. info:/
- May 28, 2013
- 02:35 PM
- 49 views
Preventing ‘Traffic Jams’ in Brain Cells
by Jason Carr in Wired Cosmos
Imagine if you could open up your brain and look inside. What you would see is a network of nerve cells called neurons, each with its own internal highway system for transporting essential materials between different parts of the cell. When this biological machinery is operating smoothly, tiny motor proteins ferry precious cargo up and … Read More →... Read more »
Gunawardena S, Yang G, & Goldstein LS. (2013) Presenilin controls kinesin-1 and dynein function during APP vesicle transport in vivo. Human molecular genetics. PMID: 23710041
- May 28, 2013
- 12:15 PM
- 38 views
New Group of Crystals Will Make LED Light Warmer
by dailyfusion in The Daily Fusion
Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory are studying a new group of crystals to improve materials’ luminescence efficiency. Small crystals that glow different colors may be the missing ingredient for warmer, less clinical LED lighting.... Read more »
Liu, F., Budai, J., Li, X., Tischler, J., Howe, J., Sun, C., Meltzer, R., & Pan, Z. (2013) New Ternary Europium Aluminate Luminescent Nanoribbons for Advanced Photonics. Advanced Functional Materials, 23(16), 1998-2006. DOI: 10.1002/adfm.201202539
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