General Science

In 1998, Charlie Kerfoot discovered a "doughnut" of phytoplankton circulating in Lake Michigan, helping to feed the lake's famous fishery. Just 12 later, the doughnut is disappearing, and Kerfoot fears that the lake's ecosystem will crash, taking with it much of the fish biomass.

A long-term study published in JAMA of women with a genetic predisposition for breast or ovarian cancer showed that those who elected preventive surgeries had a significantly reduced risk of those cancers.The study confirms the view of researcher Dr. Gail Tomlinson at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio that for women with genetic mutations BRCA1 and BRCA2, mastectomies and removal of fallopian tubes and ovaries can be worth it.

Scientists propose that an overlooked type of biological catalyst -- metal-ligand complexes -- could have jump-started metabolism and life itself, deep in hydrothermal ocean vents.

NASA satellites and the International Space Station are keeping eyes on Hurricane Earl as it heads for New England. Watches and Warnings are posted in the US northeast.

NASA satellite data has noticed that Tropical Storm Fiona is getting "longer." That is, the storm is elongating in almost a north-south direction, indicating that she's weakening and may not make it through the weekend. Meanwhile, forecasters are watching two other areas for development in the eastern Atlantic this weekend.

An international collaboration led by a University of Pennsylvania anthropologist has shown that environmental factors, like temperature and light, play as much of a role in the activity of traditionally nocturnal monkeys as the circadian rhythm that regulates periods of sleep and wakefulness.

One of the most severe complications of brain surgery is a pulmonary embolism. But a study in the Journal of Neurosurgery suggests that screening methods used to access the risk of pulmonary embolisms may fall short.

Phosphorus, a mineral element found in rocks and bone, is a critical ingredient in fertilizers, pesticides, detergents and other industrial and household chemicals. Once phosphorus is mined from rocks, getting it into these products is hazardous and expensive, and chemists have been trying to streamline the process for decades.

Theoretical physicists from Rice University have created a new model that helps define the subatomic origins of ferromagnetism -- the everyday "magnetism" of compass needles and refrigerator magnets. The model, which is detailed in a new paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, was created to explore the inner workings of ferromagnetic compounds that are related to high-temperature superconductors.

Afla-Guard, a biological control used to thwart the growth of fungi on peanuts, can be used on corn as well, according to a study by US Department of Agriculture scientists who helped develop it. After extensive study and research trials in Texas, Afla-Guard was registered by the US Environmental Protection Agency for use on corn, beginning with the 2009 crop.

While vultures across Asia teeter on the brink of extinction, the vultures of Cambodia are increasing in number, providing a beacon of hope for these threatened scavengers, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society and other members of the Cambodia Vulture Conservation Project.

Researchers at Queen's University have found that people with Parkinson's disease can perform automated tasks better than people without the disease, but have significant difficulty switching from easy to hard tasks.

Dr. Dariusz Malinowski is seeing blue, and he is very excited. For four years, Malinowski, an AgriLife Research plant physiologist and forage agronomist in Vernon, has been working with collaborators Steve Brown of the Texas Foundation Seed and Dr. William Pinchak and Shane Martin with AgriLife Research on a winter-hardy hibiscus breeding project.

Three NASA aircraft carrying 15 instruments are busy criss-crossing Earl as part of the agency's Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processes mission, or GRIP, which continues through Sept. 30. GRIP is designed to help improve our understanding of how hurricanes such as Earl form and intensify rapidly.

Hurricane Earl lashed the North Carolina coast last night and this morning, September 3, and is now headed for Cape Cod, Massachusetts. This morning's image from the GOES-13 satellite saw Hurricane Earl's clouds covering most of the northeastern US.

Martin McKee, Professor of European Health at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has contributed one of three commentaries appearing today in the journal Health Policy and Planning, each of which take a different perspective on the World Health Report 2000 on health systems.

Only about one in every six Americans who have ever been overweight or obese loses weight and maintains that loss, according to Penn State College of Medicine researchers.

Desmond Lun, an associate professor of computer science at Rutgers University-Camden, is researching how to alter the genetic makeup of E. coli to produce biodiesel fuel derived from fatty acids.

ESA's Envisat satellite has been tracking the progression of the giant iceberg that calved from Greenland's Petermann glacier on August 4, 2010.

The first clinical trials on a new investigational drug being developed to treat infections caused by hepatitis C virus have been successfully completed.Completion of the initial phase (phase 1a) of trials of INX-189, discovered and first prepared by researchers at Cardiff University's Welsh School of Pharmacy in 2008, means the chances of it becoming an approved medicine have significantly improved.