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- NASA launches telescope to gather data on solar nanoflares
NASA scientists launched a small telescope into space in a six-minute mission to gather data that could help examine the nature of solar nanoflares. The telescope, which is equipped with the Focusing Optics X-ray Solar Imager that will be used to look at small changes in the weather of the sun, will focus on the sun's active region with big solar flares before studying smaller flares, NASA said. Scientists expect the mission to help them understand the composition of nanoflares and their relation to bigger solar flares. Space.com
(11/16)
    
| Science in the News
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- Firm eyes Ala. bay to test NASA-developed algae technology
Nevada-based Algae Systems is looking at Alabama's Mobile Bay as a potential pilot-testing area for a process that uses algae to produce biofuels while treating wastewater. Developed at NASA's Ames Research Center, the "algae photo-bioreactor" process requires growing algae in floating, wastewater-filled containers. The system uses wave action and sunlight to "keep the algae solution stirred up," yielding clean water and an "algae solution that they can convert into a jet fuel," said Rob McElroy, general manager of Daphne Utilities in Daphne, Ala. AL.com (Alabama)/Live blog
(11/16)
- GPS technology monitors world's biggest land crabs
Scientists used GPS technology to analyze the behavior of 55 robber crabs on Christmas Island, south of Indonesia. Their research, published in the journal PLoS ONE, revealed that the crabs commonly live within a small home area such as between tree roots or in crevices. Our Amazing Planet
(11/16)
- Researchers find gene variants linked to sleep habits, time of death
Researchers at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center reported in the journal Annals of Neurology that they have identified a common gene variant that regulates the body's circadian clock. "The internal 'biological clock' regulates many aspects of human biology and behavior, such as preferred sleep times, times of peak cognitive performance, and the timing of many physiological processes," said lead author Andrew Lim. Researchers found that people with the A-A variation wake up about an hour earlier than those with the G-G variation, who wake up latest in the morning and die latest in the day. American City Business Journals/Boston/The Bottom Line blog
(11/16)
- Paper test helps detect drug-induced liver damage
Researchers developed a paper-based testing device to detect high levels of chemical markers in the blood that indicate drug-induced serious liver damage. The device's total accuracy was 90% compared with the gold benchmark of 100%. "It is designed to be used in a rural clinic to support our mission in the developing world," said Jason Rolland, senior director of research at Diagnostics For All, which developed the easy-to-use, portable and cost-effective technology. SciDev.net
(11/16)
- Study: Arginine, proline show potential in treating diabetic ulcer
A study in the American Journal of Physiology -- Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology showed that rats on a high-protein diet showed better nitrogen balance than those on a standard diet, while rats on a high-protein diet plus arginine and proline supplements grew more blood vessels at day five. The findings suggest that arginine and proline amino acid supplementation may help bolster wound healing in diabetes-related ulcers, researchers said. Examiner.com
(11/16)
| Funding Watch
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- Global Fund makes drug subsidy plan part of its funding programs
Board members of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria decided to make its subsidy plan, the Affordable Medicines Facility-malaria, one of its regular funding initiatives. The subsidy plan was launched to prevent the resistance to artemisinin-based combination therapies, which are expensive and hard to find in pharmacies. Some groups criticize the decision, including the Institute of Medicine, since governments must now decide whether to provide funds for medicines offered through the public sector or subsidize private sector malaria drugs. ScienceMag.org/Science Insider blog
(11/16)
- NIH will hold grants for non-compliance with public access rule
The National Institutes of Health announced that it will not release the next installment of grants for researchers who failed to submit copies of their accepted papers to the PubMed Central archive. "We've helped you understand your obligations and provided reminders when we found papers that were out of compliance. Thus, as of spring 2013 at the earliest, we will begin to hold processing of non-competing continuation awards if publications arising from grant awards are not in compliance with the public access policy," wrote Sally Rockey, NIH's extramural research chief, in her blog. ScienceMag.org/Science Insider blog
(11/16)
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