Smithsonian scientist challenges results of recent study
Late last year, Frédéric Achard and colleagues published a controversial article in which they contended that earlier estimates of worldwide tropical deforestation and atmospheric carbon emissions were too high. In the February 14 issue of Science, Philip Fearnside from the National Institute for Amazonian Research in Brazil, and William Laurance from the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama argue that the Achard st
A revolutionary new car, which averages more than 200 miles per gallon in the city, is being developed at the University of Southampton.
Postgraduate research student Dennis Doerffel has turned a hatchback into a hybrid electric car. It uses the latest lithium ion batteries linked to a small petrol engine, which cuts in automatically if more power or range is required.
He said: “More than 90 per cent of all car journeys are less than 50 miles long. That is the range of the battery and it
Answer one of natural history’s most intractable questions
All of Madagascars living Carnivora (an order of mammals that includes dogs, cats, bears, hyenas and their relatives) descended from a single species that dispersed from Africa to Madagascar, apparently floating across the ocean barrier aboard wayward vegetation about 24 million to 18 million years ago. Previously, scientists believed that Madagascars seven living species of native Carnivora represented two to four
Green fluorescence allows isolating the beta cells for study of their behavior and number in the pancreas
Diabetes mellitus (DM) affects at least 16 million Americans, ranks seventh as a cause of death in the United States, and costs the national economy over $100 billion yearly. About 95 percent of persons with DM have type 2.
Type 2 DM is characterized by insulin resistance in peripheral tissues as well as a defect in insulin secretion by beta cells. Insulin regulates ca
New findings may offer roadmap to predicting how the body will respond to a deadly habit
First- or second-hand exposure to cigarettes can lead to a variety of diseases, including tissue destruction found in pulmonary emphysema and osteoporosis. Also included among cigarette smoking-induced diseases are disorders in which an excessive deposition of fibrotic scar occurs, such as with atherosclerosis and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
Collagen is the major protein of the white f
The number of circulating endothelial progenitor cells in an individuals blood –– the precursor cells to those that line the insides of blood vessels –– may be an indicator of overall cardiovascular health, according to research by scientists at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) and Emory University School of Medicine. The research was published in the Feb. 13 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
The endothelial cells lining the blood vessels provide essen