There appears to be an upper limit to how big the universe’s most massive black holes can get, according to new research led by Yale University astrophysicist Priyamvada Natarajan and Ezequiel Treister, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Hawaii.

The University of Southampton is launching the world's largest-ever study of near-death experiences this week.

The AWARE (AWAreness during REsuscitation) study is to be launched by the Human Consciousness Project of the University of Southampton - an international collaboration of scientists and physicians who have joined forces to study the human brain, consciousness and clinical death.

The study is led by Dr Sam Parnia, an expert in the field of consciousness during clinical death, together with Dr Peter Fenwick and Professors Stephen Holgate and Robert Peveler of the University of Southampton. Following a successful 18-month pilot phase at selected hospitals in the UK, the study is now being expanded to include other centres within the UK, mainland Europe and North America.

Yeast, the essential microorganism for fermentation in the brewing of beer, converts carbohydrates into alcohol and other products that influence appearance, aroma, and taste. In a study published online today in Genome Research, researchers have identified the genomic origins of the lager yeast Saccharomyces pastorianus, which could help brewers to better control the brewing process.

For thousands of years, ale-type beers have been brewed with Saccharomyces cerevisiae (brewer's or baker's yeast). In contrast, lager beer, which utilizes fermentations carried out at much lower temperature than for ale, is a more recently developed alcoholic beverage, appearing in Bavaria near the end of the Middle Ages.

Arthroscopic surgery is widely accepted as an effective treatment for osteoarthritis of the knee. It's a minimally invasive surgical procedure involving insertion of an arthroscope and other instruments into the joint through small incisions in order to remove cartilage fragments and smooth the joint surfaces. Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis affecting one in ten Canadians and 27 million Americans.

A landmark study conducted in London, Canada at The University of Western Ontario and Lawson Health Research Institute shows that a routinely practiced knee surgery is ineffective at reducing joint pain or improving joint function for sufferers of osteoarthritis. The study appears in the September 11th New England Journal of Medicine.

SAO PAULO, Brazil, September 11 /PRNewswire/ --

- Agreement signed with OnAir will make the company the first in the Americas to offer this technology

TAM Linhas Aereas (Bovespa: TAMM4 and NYSE: TAM) will be the first airline in the Americas to offer onboard mobile phone service on its Airbus A320s, to be provided by OnAir -- a joint venture of Airbus and Sita, an organization that develops cutting edge technology for aviation. A trail-blazing partnership signed with the company will enable TAM passengers to use their cell phones and smartphones in flight -- for voice, SMS messaging or emails -- on South American routes.

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RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, North Carolina, September 10 /PRNewswire/ --

- New building in Singapore is home of region's largest clinical development organization

Quintiles Transnational Corp. announced today that it will expand its Singapore operations to meet the surging demand for its business in the Asia-Pacific region. The new regional headquarters will be double the size of its existing presence in Singapore and will be the home of the region's largest clinical development organization. Quintiles' Asia-Pacific growth also has led to expansion of seven local offices in the region and the addition of a new location in Indonesia.

Burst Alert! March 19th was an exciting day for NASA. We know “why” it was special, but we don’t know “why why” it was special. They finally explain the why why today, and you can read all about it in Nature tomorrow. There was something amazing about GRB 080319B and the other cosmic bursts that NASA’s Swift satellite detected that day. (See NASA's animation of what they think happened). "Even by the standards of gamma-ray bursts, this burst was a whopper," says Swift lead scientist Neil Gehrels of NASA. "It blows away every gamma ray burst we’ve seen so far." Here’s the why (we'll get to the why why in a second):

ANTONY, France, September 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Stallergenes S.A. officially inaugurates its new pharmaceutical production unit, located in the Paris area.

Designed to comply with the most stringent EMEA (European Medicines Agency) and FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) standards, this unit will produce desensitisation treatments for all markets, primarily in Europe and North America.

This investment worth more than 20 million euros will incorporate the production of the active substance for the Oralair(R) Grasses tablet and increase the production capacity for Staloral(R), to meet the needs of an expanding international marketplace.

LOS GATOS, California, September 10 /PRNewswire/ --

- FioranoMQ rated best JMS server for performance and stability

Fiorano Software, (www.fiorano.com) a leading provider of business process integration and messaging infrastructure technology announced today that Vodafone, the world's leading mobile telecommunications company chose FioranoMQ for a mission-critical system delivering over 2500 messages/sec to guarantee continued expansion into the mobile market.

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NEW YORK, September 10 /PRNewswire/ -- What: GoldenSource Corporation, a leading provider of enterprise data management (EDM) solutions, is participating in roundtable sessions and a panel discussion at FIMA Asia 2008. Hugh Stewart, vice president, EMEA and Asia, will contribute to a panel discussing the link between quality of reference data and its use as a business enabler. Stewart will also lead interactive roundtables at the conference on critical data management issues impacting financial services companies operating in Asia and how these can be tackled with the adoption of EDM strategies.

Where: FIMA Asia 2008, Orchard Hotel, Singapore

When: FIMA Asia 2008: September 16-17, 2008