With oil prices skyrocketing, the search is on for efficient and sustainable biofuels. Research published this month in Agronomy Journal examines one biofuel crop idea, the corn stover made up of the leaves and stalks of corn plants that are left in the field after harvesting the edible corn grain. Corn stover could supply as much as 25% of the biofuel crop needed by 2030, according to some estimates.

Scientists with the USDA-ARS Agroecosystem Unit located at the University of Nebraska examined the long-term sustainability of using corn stover as a biofuel crop. They note when corn stover is not harvested as a biofuel crop, it can be left on the fields to restore vital nutrients to the soil. Full-scale harvesting of corn stover may deplete the soil.

Scientists and consumers have known for years that grapefruit juice can increase the absorption of certain drugs — with the potential for turning normal doses into toxic overdoses. Now, the researcher who first identified this interaction is reporting new evidence that grapefruit and other common fruit juices, including orange and apple, can do the opposite effect by substantially decreasing the absorption of other drugs, potentially wiping out their beneficial effects.

The study provides a new reason to avoid drinking grapefruit juice and these other juices when taking certain drugs, including some that are prescribed for fighting life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, cancer, organ-transplant rejection, and infection, the researcher says. These findings — representing the first controlled human studies of this type of drug-lowering interaction — were described today at the 236th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society.

People with epilepsy appear to have a much higher risk of drowning compared to people without epilepsy, according to a study published in the August 19, 2008, issue of Neurology.

Previous studies have shown a higher risk most likely due to seizures but this study is one of the first to show exactly how high the risk may be.

For the study, researchers compiled information from 50 studies of people with epilepsy worldwide that followed the participants for a total of more than 200,000 patient-years. They also looked at population data and national registries to determine how many regular drowning deaths occur. A total of 88 people with epilepsy died by drowning. By comparison, 4.7 deaths by drowning would have been expected if the rates in the general population applied.

Sugar-frosting isn’t just for livening up corn flakes; it can also preserve important therapeutic proteins. Researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a fast, inexpensive and effective method for evaluating the sugars pharmaceutical companies use to stabilize protein-drugs for storage at room temperature, according to their presentation(1) at the 236th American Chemical Society National Meeting and Exposition.

Protein-based drugs such as insulin and vaccines must be stabilized after manufacturing in order to be used safely. For the past 30 years, researchers have been preserving therapeutic proteins by freeze-drying them and coating them with a thin layer of various formulations of glass-like sugars that act to stabilize their molecular structures. This allows them to be safely stored for extended periods of time.

KIRKLAND, Washington, August 19 /PRNewswire/ --

- In Challenging Broadcast Environments, New Product Allows Engineers to 'See' Digital Audio Loudness & Surround Information

Neural Audio Corporation announced today Neural Audio Analytics, an advanced loudness monitoring software solution designed to visually display perceived loudness in real-time for today's difficult broadcast environments. The new product will be on display at the 2008 International Convention (IBC), Amsterdam, September 12-16 at the Harris Corporation Booth, Stand 7.G20, RAI Centre.

A $2500 bottle of Château Latour wine that scored a 98 on the Wine Spectator point scale is not for amateurs. The sobering business of the high end wine trade involves scientists on a variety of different levels. One big problem is that wine—especially superb wine—goes bad. A chemist at U.C. Davis has found a way to tell if a bottle is fit for the Queen of England, or for the Queen of Wishful Thinking.

In the basement of the chemistry building at U.C. Davis, associate professor Matthew Augustine works with a unique nuclear magnetic resonance device of which there are only two in the U.S. Besides being able to do things like locating liquid explosives in sealed containers such as turpentine and nitro glycerin, Augustine has used the NMR to test the quality of wine.

As I was sitting patiently in Long Beach waiting to exit the plane and listening to that weird sawing sound that I hear every time I fly on an Airbus A320, I was wondering two things:

1) Why does it sound like Paul Bunyon is attacking my plane with a drywall saw, and

2) Who is going to be the first person to make some stupid joke, like “Oh no, Paul Bunyon is attacking our plane with a drywall saw!” Would it be the young woman to my right in 20D — we’ll call her “Cathy” — with whom I was fiercely trying not to make eye contact for the duration of the flight, for fear that I would be not only subjected to the inordinate flow of words streaming from her mouth, but also socially obliged to smile and nod at the relevant pauses in her soliloquy?

SOFIA, Bulgaria, August 18 /PRNewswire/ --

Direct Petroleum Exploration Inc. (DPE) has finished the initial phase of the completion of its Deventci R1 gas discovery well in northern Bulgaria. Limited flow testing was undertaken on the high pressure Lower Jurassic Ozirovo zone on Sunday 17-August at the well site some 150 kilometers northeast of the capital, Sofia. Substantial gas and rich condensate flows were observed at the surface though no verifiable measurements were taken due to the limited availability of testing equipment for the high pressures encountered. The 12 hour shut-in tubing pressure was measured at 8,000 psi. The indicated BHP was ~ 11,500 psi.

LONDON, August 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Agents looking to reach the influx of Brits, who are looking towards Australia for a better life, can now market their properties and related services via http://www.propertyindex.com­ - a 'pay for results' property portal, free of commission, monthly subscriptions, set-up fees and minimum term contracts. Despite being less than a year old, PropertyIndex.com has over 150,000 overseas property listings from a client base of 850 agents and developers across 4,000 destinations.

LONDON and PHILADELPHIA, August 18 /PRNewswire/ --

- Quarterly Reports use Market Intelligence and Competitive Analysis from Thomson Reuters to Explore Various Aspects of the Pharmaceutical Pipeline

Thomson Reuters, the world's leading source of intelligent information for businesses and professionals, has announced the availability of the Pharma Matters reports covering the time period January-March 2008. Launched more than two years ago, the quarterly Pharma Matters reports cover all aspects of the pharmaceutical pipeline, leveraging strategic intelligence and competitive analysis from Thomson Pharma(R), Newport Horizon Premium(TM) and the Thomson Messaging Mapping System(SM).