SACRAMENTO, California, April 24 /PRNewswire/ --

- California Air Resources Board votes to recognize sugarcane ethanol's carbon reduction levels

Sugarcane ethanol passed a critical test today as the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved its long-awaited, first-of-its-kind Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS). While the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA) continues to provide evidence that sugarcane ethanol's carbon intensity is even lower than initially calculated by CARB, today's decision means sugarcane ethanol will be in greater demand in California in the years to come.

Parasite infestations might have a good side. Wild mice from a Nottinghamshire forest have given experts at The University of Nottingham clues as to the importance of some parasites, such as lice, for the conditioning of a "natural" immune system.

Jan Bradley, Professor of Parasitology, said: "Our understanding of mammalian immunology is largely based on rodents reared under highly unnatural pathogen and stress-free conditions. Analysing the immune response in wild populations can give crucial insights into how the immune system functions in its natural context."

By way of the classical photoeffect, Einstein proved in 1905 that light also has particle character. However, with extremely high light intensities, remarkable things happen in the process, say scientists of the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) and colleagues at FLASH in Hamburg, the first free-electron laser (FEL) for soft X-rays worldwide.

Every brain has a soundtrack. Its tempo and tone will vary, depending on mood, frame of mind, and other features of the brain itself. When that soundtrack is recorded and played back -- to an emergency responder, or a firefighter -- it may sharpen their reflexes during a crisis, and calm their nerves afterward.

In trying to understand the role of prostaglandins – a family of fatty compounds key to the cardiovascular system – in blood pressure maintenance, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and colleagues discovered that mice that lack the receptor for one type of prostaglandin have lower blood pressure and less atherosclerosis than their non-mutant brethren. 

The results indicate that the normal role for the type of prostaglandin studied, PG F2-alphais to increase blood pressure and accelerate atherosclerosis, at least in rodents, and suggest that targeting this pathway could represent a novel therapeutic approach to cardiovascular disease. 

A preliminary study on the use of stem cells obtained from a patient's own adipose tissue in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) has shown promising results. The three case studies, described in BioMed Central's open access Journal of Translational Medicine support further clinical evaluation of stromal vascular fraction (SVF) cells in MS and other autoimmune conditions.

The calming neurological effects of nicotine have been demonstrated in a group of non-smokers during anger provocation. Researchers writing in Behavioral and Brain Functions suggest that nicotine may alter the activity of brain areas that are involved in the inhibition of negative emotions such as anger.

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, April 24 /PRNewswire/ --

- World Malaria Day Events Held in Nairobi, London, Washington

To honor the theme for World Malaria Day on 4/25, 'Counting Malaria Out,' Vestergaard Frandsen is stepping up production of its best selling bed net, called PermaNet(R), and introducing a new version that is effective against insecticide resistant mosquitoes.

A Brief History of the English Language Part 2

Part 1 of this Brief History of English  describes the suppression of the English language under  the Normans who imposed Norman French as a national language.   As French declined and English revived there were briefly two languages in the one nation.

"Before Chaucer wrote, there were two tongues in England, keeping alive the feuds and resentments of cruel centuries; when he laid down his pen, there was practically but one speech -- there was, and ever since has been, but one people."

D. Laing Purves

HOUSTON, April 23 /PRNewswire/ --

Far East Energy Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: FEEC) announced today that its 2009 Annual Meeting of Stockholders will be held on Wednesday, July 15, 2009, at 10:00 a.m., local time, at the Hilton Houston North, 12400 Greenspoint Drive, Houston, Texas. The Board of Directors have established Wednesday, June 3, 2009, as the record date for determining stockholders of record entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the 2009 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.