A new type of drug could alleviate pain in a similar way to cannabis(marijuana) without affecting the brain, according to a new study published in the journal Pain on Monday 15 September.

The research demonstrates for the first time that cannabinoid receptors called CB2, which can be activated by cannabis use, are present in human sensory nerves in the peripheral nervous system, but are not present in a normal human brain.

Drugs which activate the CB2 receptors are able to block pain by stopping pain signals being transmitted in human sensory nerves, according to the study, led by researchers from Imperial College London.

EDMONTON, Canada, September 12 /PRNewswire/ -- MatrikonOPC(TM), the world's leading OPC connectivity provider, will be hosting the only European OPC User Group on October 22, 2008 in Barcelona Spain. The MatrikonOPC User Group will teach attendees how to optimize, implement and integrate OPC Solutions that will automate their process control systems and instantly improve productivity and communications for their company. Not only will attendees learn about how OPC can optimize and secure their current system infrastructure, but they will also have the unique opportunity to explore the future of OPC technology in the new OPC Unified Architecture specification presented by an industry expert from the OPC Foundation.

Adults like to watch Chris Angel or David Blaine because we know the stunts are controlled, but there is always the chance they might off themselves. We get some fun out of figuring out the impossible and it's more challenging than figuring out how to cheat at Wii Fit.

Impossible tricks have a different effect on kids: a new experiment announced today at the BA Festival of Science in Liverpool says learning magical feats can boost children’s confidence and social skills.

The study, conducted by Rebecca Godfrey, Dr Sarah Woods, and Professor Richard Wiseman from the University of Hertfordshire, involved assessing the effect of teaching secondary school children some seemingly impossible illusions, including how to magically restore a rope that has been cut in half, and read another person’s mind.

Here's something you probably know. When asked, people say they would choose “good” snack rather than a “bad” one, and they probably mean it, but when the goodies arrive, they may just go ahead and get the bad one.

In an article in the September/October 2008 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, Dutch researchers found that there is a substantial inconsistency between healthful snack choice intentions and actual behavior.

Witness the Waffles of Doom.

When an electrical current passes through a wire it emanates heat – that's where we get toasters and the light bulbs Al Gore hates - but some materials violate this rule at low temperatures and carry current without any heat loss.

That's where we get superconductor research.

Andrea Bianchi, a professor in the Department of Physics at the Université de Montréal, and his colleagues say that, contrary to previous belief, superconductivity can induce magnetism, which has raised a new quantum conundrum.

Some human populations may rely on biological factors in addition to social factors when selecting a mate, according to a recent study in PLoS Genetics. Scientists in China, France, and the United Kingdom report genomic data showing that immunity traits may be involved in mate choice in some human populations.

In several species it has been shown that the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC), a large genomic region involved in immune response, influences mating selections and that this may be mediated by preferences based on body odor. Some previous studies have reported a tendency for humans to prefer MHC-dissimilar mates, encouraging heterozygosity at MHC loci in offspring and resulting in improved immune response.

However, other studies, both directly in couples and also indirectly in "sweaty T-shirts" experiments, have reported conflicting results.

MADRID, Spain, September 11 /PRNewswire/ --

- The offer represents a premium over 32% to all CTC's shareholders in both Series.

Telefonica has announced that it is going to launch during the next 5 business days a tender offer, through its wholly-owned subsidiary "Inversiones Telefonica Internacional Holding Ltda.", to acquire all outstanding shares of Compania de Telecomunicaciones de Chile S.A. ("CTC") that Telefonica S.A does not already own and that amount for 55.1% of the total outstanding shares.

When the world's land was congealed in one supercontinent 240 million years ago, Antarctica wasn't the forbiddingly icy place it is now. But paleontologists have found a previously unknown amphibious predator species that probably still made it less than hospitable.

The species, named Kryostega collinsoni, is a temnospondyl, a prehistoric amphibian distantly related to modern salamanders and frogs. K. collinsoni resembled a modern crocodile, and probably was about 15 feet in length with a long and wide skull even flatter than a crocodile's.

The term "Kryostega" translates to 'frozen' and 'roof,' which refer to the top of the skull. The scientists named the species for James Collinson, a professor emeritus of Earth sciences at Ohio State University who made important contributions to the study of Antarctic geology.

ATLANTA, September 11 /PRNewswire/ --

- Unique hemostatic powder is available in ready-to-use applicator

CryoLife, Inc. (NYSE: CRY), a biomaterials, medical device and tissue processing company, announced today that it has begun distribution in France, through Laboratoire Gamida, of Hemostase MPH for use in general, cardiac and vascular surgery.

CryoLife began distributing Hemostase MPH in the U.S., the United Kingdom and Germany in the second quarter of 2008. Distribution in other markets outside the U.S. is planned for later in 2008 and in 2009.

CHICAGO, September 11 /PRNewswire/ --

Novarra, the Internet Mobility(TM) company, today announced an extension to their partnership with Yahoo! to provide its Vision(TM) web solution for Yahoo! oneSearch. Novarra serves millions of transformed pages every day, enabling access to the best of PC Internet content on mobile. As part of the agreement, the companies deployed Novarra's Vision v7.3 platform that includes customized mobile content handling capabilities.

When consumers click on a Web link from Yahoo!'s oneSearch results, Novarra's Vision platform transforms the PC content for a fast and optimal mobile experience. Complex Web sites around the globe are automatically optimized for thousands of unique mobile devices.