Featured Articles

A Study Of Someone You Know

A Study Of Someone You Know

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

My eyes open, and as usual, I don’t feel like getting up. I’m still sleepy, feeling lazy and bored to do anything. But I’ve got to get up, because I have something called work. And work gets my rent paid and gives me food to stay alive.





So, these are serious enough reasons, I think, to go to work, and that means that I’ve got to get out of bed.




Yucky Science

Yucky Science

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

I had occasion last week to tell the story of my high school friend Allen (name changed to protect his by now certainly stellar career). We had met again back in Evanston, before starting our sophomore years in college. I’d just finished a summer job as camp counselor in Wisconsin’s north woods; Allen had worked for Searle laboratories in Skokie.

Wild medicinal plants in Indian Folk Life-A Historical Perspective

Wild medicinal plants in Indian Folk Life-A Historical Perspective

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Wild medicinal plants in Indian Folk Life-A Historical Perspective Plants of over 3500 wild species are used to cure ailments in man and his domesticated animals : Plants in folk medicine of the Himalaya The Himalayan ranges are inhabited by a large tribal population, often with their distinct way of life, traditions, dialects and cultural heritage. The Himalaya have bestowed them with vast, varied and even endemic plants. The tribals have learnt to utilize local herbs for different ailments after centuries of trials, often at the risk of loss of human life. Many tribal beliefs forbid them to unravel the virtues of the plants to outside world. But, it is also true that till recent little concerted effort had been made to document this knowledge by detailed ethnobotanical surveys.
Ayurvedic and Yunani treatises have references to trees and flowers having medicinal value

Ayurvedic and Yunani treatises have references to trees and flowers having medicinal value

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Recently, checklists of Ayurvedic and Yunani treatises have been published (Anonymous, 1963 and Tripathi et al., 1978). A list of some of the important Indian treatises is presented in Table 1. References to the trees and flowers are found profusely in folk song, particularly in songs of worship of plants. Folk songs in praise of Bamboo (Bambusa vulgaris Schard. ex. J.C.Wendl), Basil (Ocimum sanctum Linn.), and Amaltas (Cassia fistula Linn.) are sung, believing these plants are the abode of several Gods and Goddess (Agarwal, 1997).
Research Team Claims First Evolutionary Branching For Bilateral Animals

Research Team Claims First Evolutionary Branching For Bilateral Animals

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Acoelomorpha, a collection of worms which comprises roughly 350 species, is part of a much larger group called bilateral animals, which are organisms that have symmetrical body forms and include humans, insects and worms. Apparently there has been a question about acoelomorpha, namely where do they fit in taxonomically?

Acoelomorpha has been a "rogue animal," says Casey Dunn, an evolutionary biologist at Brown University. "It has been wandering throughout the animal tree of life."

(?!?)
Hormone Therapy Linked To Increased Risk Of Heart Disease In Male Prostate Cancer Patients (Maybe)

Hormone Therapy Linked To Increased Risk Of Heart Disease In Male Prostate Cancer Patients (Maybe)

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Hormone therapy treatmenbt for men with advanced prostate cancer has been associated with an increased chance of developing various heart problems but some choices of therapy are less risky than others.
Emotions A Bad Barometer In Risk Assessment

Emotions A Bad Barometer In Risk Assessment

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Global warming may not be a hot button topic these days because other threats, like  unemployment, terrorist attacks or death panels, are getting the media attention, says University of Colorado at Boulder psychology Professor Leaf Van Boven.

That makes sense.   Media needs to sell media and some hype doesn't hurt.  People tend to view their recent emotions, such as their perceptions of threats or risks, as more intense and important than their previous emotions.   In one part of the study focusing on terrorist threats and using materials adapted from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Van Boven and his research colleagues presented two scenarios to people in a college laboratory depicting warnings about traveling abroad to two countries.
Building Better Roads Using Acoustics

Building Better Roads Using Acoustics

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Highways and roads cost money but it's never a bad idea to save some cost and inconvenience using optimal design and materials which leads to fewer repairs.   Unfortunately there haven't been any great methods for determining how strongly (and safely) roads were built but a scientist in Sweden has developed a method where sound waves can reveal what a road looks like underneath and thereby show whether it is being properly built.

According to the Swedish Road Administration, the method, which is expected to become the new standard, may entail major quality enhancements and cost savings.
The Science Of Education - Is Human Interaction Better Than Videos?

The Science Of Education - Is Human Interaction Better Than Videos?

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

There's no shortage of new theories about how kids help to learn better.   Unfortunately when it comes to kids and education, the only way to measure success is after the fact when it may already be too late.

Recent work is focusing on social learning.  It says that infants and young children learn from imitation and by following the actions of those around them, adopting mannerisms and speech patterns.  A new study sought to compare television/computers and audio versus face-to-face human interaction in learning.
I Guess I Should Mention the Giant Squid

I Guess I Should Mention the Giant Squid

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Yup, they found a giant squid. And this is exactly why I get snarlish about people referring to Humboldt squid as giant squid. If you cry "giant!" every time Humboldts appear, then when you get a real Architeuthis, people will think, "What's the big deal about finding one giant squid in the Gulf of Mexico? There are swarms of them off Washington!"
/rant
Sida cordifolia Linn. Considered useful in sexual debility and spermatorrhoea. Used in drugs for sexual strength.

Sida cordifolia Linn. Considered useful in sexual debility and spermatorrhoea. Used in drugs for sexual strength.

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Scientific Name Sida cordifolia Linn. Family Malvaceae Used Part Seeds Distribution Area Common Uses .Considered useful in sexual debility and spermatorrhoea. Used in drugs for sexual strength. Roots, leaves and seeds are slightly bitter in taste and are used in medicine. The juice of the plant is mixed with the juice of Borassus flabellifer for local use in elephantiasis. The mucilaginous leaves are used as a demulcent and their infusion is given in fever as a refrigerant. They are reported to be used against dysentery and for poulticing ulcers. A decoction of the leaves is said to possess emollient and diuretic properties. In Cambodia and China, root is considered to possess astringent,
Natural drugs obtained from plants and animals are called drugs of biological origin and are produced in the living cells of plants or animals.

Natural drugs obtained from plants and animals are called drugs of biological origin and are produced in the living cells of plants or animals.

Sep 23 2009 | comment(s)

Natural drugs obtained from plants and animals are called drugs of biological origin and are produced in the living cells of plants or animals. Pharmacognosy is the study of crude drugs obtained from plants, animals and mineral kingdom. Even though the science of pharmacognosy is practised since a very early period, the term pharmacognosy was first used by Seydler, a German scientist, in 1815 in his book Analecta Pharmacognostica. It is derived from two Latin words pharmaka (a drug) and gignosco (to acquire a knowledge of). It means a knowledge or science of drugs.
In Control

In Control

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

Most of us like to be in control: of what happens around us, of our own feelings, of our actions, of the actions and well-being of our beloved ones. Being in control means feeling secure, unthreatened. It is the prevalence of order on chaos. And chaos, I have grown to realize, is one of the things that scares me most. Yes, I am a true control freak.
Health Care Costs: Apparently It's Our Fault.

Health Care Costs: Apparently It's Our Fault.

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

A recent LiveScience article argues that part of the problem in health care costs is the poor dietary and health habits those in the U.S. have.  

"Americans get sick more. Why? Some argue that rather than an effective healthcare system, the United States has a "disease care" system, whereby far too many people are sedentary and eat poorly, leading to obesity and other health issues (obesity, in turn, raises the risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, some cancers, and other diseases). Add smoking into the mix — the elimination of it would cause U.S. life expectancy to rise significantly."
Supernovae and the City

Supernovae and the City

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

Recent events in the Chrematosphere*  have brought the following to mind. It is from Fred Hoyle’s Frontiers of Astronomy, concerning the collapse of a giant star before it explodes as a supernova.

The collapse

free Olin College no longer free

free Olin College no longer free

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

For most of its life, Olin College of Engineering in scenic Needham, Massachusettes was free.  All students received a 100% scholarship.  In a sad reflection of the times, though, this has now changed.  Writes their Dean:

There has been an important change in our scholarship policy. Olin was founded on the premise that financial considerations should not stand in the way of an excellent engineering education. That has not changed. Olin is committed to providing a merit scholarship to every student we accept. However, due to the ongoing economic downturn, Olin must reduce its full-tuition scholarship by 50 percent beginning in the 2010-11 academic year.

Rajasthan : Hadoti Plateau Ethnobotanical studies in Rajasthan

Rajasthan : Hadoti Plateau Ethnobotanical studies in Rajasthan

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

Rajasthan : Hadoti Plateau Ethnobotanical studies in Rajasthan were conducted by Singh and Pandey (1980), Joshi (1982, 1995), Katewa and Arora (1997), Singh and Pandey (1998) and Sharma and Dadhich (2002). Plants: 1. Acacia nilotica (L). Willd. (Mimosaceae) Babool or Barodi kikar. A moderate – sized tree, pinnae 4-9 pairs, stipular thorns long, heads yellow, pods stalked. Loc. Jhirniya Flowering and Fruiting : October – February. Medicinal Use : Comparatively younger and softer twigs of the tree are used for massage of gums and cleansing of teeth. Paste of stem bark is applied locally for abdominal pain. 2. Azadirachta indica (A.Juss.) (Meliaceae). Neem or Neemda.
Pluto Redux? Geology Committee Votes On New Consensus Dates For Prehistoric Quaternary Age

Pluto Redux? Geology Committee Votes On New Consensus Dates For Prehistoric Quaternary Age

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

Committees and organizations usually start for the right reasons but over time they need to become self-perpetuating.

The International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS) has managed to milk entire decades out of deciding the boundary dates for the Quaternary Age, which covers both the ice age and moment early man first started to use tools, and it seems they have finally voted on an answer.  

Voting in science?   Indeed, they have formally agreed to move the boundary dates for the prehistoric Quaternary age by 800,000 years, reports the Journal of Quaternary Science. 
Wound Geometry - Numerical Models Tackle More Efficient Healing

Wound Geometry - Numerical Models Tackle More Efficient Healing

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

A new mathematical model of chronic wound healing could provide better guidance on how to tackle a major public-health problem - the estimated 6.5 million people in the USA who suffer from chronic wounds that can cause loss of limbs or even death.

Ohio State University researchers are the first to publish a mathematical model of an ischemic wound – a chronic wound that heals slowly or is in danger of never healing because it is fed by an inadequate blood supply. Ischemic wounds are a common complication of diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and other conditions that can be characterized by poor vascular health.
GigaGalaxy Zoom - An Amateur Telescope Look At The Milky Way

GigaGalaxy Zoom - An Amateur Telescope Look At The Milky Way

Sep 22 2009 | comment(s)

Stéphane Guisard, world-renowned astrophotographer and ESO engineer, has created a  340-million-pixel, 34 by 20-degree wide image from Paranal, the site of the Very Large Telescope, as it looks through an amateur telescope.

Guisard is head of the optical engineering team at Paranal.

To create this true-color mosaic of the Galactic Centre region, Guisard assembled about 1200 individual images, totalling more than 200 hours of exposure time, collected over 29 nights, during Guisard's free time, while working during the day at Paranal.