ScienceDaily: Top News

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• Long-term heavy drinking may age arteries over time
• Selenium deficiency promoted by climate change
• Poaching drives 80 percent decline in elephants in key preserve
• Those who help each other can invade harsher environments
• Prospect for more effective treatment of nerve pain
• More warm-dwelling animals and plants as a result of climate change
• Metabolism drives growth, division of cancer cells
• Tick 'cement' as a potential bioadhesive for human tissue
• Only one-third of parents think they are doing a good job helping kids eat healthy foods
• Child obesity '35-40 percent' inherited from parents
• Study shows strong long-term survival rates for patients with GIST
• Unsung hero of science: Assessment
• Majority of opioid medications not safely stored in homes with children, survey finds
• Basking sharks seek out winter sun
• 'Tully monster' mystery is far from solved, group argues
• Link between lipoproteins and kidney stones in children, urology research team suggests
• Alien particles from outer space are wreaking low-grade havoc on personal electronic devices
• Some widely publicized papers suggesting that fishes and fish catches will be smaller in the future are based on false assumptions
• Empathy and moral choices: Study limits the role of emotions in moral decisions

Long-term heavy drinking may age arteries over time Posted: 20 Feb 2017 04:06 PM PST Heavy alcohol drinking habits over the years may prematurely age arteries, especially in men, putting them at an increased risk for heart disease, compared to consistently moderate drinkers.

Selenium deficiency promoted by climate change Posted: 20 Feb 2017 04:06 PM PST As a result of climate change, concentrations of the trace element selenium in soils are likely to decrease. Because the selenium content of crops may also be reduced, the risk of selenium deficiency could be increased in many regions of the world. This was shown by a recent study which used data-mining to model the global distribution of selenium.

Poaching drives 80 percent decline in elephants in key preserve Posted: 20 Feb 2017 10:47 AM PST Forest elephant populations in one of Central Africa's largest sanctuaries have declined between 78% and 81% because of poaching, a new study finds. More than 25,000 elephants in Gabon's Minkébé National Park may have been killed for their ivory between 2004 and 2014. With nearly half of Central Africa's forest elephants thought to live in Gabon, the loss of elephants from the park is a considerable setback for the preservation of the species.

Those who help each other can invade harsher environments Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:51 AM PST Through cooperation, animals are able to colonize harsher living environments that would otherwise be inaccessible, according to a new study. The research community has long believed this was the other way around -- that species in tough environments had to cooperate to survive. As a result the established view of why animals cooperate is turned upside-down.

Prospect for more effective treatment of nerve pain Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:51 AM PST Trigeminal neuralgia is characterized by sharp, lancinating pain in the teeth or facial area. The standard treatment for this chronic nerve pain can cause burdening side effects. A novel substance inhibits the pain effectively and is well tolerated, as documented by the initial results of an international study.

More warm-dwelling animals and plants as a result of climate change Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:51 AM PST Since 1980, populations of warm-dwelling species in Germany have increased. The trend is particularly strong among warm-dwelling terrestrial species, as shown by the most comprehensive study across ecosystems in this regard to date. The most obvious increases occurred among warm-dwelling birds, butterflies, beetles, soil organisms and lichens according to a new study. Thus, it appears possible that rising temperatures due to the climate change have had a widespread impact on the population trends of animals in the past 30 years.

Metabolism drives growth, division of cancer cells Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:51 AM PST The metabolic state of tumor cells contributes to signals that control the proliferation of tumor cells. In the 1920s, scientists observed that tumor cells radically change their metabolism. This process was termed "Warburg Effect", however neglected until recently by cancer research, but the latest results show it is indeed of fundamental importance for the development of aggressive tumors.

Tick 'cement' as a potential bioadhesive for human tissue Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:51 AM PST Ticks are well known for their ability to anchor themselves firmly to the skin, so that they can suck blood for several days. This anchoring mechanism is so effective because it is based on a cement-like substance with excellent adhesive properties, so that it works like a dowel for the mouthparts of the tick. Researchers want to study this "tick cement" and recreate it chemically for use in biomaterial research.

Only one-third of parents think they are doing a good job helping kids eat healthy foods Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:42 AM PST If you know healthy eating is important for your kids, but you also feel like it's easier said than done, you're not alone. Many parents may not be following the recipe for encouraging healthy diets in their kids, and 1 in 5 don't think it's important to limit fast food and other junk food, outlines a new report.

Child obesity '35-40 percent' inherited from parents Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:42 AM PST Around 35-40 percent of a child's BMI -- how fat or thin they are -- is inherited from their parents, a new study has found.

Study shows strong long-term survival rates for patients with GIST Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:42 AM PST Nearly one in four patients with incurable gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) treated with Gleevec will survive 10 years, a new report outlines.

Unsung hero of science: Assessment Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:42 AM PST Assessment adds enormous value to the scientific landscape, creating foundations for government and society.

Majority of opioid medications not safely stored in homes with children, survey finds Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:41 AM PST Nearly 70 percent of prescription opioid medications kept in homes with children are not stored safely, a new study finds.

Basking sharks seek out winter sun Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:41 AM PST The winter habits of Britain's basking sharks have been revealed for the first time. Scientists have discovered some spend their winters off Portugal and North Africa, some head to the Bay of Biscay and others choose a staycation around the UK and Ireland.

'Tully monster' mystery is far from solved, group argues Posted: 20 Feb 2017 05:41 AM PST Last year, headlines in The New York Times, The Atlantic, Scientific American and other outlets declared that a decades-old paleontological mystery had been solved. The 'Tully monster,' an ancient animal that had long defied classification, was in fact a vertebrate, two groups of scientists claimed. Specifically, it seemed to be a type of fish called a lamprey. The problem with this resolution? According to a group of paleobiologists, it's plain wrong.

Link between lipoproteins and kidney stones in children, urology research team suggests Posted: 17 Feb 2017 07:03 AM PST Excess lipoproteins and fatty acids may be associated with the development of painful and often chronic kidney stones in children, new research shows.

Alien particles from outer space are wreaking low-grade havoc on personal electronic devices Posted: 17 Feb 2017 07:03 AM PST Alien subatomic particles raining down from outer space are wreaking low-grade havoc on your smartphones, computers and other personal electronic devices, say researchers.

Some widely publicized papers suggesting that fishes and fish catches will be smaller in the future are based on false assumptions Posted: 17 Feb 2017 07:01 AM PST Some models show that fish will have a smaller size in the future due to climate changes. Three researchers are now pointing out that these models are built on false assumptions.

Empathy and moral choices: Study limits the role of emotions in moral decisions Posted: 17 Feb 2017 07:01 AM PST Empathy and emotional awareness do not affect our moral decisions, suggests a new study. Our choices do not depend on our empathy, say the authors, adding that the difference, instead, lies in our emotional reactions, more pronounced in more empathic people. In particular if we opt for uncomfortable decisions for a greater good.