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Science News for April 18, 2014


Treating depression in PD patients: New research

A study published in Psychiatry Research found that dopamine replacement therapy commonly used to treat motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease was associated with a decline in cognitive performance among depressed Parkinson patients. Mood in depressed Parkinson's patients was also worse while on dopaminergic medications.

SourceUniversity of Kentucky·JournalPsychiatry Research·DateApr 18, 2014

Impact glass stores biodata for millions of years

Asteroid and comet impacts can preserve the signatures of ancient life in Earthly impact debris. Researchers found fragments of leaves and preserved organic compounds in ancient impact glasses from Argentina, which could provide a snapshot of environmental conditions at the time of those impacts.

SourceBrown University·JournalGeology·DateApr 18, 2014

Flipping the switch

Physicists at Harvard University have successfully created quantum switches that can be turned on and off using a single photon. This technological achievement could lead to the creation of highly secure quantum networks, enabling perfectly secure communications over long distances.

SourceHarvard University·JournalNature·DateApr 18, 2014

Frozen in time: 3-million-year-old landscape still exists beneath the Greenland ice sheet

Researchers funded by NSF discover that some landscapes underlying the massive Greenland ice sheet may have remained undisturbed for almost 3 million years. The team analyzed chemical composition of silts from an ice core and found evidence of a continuous cover of Summit, Greenland, with minimal surface erosion during warmest periods.

Researchers question published no-till soil organic carbon sequestration rates

A team of researchers found that some studies have shown no-till systems without cover crops may not increase soil organic carbon stocks as claimed. The review suggests that different definitions and methods can lead to conflicting findings, and the accuracy of determining soil organic carbon sequestration depends on the method used.

Finding turns neuroanatomy on its head

A new study by Harvard neuroscientists reveals that myelin, the electrical insulating material in nerve cells, is not uniformly distributed along axons. Instead, more evolved neurons in the cerebral cortex have intermittent myelin patterns, which may enable increased neuronal communication and complex behavior.

SourceHarvard University·JournalScience·DateApr 18, 2014

MRI, on a molecular scale

Scientists at Harvard University have created a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system that can produce nano-scale images, potentially allowing researchers to peer into the atomic structure of individual molecules. The system uses a miniaturized magnet and quantum computing technology to achieve high spatial resolution.

SourceHarvard University·JournalNature Nanotechnology·DateApr 18, 2014

Under some LED bulbs whites aren't 'whiter than white'

Researchers found that different LED light sources render white differently, affecting product appearance. Participants struggled to distinguish between cards under blue-pumped LEDs, highlighting the need for spectrum engineering to accurately render whiteness.

SourcePenn State·JournalLEUKOS The Journal of the Illuminating Engineering Society of North America·DateApr 18, 2014