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Science News Archive 2019 - Page 221


Page 221 of 486

Is intensive treatment to lower lipid levels beneficial to older patients after acute coronary syndrome?

A secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial found no significant benefit of intensive lipid treatment with simvastatin and ezetimibe compared to simvastatin alone in older patients after acute coronary syndrome. The study suggests that age may be an important factor in determining the effectiveness of lipid-lowering therapies.

SourceJAMA Network·JournalJAMA Cardiology·DateJul 17, 2019

A new level of smart industrial robots control and management reached at FEFU

Scientists developed a command-and-control plugin for intelligent industrial robots, allowing for high-quality 3D computer models to be built quickly and precisely. The software helps solve the issue of hard programming of industrial robots and can fix in-process workpieces on universal positioning devices.

SourceFar Eastern Federal University·JournalInternational Journal of Mechanical Engineering and Robotics Research·DateJul 17, 2019

Legalized recreational marijuana a substitute for alcohol, but not tobacco

A new study finds that recreational marijuana legalization leads to a 8% increase in online searches for tobacco products, while searches for alcohol drop by 11%. However, the study also reveals that teenagers lose interest in cannabis after its legalization, contradicting common concerns about increased teen usage.

Sustainable savings on medical care

A global payment model has slowed spending growth on medical claims by nearly 12% while improving quality of care, particularly for patients with chronic diseases. The study found that patients received improved preventive care and management of conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure.

SourceHarvard Medical School·JournalNew England Journal of Medicine·DateJul 17, 2019

New tuberculosis tests pave way for cow vaccination programs

A new skin test can accurately differentiate between cattle infected with tuberculosis (TB) and those that have been vaccinated against the disease. This breakthrough has significant implications for reducing TB transmission from cattle to humans through unpasteurized milk or co-habitation with infected animals.

SourcePenn State·JournalScience Advances·DateJul 17, 2019

Giving a chip about masa

Researchers reviewed knowledge on making corn into food products, highlighting the importance of corn quality and masa quality. They found that better quality corn could lead to higher yields, lower costs, and improved product consistency.

SourceAmerican Society of Agronomy·JournalCrop Science·DateJul 17, 2019

Tiny vibration-powered robots are the size of the world's smallest ant

Researchers at Georgia Institute of Technology have developed micro-bristle-bots that harness vibration to move and interact with their environment. The bots can be controlled by adjusting vibration frequencies and can potentially be used for tasks such as repairing injuries inside the human body or sensing environmental changes.

SourceGeorgia Institute of Technology·JournalJournal of Micromechanics and Microengineering·DateJul 17, 2019

Head Start accountability systems may be missing how classroom quality varies within preschool centers

A recent study by Northwestern University researchers found that high-stakes accountability policies used to monitor Head Start preschool center quality may overlook significant variation in classroom quality within centers. This could lead to inaccurate representations of center quality and decisions about re-competition for funding.

SourceAmerican Educational Research Association·JournalAmerican Educational Research Journal·DateJul 17, 2019

AI radar system that can spot miniature drones 3 kilometers away

A new AI radar system developed by DGIST can detect subminiature drones flying as far as 3km away, thanks to the use of super-resolution algorithm and AESA radar signal processing technology. The system also integrates GANs-based drone cognition technology for real-time detection and identification.

SourceDGIST (Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology)·JournalIEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Letters·DateJul 17, 2019

Undocumented Latina immigrants face PTSD at four times the national rate, new study finds

A new study led by George Mason University found that undocumented Latina immigrants meet the threshold for PTSD diagnosis at nearly four times the rate of civilian women in America. The researchers also discovered differences in PTSD thresholds by occupation, with women working outside the home having higher scores.

SourceGeorge Mason University·JournalJournal of Social Service Research·DateJul 17, 2019

New study finds both components of blood pressure predict heart attack, stroke risk

A large Kaiser Permanente-led study found that both systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings predict cardiovascular risk, contradicting decades of previous research. The study analyzed over 36 million blood pressure readings from 1.3 million people, revealing that high blood pressure is a strong predictor of heart attack or stroke.

SourceKaiser Permanente·JournalNew England Journal of Medicine·DateJul 17, 2019

'Intensive' beekeeping not to blame for common bee diseases

A study by researchers from the University of Exeter and Berkeley found that crowding honeybees together does not greatly increase disease prevalence. However, intensive beekeeping could accelerate the spread of new diseases. Beekeepers don't need to worry about the number of bees they keep together as long as there is enough food.

SourceUniversity of Exeter·JournalJournal of Applied Ecology·DateJul 17, 2019

A single measurement may help determine kneecap instability risk

Researchers found that measuring the distance between the tibial tubercle and trochlear groove using MRI can accurately predict knee instability. A TT-TG distance of 13 mm is identified as a guideline for identifying patients at risk, with further study planned to explore contributing factors.

SourcePenn State·JournalClinical Orthopaedics and Related Research·DateJul 17, 2019

Fiber-optic vibration sensors could prevent train accidents

Researchers developed new accelerometers to measure acceleration and vibration on trains, enabling real-time monitoring of track or train problems. The sensors use polarization-maintaining photonic crystal fiber and can detect frequencies double that of traditional accelerometers.

SourceOptica·JournalOptics Express·DateJul 17, 2019

Correcting historic sea surface temperature measurements

Researchers from Harvard University and the UK's National Oceanography Centre corrected historic sea surface temperature measurements, identifying two new key causes of warming discrepancies in the North Pacific and North Atlantic. The study suggests that changes in Japanese records, particularly truncation of data, contributed to the ...

Plant viruses may be reshaping our world

Recent advances suggest that plant viruses are not just disease-causing entities, but can also play a significant role in the functioning of diverse ecosystems. Viruses have been found to be present in humans, with around 100,000 pieces of viral DNA elements making up 8% of our genome.

SourceArizona State University·JournalNature Reviews Microbiology·DateJul 17, 2019

Machine learning platform guides pancreatic cyst management in patients

Researchers created a comprehensive test using machine learning algorithms to better guide patient management for pancreatic cysts, a precursor of pancreatic cancer. The test, called CompCyst, outperformed the current standard-of-care in an international study, avoiding surgery in 60% of patients who underwent unnecessary removal.

SourceAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)·JournalScience Translational Medicine·DateJul 17, 2019

Body and mind need care in mental illness

A new study by University of Queensland researchers found that patients' physical health is often overlooked in pursuit of treating mental illness. Conditions like diabetes serve as a stark example, with rates twice as high in those with mental illness compared to the general population.

SourceUniversity of Queensland·JournalThe Lancet Psychiatry·DateJul 17, 2019

Toward a better battery

Sodium-ion batteries have shorter lifetimes than lithium-based batteries due to the unintended presence of hydrogen. Hydrogen leads to degradation of the battery electrode. The study reveals that measures can be taken during fabrication and encapsulation to suppress incorporation of hydrogen, leading to better performance.

SourceUniversity of California - Santa Barbara·JournalChemistry of Materials·DateJul 17, 2019