Innovative Civil Engineering Application Promises Cleaner Waters

Streams, lakes, and bays may soon be cleaner thanks to an innovative approach to managing stormwater runoff being developed at Virginia Tech and funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

A novel software application will help engineers and planners select the most efficient and site specific methods — called "Best Management Practices" (BMPs) — of controlling the amount of pollutants that enter the receiving waters through stormwater runoff.

Pollutants are washed off the roads, parking lots, or other surfaces by stormwater, and include toxic motor oil, pesticides, metals, bacteria, and trash. The Congressional Research Service reported in 2007 that up to 50 percent of water pollution problems in the United State are attributed to stormwater runoff.

The application is the product of collaboration between faculty and researchers from Virginia Tech’s Virginia Water Resources Research Center, the Center for Geospatial Information Technology in the College of Natural Resources, and the Via Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering in the College of Engineering.

The new BMPs selection approach, called Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), will factor in dozens of site-specific criteria such as soil types, land slopes, or maintenance accessibility before choosing the optimal BMPs for a particular location.

"This technique is expected to drastically reduce the BMP selection time and will also eliminate the human error from such a complex process," says project coordinator Tamim Younos, water center associate director and research professor of water resources in the Department of Geography in the College of Natural Resources. Other project leaders include Randy Dymond, CGIT co-director, and David Kibler, professor of civil and environmental engineering.

Traditionally, the selection of BMPs has been done only by proficient stormwater experts guided by little more than vaguely written regulations, experience, and intuition. "They rely heavily on past knowledge, tradition, or even personal preference for particular methods of controlling stormwater runoff," explains Kevin Young, research associate at CGIT.

Young adds that all too often personal bias has led to "cookie-cutter" solutions to very complex stormwater management needs, resulting in poor control of the pollutants.

A widely used, conventional BMP is to build detention ponds near commercial or residential areas, regardless of the actual construction site needs and conditions. "The stormwater is directed to a detention pond where gravity takes over, depositing sediment and some pollutants onto the bottom," says Younos. "Pond overflow that still may contain dissolved pollutants reaches streams, rivers, and lakes, and possibly groundwater."

Other types of BMPs are trenches and porous pavement that allow the stormwater to infiltrate the ground, vegetated wetlands, and sand filters that help sift the pollutants, or proprietary stormwater technologies such as hydrodynamic separators.

The new tool will be pilot-tested on Town of Blacksburg’s storm water system and the local Stroubles Creek watershed. The AHP software will be used by the research team to select BMPs within the watershed contributing runoff to Stroubles Creek, the town’s main receiving water body. Two existing computer models will then be used to simulate how efficient the selected BMPs are at removing the stormwater runoff pollutants.

"The best part about conducting a pilot test on Blacksburg is that the town will be able to implement our recommendations," says Younos. "We are very pleased by the town’s enthusiasm and support for this project." Other stakeholders include the New River Planning District Commission, Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation.

Young discussed the principles of this novel approach to managing stormwater runoff in his Master’s thesis, under the guidance of the late professor G. V. Loganathan.

The software, expected to be available next year, will be free for use by all interested engineers and planners, localities, and BMP review authorities, and will be applicable in other states with geographic and climatic environments similar to Virginia.

Some websites of possible interest....

O.K. this first one is just for fun! It's a site where people filmed live interpretations of their favorite video games. This is done purely for humor. Just look at the looks of some of the onlookers faces!

http://www.mega64.com/

If you're searching for audio clips or songs on the web you might want to try this audio search engine:

http://skreemr.com/

Imagine a Youtube website designed totally for average people to give you their reviews of electronic gadgets out there. Well here it is!

http://www.expotv.com/

If you're looking for rock paraphernalia then you might want to check this site out:

http://www.bandmerch.com/

And here's a site for artists that want to have their artwork online:

http://www.artgonia.com/

Health Tips 6

A Fatty Snack That's Not a No-No

Can a snack that's 70 percent fat be good for you? Yes, if it's cashews.

Everyone's favorite nut improves baroreflex sensitivity. That's a fancy way of saying that when your blood pressure rises, cashews tell your heart to calm down, among other cardio benefits. So at upcoming holiday parties, don't feel guilty about picking all the cashews out of the mixed nuts -- you're just eating healthfully!

Definitely consider adding a can of cashews to your snack options. They are a source not only of heart-healthy good fats but also of magnesium, potassium, protein, fiber, and other nutritional goodies. Just keep in mind that, like all nuts, they're high in calories -- about 175 per quarter cup (a small fistful). So don't add them to your daily diet; substitute them for something you'd normally eat that has a similar number of calories. And when those sugary vending-machine goodies tempt you in the afternoon, reach for cashews instead. Keep a stash (unsalted, please) in your office. Afraid you'll eat the whole can? Divide it into small portions and munch one serving a day.

By the way, according to researchers, it was cashews specifically -- not nuts in general -- that had this baroreflex sensitivity effect, even though nuts, overall, now rate as health foods. Study participants got about 20 percent of their daily calories from cashews -- which is a lot. But the cardiovascular benefits of adding nuts to your diet can start with just a serving a day -- a modest handful.

Follow the Mellow Brick Road

That hothead honking at you on the freeway? Chances are good he's wet behind the ears.

Chances are also good that you're far more likely to calmly ignore him than you once were. That's because, over time, your brain steadily changes in ways that make you more emotionally stable and less likely to lose it, even when someone else does. If you're still tempted to hammer the horn in response, exhale, and remind yourself that you're beyond such juvenile behavior. Yes, juvenile -- which is exactly how brain scientists describe it.

Researchers mapped brain changes over time and found that those changes reveal why older brains are calmer and happier and, with the passing of time, give their owners better control over their emotions than teenage drivers have. These brain changes put people more in touch with positive feelings and reflect a better sense of well-being.

So even if memory gets worse as time goes by, other parts of the brain get better. And if forgetfulness is bugging you (where are the car keys?), tune up your mind with new challenges like learning to play the piano, studying up on foreign affairs, or finding new routes home from work. Tuning up your muscles can help, too; regular exercise has been shown to benefit both body and brain.

How Do You Like Them Apples?

Whether they're in pies, stuffing, chutney, cobblers, or other festive favorites, apples are super healthy, not least because they're a top source of quercetin. What's that? It's a potent antioxidant that seems to protect against asthma, allergies, prostate cancer, heart disease, and -- the latest -- colon cancer. So grab a bushel before the best of fall's crop is gone. Then get cooking!

Here's what's so great about quercetin: It's believed to work as an anti-inflammatory, antiallergen, and antihistamine, as well as an antioxidant, which means it gobbles up free radicals before they can cause cell damage. Apples (especially the peels) are a primo source of quercetin, as are onions, green tea, kale, and broccoli -- all foods that are good for you in many other ways, too.

Now a new study suggests that quercetin changes the way colon tissue lives and grows, right down to the cellular level. Quercetin amps up the amount of a protein in colon cells that protects against cancer and decreases the amounts of three other proteins that promote tumor growth. That's a lot of colon protection wrapped up in a tiny molecular package.

Go Easy on Your Pearly Whites

Are you an overachiever when it comes to toothbrushing?

Brushing too long or too hard can damage both tooth enamel and gums -- and it isn't any better at removing plaque than gentler, shorter bouts. The best advice: Brush for 2-3 minutes with a soft-bristled toothbrush, using short, gentle strokes. Be sure to brush along the gum line, and give your tongue a quick once-over, too, for fresh breath.

If you're not sure of your toothbrushing technique, ask your dentist or dental hygienist for pointers at your next visit. The classic approach is to divide your mouth into four sections -- upper left and right, lower left and right -- and spend about 30 seconds on the teeth in each area, then lightly brush along the gum line and over the tongue.

No sense of time? Suspect you're overdoing it? Try an electric toothbrush. Many now have built-in timers, and some also come with sensors that automatically turn the brush off when too much pressure is applied.

All About YOU: Is That a Crystal Ball on Your Ear?

To predict your future, you're better off checking your earlobes for creases than your palms for life lines.

Look at your lobes. If you see a diagonal crease, it's one of the first signs of arterial aging. What makes arteries old? Not time. High blood pressure, high blood sugar, smoking, and other factors are the culprits. They damage arteries in ways that can lead to heart attack, stroke, impotence, and memory loss. What keeps arteries young? Just what you'd guess: a healthy diet and exercise.

After you examine your earlobes, check your face for small, yellowish patches or bumps around the eyelids (xanthelasmas). These are cholesterol deposits, and they're another warning of arterial aging. Here's what happens. An unhealthy lifestyle -- including smoking, not exercising, and eating empty, saturated-fat-filled calories -- can cause nicks in the smooth inner layer of your arteries. Your body tries to repair those nicks using cholesterol as a kind of plaster. But if the cholesterol is the bad (LDL) kind, it triggers an inflammatory reaction that signals white cells to invade the area. The result is an irritated mess of plaque that encourages a blood clot to form. That clot can suddenly block the entire artery. To help prevent the whole process, take the RealAge test and get your RealAge Plan. And don't just read it -- follow it.

Health Tips 5

Build Your Brain Bank

Every walk around the block, every dumbbell curl, every yoga pose -- each is a good investment in your mind.

Time and time again, research has shown that if you keep your body busy today, your brain is less likely to suffer from memory thieves like Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia tomorrow. Why is exercise so important? It boosts cerebral blood flow and stimulates the growth of new gray matter. Maybe bodybuilding should be called brain building.

No single type of exercise has an edge in protecting your brain. Studies have found cognitive benefits from aerobic exercise (brisk walking, biking, raking leaves) as well as from strength and flexibility workouts, such as lifting weights and holding yoga poses; they all provide long-term protection. Even activities that you probably don't think of as "exercise" count, including picking up your niece's favorite toy for the umpteenth time, doing three loads of laundry while waiting for the cable company, or pacing the floor as you watch your team lose in overtime.

Liquid Dieting

About half of the excess calories we consume come from liquids. Trying to cut back? These are your five best to worst choices.

1) Water -- it hydrates better than anything; 2) unsweetened tea or coffee; 3) nonfat/low-fat soymilk or cow's milk -- they're fairly low-cal and provide some great nutrients; 4) no-cal beverages (think Crystal Light), then nutritionally rich juices (like orange juice -- but stick to one a day); 5) The worst? The usual suspects -- sugary drinks (sodas, punches) with no nutritional value. What about slushies, smoothies, and shakes? Consider them a meal.

On average, Americans consume 150 to 300 more calories per day than they did 20 years ago, with half coming from sugary beverages. So if you're trying to count calories and slim down, be mindful of what you drink.

The big problem with sweet liquids is that they don't fill you up the way solid food does. You can drink a couple cans of sweetened soda, to the tune of 150 calories a pop, but they won't curb your appetite. You'll be hungry for your next meal and probably won't eat less to compensate for the 300 extra cola calories you downed. And if the sodas were sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) -- the latest bad boy on nutrition labels -- not only will they fail to fill you up, but also they'll make you hungrier than you were before.

Drinks made with sugar substitutes aren't a magical elixir, either. According to research, those beverages also may increase your appetite, particularly for sweet things, leading you to overeat later.

H₂0, on the other hand, may actually do the opposite -- a glass before meals can help keep you from overeating. So grab yourself a tall drink of water.

Get In the Spirit (No, Not the Holiday One)

Having a really nice interior won't keep your car out of the shop. But if your interior is in tip-top shape, you may need fewer exterior repairs.

It appears that older adults who develop a strong sense of spiritual self -- whether through religion, meditation, or connecting with nature -- need fewer hospitalizations and less long-term care than not-so-spiritual people. Researchers aren't positive about what the connection is, but the stress-reducing nature of a strong belief system could make the all-important health difference.

For some people, spirituality is synonymous with religious activities; for others, it comes from different sources. Regardless, overall health seems to benefit when you're in tune with your inner self. Find activities that give meaning and purpose to your life, that help you become more aware of the world and your place in it, and that help you feel connected to others, yourself, or -- if you choose -- the divine. Your whole mind/body system will be better for it.

All About YOU: On the Move and In the Mood

Is something slowing down your sex life?

One episode of sex lasting 20 to 30 minutes can burn 300 calories -- the equivalent of running 3 miles. But the usual episode of 2 to 6 minutes uses only 25 calories (a quarter of a mile). If you cannot walk up and down two flights of stairs without stopping, it's a sign that you've got a problem that most likely will affect your sex life. Get fitter -- and friskier -- with fast walks, daily swims, and other on-the-move activities.

Maintaining the health of your sex organs not only ensures longevity but also supports a rich and fulfilling life. Above all, the most important thing you can do is follow the guidelines for decreasing arterial aging: Exercise regularly, eat a heart-healthy diet, and reduce stress. That will ensure a clear and well-flowing vascular system that promotes blood circulation to every part of your body -- including your love muscles. In fact, maintaining good blood flow is one of the best ways to make sure erectile dysfunction isn't inevitable as you age.

Just a few simple changes may be all that's needed to keep your sex organs in tip-top condition.

New Treatment Effective For Most Severe Kind Of Headache

A nasal spray is safe and effective at rapidly treating cluster headaches, which are considered to be the most painful kind of headache with few treatment options, according to a study published in the August 28, 2007, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

The double-blind trial involved 52 people with cluster headache who used five or 10 milligrams of zolmitriptan nasal spray or placebo to treat 151 separate cluster headache attacks. The study found 63 percent of people treated with the drug at the higher dose reported headache relief at 30 minutes, compared to 50 percent of people taking the lower dose of zolmitriptan nasal spray and 30 percent in the placebo group.

"This is a significant finding and the main endpoint of our study," said study author Alan M. Rapoport, MD, with The New England Center for Headache in Stamford, CT, and Clinical Professor of Neurology at The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in Los Angeles. Rapoport is a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology. "The 10 milligram dose worked as quickly as 10 minutes in some patients."

"Cluster headache is an extremely severe headache disorder with enormous unmet treatment needs," said Rapoport. "Few medications for cluster headache have been systematically tested, and only one, which involves an injection of sumatriptan, has been FDA approved."

Cluster headache is relatively rare, occurring in less than one-tenth of one percent of the U.S. population. Men are three to four times more likely to suffer from cluster headaches than women. The pain is considered to be the most severe of the primary headache disorders and often peaks within five minutes and remains severe for about one and up to three hours. The pain is usually associated with neurological findings such as a droopy eyelid, small pupil, red and tearing eye, and stuffed and running nostril. All of the symptoms usually occur on the same side as the headache pain.

"Because a cluster headache attack builds up to a crescendo within five to 15 minutes, treatment must be rapid and offer significant relief," said Rapoport. "While the FDA has not approved zolmitriptan nasal spray for use in cluster headaches, it may someday be considered a first-line therapy." Side effects were mild and no serious adverse events were reported during the study.

University Of Minnesota Astronomers Find Gaping Hole In The Universe

University of Minnesota astronomers have found an enormous hole in the Universe, nearly a billion light-years across, empty of both normal matter such as stars, galaxies and gas, as well as the mysterious, unseen “dark matter.” While earlier studies have shown holes, or voids, in the large-scale structure of the Universe, this new discovery dwarfs them all.

“Not only has no one ever found a void this big, but we never even expected to find one this size,” said Lawrence Rudnick of the University of Minnesota astronomy professor. Rudnick, along with grad student Shea Brown and associate professor Liliya Williams, also of the University of Minnesota, reported their findings in a paper accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal.

Astronomers have known for years that, on large scales, the Universe has voids largely empty of matter. However, most of these voids are much smaller than the one found by Rudnick and his colleagues. In addition, the number of discovered voids decreases as the size increases.

“What we’ve found is not normal, based on either observational studies or on computer simulations of the large-scale evolution of the Universe,” Williams said.

The astronomers drew their conclusion by studying data from the NRAO VLA Sky Survey (NVSS), a project that imaged the entire sky visible to the Very Large Array (VLA) radio telescope, part of the National Science Foundation’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO). Their study of the NVSS data showed a remarkable drop in the number of galaxies in a region of sky in the constellation Eridanus, southwest of Orion.

“We already knew there was something different about this spot in the sky,” Rudnick said. The region had been dubbed the “WMAP Cold Spot,” because it stood out in a map of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) radiation made by the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotopy Probe (WMAP) satellite, launched by NASA in 2001. The CMB, faint radio waves that are the remnant radiation from the Big Bang, is the earliest “baby picture” available of the Universe. Irregularities in the CMB show structures that existed only a few hundred thousand years after the Big Bang.

The WMAP satellite measured temperature differences in the CMB that are only millionths of a degree. The cold region in Eridanus was discovered in 2004.

Astronomers wondered if the cold spot was intrinsic to the CMB, and thus indicated some structure in the very early Universe, or whether it could be caused by something more nearby through which the CMB had to pass on its way to Earth. Finding the dearth of galaxies in that region by studying NVSS data resolved that question.

“Although our surprising results need independent confirmation, the slightly lower temperature of the CMB in this region appears to be caused by a huge hole devoid of nearly all matter roughly 6-10 billion light-years from Earth,” Rudnick said.

How does a lack of matter cause a lower temperature in the Big Bang’s remnant radiation as seen from Earth”

The answer lies in dark energy, which became a dominant force in the Universe very recently, when the Universe was already three-quarters of the size it is today. Dark energy works opposite gravity and is speeding up the expansion of the Universe. Thanks to dark energy, CMB photons that pass through a large void just before arriving at Earth have less energy than those that pass through an area with a normal distribution of matter in the last leg of their journey.

In a simple expansion of the universe, without dark energy, photons approaching a large mass — such as a supercluster of galaxies — pick up energy from its gravity. As they pull away, the gravity saps their energy, and they wind up with the same energy as when they started.

But photons passing through matter-rich space when dark energy became dominant don’t fall back to their original energy level. Dark energy counteracts the influence of gravity and so the large masses don’t sap as much energy from the photons as they pull away. Thus, these photons arrive at Earth with a slightly higher energy, or temperature, than they would in a dark energy-free Universe.

Conversely, photons passing through a large void experience a loss of energy. The acceleration of the Universe’s expansion, and thus dark energy, were discovered less than a decade ago. The physical properties of dark energy are unknown, though it is by far the most abundant form of energy in the Universe today. Learning its nature is one of the most fundamental current problems in astrophysics.

Users Mistakenly Trust Higher Positioned Results In Google Searches

An eye tracking experiment published in the Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication revealed that college student internet users have an inherent trust in Google’s ability to rank results by their true relevance to the query. When participants selected a link from Google’s result pages, their decisions were strongly biased towards links higher in position, even if that content was less relevant to the search query.

“Despite the popularity of search engines, most users are not aware of how they work and know little about the implications of their algorithms,” says study author Bing Pan. “When websites rank highly in a search engine, they might not be authoritative, unbiased or trustworthy.”

According to Pan, this has important long term implications for search engine results, as this type of use, in turn, affects future rankings. “The way college students conduct online searches promotes a ‘rich-get-richer’ phenomenon, where popular sites get more hits regardless of relevance,” says Pan. “This further cements the site’s high rank, and makes it more difficult for lesser known sites to gain an audience.”

The author says users need to be aware that search engines have tremendous influence on what and how information is accessed. An effort on the part of search engine developers to provide users with information on how the algorithms function could help to raise user awareness.

Web Music Communities for the New Musician

"I really love music. I play guitar and bass and use the PC as a recording tool, currently running Adobe Audition for music production, which I find is a good, feature-packed, but easy-to-use application. About a year and a half ago, I was looking for a place on the web to share music that I had created. I was already familiar with SoundClick but the interface just didn’t do it for me….

I stumbled across iCompositions. I had a look round and signed up almost immediately, because I was impressed with the layout, the content, and the simple-but-attractive interface. The website is aimed mainly at… wait for it…. Macintosh users producing music with GarageBand and other production tools for the Mac. They don’t, however, discriminate you if you’re not using a Mac! But so many of the community members have recommended GarageBand and mac in general for music production.

This website opened doors for me, because community members comment and rate yours and each others work, and they also offer to “collaborate” with you, maybe on a remix, play an instrument on a piece already recorded, vocals on an instrumental, or whatever you want, really! It’s like going into a studio with some really talented musicians but all done from the comfort of your own home. I have written and recorded several collaborations with members of the community, and have made a couple of good friends on there. I think that, for music, this could be the way forward! Especially with a good community like iCompositions, which is my main “home-base” for sharing my musical work." - From “shaggysi0”

Is it Time to Abolish the Federal Reserve?

The economic pundits are out in full force this week discussing subprime lending’s imminent (if not present) collapse. I’ve heard ‘em on ABC, NPR, Fox, CNN - they’re everywhere, and some of them are smart enough to realize that the problem stems from America being a host to the disease known as the Federal Reserve (read: we’re not controlled so much by government as we are by a central bank).

I wanted to call your attention to one person in particular. Catherine Austin Fitts:

Catherine Austin Fitts offers a unique perspective on the global financial system and on the political economy. Her background includes: Wall Street: Managing Director and member of the Board, Dillon Read & Co. Inc.; Government: Assistant Secretary of Housing - Federal Housing Commissioner; Entrepreneur: President and founder of Hamilton Securities investment bank. Catherine has designed and closed over $25 billion of transactions and investments to-date and has led portfolio strategy for $300 billion of financial assets and liabilities.

Okay, credibility established - right? I hope you’re sitting down. This is part of what she shared last night on the radio:

Fitts spoke on black budgets—money used by the federal government which is not reported in their financial statements—and how they are used to fund (on a non-transparent basis) corporations performing secret military and intelligence functions. She said the people who control these ‘covert’ cash flows end up manipulating the ‘overt’ world.

She described how money can be laundered through publicly traded companies, using the European Union’s lawsuit against RJR Nabisco as a case study. Fitts explained stock ‘pump and dump’ schemes, pointing out that not only can stocks be pumped up and dumped but so can real estate, countries (Iraq), and even the planet. Fitts noted problems with the central banking warfare model, which she said helped make America successful but is not sustainable and no longer works. She also explained what she calls the ‘tapeworm economy,’ in which a small group of insiders centralize political and economic power to make money in a way that actually destroys wealth.

Fitts discussed the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which she said is being run as a “criminal enterprise.” According to Fitts, HUD reported $17 billion missing in fiscal 1998 as well as $59 billion in undocumented adjustments the following year. The HUD inspector general refused to produce financial statements, she said, noting that it is illegal to spend money that has not been appropriated by Congress. Fitts also talked about the last housing bubble, the current crisis in the housing and mortgage markets and how it was engineered.

There's plenty more to read on this interesting topic here...

When Will You Have Had Enough?

Think people are free in the United States of America? This video will make you think again. It’s a chilling indictment of how the U.S. government is slowly but steadily dismantling constitutional protections of your liberties. Even the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution -- your right to the freedom of speech -- may be at risk.

Warning: This video contains images that may not be suitable for general viewing audiences. Viewer discretion is advised.

One of the most poignant statements in this film is the quote by American politician Adlai Stevenson in 1952, who over 50 years ago said:

“The tragedy of our day is the climate of fear in which we live, and fear breeds repression. Too often, sinister threats to the Bill of Rights, to the freedom of the mind, are concealed under the patriotic cloak of anti-communism.”

"Today," the narrator continues, “it’s the cloak of anti-terrorism.”

All too often, it is fear that drives people to accept, without question, the numerous new threats to your personal freedom. They are introduced under the guise of protecting you.

This is the case with compulsory vaccinations, increasingly strict supplement regulations, and even the collection of the federal income tax.

Many liberties and basic rights are already being threatened, largely because profits and corporate greed -- not the will of the people -- are now the driving force of the United States. In my opinion they are your:

• Freedom of Association
• Freedom of Information
• Freedom of Speech
• Right to Legal Representation
• Freedom From Unreasonable Searches

Whether you agree with the statements made in the video or not, there’s one thing that most all Americans will agree on: the more that you become silent about important matters, the more your freedom will get chipped away.

Please, let’s not become silent about the freedoms, health-based and otherwise, that the United States was founded on. This Web site is an open forum for you to express your beliefs, and pass on important information to your friends and loved ones.

In 1952 Adlai Stevenson also said:

"It is far easier to fight for principles than to live up to them."

Read what others had to say about this here... (scroll toward the bottom)

Locked In Glaciers, Ancient Ice May Return To Life As Glaciers Melt

The DNA of ancient microorganisms, long frozen in glaciers, may return to life as the glaciers melt, according to a paper published online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences by scientists at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, and Boston University. The article is scheduled to appear in the print edition on Tuesday, Aug. 14.

The finding is significant, said Kay Bidle, assistant professor of marine and coastal sciences at Rutgers, because scientists didn’t know until now whether such ancient, frozen organisms and their DNA could be revived at all or for how long cells are viable after they’ve been frozen. Bidle is lead author of the article, “Fossil Genes and Microbes in the Oldest Ice on Earth.”

Bidle and his co-authors, Rutgers colleague Paul Falkowski, SangHoon Lee of Korea’s Polar Research Institute and David Marchant of Boston University - melted five samples of ice ranging in age from 100,000 to 8 million years old to find the microorganisms trapped inside.

The researchers wanted to find out how long cells could remain viable and how intact their DNA was in the youngest and oldest ice. “First, we asked, do we detect microorganisms at all”" Bidle said. “And we did - more in the young ice than in the old. We tried to grow them in media, and the young stuff grew really fast. We recovered them [the microorganisms] easily; we could plate them and isolate colonies. They doubled every couple of days.” By contrast, Bidle said, the microorganisms from the oldest ice samples grew very slowly, doubling only every 70 days.

Not only were the microorganisms in oldest ice slow to grow, the researchers were unable to identify them as they grew, because their DNA had deteriorated. In fact, the DNA in the five samples examined showed an “exponential decline” after 1.1 million years, “thereby constraining the geological preservation of microbes in icy environments and the possible exchange of genetic material to the oceans.” “There is still DNA left after 1.1 million years,” Bidle said. “But 1.1 million years is the ‘half-life’ - that is, every 1.1 million years, the DNA gets chopped in half.” Bidle said the average size of DNA in the old ice was 210 base pairs - that is, 210 units strung together. The average genome size of a bacterium, by comparison, is 3 million base pairs.

The researchers chose Antarctic glaciers for their research because the polar regions are subject to more cosmic radiation than the rest of the planet and contain the oldest ice on the planet. “It’s the cosmic radiation that’s blasting the DNA into pieces over geologic time, and most of the organisms can’t repair that damage.” Because the DNA had deteriorated so much in the old ice, the researchers also concluded that life on Earth, however it arose, did not ride in on a comet or other debris from outside the solar system. .”..(T)he preservation of microbes and their genes in icy comets may have allowed transfer of genetic material among planets,” they wrote. “However, given the extremely high cosmic radiation flux in space, our results suggest it is highly unlikely that life on Earth could have been seeded by genetic material external to this solar system.”

The five ice samples used in the experiment were taken from two valleys in the Transantarctic Mountains by Marchant, the Boston University glaciologist. “He sent us blocks of ice,” said Bidle of Marchant. “Without them, we couldn’t have done the work. Dave is also one of the few researchers who is knowledgeable about the age of the ice, and also important information about the formation and geology of the ice.”

The actual melting of the ice, growing of microorganisms and examination of DNA was carried out by Bidle and Lee, who was a visiting researcher at Rutgers at the time. Falkowski co-directed the research and helped to write the paper.

Promoting Child Safety With Computers

Computer technology that provides parents with customized safety information can be an effective way to help their children avoid injury, according to a study by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center. Parents who received safety information tailored to their family’s specific circumstances were significantly more likely to follow safety recommendations compared to parents who received general information. The study is published in the August 2007 edition of the journal Pediatrics.

“Injuries are the leading cause of death for children in the United States. We have effective ways to prevent injuries, like smoke detectors and car safety seats, but many families, especially low income families, remain unprotected,” said Andrea Carlson Gielen, ScD, ScM, lead author of the study and director of the Center for Injury Research & Policy at the Bloomberg School of Public Health. “Our study shows that parents respond best when safety messages are tailored to their specific needs and beliefs.”

The randomized controlled trial of the “Safety in Seconds” program involved 759 parents of young children ages 4 to 66 months. The participants in the “Safety in Seconds” program used a computer kiosk set up for parents in the emergency department of the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center to answer a series of questions about their children, their own experiences and personal beliefs about safety. After parents complete the questionnaire, the computer generated a personalized safety report for them based on their responses. The control group received a generic health report.

The researchers conducted follow-up interviews with the parents 2 to 4 weeks later to see how they responded to the safety messages. According to the results, the parents who received the customized safety reports scored significantly higher on knowledge of smoke alarm use and safe poison storage; they were also more likely to report correct child safety seat use. Ninety-three percent of the intervention parents said they read at least some of the safety report while 57 percent said they read the entire report. Lower-income parents who read the tailored reports were more likely to store poisons in the home safely compared to the control group. Higher-income parents in the intervention group were more likely to report correct child safety seat use than the control group parents. The intervention was equally effective for those with injured children and those who were being seen for a medical problem.

“Every year, millions of families visit an emergency department, providing an important opportunity to deliver injury prevention services. We are encouraged by these results, which suggest that computer technology holds promise for efficiently delivering patient education in busy health care settings,” said Allen R. Walker, MD, co-author of the study and director of emergency medicine for the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center.

Fine As North Dakota Wine

Changing the label on a wine changed diners’ opinions of their wine, opinions of their meal, and their repatronage of the restaurant, according to a Cornell University study.

Forty-one diners at the Spice Box restaurant in Urbana, Illinois were given a free glass of Cabernet Sauvignon to accompany a $24 prix-fixe French meal. Half the bottles claimed to be from Noah’s Winery in California. The labels on the other half claimed to be from Noah’s Winery in North Dakota. In both cases, the wine was an inexpensive Charles Shaw wine.

Those drinking what they thought was California wine rated the wine and food as tasting better, and ate 11% more of their food. They were also more likely to make return reservations.

It comes down to expectations. If you think a wine will taste good, it will taste better than if you think it will taste bad. People didn’t believe North Dakota wine would taste good, so it had a double curse - it hurt both the wine and the entire meal. “Wine labels can throw both a halo or a shadow over the entire dining experience,” according to Cornell Professor Brian Wansink (Ph.D.), author of the book Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think.

To confirm this, a similar study was conducted with 49 MBA students at a wine and cheese reception. Again, those given wine labeled from California rated the wine as 85% higher and the cheese as 50% higher.

“Small cues such as origin or a wine or whether the label or name catches your eye often trick even serious Foodies,” said co-author Dr. Collin Payne. “He (Wansink) has even conducted demonstrations of this at at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris and Apicious Culinery Institute in Florence.”

For restaurants and wineries, it’s important to keep a keen eye on the possible halo or shadow of wine labels. Diners, on the other hand, should be careful to not overpay for a pretty bottle.

Kristin Hoffmann at Mocha Maya's Aug. 18th

Kristin Hoffmann Interview:



At Joe's Pub in NYC:

Kristin Hoffmann will be at Mocha Maya's Aug. 18th

Kristin Hoffmann will be at Mocha Maya's Aug. 18th

Potato Chip Flavoring Boosts Longevity Of Concrete

The ingredient that helps give “salt & vinegar” potato chips that tangy snap is the key to a new waterproof coating for protecting concrete from water damage, according to a study scheduled for the current (August 1) issue of ACS’ Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research, a bi-weekly journal.

Awni Al-Otoom and colleagues in Jordan point out that concrete’s unique properties have made it the world’s most widely used structural material. Concrete, however, is so porous that water soaks in, corroding steel reinforcing bars and meshes that strengthen concrete roads and buildings and causing cracks as water expands and contracts during freeze-thaw cycles. Sealants are commercially available, but they have serious shortcomings, the study notes.

In the new report, researchers describe the use of sodium acetate as an inexpensive and environmentally friendly concrete sealant. One of sodium acetate’s many uses is in flavored potato chips. In laboratory studies using freshly made concrete, the researchers showed that sodium acetate seeps into pores in concrete and then hardens and crystallizes upon exposure to water. The resultant swelling blocks entry of additional moisture, they said. Under dry conditions, the crystals shrink back to their original size and allow moisture to evaporate. The net result is “a significant reduction in water permeability,” that “can be expected to increase the service life of the concrete,” the report said.

Logitech MX Air Cordless Air Mouse

Logitech is at it again with a revolutionary new mouse that appears to have been inspired from Nintendo’s Wii controller. You see, it’s not an average mouse. Similar to the Wii controller, which you can move in the air for specified body movements and control your game characters, Logitech’s newly announced MX Air cordless mouse does the same. The only difference is that instead of working in games, it works with a select few applications to make browsing and working with your multimedia files a breeze. For instance, you can grab the mouse and move it left and right to increase/decrease the volume in Apple’s iTunes and Windows Media Player apps, or you can also skip tracks with a flip of the wrist. Now that’s what we call multimedia made fun. Of course, we can’t credit Logitech for coming up with the idea despite it being somewhat unique (ported from a console to the PC), but the company certainly deserves some credit for being the first one to release such a device.

In addition to the Wii-like functionality, Logitech has also updated the ergonomics and made it looks more or less like a remote+mouse hybrid with a great looking end product. It has a polished black exterior with a stack of multimedia controls in the middle. In addition, the mouse also illuminates with orange LED light that makes it stand out and appear impressively vibrant in a dull lighting environment.

Once you take out the interesting look and feel of the MX Air and its updated functionality, it’s just a basic mouse at the core with a laser engine, 2.4GHz wireless connectivity, and a rechargeable Lithium-Ion battery. Although we haven’t tried the mouse, it appears as though there might be two drawbacks to keep in mind. First, with the updated design, it may be difficult to securely place your hand and avoid accidentally pressing one of the buttons in the center. And second, the air motion control is exclusive to a few select applications. We are unclear if Logitech plans to add additional support via software patches, but it would be great to use this mouse in a wide array of applications.

We expect to get the Logitech MX Air Cordless Air mouse in our lab soon for an evaluation, and once we put it through its paces, we’ll report back officially in our review. Until then, see if you can justify the $149.99 price tag.

Coffee Drinking Related To Reduced Risk Of Liver Cancer

After lung and stomach cancer, liver cancer is the third largest cause of cancer deaths in the world. A new study on the relationship between coffee drinking and the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) confirmed that there is an inverse association between coffee consumption and HCC, although the reasons for this relationship are still unresolved.

The results of this study appear in the August 2007 issue of Hepatology, the official journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD).

At least eleven studies conducted in southern Europe and Japan have examined the relationship between coffee drinking and the risk of primary liver cancer. The current study, led by Francesca Bravi of the Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri in Milan, Italy, was a meta-analysis of published studies on HCC that included how much coffee patients had consumed. Researchers combined all published data to obtain an overall quantitative estimate of the association between coffee consumption and HCC.

The results showed a 41 percent reduction of HCC risk among coffee drinkers compared to those who never drank coffee. “Moreover, the apparent favorable effect of coffee drinking was found both in studies from southern Europe, where coffee is widely consumed, and from Japan, where coffee consumption is less frequent, and in subjects with chronic liver diseases,” the researchers state.

They point out that animal and laboratory studies have indicated that certain compounds found in coffee may act as blocking agents by reacting with enzymes involved in carcinogenic detoxification. Other components, including caffeine, have been shown to have favorable effects on liver enzymes. Coffee has also been related to a reduced risk of liver diseases and cirrhosis, which can lead to liver cancer.

“Despite the consistency of these results, it is difficult to derive a causal inference on the basis of the observational studies alone,” the authors note. It may be that patients with digestive tract diseases, including liver disorders, naturally reduce their coffee consumption, even though avoidance of coffee is not routinely recommended. Also, they note that the assessment of coffee intake was based on patients’ self-reporting, although recall of coffee drinking has been shown to be accurate. The fact that the inverse relationship between coffee drinking and HCC was shown in both southern Europe and Japan suggests a lack of bias in these studies. Allowance for other confounding factors, such as hepatitis B and C, cirrhosis, social class indicators, alcohol use and smoking, also suggests that such factors did not influence the results.

“In conclusion, the results from this meta-analysis provide quantitative evidence of an inverse relation between coffee drinking and liver cancer,” the authors state. “The interpretation of this association remains, however, unclear and the consequent inference on causality and worldwide public health implications is still open for discussion.”

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