Brain Parasite That Directly Alters Brain Chemistry

After reading a multitude of articles I found this one to be the most intriguing because the brain is the most important part of the human body and I found any and all information on it to just be simply amazing. According to the article it explains how there is a parasite that has been find in mammals that can affect the dopamine levels. So far the work has only been done and tested on rodents it is believed by Dr. Glenn McConkey that these findings can inevitably help by shedding new light onto treating human neurological disorders that are considered to be dopamine related. An example of which commonly known is schizophrenia. The research is hopeful to figure out how and why these parasites can manipulate the brain. For more information on dopamine click here. Hopefully researchers can discover more about this parasite and figure out how to treat the dopamine related disorders that correlate with it.

Pluto Has a Twin Sister

This article is about Pluto's twin sister Eris. Eris was discovered by Caltech astronomer,Mike Brown. For years Brown has been finding similar objects in the Kuiper Belt, the massive band of comet in the solar system. But those object were smaller than 2,320km across, the modest dimensions of Pluto.

A group of astronomer has been trying to get the precise measurement of Eris, but no such luck. Measuring something 15 billion miles way is challenging. Even with the Hubble Telescope, Eris look like a featureless pinpoint. The only way to get Eris' size accurately is to wait for it to pass in front of a distant star, which is known as an occultation. In occultation you measure the amount of time it takes the star to reappear on the other side and you can calculate the size of the object. Two astronomers in Chile saw the occultation.They were able to answer the question of the size of Eris. They got that Eris is 2,326 km, with the uncertainly percentage of a half. Eris does have a larger mass than Pluto.

Eris is very bright. Scientist believes this is because Eris comes closer to the Sun in it's elongate orbit, surface ice warms up to form a temporary atmosphere. When the ice freezes up it becomes a milometer thicker. But scientist have to wait 250 years to test this theory.

There is still many things to discover about our solar system. Brown stated the "There are surely even larger dwarf planets out there. It only a matter of time before both Pluto and Eris are supplanted."

Molecular Motor Revealed

An international team of chemists at Oxford Universty revealed the structure of the "molecular motor." They used highly sensitive mass-spectrometry to put the pieces together to get this model. This is the model of ATP that interacts with the fatty acids that form the membranes around our cells. ATP is found in every cell of our body and it helps generate our energy to keep out body working. The team that created this model believe that their work will help future studies. Publishers say they put a story about this week's Science magazine.

I found this to be interesting because we just learned about ATP and its functions to cells. It looks like a really cool structure and I am sure it took alot for the team to come up with the model. While reading the article on this, they said that this model can also help future scientists with diseases and medical conditions.

New Flu Test From UGA

Scientists from the University of Georgia developed a new flu test that is fast an accurate. The test first coats gold nanoparticles with antibodies. These bind to certain strains of the flu virus. Then, it measures how the nanoparticles scatter laser light. This allows the test to find influenza quickly.
The scientists came up with this test by knowing that antibodies can capture viruses and that nanoparticles have different traits based on their size. They combined these two to make a test that is sensitive and fast. An engineer in the UGA Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center linked antibodies and immune system proteins with gold nano particles. These bond with any flu virus by measuring the intensity with which light is scattered by the solutio.
This is an inexpensive teset because the amount of gold used per test is just 100th of a cent. These scientists are also working on ways poultry producers can use this type of test to detect salmonella. They don't wanna stop just at influenza because the test offers great advantages.
http://athens.patch.com/articles/new-flu-test-from-uga

Sea Level To Go Up

Researchers of the Neils Bohr Institute have been calculating the long-term outlook of the sea levels rising. They discovered changes in sea level 500 years from now. Aslak Grinstead, a researcher at the Center for Ice and Climate at the Neils Bohr Institute, has been teaming up with reasearchers from England and China. They are focusing on the emission of gases and aerosols of greenhouses and the pollution in the atmosphere. The research group says that as the emissions increase, so will the sea level. One researcher says that sea levels will go up to 1.1 meters by the year 2100 and 5.5 meters by 2500. Another says that by 2100, the sea levels will rise by 60 cm, and by 2500 they will rise by 1.8 meters. A more realistic researcher says that they will rise about 75 cm and get up to 2 meters in the year 2500. On average, sea level rises 2mm per year but gets faster with each year.
http://www.macroevolution.net/biology-current-events.html

Telescope Solves Mystery After 2,000 Years

Two NASA telescopes helped discover a supernova in space that has been a mystery for over 2,000 years. In 185 AD, CHinese astronauts witnessed a "guest star" appear in the sky for over 8 months. In 1960 scientists determined that this was an observation of a supernova that signaled the violent death of a distant star. Views from NASA'S Spitzers Space Telepscope and Wide-field Infared Survey Explorer determined that the star's explosion detonated inside a gas free and dust free region in space. This allowed the supernova to travel much farther away.

I chose to write about this even because it seemed interesting that over 2,000 years scientisits, with the help of telescopes, could solve a mystery of a supernova. It is cool to see that activity in space can take place for a long period of time. Although the supernova took place a far distance away, its neat to learn that we have the teachnology to see these types of things far, far away form us.

The Broadcom MASTERS-Middle Schoolers and Their Passion for Science.

I found this article to be especially interesting because it is about middle-schoolers and their accomplishments in science. It talks about the Broadcom MASTERS which stands for Math, Applied Science, Technology, and Engineering for Rising Stars. This program is designed for 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th graders who are inspired in the sciences.

The winner of the MASTERS, 14-year-old Daniel Feeny, decided to study the waves on the beach in Pescadero, California. His research consisted of making a rig of springs and balls in a homemade tide pool to demonstrate the force of waves and their relationship with marine life close to the shore. Second place was awarded to 14-year-old Benjamin Hylak who built and programmed a robot that can be operated over the Internet for those who don't live close to their relatives and loved ones. I-Chun Lin, also 14, was awarded third place in the competition for studying solar cells, coated in organic dye, testing their efficiency with dyes from blackberries and raspberries.

I've stated before that I am not that completely interested in science or am very good at understanding all that's involved in the wide world of science. This competition involving these middle schoolers, however, has made me realize how science can not only be practical but extremely fun! I think that you'll be as impressed as I was with these young scientists. You can read more about the Broadcom MASTERS and about the different winners here, if you're interested. I also found that there is a Kids' Science Challenge for 3rd-6th grade children who must submit a problem for a scientist or an engineer to solve-you can read up on that here.