Futurity.org

U. WARWICK (UK) — Government policies that boost the number of homeowners are likely to inflict severe damage on the labor market, an international study suggests.

Economists examined a century of unemployment and home-ownership data in the US from 1900 to 2010. Combining those numbers with modern data on millions of randomly sampled Americans, the researchers show there is a powerful link between the housing market and the later health of the economy.

The study, published online by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, finds that rises in homeownership in the US is followed by substantial increases in the unemployment rate in a particular state, a fall in the mobility of workers, a rise in commuting times, and a drop in new businesses.

UC DAVIS (US) — After the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, crude oil toxicity continued to sicken a sentinel Gulf Coast fish species for at least a year or more, new research shows.

The researchers found that Gulf of Mexico killifish embryos exposed to sediments from oiled locations in 2010 and 2011 show developmental abnormalities, including heart defects, delayed hatching, and reduced hatching success.

The killifish is an environmental indicator species, or a “canary in the coal mine,” used to predict broader exposures and health risks.

U. PITTSBURGH (US) — A potential treatment for deadly, drug-resistant bacterial infections uses the same approach that HIV uses to infect cells.

Researchers say the discovery is especially promising in the development of a potential drug treatment for lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis.

PRINCETON / CALTECH (US) — New analysis suggests that a roughly 3.5-mile-high mound on Mars came from the planet’s dusty atmosphere, not a massive lake, report researchers.

If correct, the research could dilute expectations that the mound holds evidence of a large body of water, which would have important implications for understanding Mars’ past habitability.

PRINCETON / CALTECH (US) — New analysis suggests that a roughly 3.5-mile-high mound on Mars came from the planet’s dusty atmosphere, not a massive lake, report researchers.

If correct, the research could dilute expectations that the mound holds evidence of a large body of water, which would have important implications for understanding Mars’ past habitability.

U. ARIZONA (US) — Elevated blood sugar levels may be associated with a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, even in people without diabetes.

About 5 percent of men and women, ages 65 to 74, have Alzheimer’s disease, and it is estimated that nearly half of those age 85 and older may have the disease, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

UC DAVIS (US) — Breathing two of the most common types of engineered nanomaterials can cause lung inflammation and damage, new research shows.

The ultrafine particles from a large family of materials increasingly are found in a host of household and commercial products, from sunscreens to the ink in copy machines to super-strong but lightweight sporting equipment.

BROWN (US) — By guiding nerve cells’ growth, scientists have optimized the branching, tendrilous neurons for applications such as reconstructive surgery.

Their work helps explain how neurons grow in new tissues in response to physical guideposts, called Schwann cells. The paper also provides medical device makers with an overt demonstration of how to craft the best artificial Schwann cell implants in silicone to make neurons grow as straight as possible in a desired direction.

“If you’ve got an injury in your arm or your leg then you’d like to have proper reconnection so you can get function,” says Diane Hoffman-Kim, associate professor of medicine in the department of molecular pharmacology, physiology, and biotechnology at Brown University.

BROWN (US) — A species of bat uses blood flow to reshape its tongue while feeding—a quick, dynamic action that lets it scoop up as much nectar as possible in a single stroke.

A new study describes the previously undiscovered technology employed by the bat Glossophaga soricina: a tongue tip that uses blood flow to erect scores of little hair-like structures exactly at the right time to slurp up extra nectar from within a flower.

U. PITTSBURGH (US) — Added to formula, an ingredient that naturally occurs in breast milk could prevent premature babies from developing a deadly intestinal condition.

The story begins when a baby is born too early, meaning before 36 weeks gestation. Once stable, the baby is typically fed with formula because often breast milk is not readily available to premature infants, says senior author David Hackam, professor of surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and co-director of the Fetal Diagnosis and Treatment Center at Children’s Hospital.

“Within about 10 days of birth, the baby starts to vomit and a few hours later, the belly becomes distended and discolored,” Hackam says. “It becomes clear that the child has developed a major problem in his or her tummy, and an x-ray will usually confirm the diagnosis of necrotizing enterocolitis, or NEC, in which the intestinal tissue is dying. We have no choice but to remove the dead parts of the intestine, but despite surgery, half of these preemie babies still die from the condition.”

COLUMBIA U. (US) — An analysis of gene expression from 22 types of tumors has come up with hundreds of potential drug targets that could cut off cancer’s fuel supply.

Scientists say the results should ramp up research into drugs that interfere with cancer metabolism, a field that dominated cancer research in the early 20th century and has recently undergone a renaissance.

CORNELL (US) — Found in newborns, small populations of preprogrammed immune cells can fight specific pathogens that they have never encountered.

The findings, say the researchers, have the potential to revolutionize how and when people are immunized. The study, published in the Journal of Immunology, demonstrates a way to grow these cells, potentially transforming our approach to preventing infectious disease.

When first exposed to a new pathogen, the immune system takes up to a week to effectively respond, and up to a month to make specialized memory cells that remember how to fight it. The next time a body is exposed, these memory cells take care of it within hours.

U. ROCHESTER (US) — Community-based efforts to develop strategies and policies that target high-risk housing may be the key to reducing the dangers of lead paint in homes with children.

“Lead poisoning has long been characterized as a health problem with a housing solution,” says Katrina Korfmacher, director of the Community Outreach and Engagement Core of the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) Environmental Health Sciences Center.

STANFORD (US) —When trying to make a love connection in just under five minutes, speed daters need to remember that it might be what you say, not what you look like, that matters most.

A new study that looks at how meaningful bonds are formed analyzes the conversations of heterosexual couples during speed dating encounters to find out why some people felt a sense of connection after the meeting and others didn’t.

“One of the key features of a community, social network or relationship is the sense that it’s meaningful, that there is some kind of force behind the relationship,” says Dan McFarland, associate professor of sociology at Stanford University. “We wanted to get at what the essence of the connection is, what makes people feel like they bonded.”

STANFORD (US) — The discovery of grinding stones pushes the origins of agriculture in China back 12,000 years, and suggests it evolved independently around the world.

The first evidence of agriculture appears in the archaeological record some 10,000 years ago. But the skills needed to cultivate and harvest crops weren’t learned overnight. Scientists have traced these roots back to 23,000-year-old tools used to grind seeds, found mostly in the Middle East.

Now, research led by Li Liu, professor of Chinese archaeology at Stanford University, reveals that the same types of tools were used to process seeds and tubers in northern China, setting China’s agricultural clock back about 12,000 years and putting it on par with activity in the Middle East. Liu believes that the practices evolved independently, possibly as a global response to a changing climate.

DUKE (US) — Seven years ago, the first working invisibility cloak resulted from complex laboratory experiments. It’s now easier and cheaper to make a simple cloak.

“I would argue that essentially anyone who can spend a couple thousand dollars on a non-industry grade 3-D printer can literally make a plastic cloak overnight,” says Yaroslav Urzhumov, assistant research professor in electrical and computer engineering at Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering.

Three-dimensional printing, technically known as stereolithographic fabrication, has become increasingly popular, not only among industry, but for personal use. It involves a moving nozzle guided by a computer program laying down successive thin layers of a material—usually a polymer plastic—until a three-dimensional object is produced.

CARNEGIE MELLON (US) — New research provides the first evidence that self-affirmation can protect against the damaging effects of stress on problem-solving performance.

Understanding that self-affirmation—the process of identifying and focusing on one’s most important values—boosts stressed individuals’ problem-solving abilities. The findings, published in PLOS ONE, will help guide future research and the development of educational interventions.

“An emerging set of published Carnegie Mellon University studies suggest that a brief self-affirmation activity at the beginning of a school term can boost academic grade-point averages in underperforming kids at the end of the semester. This new work suggests a mechanism for these studies, showing self-affirmation effects on actual problem-solving performance under pressure,” says J. David Creswell, assistant professor of psychology.

U. TORONTO (CAN) / UC BERKELEY (US) — Mexican-Americans over 55 who were born in the US are significantly more likely than immigrants from Mexico to report limitations in one or more basic physical activities.

A new study shows they have substantial limitations (30 percent versus 25 percent) in walking, climbing stairs, reaching, lifting, or carrying.

CALTECH (US) — A new kind of cosmic flash may reveal the birth of a black hole for the first time.

When a massive star exhausts its fuel, it collapses under its own gravity and produces a black hole, an object so dense that not even light can escape its gravitational grip.

BOSTON U. (US) — A new class for medical students may increase their self-compassion and ability to manage thoughts and tasks more effectively, according to new research.

The study, published in Medical Education Online, also discusses how this innovative course may help medical students better manage stress and feel more empowered to use mind-body skills with their patients.