One teenager likes to snowboard off a cliff. Another prefers to read a book and wouldn’t think of trading places. Why these differences exist is a mystery, but for the first time researchers have identified a possible genetic explanation behind risk-seeking behavior.

Scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center have found that a specific neurodevelopmental gene, called neuroD2, is related to the development of an almond-shaped area of the brain called the amygdala, t

The juice of the pomegranate, say researchers at University of Wisconsin Medical School, shows major promise to combat prostate cancer – the most common invasive cancer and the second-leading cause of cancer death in American men.

With more than 230,000 new cases of prostate cancer expected to be diagnosed this year alone in the U.S. and the outlook poor for patients with metastatic disease, researchers are looking for new strategies to combat the disease. Earlier research at

Breast cancer is a very common malignancy with serious health effects that often involves women in the prime of their lives. Drolet and colleagues report on the work experience of women recently diagnosed with breast cancer.

Compared to matched health control women, women with breast cancer who remained free of the disease for at least 3 years after diagnosis were much more likely than healthy women to be absent from work for 4 weeks or more (85% vs. 18%). However, by the th

Genghis Khan and his troops may have unwittingly used more than just brute military force to conquer entire nations and to establish the infamous Mongolian empire. A report in the October issue of Genome Research suggests that Genghis Khan’s invasions spanning the continent of Asia during the 13th century may have been a primary vehicle for the dissemination of one of the world’s most deadly diseases: tuberculosis.

In this study, a team of scientists led by Dr. Igor Mo

’Making Europe more attractive for researchers’ – The Conference is organised jointly by European research centres, universities and industry, with the support of the European Commission and will take place in Tuscany (Pisa/Livorno), Italy, between 28th and 30th September 2005.

Press conference: 30th September 2005, 12:10-12:45 hrs in Livorno (Goldoni Theatre – centre of the Town)

The conference will be held:
28th, 29th September 2005 – Pisa (CNR Researcher Centre

The 21st century craze to constantly reinvent ourselves is a dangerous addiction that can ruin lives, according to a controversial new book by sociologists Anthony Elliott (University of Kent) and Charles Lemert (Wesleyan University, USA).

The New Individualism: The Emotional Cost of Globalization, published by Routledge on 26 October 2005, is one of the first books to explore the personal and emotional impact of globalisation on real people, rather than its political or economi

Study supported by the Network for Surviving Stalking (NSS)

Details of media resources and interview arrangements below

The world’s most comprehensive stalking survey carried out by Dr Lorraine Sheridan of the University of Leicester reveals the devastating impact of stalking in the UK and USA. Unfortunately, victims are not the sole casualties.

Results unveiled today (Friday September 23) reveal that virtually all victims of stalking suffer severe emotiona

First-ever Human Studies Show Bleach Solution
Reduces Allergenic Properties of Mold

Researchers at National Jewish Medical and Research Center have demonstrated that dilute bleach not only kills common household mold, but may also neutralize the mold allergens that cause most mold-related health complaints. The study, published in the September issue of The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, is the first to test the effect on allergic individuals of mold spores treat

Magnetic shoe insoles did not effectively relieve foot pain among patients in a study, researchers report in the current issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. And the results indicate that patients who strongly believed in magnets had pain relief even if they were given false magnets to wear.

“This study provides convincing evidence that use of these static magnets was not effective in relieving symptoms of nonspecific foot pain in the workplace,” says Mark Winemiller, M.D., the le

New research from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine points to the possible molecular origin of at least nine human diseases of nervous system degeneration.

The findings are currently in PLoS Computational Biology, an open-access journal published by the Public Library of Science (PloS) in partnership with the International Society for Computational Biology.

These neurodegenerative diseases, including Huntington’s disease, share an

The doctoral dissertation of Gilad Sperling, MBA, “Product, Operation and Market Strategies of Technology-Intensive Born Globals. The case of Israeli Telecommunication Born Globals,” in the field of International Business, will be publicly examined on Friday, September 23, 2005, at the Helsinki School of Economics (HSE). The opponent is Senior Lecturer, Dr. Tamar Almor-Ellemers (Tel Aviv University, College of Management) and the custos is Emeritus Professor Reijo Luostarinen (HSE).

The st

To mark its 20th anniversary, EUREKA has published an illustrated report on the impact of this intergovernmental research initiative. The 60-page publication shows how, for two decades, EUREKA has supported members in achieving their research and development (R&D) goals and made a substantial contribution to increasing European competitiveness. It also indicates how EUREKA pioneered research co-operation between east and west Europe far in advance of EU enlargement.

“This report ex

University of California at Berkley and RIT release new findings on visual perception

A team of scientists has solved a key mystery of visual perception. Why do pictures look the same when viewed from different angles?

When you look at a picture, there is only one viewing position–the picture’s center of projection–that yields a correct image at your eye. For example, there’s but one place in the movie theater where the film creates the same image at your

For the first time, scientists have identified an ant species that produces its own natural herbicide to poison unwanted plants.

Stanford University biologist Deborah M. Gordon and her co-workers describe the findings in the Sept. 22 issue of the journal Nature. The discovery was made during a four-year field study led by Stanford graduate student Megan E. Frederickson in the Amazon jungle of western Peru. The research focused on devil’s gardens, mysterious tracts of vegetati

Halloween may seem like so much harmless fun, a time when adults enjoy laughing in the face of death, and implore their young children to do the same. According to a Penn State researcher, however, the humor of tombstones, monsters and other scary elements is often lost on kids at the ripe age of 6 or 7–many of whom don’t find the holiday the least bit funny.

Cindy Dell Clark, associate professor of human development and family studies at Penn State’s Delaware County Campus,

Chronically high levels of insulin, as is found in many people with obesity and Type II diabetes, may block specific hormones that trigger energy release into the body, according to researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine. Their findings, which may point to new approaches to developing improved treatment options for the disease, will be published in the September 22 issue of the journal Nature.

The research team, led by Roger Y. Tsien,