ScienceDaily: Most Popular News

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• A new way to harness waste heat: Electrochemical approach has potential to efficiently turn low-grade heat to electricity
• Violent stellar explosion: Stellar behemoth self-destructs in a Type IIb supernova
• Iron from melting ice sheets may help buffer global warming
• Shattering past of the 'island of glass': Pantelleria, a little-known island near Sicily, was once covered in a searing-hot layer of green glass
• Cognitive test can differentiate between Alzheimer's and normal aging
• More than two-thirds of healthy Americans are infected with human papilloma viruses

A new way to harness waste heat: Electrochemical approach has potential to efficiently turn low-grade heat to electricity Posted: 21 May 2014 10:36 AM PDT Vast amounts of excess heat are generated by industrial processes and by electric power plants; researchers around the world have spent decades seeking ways to harness some of this wasted energy. Now researchers have found a new alternative for low-temperature waste-heat conversion into electricity.

Violent stellar explosion: Stellar behemoth self-destructs in a Type IIb supernova Posted: 21 May 2014 10:35 AM PDT For the first time, astronomers have direct confirmation that a Wolf-Rayet star -- sitting 360 million light years away -- died in a violent explosion known as a Type IIb supernova. Using the iPTF pipeline, researchers caught supernova SN 2013cu within hours of its explosion.

Iron from melting ice sheets may help buffer global warming Posted: 21 May 2014 06:49 AM PDT A newly-discovered source of oceanic bioavailable iron could have a major impact our understanding of marine food chains and global warming. Scientists have discovered that summer meltwaters from ice sheets are rich in iron, which will have important implications on phytoplankton growth.

Shattering past of the 'island of glass': Pantelleria, a little-known island near Sicily, was once covered in a searing-hot layer of green glass Posted: 21 May 2014 06:47 AM PDT A tiny Mediterranean island visited by the likes of Madonna, Sting, Julia Roberts and Sharon Stone is now the focus of a ground-breaking study by geologists. Pantelleria, a little-known island between Sicily and Tunisia, is a volcano with a remarkable past: 45 thousand years ago, the entire island was covered in a searing-hot layer of green glass.

Cognitive test can differentiate between Alzheimer's and normal aging Posted: 20 May 2014 09:35 AM PDT A new cognitive test that can better determine whether memory impairments are due to very mild Alzheimer's disease or the normal aging process has been developed by researchers. The Alzheimer's Association estimates that the number of Americans living with Alzheimer's disease will increase from 5 million in 2014 to as many as 16 million by 2050. Memory impairments and other early symptoms of Alzheimer's are often difficult to differentiate from the effects of normal aging, making it hard for doctors to recommend treatment for those affected until the disease has progressed substantially.

More than two-thirds of healthy Americans are infected with human papilloma viruses Posted: 20 May 2014 08:55 AM PDT 69 percent of healthy American adults are infected with one or more of 109 strains of human papillomavirus (HPV). This is the conclusion of a study that is believed to be the largest and most detailed genetic analysis of its kind. Researchers say that while most of the viral strains so far appear to be harmless and can remain dormant for years, their overwhelming presence suggests a delicate balancing act for HPV infection in the body, in which many viral strains keep each other in check, preventing other strains from spreading out of control.

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