Erectile Dysfunctions Link With Heart Disease?

New Australian research has found men suffering even mild erectile dysfunction could have heart disease without knowing it. The Sax Institute’s 45 and Up Study is one of the largest on-going studies of healthy ageing in the world.

Doctors who looked at more than 95,000 men found that erectile dysfunction may be a symptom of cardiovascular disease. The study found that men with erectile dysfunction have a higher risk of being admitted to hospital with heart disease, even if they have no history of heart problems.

This is because erectile dysfunction can indicate problems with blood vessels and poor blood flow. The study notes that erectile dysfunction is common, with an estimated 40 per cent of men over 40 experiencing it :: Read the full article »»»»

There’s GOLD in Them There Hills, Termite Hills That Is…

Those superneat boffins at Australia’s science-factory – The CSIRO –  have found that termite mounds could indicate where gold or other mineral deposits lie beneath the surface.

Researchers believe that even small termite mounds could be reliable markers, and that termites themselves may be a cost-effective and environmentally friendly means of finding new mineral deposits.

Termite mounds are abundant across Australia’s north, and the largest ones can stand up to five metres tall. The research was published in science journals PLoS ONE and Geochemistry: Exploration, Environment, Analysis, found that at a test site in the West Australian goldfields termite mounds contained high concentrations of gold. This gold indicates there is a larger deposit underneath :: Read the full article »»»»

Early Promise For Human Embryonic Stem Cell Therapy

Nature Blogs is reporting that 2 clinical trials testing retinal cells derived from human embryonic stem cells are showing positive preliminary results. A paper published in The Lancet says that the cells appear to be safe four months after being injected into the eyes of two blind patients and describes visual improvements in the patients.

This isn’t the first trial of therapies based on human embryonic stem cells, nor does it provide the first data on these therapies in humans. It does, however, provide the first — albeit early — data from the only ongoing clinical trial of such a treatment. One trial involves patients with ‘dry’ age-related macular degeneration – AMD – the leading cause of blindness in the developed world, whereas the other is focused a juvenile form of degenerative blindness called Stargardt’s macular dystrophy. Neither condition is treatable.

The reported results are from the first patient from each of the two trials, both of which will eventually enrol a dozen patients. Final results are expected in 2013. The early-stage safety trials are sponsored by Advanced Cell Technology, a stem-cell firm in Marlborough, Massachusetts (see ‘Never say die’, a recent News Feature about Advanced Cell Technology).

Online Education Revolution, MITx

In the world of Science and Technology three little letters on your resume can make all the difference, especially if those three letters are MIT.  Massachusetts Institute of Technology - MIT – is one of the worlds leading education institutions  that is also a powerhouse for research and development. Not only are MIT’s course subjects leading edge but the way courses are being delivered is going through an online revolutionary.

MIT’s latest education initiative, MITx isn’t just a platform to make their courses available online, they’ve been doing that for 10 years through the OpenCourseWare – OCW – program that has served over 2,100 courses to more than 100 million people world-wide. Instead MITx is a complete open source education platform. Other education institutions – public or private -  are free to join and integrate MITx into their own education platform.

“MIT has long believed that anyone in the world with the motivation and ability to engage MIT coursework should have the opportunity to attain the best MIT-based educational experience that Internet technology enables. OpenCourseWare’s great success signals high demand for MIT’s course content and propels us to advance beyond making content available. MIT now aspires to develop new approaches to online teaching.” said MIT President Susan Hockfield Read the full article »»»»

Higgs Boson: ‘The God Particle’ Nearly, But Not Quite!?

Scientists at the European Organisation for Nuclear Research - CERN -  say they have found signs of – although not yet conclusively discovered – the Higgs boson, an elementary particle which is the missing link in the Standard Model of physics.

The famed particle is the missing link in current theories of physics, used to explain how everything gains its mass. Rumors have been crashing about the scientific community for weeks on these findings.

Fabiola Gianotti, the scientist in charge of the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, said the signal was centred at around 126 – GeV – Giga Electron Volts.

“I think it would be extremely kind of the Higgs boson to be here,” Gianotti told a seminar to discuss the findings :: Read the full article »»»»

Alzheimer’s Vaccine Closer

Scientists  have had success with a vaccine that could ultimately slow down advanced Alzheimer’s disease in humans. The team from Sydney University have published – PLoS ONE – details of a study which shows the vaccine slows one type of dementia by stopping neuro-fibre tangling.

Associate Professor Lars Ittner from Sydney University – Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease Laboratory says the study was conducted on mice that were already developing the condition. Ittner said it was the first time researchers had proved a vaccine that targeted the tau protien in mice that had already developed the disease. Read the full article »»»»

World First Supercomputer H1N1 Flu Virus Simulated

Our  understanding of the universe is expanding in all directions, expanding outwards as we see more and more of the cosmos and inwardly as we learn more about the nano world. In the nano world the tools for capturing the action shots are improving but there are still a number of destinations we are unable to explore. Organic organisms - for example, influenza virus - are too delicate for the standard tools of nano exploration. Powerful x-rays and laser illumination used in modern microscopes simply disintegrate such delicacies. In these situations scientists have been turning to simulations - computer models - for answers.  Until now, studying viruses has been challenging in laboratories, this new technology not only allows for greater offline research, it belies the complexity associated with simulating billions of particles in the correct conditions to create such simulations

Dr. Ying Ren along with a team of researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute of Process Engineering have also been searching for answers using simulators, in the process they have developed the Computational Microscope, a breakthrough in simulation technology :: Read the full article »»»»