Researchers are developing cutting-edge foams, coatings, metals and other substances to make our homes, vehicles and gadgets more energy efficient and environmentally friendly
By Steven Ashley and Larry Greenemeier
CHITIN + SILK: Materials have a tremendous influence on the properties of manufactured goods, including weight, strength and energy consumption. The "Shrilk" pictured here was inspired insect exoskeleton material and could someday be used to make biomedical products.Image: Courtesy of Wyss Institute, Harvard University
The future of manufacturing depends on a number of technological breakthroughs in robotics, sensors and high-performance computing, to name a few. But nothing will impact how things are made, and what they are capable of, more than the materials manufacturers use to make those things. New materials change both the manufacturing process and the end result.
Scientific American?s May special report ?How to Make the Next Big Thing? presents several new materials under development to help inventors and engineers deliver next-generation technologies. These ingredients include superinsulating aerogels for spacesuits, flexible concrete cloth for construction projects and complex natural polymers that could replace toxic plastics.
Yet this lineup of advanced materials merely scratches the surface. Carmakers, for example, are developing porous polymers and new steel alloys that are stronger and lighter than steel, ostensibly making vehicles both safer and more fuel efficient. And environmentally savvy entrepreneurs are growing fungi-based packing materials to provide a biodegradable alternative to Styrofoam.
The following slide show presents these and several other substances that manufacturers could someday us to make many of the things we use.
View a slide show of these cutting-edge materials.
BEIJING (AP) ? China slammed the human rights record of the United States in response to Washington's report on rights around the world, saying that U.S. military operations have infringed on rights abroad and that political donations at home have thwarted the country's democracy.
The report released Sunday in China ? which defines human rights primarily in terms of improving living conditions for its 1.3 billion people? also cited gun violence in the U.S. among its examples of human rights violations, saying it was a serious threat to the lives and safety of America's citizens.
The Human Rights Record of the United States in 2012 said the U.S. government continues to strengthen the monitoring of its people and that political donations to election campaigns have undue influence on U.S. policy.
"American citizens do not enjoy a genuinely equal right to vote," the report said, citing a decreased turnout in the 2012 presidential election and a voting rate of 57.5 percent.
The report from the information office of the State Council, or China's Cabinet, which mostly cited media reports, said there was serious sex, racial and religious discrimination in the U.S. and that the country had seriously infringed on the human rights of other nations through its military operations in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Yemen.
The U.S.'s annual global human rights report issued Friday by the State Department said China had imposed new registration requirements to prevent groups from emerging that might challenge government authority. It said Chinese government efforts to silence and intimidate political activists and public interest lawyers continued to increase, and that authorities use extralegal measures such as enforced disappearance to prevent the public voicing of independent opinions.
It also said there was discrimination against women, minorities and people with disabilities, and people trafficking, the use of forced labor, forced sterilization and widespread corruption.
China's authoritarian government maintains strict controls over free speech, religion and political activity ? restrictions that the U.S. considers human rights violations.
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Online: Report (in Chinese): http://bit.ly/17b8hnh
(Reuters) - Social media accounts maintained by CBS News programs, "60 Minutes" and "48 Hours," were compromised on Saturday, the two programs' official Twitter accounts said.
A post on the "60 Minutes" Twitter microblog account, @60Minutes, said, "PLEASE NOTE: Our Twitter account was compromised earlier today. We are working with Twitter to resolve." Another post read, "A message that was posted earlier to this account was not written or sent by @60Minutes or its staff."
The Twitter account for @48Hours showed a similar message, and several blogs said a third account, @CBSDenver, also had been hacked.
Tech bloggers posted screenshots of fake posts that appeared under the CBS accounts, including one from @48Hours that read, "General Dempsey calls for #Obama's arrest under new anti-terror laws #48hours."
On its own official account, @CBSNews, the news organization said it had "experienced problems" on the other two accounts, and added, "Twitter is resolving issues."
The rogue posts appeared to have been removed from Twitter.com later on Saturday.
Commonly used drug can limit radiation damage to lungs and heart for cancer patientsPublic release date: 21-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Mary Rice mary.rice@riceconseil.eu European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO)
Geneva, Switzerland: Unavoidable damage caused to the heart and lungs by radiotherapy treatment of tumours in the chest region can be limited by the administration of an ACE inhibitor, a drug commonly used in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, a group of Dutch researchers have found. [1]
Common cancers such as breast, oesophagus, lung, and Hodgkin's lymphoma are frequently treated with radiotherapy, but the radiation dose that can be given safely is limited by the sensitivity of the health lung tissue which is also irradiated.
The lung is a particularly complex and sensitive organ and strategies for protecting it from radiotherapy damage, apart from limiting the dose given and, therefore, the efficacy of the treatment, are few. Presenting the research to the 2nd Forum of the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) today (Sunday), Dr Sonja Van der Veen, MSc, from the University Medical Centre, Groningen, The Netherlands, said that she had set out with colleagues to see whether the use of an ACE inhibitor could protect against early radiation-induced lung toxicity (RILT). Previous studies had shown that damage to blood vessels can play an important role in the development of RILT [2], so the researchers irradiated the lungs, heart, or heart and lungs of rats and administered the ACE inhibiter captopril immediately after treatment. The rats' lung functions were then measured at two-weekly intervals.
"After eight weeks, when early lung toxicity is usually at its height, we found that captopril improved the rats' heart and lung functions, but we were surprised to find that this only occurred when the heart was included in the irradiation field," said Dr Van der Veen. "This was not due to protection of the lung blood vessels, which were equally damaged with or without captopril. So we investigated further and found that the captopril treatment improved the heart's function and decreased the level of fibrosis in the heart soon after irradiation. So these new findings show that ACE inhibition decreases RILT by reducing direct acute heart damage."
Irradiating the heart leads to the development of fibrosis, which stiffens it, and this in turn leads to problems in the relaxation of the left ventricle. Due to this, blood flow from the lungs into the heart is hindered, and this can cause pulmonary damage. However, after treatment with captopril, the researchers observed an improvement in ventricular relaxation in the irradiated hearts.
Dr Van der Veen and her colleagues are now collaborating with a research group from the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota (USA), in order to design a randomised clinical trial where patients who are treated with radiation to the thoracic area including the heart will be treated with either an ACE inhibitor or a placebo after irradiation.
Much progress has been made in radiation treatment over recent years, but in breast cancer, for example, most women still receive high doses to the heart, and this is known to increase the risk of heart disease. A recent study [3] has shown that for each Gray (Gy) [4] of radiation, there is a 7.4% increase in the occurrence of a subsequent major coronary event.
"Given that most women will receive a dose of between 1 and 5 Gray, and that the dangers are even greater for women with existing cardiac risk factors or coronary disease, this is still a big problem," said Dr Van der Veen.
Rats were chosen for the study because, unlike mice, they are big enough for researchers to be able to irradiate different part of the lungs and heart. The researchers believe that the way in which ACE inhibition works in both animals and humans is similar.
"We are confident that our clinical trial will see the same protective effect in humans as that which we have seen in rats," said Dr Van der Veen. "We will also now begin to study the late effects of ACE inhibition on RILT to see whether it affords similar protection. We believe that our results suggest a promising strategy for shielding patients from radiation damage and improving their quality of life, while at the same time allowing them to receive a high enough dose to ensure the effective treatment of their cancer."
President of ESTRO, Professor Vincenzo Valentini, a radiation oncologist at the Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli, Rome, Italy, said: "This study underlines the importance of translational research. The understanding of anti-cancer mechanisms, as well as of protective opportunities discovered in the experimental environment, is of upmost importance in the era of personalised medicine. This research provides further evidence of the importance of testing experimental theories in the clinical environment to the ultimate benefit of patients."
###
[1] ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme) Inhibitors are a class of drugs usually used for treating high blood pressure and heart failure.
[2] Ghobadi G, Bartelds B, van der Veen SJ, Dickinson MG, Brandenburg S, Berger RM, et al. Lung irradiation induces pulmonary vascular remodelling resembling pulmonary arterial hypertension. Thorax 2012 Apr;67(4):334-341
[3] Darby SC, Ewertz M, McGale P, Bennet AM, Blom-Goldman U, Bronnum D, et al. Risk of ischemic heart disease in women after radiotherapy for breast cancer. N Engl J Med 2013 Mar 14;368(11):987-998.
[4] One Gray is the absorption of one joule of energy, in the form of ionising radiation, per kilogram of matter.
Abstract no: OC-0261, Proffered paper session/ Prevent 3: Cardiac Toxicity at 10.30 hrs (CEST) on Sunday 21 April, Room G
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Commonly used drug can limit radiation damage to lungs and heart for cancer patientsPublic release date: 21-Apr-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Mary Rice mary.rice@riceconseil.eu European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO)
Geneva, Switzerland: Unavoidable damage caused to the heart and lungs by radiotherapy treatment of tumours in the chest region can be limited by the administration of an ACE inhibitor, a drug commonly used in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, a group of Dutch researchers have found. [1]
Common cancers such as breast, oesophagus, lung, and Hodgkin's lymphoma are frequently treated with radiotherapy, but the radiation dose that can be given safely is limited by the sensitivity of the health lung tissue which is also irradiated.
The lung is a particularly complex and sensitive organ and strategies for protecting it from radiotherapy damage, apart from limiting the dose given and, therefore, the efficacy of the treatment, are few. Presenting the research to the 2nd Forum of the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO) today (Sunday), Dr Sonja Van der Veen, MSc, from the University Medical Centre, Groningen, The Netherlands, said that she had set out with colleagues to see whether the use of an ACE inhibitor could protect against early radiation-induced lung toxicity (RILT). Previous studies had shown that damage to blood vessels can play an important role in the development of RILT [2], so the researchers irradiated the lungs, heart, or heart and lungs of rats and administered the ACE inhibiter captopril immediately after treatment. The rats' lung functions were then measured at two-weekly intervals.
"After eight weeks, when early lung toxicity is usually at its height, we found that captopril improved the rats' heart and lung functions, but we were surprised to find that this only occurred when the heart was included in the irradiation field," said Dr Van der Veen. "This was not due to protection of the lung blood vessels, which were equally damaged with or without captopril. So we investigated further and found that the captopril treatment improved the heart's function and decreased the level of fibrosis in the heart soon after irradiation. So these new findings show that ACE inhibition decreases RILT by reducing direct acute heart damage."
Irradiating the heart leads to the development of fibrosis, which stiffens it, and this in turn leads to problems in the relaxation of the left ventricle. Due to this, blood flow from the lungs into the heart is hindered, and this can cause pulmonary damage. However, after treatment with captopril, the researchers observed an improvement in ventricular relaxation in the irradiated hearts.
Dr Van der Veen and her colleagues are now collaborating with a research group from the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota (USA), in order to design a randomised clinical trial where patients who are treated with radiation to the thoracic area including the heart will be treated with either an ACE inhibitor or a placebo after irradiation.
Much progress has been made in radiation treatment over recent years, but in breast cancer, for example, most women still receive high doses to the heart, and this is known to increase the risk of heart disease. A recent study [3] has shown that for each Gray (Gy) [4] of radiation, there is a 7.4% increase in the occurrence of a subsequent major coronary event.
"Given that most women will receive a dose of between 1 and 5 Gray, and that the dangers are even greater for women with existing cardiac risk factors or coronary disease, this is still a big problem," said Dr Van der Veen.
Rats were chosen for the study because, unlike mice, they are big enough for researchers to be able to irradiate different part of the lungs and heart. The researchers believe that the way in which ACE inhibition works in both animals and humans is similar.
"We are confident that our clinical trial will see the same protective effect in humans as that which we have seen in rats," said Dr Van der Veen. "We will also now begin to study the late effects of ACE inhibition on RILT to see whether it affords similar protection. We believe that our results suggest a promising strategy for shielding patients from radiation damage and improving their quality of life, while at the same time allowing them to receive a high enough dose to ensure the effective treatment of their cancer."
President of ESTRO, Professor Vincenzo Valentini, a radiation oncologist at the Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli, Rome, Italy, said: "This study underlines the importance of translational research. The understanding of anti-cancer mechanisms, as well as of protective opportunities discovered in the experimental environment, is of upmost importance in the era of personalised medicine. This research provides further evidence of the importance of testing experimental theories in the clinical environment to the ultimate benefit of patients."
###
[1] ACE (angiotensin-converting enzyme) Inhibitors are a class of drugs usually used for treating high blood pressure and heart failure.
[2] Ghobadi G, Bartelds B, van der Veen SJ, Dickinson MG, Brandenburg S, Berger RM, et al. Lung irradiation induces pulmonary vascular remodelling resembling pulmonary arterial hypertension. Thorax 2012 Apr;67(4):334-341
[3] Darby SC, Ewertz M, McGale P, Bennet AM, Blom-Goldman U, Bronnum D, et al. Risk of ischemic heart disease in women after radiotherapy for breast cancer. N Engl J Med 2013 Mar 14;368(11):987-998.
[4] One Gray is the absorption of one joule of energy, in the form of ionising radiation, per kilogram of matter.
Abstract no: OC-0261, Proffered paper session/ Prevent 3: Cardiac Toxicity at 10.30 hrs (CEST) on Sunday 21 April, Room G
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
JERUSALEM: Two rockets fired from the Gaza Strip struck inside Israel after nightfall on Thursday, causing no damage or injury, Israeli media reports said.
The Ynet and Haaretz news websites said the rockets fell in open areas. The Israeli military was checking the reports. There were no immediate claims of responsibility issued from Gaza.
Islamist militants in Hamas-ruled Gaza have fired intermittently at Israel in the past month despite a ceasefire reached after an eight day conflict in November. Israel has vowed to prevent these shootings and often retaliates for rocket fire by bombing militant targets in Gaza.
The attack came a day after rockets fired from Egypt's Sinai Peninsula struck the southern port city of Eilat causing no injury.
Islamist militants claimed responsibility for Wednesday's shooting, which highlighted concerns about rising friction along that border since Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak's downfall in 2011.
Tensions have been on high since Israeli troops shot dead a Palestinian youth in the occupied West Bank two weeks ago in confrontations with protesters angered by the death in prison from cancer of 64-year-old Maysara Abu Hamdeya.
Palestinian officials said Abu Hamdeya, jailed by Israel on charges of involvement in a thwarted suicide bomb attack, had been denied timely medical care. Israel denied any negligence.
LOS ANGELES -- A 25-year-old hacker with the group known as LulzSec was sentenced Thursday to a year in prison and ordered to pay $605,663 in restitution for an attack on Sony Pictures computers that began in late May 2011.
Cody Andrew Kretsinger, who went by the online nickname "recursion," was also sentenced to a year of home detention and 1,000 hours of community service.
The U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles said Kretsinger pleaded guilty last April to the attack, in which hackers breached the Sony Pictures website, stole personal data including the names, addresses, phone numbers and email addresses of tens of thousands of Sony customers and distributed it over the Internet.
Raynaldo Rivera, a 20-year-old who also pleaded guilty to the attack in October, is to be sentenced May 16.
CHITIN + SILK: Materials have a tremendous influence on the properties of manufactured goods, including weight, strength and energy consumption. The "Shrilk" pictured here was inspired insect exoskeleton material and could someday be used to make biomedical products. Image: Courtesy of Wyss Institute, Harvard University 
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Public release date: 21-Apr-2013
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