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| News From the National Science Foundation The National Science Foundation (NSF) — For more information about NSF and its programs, visit www.nsf.gov NSF Funded News
Key: Meeting
Showing releases 51-75 out of 702 releases.
Public Release: 13-Nov-2009
 Child Development{DISSERTATION} Does modernization affect children's cognitive development? Using data from the late 1970s, researchers have looked at almost 200 children ages 3 to 9 in Belize, Kenya, Nepal and American Samoa to determine whether modernization changes have had an effect on the thinking skills that are learned over the course of childhood. Results show that children in communities with more modern resources performed better in some areas of cognitive functioning and that they took part in more complex sequences of play. 
National Science Foundation
Contact: Sarah Hutcheon
Public Release: 13-Nov-2009
Child Development{DISSERTATION} When preschoolers ask questions, they want explanations Two new studies explore why young children ask so many "why" questions and conclude that children are motivated by a desire for explanation. In the first study, researchers examined longitudinal transcripts of children's everyday conversations and in the second study, they looked at laboratory-based conversations. Results indicate that when preschoolers ask "why" questions, they're not merely trying to prolong conversation, they're trying to get to the bottom of things.
National Science Foundation, NIH/Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
Contact: Sarah Hutcheon
Public Release: 12-Nov-2009
{DISSERTATION} UT Southwestern receives $42 million in Recovery Act stimulus funding UT Southwestern Medical Center has been awarded more than $42 million to date for basic and patient-oriented research from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the $787 billion stimulus package President Barack Obama signed into law in February.
National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health
Contact: Amanda Siegfried
Public Release: 12-Nov-2009
Geophysical Research Letters{DISSERTATION} Record high temperatures far outpace record lows across US Spurred by a warming climate, daily record high temperatures occurred twice as often as record lows over the last decade across the continental United States, new research shows. The ratio of record highs to lows is likely to increase dramatically if emissions of greenhouse gases continue to climb.
National Science Foundation, US Department of Energy, Climate Central
Contact: David Hosansky
Public Release: 12-Nov-2009
Nature Nanotechnology{DISSERTATION} UT Knoxville and ORNL researchers turn algae into high-temperature hydrogen source In the quest to make hydrogen as a clean alternative fuel source, researchers have been stymied about how to create usable hydrogen that is clean and sustainable without relying on an intensive, high-energy process that outweighs the benefits of not using petroleum to power vehicles. New findings from a team of researchers from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, however, show that photosynthesis may function as that clean, sustainable source of hydrogen.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Jay Mayfield
Public Release: 11-Nov-2009
Nano Letters{DISSERTATION} Understanding mechanical properties of silicon nanowires paves way for nanodevices Silicon nanowires are attracting attention from the electronics industry due to the drive for smaller devices, from cell phones to computers. The operation of these devices, and an array of additional applications, will depend on the mechanical properties of these nanowires. Research from North Carolina State University shows that silicon nanowires are far more resilient than their larger counterparts, a finding that paves the way for smaller, sturdier nanoelectronics, nanosensors, light-emitting diodes and other applications.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Matt Shipman
Public Release: 11-Nov-2009
Neuron{DISSERTATION} New brain findings on dyslexic children The vast majority of school-aged children can focus on the voice of a teacher amid the cacophony of the typical classroom thanks to a brain that automatically focuses on relevant, predictable and repeating auditory information, according to new research from Northwestern University. But for children with developmental dyslexia, the teacher's voice may get lost in the background noise of banging lockers, whispering children, playground screams and scraping chairs, the researchers say.
National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation
Contact: Wendy Leopold
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
American Journal of Botany{DISSERTATION} New fossil plant discovery links Patagonia to New Guinea in a warmer past Fossil plants provide clues as to what our planet looked like millions of years ago. Identifying fossil plants can be tricky, however, when plant organs fail to be preserved. Researchers recently discovered abundant fossilized specimens of a conifer (previously known as "Libocedrus" prechilensis) found in Argentinean Patagonia. Characterstics ofthese fossils match those currently found only in tropical, montane New Guinea and the Moluccas. This discovery helps to explain the remarkable plant and insect diversity found in Eocene Patagonia.
National Science Foundation, National Geographic Society, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Fulbright Foundation, others
Contact: Richard Hund
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
{DISSERTATION} Swarms of ocean robots will drift in synch, monitor oil spills, thanks to advanced controls systems To develop control systems for "swarms" of miniature robotic ocean explorers that could one day help predict where ocean currents will carry oil spills, engineers at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering recently won a nearly $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundation.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Daniel Kane
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
International Electron Devices Meeting{DISSERTATION} New 'finFETS' promising for smaller transistors, more powerful chips Purdue University researchers are making progress in developing a new type of transistor that uses a finlike structure instead of the conventional flat design, possibly enabling engineers to create faster and more compact circuits and computer chips.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Emil Venere
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
{DISSERTATION} Scripps scientists to develop 'swarms' of miniature robotic ocean explorers In an effort to plug gaps of knowledge about key ocean processes, scientists at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego have been awarded nearly $1 million from the National Science Foundation to develop a new breed of ocean-probing instruments.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Mario Aguilera
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
Science Express{DISSERTATION} Iowa State University researcher discovers key to vital DNA, protein interaction Adam Bogdanove, associate professor in plant pathology, was researching the molecular basis of bacterial diseases of rice when he discovered how a group of proteins from plant pathogenic bacteria interact with DNA in the plant cell, opening up the possibility for what the scientist calls a "cascade of advances."
National Science Foundation, US Department of Agriculture
Contact: Adam Bogdanove
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
{DISSERTATION} Iowa State scientist develops lab machine to study glacial sliding related to rising sea levels Neal Iverson has created a glacier in a freezer that could help scientists understand how glaciers slide across their beds. That could help researchers predict how climate change accelerates glacier sliding and contributes to rising sea levels.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Neal Iverson
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
American Journal of Botany{DISSERTATION} In the war between the sexes, the one with the closest fungal relationship wins Researchers found differences in mycorrhizal colonization between males and females. Female plants were more likely to be colonized by the mycorrhizal fungi than male plants. Intersexual competition has been hypothesized to be a likely cause of the spatial segregation of the sexes in D. spicata populations. It may be that the female plants, with the assistance of mycorrhizal fungi, are able to out-compete the male plants for the coveted phosphorous-rich sites within the marsh.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Richard Hund
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
Trends in Genetics{DISSERTATION} Ancient penguin DNA raises doubts about accuracy of genetic dating techniques Penguins that died 44,000 years ago in Antarctica have provided extraordinary frozen DNA samples that challenge the accuracy of traditional genetic aging measurements, and suggest those approaches have been routinely underestimating the age of many specimens by 200 to 600 percent.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Dee Denver
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
Nature Nanotechnology{DISSERTATION} Caltech scientists develop DNA origami nanoscale breadboards for carbon nanotube circuits In work that someday may lead to the development of novel types of nanoscale electronic devices, an interdisciplinary team of researchers at the California Institute of Technology has combined DNA's talent for self-assembly with the remarkable electronic properties of carbon nanotubes, thereby suggesting a solution to the long-standing problem of organizing carbon nanotubes into nanoscale electronic circuits.
National Science Foundation, US Office of Naval Research, Center on Functional Engineered Nano Architectonics
Contact: Kathy Svitil
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
{DISSERTATION} Grant awarded to improve the security of mobile devices and cellular networks Georgia Tech computer science faculty members recently received a National Science Foundation grant to develop tools that improve the security of mobile devices and the telecommunications networks on which they operate.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Abby Vogel
Public Release: 10-Nov-2009
Journal of Pain{DISSERTATION} Study shows brief training in meditation may help manage pain An experimental study examining the perception of pain and the effects of various mental training techniques has found that a relatively short and simple meditation method can have a significant positive effect on pain management.
National Science Foundation
Contact: James Hathaway
Public Release: 9-Nov-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences{DISSERTATION} Hundreds of genes distinguish patients likely to survive advanced melanoma Some patients can live for years with melanoma that has spread beyond the skin to other organs. Now it may be possible to identify which patients are more likely to survive by analyzing the activity of hundreds of genes involved in the immune response and gene proliferation, according NYU Langone Medical Center scientists.
National Institutes of Health, Cancer Research Institute, Emerald Foundation, National Science Foundation
Contact: Dorie Klissas
Public Release: 9-Nov-2009
Nature Chemistry{DISSERTATION} Engineers image nanostructure of a solid acid catalyst and boost its catalytic activity Aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and Raman, infrared and UV-visible spectroscopies pinpoint sub-nanometer clusters of tungsten oxide mixed with tiny amounts of zirconium as the active catalytic species in the catalyst. In lab tests, the clusters increased the activity of a poor catalyst by more than 100 times. Solid acid catalysts are more environmentally friendly than liquid catalysts, which evaporate, spill and cause corrosion. Tungstated zirconia's uses include the improvement of gasoline's octane content.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Kurt Pfitzer
Public Release: 9-Nov-2009
{DISSERTATION} Iowa State psychologist is conducting 2 new studies on eyewitness misidentifications Gary Wells, a Distinguished Professor of psychology at Iowa State University who developed the dominant theory of how mistaken identifications occur, has begun work on two new studies to explore the thought processes of eyewitnesses when their memory fails as they still try to identify the perpetrator of a crime.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Mike Ferlazzo
Public Release: 9-Nov-2009
Nature Materials{DISSERTATION} New transparent insulating film could enable energy-efficient displays Materials scientists have found a way to transform a chemical long used as an electrical conductor a thin film insulator potentially useful in transistor technology and in devices such as electronic books.
US Department of Energy, US Air Force Office of Scientific Research, National Science Foundation
Contact: Phil Sneiderman
Public Release: 9-Nov-2009
16th ACM Conference on Computer and Communications Security{DISSERTATION} Rutgers computer scientists work to strengthen online security If you forget your password when logging into an e-mail or online shopping Web site, the site will likely ask you a security question: What is your mother's maiden name? Where were you born? The trouble is that such questions are not very secure. But Rutgers computer scientists are testing a new tactic that could be both easier and more secure.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Carl Blesch
Public Release: 6-Nov-2009
{DISSERTATION} UWM study explores why women leave engineering careers A study getting under way at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee is the first systematic study of women's retention in engineering. Funded by the National Science Foundation, the study, POWER (Project on Women Engineers' Retention) includes an online survey open to all women who have completed at least a bachelor's degree in engineering, whether or not they have worked as engineers.
National Science Foundation
Contact: Nadya Fouad
Public Release: 6-Nov-2009
PLoS Pathogens{DISSERTATION} Pathogen protection and virulence: Dark side of fungal membrane protein revealed Researchers at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech and Montana State University have discovered a fungal protein that plays a key role in causing disease in plants and animals and which also shields the pathogen from oxidative stress.
National Science Foundation, US Department of Agriculture, National Institutes of Health
Contact: Barry Whyte
Showing releases 51-75 out of 702 releases.
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