Ageing Population Could Boost Economy
Older people are a benefit, rather than a burden, to the economy and society according to a new report from the UCL School of Pharmacy. (more…)
Author Archives: Guest Post
Which Ads Are Winners? Your Brain Knows Better Than You Do
Study on smokers’ brains may mark dawn of a new age in advertising
Advertisers and public health officials may be able to access hidden wisdom in the brain to more effectively sell their products and promote health and safety, UCLA neuroscientists report in the first study to use brain data to predict how large populations will respond to advertisements. (more…)
IBM Advances Big Data Analytics with Acquisition of Vivisimo
Armonk, N.Y. – 25 Apr 2012: IBM today announced a definitive agreement to acquire Vivisimo, a leading provider of federated discovery and 
navigation software that helps organizations access and analyze big data across the enterprise. Vivisimo is a privately held company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Vivisimo software excels in capturing and delivering quality information across the broadest range of data sources, no matter what format it is, or where it resides. The software automates the discovery of data and helps employees navigate it with a single view across the enterprise, providing valuable insights that drive better decision-making for solving all operational challenges. (more…)
Not Your Parents’ Chem Labs
‘Greener’ and more engaging experiments draw students in
As a college student, Michelle Driessen had an all-too-typical experience.
“I hated general chemistry,” she says. “I thought it was terribly boring.”
She had plenty of company. Experiments were all laid out in advance, and the goal seemed to be to get to a predetermined result without blowing up the glassware.
In the old days, “very few students appreciated the point of most general chemistry labs,” adds Driessen. “With cookbook chemistry, you couldn’t have anything go wrong or deviate [from what’s supposed to happen], but I find those things to be the most interesting part of science.” (more…)
Guidelines for Prostate Screening Widely Ignored, Study Finds
2008 recommendations from federal task force had no impact
New research confirms that the controversial decision by Warren Buffett – the 81-year-old CEO of Berkshire Hathaway – to undergo a blood test screening for prostate cancer despite his age is hardly unusual. Despite recommendations in 2008 from the United States Preventive Services Task Force against testing for prostate cancer in men aged 75 years or older, almost half of men in that age group continue to get screening tests.
In 2005, before the recommendations were released, 43 percent of men age 75 and above elected to take the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test. In August 2008, the Task Force stated it “recommends against the service,” arguing “there is moderate or high certainty the service has no net benefit or that the harms outweigh the benefits.” (more…)
NASA Tests GPS Monitoring System for Big U.S. Quakes
PASADENA, Calif. – The space-based technology that lets GPS-equipped motorists constantly update their precise location will undergo a major test of its ability to rapidly pinpoint the location and magnitude of strong earthquakes across the western United States. Results from the new Real-time Earthquake Analysis for Disaster (READI) Mitigation Network soon could be used to assist prompt disaster response and more accurate tsunami warnings.
The new research network builds on decades of technology development supported by the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The network uses real-time GPS measurements from nearly 500 stations throughout California, Oregon and Washington. When a large earthquake is detected, GPS data are used to automatically calculate its vital characteristics, including location, magnitude and details about the fault rupture. (more…)
Study Shows That, In Restaurants, Race Matters
A new study from North Carolina State University shows that more than one-third of restaurant servers discriminate against African-American customers.
“Many people believe that race is no longer a significant issue in the United States,” says Sarah Rusche, a Ph.D. candidate in sociology at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the study. “But the fact that a third of servers admit to varying their quality of service based on customers’ race, often giving African-Americans inferior service, shows that race continues to be an issue in our society.” (more…)
Playing the Odds to Your Favor
UA student Jason Xu has been recognized by the College of Science for his undergraduate research.
Wuhan, China and Tucson, Ariz.: These cities are thousands of miles apart, but they have one commonality – University of Arizona student Jason Xu.
A Chinese native and mathematics senior in the Honors College, Xu was selected as the recipient of this year’s Excellence in Undergraduate Research award by the UA College of Science at its Galileo Circle reception event.
The award “is a huge honor and means a lot to me. I feel really good to be representing the math department,” Xu said. (more…)