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Changing Minds about Climate Policy Can Be Done – Sometimes

By Guest PostJuly 7, 2013Environmentchanging minds, climate change, climate policy, economic status, erik nisbet, george mason university, government intervention, lifestyle, mitigate the problem, morgan ellithorpe, nation, ohio state, open mindedness, ps hart, psychological test, status quo, teresa myers

Simply communicating the benefits is not enough

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Some open-minded people can be swayed to support government intervention on climate change – but only if they are presented with both the benefits and the costs, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that those who were open-minded didn’t change their view if they heard arguments for only one side of the issue.

People who are relatively more closed-minded did not change their mind regardless of the messages they received, or what their original views were. There was also no evidence of open-minded people becoming less supportive of government intervention, no matter if they heard both sides of the argument or only one. (more…)

Distracted Walking: Injuries Soar for Pedestrians on Phones

By Guest PostJune 24, 2013Health, Technologycell phone, cpsc, database, deaths, derek troyer, distracted driving injuries, distracted pedestrians, distracted walking, ed maceyko, emergency rooms, infographic, injuries, jack nasar, ohio state, pedestrians, phones, traffic accidents

Cell Phone Use Not Just Dangerous for Drivers, Study Finds

COLUMBUS, Ohio – More than 1,500 pedestrians were estimated to be treated in emergency rooms in 2010 for injuries related to using a cell phone while walking, according to a new nationwide study.

The number of such injuries has more than doubled since 2005, even though the total number of pedestrian injuries dropped during that time. And researchers believe that the actual number of injured pedestrians is actually much higher than these results suggest. (more…)

Tiny Piece of RNA Keeps ‘Clock’ Running in Earliest Stages of Life

By Guest PostMarch 13, 2013Sciencechickens, cyclical gene activity, embryonic tissue, formation of somites, genetic clock, gerard nuovo, humans, kanu wahi, lfng, lfng gene, matthew bochter, maurisa riley, mice, mir 125a 5p, muscle, ohio state, oscillating pattern, oscillatory pattern, protein, protein production, rna, segmentation clock, single microrna, susan cole, tiny piece, transcripts, vertebrae, zebrafish

COLUMBUS, Ohio – New research shows that a tiny piece of RNA has an essential role in ensuring that embryonic tissue segments form properly.

The study, conducted in chicken embryos, determined that this piece of RNA regulates cyclical gene activity that defines the timing of the formation of tissue segments that later become muscle and vertebrae.

Genes involved in this activity are turned on and off in an oscillating pattern that matches the formation of each tissue segment. If the timing of these genes’ activity doesn’t remain tightly regulated, the tissue either won’t form at all or will form with defects. (more…)

Ancient Fossilized Sea Creatures Yield Oldest Biomolecules Isolated Directly from a Fossil

By Guest PostFebruary 21, 2013Nature, Scienceamerican midwest, analytical tools, ancient, aquatic sea creatures, aromatic compounds, biological signal, biomarkers, calcite crystal, carboniferous period, christina omalley, complex organic molecules, crinoids, crinoids today, DNA, feathery arms, fine grained sediment, fossil, fossilization, fossilized sea creatures, function, gas chromatograph, geochemist, geologic time, geologists, hard calcite shell, Indiana, iowa, layer, living tissue, mass spectrometer, midwest, mountain chains, North America, ohio, ohio state, ohio state geologists, ohio state university, oldest biomolecules, organic matter, organic molecules, pigments, pores, predators, quinines, sand dollars, sea lily, spindly animals, toxins, vast inland seas, volcanism, william ausich, yu ping chin

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Though scientists have long believed that complex organic molecules couldn’t survive fossilization, some 350-million-year-old remains of aquatic sea creatures uncovered in Ohio, Indiana, and Iowa have challenged that assumption.

The spindly animals with feathery arms—called crinoids, but better known today by the plant-like name “sea lily”—appear to have been buried alive in storms during the Carboniferous Period, when North America was covered with vast inland seas. Buried quickly and isolated from the water above by layers of fine-grained sediment, their porous skeletons gradually filled with minerals, but some of the pores containing organic molecules were sealed intact. (more…)

Omega-3 Supplements May Slow a Biological Effect of Aging

By Guest PostOctober 5, 2012Healthaging, alzheimer's disease, american, arthritis, balance, beom seuk hwang, biological process, blood, blood cell, cardiovascular system, cell, coronary, daily intake, dha, diabetes, diet, DNA, docosahexaenoic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, elissa epel, elizabeth blackburn, epa, f2 isoprostanes, fatty acid, fish oil, free radical, good fat, heart, heart disease, il 6, immune system, inflammation, inflammatory marker, interleukin 6, jan kiecolt glaser, jue lin, martha belury, ohio state, oil, omega 6, omega-3, oxidative stress, placebo group, polyunsaturated fatty acid, ratio, rebecca andridge, reduce, ron glaser, segment, supplement, telomeres, type 2, white, william malarkey

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Taking enough omega-3 fatty acid supplements to change the balance of oils in the diet could slow a key biological process linked to aging, new research suggests.

The study showed that most overweight but healthy middle-aged and older adults who took omega-3 supplements for four months altered a ratio of their fatty acid consumption in a way that helped preserve tiny segments of DNA in their white blood cells. (more…)

New Tool for CSI? Geographic Software Maps Distinctive Features inside Bones

By Guest PostOctober 1, 2012Scienceagricultural tool, amanda agnew, anthropology, arcgis, body size, bones, compression, crime statistics, cross section, david rose, disease, excavation site, flood model, foot bone, geographic, gis, human, human remains, information system, julie field, mapping software, metatarsal, microscope, ohio state, osteons, osteoporosis, pattern, sam stout, scientific criteria, sex, skeletal variation, spatial data, statistical measure, study, tension

COLUMBUS, Ohio – A common type of geographic mapping software offers a new way to study human remains.

In a recent issue of the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, researchers describe how they used commercially available mapping software to identify features inside a human foot bone – a new way to study human skeletal variation. (more…)

Practical Tool Can ‘Take Pulse’ of Blue-Green Algae Status in Lakes

By Guest PostJune 12, 2012Environmentalgal blooms, alum creek, beach managers, blue green algae, buck creek, chlorophyll, cyanobacteria, deer creek, delaware, east fork, eutrophic lakes, feedback loop, fluorometer, gastrointestinal illness, jason marion, jiyoung lee, lake logan, lakes, madison lake, neurological problems, nutrient levels, ohio state, ohio state university, organic pollution, oxygen, ph, phycocyanin, phycocyanin levels, pigment, population growth, public health, secchi disk, septic systems, timothy buckley, toxin, toxin microcystin, urbanization, water resources, WHO

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Scientists have designed a screening tool that provides a fast, easy and relatively inexpensive way to predict levels of a specific toxin in lakes that are prone to blue-green algal blooms.

Blue-green algae is not your average pond scum – rather than consisting of plant-like organisms, blue-green algae actually are cyanobacteria, and some species are linked to the production and release of the toxin microcystin into the water. Human exposure to the toxin through drinking or recreational water contact can threaten public health by causing liver damage, neurological problems and gastrointestinal illness in humans. (more…)

Tilting Cars on the Assembly Line: A New Angle on Protecting Autoworkers

By Guest PostMay 18, 2012General, Scienceautoworker, carriage study, chair study, coham, honda motor, injury, kevin fitzsimons, new angle, ohio state, protecting autoworkers, shoulder stress, spine, sue ferguson, tilting cars, william marras

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Letting autoworkers sit while they reach into a car’s interior could help prevent shoulder and back strain – but another solution might be to tilt the entire car so that workers can stand up.

That’s the finding of two recent studies, which tested two ways to protect autoworkers from injury.

Sitting on a cantilevered chair reduced the stress on the workers’ backs and shoulders for three common installation tasks. But a different strategy – tilting a car sideways on a carriage so that workers could access the interior while standing – reduced the stress for nine different tasks. (more…)

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