Futurity.org » New York University

Fast-food diners say, ‘Downsize me’

Keith Brannon-Tulane — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:55:27 +0000

TULANE (US) — Asking consumers if they would like a smaller portion may be a better approach to curb overeating than posting calorie counts.

The study from Tulane University found that when servers asked customers whether they’d like to “downsize” starchy side dishes at a Chinese fast-food restaurant as many as a third gladly cut back—saving an average 200 calories each meal.

“Our goal was to test whether the invitation to downsize a meal component would be embraced by consumers and, importantly, whether the approach would be more effective than a purely information-based approach—in this case calorie labeling,” says lead study author Janet Schwartz, assistant professor of marketing at Tulane University.

With obstacles, worms wiggle faster

James Devitt-NYU — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 16:24:30 +0000

NYU (US) — Obstacles in an organism’s path can help it to move faster, not slower, according to a series of experiments and computer simulations.

The findings by researchers at New York University have implications for a better understanding of basic locomotion strategies found in biology, and the survival and propagation of the parasite that causes malaria.

Cavefish cast off eyes for life in the dark

James Devitt-NYU — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:27:17 +0000

NYU (US) — Researchers say cavefish, having lost their pigmentation and sight from living in complete darkness, are an example of convergent evolution.

Blind Mexican cavefish (Astyanax mexicanus) have not only lost their sight, but have adapted to perpetual darkness by also losing their pigment (albinism) and having altered sleep patterns.

Sugar in cells marks esophageal cancer

James Devitt-NYU — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 15:52:14 +0000

NYU (US) — Researchers say it may be possible to detect pre-cancerous cells in the esophagus by identifying changes in the patterns of sugar molecules that line the cells.

The discovery, reported in the journal Nature Medicine, could it much easier to detect and remove these cells before they develop into esophageal cancer—the fifth biggest cause of cancer death in the United Kingdom and the eighth leading cause of cancer deaths for men in the United States, with the number of people diagnosed increasing rapidly.

‘Unequivocal’ tree of life for seed plants

James Devitt-NYU — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:32:03 +0000

NYU (US) — Scientists have plotted the evolutionary relationships of 150 different plant species—the largest ever genome tree for seed plants.

Reported in the journal PLoS Genetics, the new approach, called “functional phylogenomics,” allows scientists to reconstruct the pattern of events that led to the vast number of plant species and could help identify genes used to improve seed quality for agriculture.

Dentists could screen 20 million for disease

Christopher James-NYU — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 16:37:02 +0000

NYU (US) — Dentists could play a crucial role in the front-line defense against disease, according to a study that finds nearly 20 million Americans visit a dentist every year, but not a general healthcare provider.

For the study, published in the American Journal of Public Health, researchers examined the most recent available data from a nationally representative subsample of 31,262 adults and children who participated in the Department of Health & Human Services 2008 annual National Health Interview Survey.

Brain’s view of motion is not so simple

James Devitt-NYU — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 17:13:13 +0000

NYU (US) — The relationship between the brain and visual perception varies depending on the type of motion being viewed, a finding that suggests a significantly more complex process than previously thought.

Perception of motion was previously thought to be derived from a relatively simple process—relying on a single cortical area in the brain, the MT, long known to have a well-established role in processing information about moving visual objects.

Pregnancy stress may mean fewer boy babies

James Devitt-NYU — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 15:19:40 +0000

NYU (US) — Stress in the second and third months of pregnancy may affect the ratio of boys to girls being born, leading to a decline in the number of baby boys.

The findings from a new study of pregnant women following the 2005 Tarapaca earthquake in Chile also confirms previous findings that stress can shorten pregnancies and increase the risk of pre-term births.

Sensor brings epileptic brain into focus

James Devitt-NYU — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 16:39:21 +0000

NYU / U. ILLINOIS / U. PENN (US) — A flexible sensor is expected to offer unprecedented views of brain activity during epileptic seizures—as much as 400 times current levels—with minimal wiring.

Prior to the new technology, tapping into the human brain to understand its functions in daily life—as well as its malfunctions in illness—was challenging because of unwieldy, invasive arrays of electrodes and sensors that can damage tissue while only reading activity in a limited area. The need to wire each individual sensor at the electrode-tissue interface resulted in a mass of cumbersome leads rendering a high-resolution map of large areas logistically impossible.

How trustworthy is your digital hardware?

Kathleen Hamilton-NYU — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:20:47 +0000

NYU (US) — Most engineers design systems under the assumption that the underlying hardware is free of malicious elements. That assumption, researchers say, is false.

In May 2010, for example, the FBI’s Operation Network Raider seized more than 700 pieces of counterfeit Cisco network hardware and labels with an estimated retail value of more than $143 million. While that scheme was likely conceived for financial gain, designers of integrated circuits, or microchips, also need to protect military, financial, transportation, and other critical digital infrastructure from Trojans inserted by intruders with other criminal or military intentions.