Freshwater flowing into the North Pacific plays key role in North America’s climate

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Massive freshwater river flows stemming from glacier-fed flooding at the end of the last ice age surged across eastern Washington to the Columbia River and out to the North Pacific Ocean, where they triggered climate changes throughout…

Kessler researchers test trunk-strengthening program for hemiplegia post stroke

Rakesh Pilkar, Ph.D., will conduct a pilot study of the AllCore360º device for improving core strength, posture and balance in individuals with hemiplegia following chronic stroke

Roberts Individualized Medical Genetics Center Outlines Framework for Centralized Approach to Genetic and Genomic Testing

In a special report published today in the journal Pediatrics, Roberts Individualized Medical Genetics Center researchers, physicians, and genetic and financial counselors describe the success of the model, their plans to build on that success for the future, and the important lessons learned from their first four years in operation.

Medication Treatments Led to 80 Percent Lower Risk of Fatal Overdose for Patients with Opioid Use Disorder than Medication-free Treatments

Patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) receiving treatment with opioid agonists (medications such as methadone or buprenorphine) had an 80 percent lower risk of dying from an opioid overdose compared to patients in treatment without the use of medications.

Study Finds Picking up a Pingpong Paddle May Benefit People with Parkinson’s

Pingpong may hold promise as a possible form of physical therapy for Parkinson’s disease. People with Parkinson’s who participated in a pingpong exercise program once a week for six months showed improvement in their Parkinson’s symptoms, according to a preliminary study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 72nd Annual Meeting in Toronto, Canada, April 25 to May 1, 2020.

Using biology to explain social psychology of cultural differences wins theoretical prize at SPSP

The idea of using principles from biology as a theoretical framework for social psychologists to understand societal differences has won the 2019 Daniel M. Wegner Theoretical Innovation Prize from the Society for Personality and Social Psychology. Scientists from Arizona State University and the University of California, Irvine, used adaptive phenotypic plasticity, or how the environment of a living thing affects development and behavior, as a model for how people act in different societies.

From Civil Rights to Diss Tracks: How Black Women Have Shaped U.S. Culture

In her new book, A Black Women’s History of the United States, co-authored by Daina Ramey Berry, Kali Nicole Gross explores black women’s history spanning more than 400 years and includes voices from the poor and working class as well as civil rights leaders, athletes and musicians.

Smithsonian Releases 2.8 Million Free Images for Broader Public Use

The Smithsonian announced today the launch of Smithsonian Open Access, an initiative that removes Smithsonian copyright restrictions from about 2.8 million of its digital collection images and nearly two centuries of data. This means that people everywhere can now download, transform and share this open access content for any purpose, for free, without further permission from the Smithsonian.

Heatwave Exposure Linked to Increased Risk of Preterm Birth in California

A new study at UC San Diego, published February 11, 2020, found that exposure to heatwaves during the last week of pregnancy was strongly linked to an increased risk of preterm delivery – the hotter the temperature or the longer the heatwave, the greater the risk.

Two from the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing Will Join Sigma’s Researcher Hall of Fame

Johns Hopkins School of Nursing faculty members Jason Farley, PhD, MSN, MPH, RN, and Mona Shattell, PhD, RN, FAAN, have been selected for induction in the Sigma International Nurse Researcher Hall of Fame. The honor signifies their lifetime achievements in nursing, contributions to research, and mentoring of future nurse researchers.

Simple Self-Charging Battery Offers Power Solutions for Devices

A new type of battery combines negative capacitance and negative resistance within the same cell, allowing the cell to self-charge without losing energy, which has important implications for long-term storage and improved output power for batteries. In Applied Physics Reviews, researchers at the University of Porto and the University of Texas at Austin report making their very simple battery with two different metals, as electrodes and a lithium or sodium glass electrolyte between them.