Slashdot

A learning system that adapts to the abilities and needs of students opens the way to a more personalized approach in delivering education electronically.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935235/080723121326.htm

Surface defects in ceramic tiles, invisible to the naked eye, could be automatically detected by a new system being developed at the University of the West of England. The system would detect imperfections such as pinholes, crazing, rough or dull glazes, even on tiles with a texture or relief pattern, saving the industry time and money and reducing wastage.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935234/080723104900.htm

Coronary heart disease is associated with a worse performance in mental processes such as reasoning, vocabulary and verbal fluency, according to a study of 5,837 middle-aged Whitehall civil servants published in the European Heart Journal. The study also found that the longer ago the heart disease had been diagnosed, the worse was the person's cognitive performance and this effect was particularly marked in men.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935233/080722192350.htm

Travel America's highways or drive down any city street this summer and you'll probably see them. From small, manicured beds of flowers to extensive landscaping projects, roadside gardens are taking root. Aside from the obvious aesthetic benefits, studies indicate that roadside beautification, including landscaping and gardens, can help drivers reduce stress, frustration and aggression, while helping maintain safe highways.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935232/080717110228.htm

New data from a study of patients with treatment-resistant depression who underwent deep brain stimulation in the subcallosal cingulate region of the brain shows that this intervention is generally safe and provides significant improvement in patients as early as one month after treatment. The patients also experienced continued and sustained improvement over time.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935231/080721102400.htm

The comfortably off, white, and middle-aged are the most likely to participate in sporting activities, reveals a 10 year study in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935230/080723201238.htm

Mobile peer-to-peer (P2P) applications allow a team or group to create new levels of ad hoc co-operation and collaboration around a specific, real-time goal. But developing compelling and secure applications is a challenge. Now a new platform rises to that challenge.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935229/080723121327.htm

Kidneys donated after individuals die from cardiovascular causes may be one of the best options for black patients in need of transplants, according to a new study. The research reveals that utilization of these organs should be expanded in order to reduce racial disparities that exist in renal transplantation.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935228/080723171844.htm

Ferroelectric materials are named after ferromagnetic ones because they behave in a similar way. The main difference: these materials are not magnetic, but permanently electrically polarized. They have great importance for data storage technology and novel piezoelectric devices. Scientists have now produced microscopic images of ferroelectric domains - tiny regions of a ferroelectric material -, where the electric polarization points into different directions.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935227/080723171551.htm

The Arctic may get some temporary relief from global warming if the annual North American wildfire season intensifies, according to a new study. Smoke transported to the Arctic from northern forest fires may cool the surface for several weeks to months at a time, according to the most detailed analysis yet of how smoke influences the Arctic climate relative to the amount of snow and ice cover.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935226/080724220104.htm

Newly developed software will help to allay patients' fears about who has access to their confidential data. A new computer program is capable of deleting details from medical records which may identify patients, while leaving important medical information intact.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935225/080723201244.htm

Isoforms from a new family of genes called novel structure proteins could be involved in apoptosis or programmed cell death.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935223/080724123144.htm

The origin of magnetic fields in galaxies is still a mystery to astronomers. Popular theories suggest continual strengthening over billions of years. New research, however, contradicts this assumption and reveals that young galaxies also have strong magnetic fields.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345935222/080724221049.htm

Scientists have created a one-step, repeatable method for the production of functional nanoscale patterns or motifs with adjustable features, size and shape using a single master "plate."
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345849212/080725122631.htm

Citizens of poorer nations are just as concerned about environmental quality as their counterparts in rich nations.
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/345794375/080725114548.htm