Notebook shipments overtake desktops in new study
NEW YORK – Shipments of notebook computers edged passed desktop sales in the third quarter for the first time, according to data from the research firm iSupply.

“Netbook” A Major Tech Trend Of 2008
“Netbook” is a relatively new category of notebook computer noted for being smaller, less expensive and more energy efficient than typical notebook or laptop PCs. It’s one of the major technology trends of 2008.

Pressure mounts for Microsoft to deliver with Windows 7
Nearly two years after introducing Vista, Microsoft is grappling with an unanticipated phenomenon: The latest version of its flagship Windows computer operating system remains a rarity in corporate settings.

Chinese hackers to face up to seven years in jail: report
BEIJING (AFP) – Hackers in China could face up to seven years in jail according to a draft law, as the country moves to fight rampant computer data theft, state media said Tuesday.

Royal Philips Sheds Old Businesses for New Directions
The Dutch industrial giant is moving away from home electronics and toward the next generation of light bulbs and hospital scanning and monitoring equipment.

Chaos Theory Simplified: Just Follow the Bouncing Droplet
Two researchers have created a strikingly simple model of chaotic behavior, in which variations in initial conditions become so tangled and magnified by the system’s dynamics that the outcome appears to be unpredictably random. The team, then based at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), did this by bouncing a tiny droplet on a soap film, using an inexpensive speaker to drive the miniature trampoline.

Nanowires Can Now Be Controlled Down To Single Atom Level
Nanoscience researchers at Lund University in Sweden have shown that they can control the growth and crystal structure of nanowires down to the single atom level.

Scientists Create New Means to Study Disease Origins
Availability of rat stem cells may help link genes to human disorders

Scientists May Isolate Stem Cells From Rats, Other Mammals
Achievement would be a real advance since these cells more closely mimic those of humans

Hobbyists are trying genetic engineering at home
SAN FRANCISCO – The Apple computer was invented in a garage. Same with the Google search engine. Now, tinkerers are working at home with the basic building blocks of life itself.

Genes Seem to Affect Tissues Differently
TUESDAY, Dec. 23 (HealthDay News) — The same gene acting very differently in different tissues may contribute to certain human traits, including how likely a person is to get a disease, a new report says.

The Chaos Inside a Cancer Cell
Researchers have made some sense of the jumble of chromosomes inside a cancer cell.

Shape Changes In Aroma-producing Molecules Determine The Fragrances We Detect
Shakespeare wrote “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” But would it if the molecules that generate its fragrance were to change their shape?

New Evidence That Humans Make Aspirin’s Active Principle — Salicylic Acid
Scientists in the United Kingdom are reporting new evidence that humans can make their own salicylic acid (SA) — the material formed when aspirin breaks down in the body. SA, which is responsible for aspirin’s renowned effects in relieving pain and inflammation, may be the first in a new class of bioregulators, according to a new study.

How to Avoid a Holiday Trip to the ER
Following basic safety rules should help keep celebrants safe

How to Cope When Illness Doesn’t Take a Holiday Break
Stress-relieving tips may help young and old alike

Tips to Ease an Aching Back
Holidays or any day, bad mechanics can lead to pain and stiffness.

Spirituality Spot Found in Brain
What makes us feel spiritual? It could be the quieting of a small area in our brains, a new study suggests. The area in question – the right parietal lobe – is responsible for defining “Me,” said researcher Brick Johnstone of Missouri University. It generates self-criticism, he said, and guides us through physical and social terrains by constantly updating our self-knowledge: my hand, my cocktail, my witty conversation skills, my new love interest

A Highly Evolved Propensity for Deceit
In a comparative survey of primate behavior, Richard Byrne and Nadia Corp of the University of St. Andrews in Scotland found a direct relationship between sneakiness and brain size. The larger the average volume of a primate species’ neocortex — the newest, “highest” region of the brain — the greater the chance that the monkey or ape would pull a stunt like this one described in The New Scientist: a young baboon being chased by an enraged mother intent on punishment suddenly stopped in midpursuit, stood up and began scanning the horizon intently, an act that conveniently distracted the entire baboon troop into preparing for nonexistent intruders. Much evidence suggests that we humans, with our densely corrugated neocortex, lie to one another chronically and with aplomb.

Published Reports Inaccurate Concerning Alcohol Consumption During Pregnancy, Experts Warn
A national alcohol research group is concerned that the media’s misinterpretation of a recent British research study could encourage pregnant women to be more at ease with temperate alcohol consumption.

Rate of Unnecessary C-Sections Far Lower Than Thought
Estimates put figure at nearly 60 percent; real number may be as low as 4 percent, study finds

Effect Of Parental Education On Heritability Of Children’s Reading Disability
Parental education is a strong predictor of socioeconomic status and children’s educational environment. Nevertheless, some children continue to experience reading failure in spite of high parental education and support for learning to read.

Avoiding the painkiller-overuse rut in migraines
WASHINGTON (AP) – Those pain pills you think help your migraines? Take too many and you could make them worse. Overusing painkillers can spin migraine patients into a rut, spurring more headaches that in turn require more pain medication.

Drug Rehabilitation or Revolving Door?
In the costly world of addiction treatment, states are demanding programs show results. The jury is still out.

Reward-stress Link Points To New Targets For Treating Addiction
[I]nvestigators have now discovered a functional link between reward and stress. They found that dopamine – the brain’s chief reward signal – works through corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) – the brain’s main stress signal – to increase the activity of a brain region involved in addiction relapse. The findings … point to new potential targets for treating alcohol and drug abuse – particularly the problem of relapse.

Sleep Disorder Could Signal Neurological Disease
Finding could help docs spot those at risk for dementia, Parkinson’s, researchers say

A Mysterious Link Between Sleeplessness and Heart Disease
People who sleep less are at higher risk of developing a significant sign of heart trouble, researchers report.

Fish Oil’s Benefits Remain Elusive
Review finds it may cut cardiac mortality but not help those with heart rhythm problems

Reducing The Damage Of A Heart Attack
In the aftermath of a heart attack, the body’s own defenses may contribute to future heart failure. Authors of a new study believe they have identified a protein that plays an important role in a process that replaces dead heart muscle with stiffening scar tissue. The researchers are hopeful that the findings will lead to the development of new therapies to prevent this damage.

Nanoparticles Delivering Drugs Can Kill Skin, Breast Cancer Cells
Researchers in Pennsylvania are reporting for the first time that nanoparticles 1/5,000 the diameter of a human hair encapsulating an experimental anticancer agent, kill human melanoma and drug-resistant breast cancer cells growing in laboratory cultures.

Slow Starvation of Brain Triggers Alzheimer’s
Robert Vassar of Northwestern University, the study’s lead author, found that when the brain doesn’t get enough of the simple sugar called glucose – as might occur when cardiovascular disease restricts blood flowin arteries to the brain – a process is launched that ultimately produces the sticky clumps of protein that appear to be a cause of Alzheimer’s… “This finding is significant because it suggests that improving blood flow to the brain might be an effective therapeutic approach to prevent or treat Alzheimer’s,” Vassar said. The best ways to improve blood flow to the brain and thereby reduce the chances of getting Alzheimer’s is to reduce cholesterol intake, manage high blood pressure and exercise, especially entering mid-life.

Millions of older Americans use risky drug combos
CHICAGO (AP) – At least 2 million older Americans are taking a combination of drugs or supplements that can be a risky mix – from blood thinners and cholesterol pills to aspirin and ginkgo capsules – a new study warns.

Sex no longer a taboo subject at nursing homes 
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) – When Kansas State University sent researchers into nursing homes to find out how the topic of sex was being addressed, they initially found silence. “Nobody was talking about it; it was a really hush-hush subject,” said Gayle Doll, director of the university’s Center on Aging. “I guess it’s hard enough for people to think about their parents having sex, let alone their grandparents.” In response, the researchers have produced seminars and training aids to encourage nursing home caregivers to discuss and accommodate sexual desires. The effort brings Kansas into a national discussion that advocates say will only grow as baby boomers age and take their beliefs about sexual freedom and civil rights into the nation’s nursing homes.

Honey Bees On Cocaine Dance More, Changing Ideas About The Insect Brain
In a study that challenges current ideas about the insect brain, researchers have found that honey bees on cocaine tend to exaggerate.

US, Russian space station crew conduct spacewalk
MOSCOW – American and Russian crewmen installed a probe Tuesday aimed at tracking down problems with a Russian module attached to the international space station and conducted an array of other maintenance and scientific work during a six-hour spacewalk.

Russia launches three new navigation satellites: report
MOSCOW (AFP) – A Russian Proton-M rocket was launched into space Thursday with three new satellites for Moscow’s GLONASS navigation system, aimed at competing with US and European systems, a report said.

Mapping Celestial Terrains, in All Their 3-D Glory
Dr. Robert W. Gaskell has developed the software to make mapping distant planets possible.