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CIUDAD REAL, Spain, Nov. 2 (UPI) –

The amount of heavy metals in 12 species of mushrooms varies depending on the type of mushroom, researchers in Spain found.

Researchers at the University of Castilla-La Mancha analyzed the presence of heavy metals in 12 species of mushroom collected from non-contaminated natural areas. The study, published in the journal Biometals, found the largest quantities of lead and neodymium are found in chanterelles.

The aim was to find out if there is a connection between the concentrations of specific heavy metals detected in the mushrooms, based on three factors: the type of substrate, the study area and the species of mushroom, principal author Juan Antonio Campos said in a statement. The third was the determining factor.

The researchers analyzed the presence of lead, neodymium, thorium and uranium in a hundred samples of 12 different species of common mushroom, both edible and non-edible, collected from non-contaminated zones in…

See the full post at Some mushrooms can contain heavy metals

MADRID, Oct. 30 (UPI) –

A scientific panel has recommended a ban on taking Atlantic bluefin tuna, saying suspending the catch is the only way the species can recover.

The scientists, associated with the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna, made the recommendation after a meeting last week in Madrid. They will make their recommendation to ICCAT next month, the BBC reported.

Atlantic bluefin, prized for sushi in Japan, are one of the most valuable commercially fished species. The scientists said current stocks have a biomass about 15 percent of what it was in the past.

Monaco made a formal recommendation Oct. 14 to suspend commercial fishing of Atlantic bluefin under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.

The World Wildlife Fund welcomed the scientists’ finding.

What’s needed to save the stocks is a suspension of fishing activity and a suspension of international commercial trade — this is the only possible pa…

See the full post at Scientists recommend ban on tuna fishing

STANFORD, Calif., Oct. 20 (UPI) –

A novice is more persuasive when expressing opinions with certainty but an expert is more persuasive when expressing uncertainty, U.S. researchers say.

Uma R. Karmarkar and Zakary L. Tormala of Stanford University presented study participants with a restaurant review from either a novice or an expert, and looked at how that source’s expressed certainty or uncertainty about the review influenced the effects of the message.

We predicted that mismatches between the source’s level of expertise and the level of expressed certainty, or confidence, would lead people to be more persuaded by a good and compelling review, the study authors said in a statement.In other words, a novice would be more persuasive when he expressed certainty about his opinions, whereas an expert would be more persuasive when he expressed uncertainty.

The study, published in the the Journal of Consumer Research, said participants found the restaurant review m…

See the full post at Experts expressing uncertainty persuasive

MANCHESTER, England, Sept. 21 (UPI) –

Students are judged as well behaved or naughty at school not just on what they do but also on their reputations, British researchers said.

Professor Maggie MacLure and Professor Liz Jones of Manchester Metropolitan University in England said they studied four classrooms of 4-year-old and 5-year-old students. Two types of behavior caused particular concern — physical actions such as kicking and punching, and persistent failure to comply with adults’ requests.

Repeatedly calling out or not sitting properly in class, failing to listen or being noisy in line are all examples of conduct likely to arouse the concern of teachers and staff. Such behaviors don’t always result in children gaining poor reputations but are more likely regarded as a sign of a wider problem, MacLure said.

Children’s reputations may be linked to teachers’ views of their home background, with some parents being judged as neglectful, indulgent, anxious and uncooperati…

See the full post at Students judged on behavior, reputation

EVANSTOWN, Ill., Aug. 21 (UPI) –

U.S. researchers say trained musicians are better able to discern speech in noisy environments.

The study, published in Ear and Hearing, supports the potential therapeutic and rehabilitation uses of musical training for those with hearing and communication disorders.

The study points to a highly pragmatic side of music’s magic, Nina Kraus, director of the lab at Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill., says in a statement.

The researchers asked 31 study participants with normal hearing and a mean age of 23 — half with music experience and half without — to listen to sentences presented in increasingly noisy conditions and repeat back what they heard.

Better perception in noise was linked with better working memory and tone discrimination ability. The researchers say the results implied musical training may reorder brain circuitry so the ability to hear speech in challenging listening environments becomes enhanced.

The…

See the full post at Music may enhance hearing

ATLANTA, Aug. 21 (UPI) –

Gardasil, the vaccine given to teens to protect them against ovarian cancer, has been linked a few cases of serious side effects, a U.S. report says.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta said there have been 32 unexplained deaths among girls or women given Gardasil, ABC News reported, and a few instances of neurological disorders and blood clots. More common side effects include headaches and nausea.

More than 25 million doses of Gardasil have been administered in the United States. A course of three doses is recommended.

Gardasil protects women against the human papilloma virus, HPV, which causes ovarian and other cancers. Experts recommend its administration before girls become sexually active with the indicated age range from 9 to 26.

Dr. Diane Harper, director of the Gynecologic Cancer Prevention Research Group at University of Missouri, said girls who have been given one or two doses of Gardasil with no ill effects a…

See the full post at Report links Gardasil to side effects

ZURICH, Switzerland, Aug. 13 (UPI) –

Taking dexamethasone, used in the treatment of high altitude cerebral edema, may improve exercise capacity in some mountaineers, Swiss researchers said.

Lead authors Dr. Manuel Fischler of the University Hospital in Zurich, Switzerland, and Hans-Peter Brunner-La Rocca, of the University Hospital in Basel, Switzerland, recruited 23 mountaineers with a history of high altitude pulmonary edema and administered baseline cardiopulmonary exercise tests a low elevation at 1607 feet.

All participants were randomized to take either dexamethasone, tadalifil — used to treat erectile dysfunction and approved for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension — or placebo.

Subjects were tested for oxygen uptake kinetics by pedaling a stationary bike at a constant rate for six minutes, and then for exercise capacity by pedaling at 50 percent of their predicted maximum workload for one minute, and then increasing output by 25 percent each addition…

See the full post at \’Dex\’ ups high altitude exercise capacity

LOS ANGELES, Ca., Aug 5 (TOTI) –

Have you heard about the human dog hybrid? That’s right. Scientists have finally outdone themselves and have created the world’s first human dog hybrid.

Fido Finklestein is his name and he’s living with his family somewhere in rural China.

He’s married to a Rottweiler and is the proud father of three healthy yet playful pups.

But life as the world’s first human/canine cross is not easy.

“It sucks,” said Fido frankly. “You wouldn’t believe the names I get called every day. I finally moved to China because I don’t know anyone here and I don’t know the language. That takes a lot of the sting out of the insults. But I still get a lot of rude gestures.”

Fido was created by researchers at an as yet unnamed facility, just “because they could,” said a source inti…

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CORVALLIS, Ore., Aug. 4 (UPI) –

People who are serious about wanting to reduce their carbon footprint on Earth may consider having one fewer child, U.S. statisticians suggest.

Oregon State University statisticians say the carbon impact of one child is almost 20 times greater than that of some other environmentally sensitive practices some people employ their entire lives — like driving a high-mileage car, recycling or using energy-efficient appliances and light bulbs.

However, the potential carbon impacts vary dramatically across countries. The average long-term carbon impact of a child born in the United States, along with all of its descendants, is more than 160 times the impact of a child born in Bangladesh, the study says.

In discussions about climate change, we tend to focus on the carbon emissions of an individual over his or her lifetime, Paul Murtaugh, an Oregon State University professor of statistics, says in a statement.

The researchers mak…

See the full post at Fewer babies mean smaller carbon footprint

BARCELONA, Spain, July 22 (UPI) –

The brain looks at eyes first to identify a face, then the shape of the mouth and nose, University of Barcelona researchers have determined.

The study, published in the journal PLoS Computational Biology, found the brain adapts in order to obtain the maximum amount of information possible from each face.

Matthias S. Keil ascertained which specific features the brain focuses on to identify a face. It has been known for years that the brain primarily uses low spatial frequencies to recognize faces. Spatial frequencies are, in a manner of speaking, the elements that make up any given image. Keil said.

Low frequencies pertain to low resolution, that is, small changes of intensity in an image, Keil said in a statement.

In contrast, high frequencies represent the details in an image. If we move away from an image, we perceive increasingly less details, that is, the high spatial frequency components, while low frequenc…

See the full post at Brain uses eyes first to identify a face