Scientists succeed in testing potential brain-based method to diagnose autism

Scientists at Wake Forest School of Medicine have taken the first step in developing an objective, brain-based test to diagnose autism.

* This article was originally published here

Size is everything, ecologist finds

Natural ecosystems are as vulnerable as they are diverse. Environmental changes such as climate change, pollution or the spread of alien species can easily throw an ecosystem off balance. Researchers are therefore investigating how susceptible ecosystems are to disruption. But in their search for answers they face the problem that the complex network of relationships includes innumerable interactions, which are virtually impossible to record comprehensively and convert into measurable data.

* This article was originally published here

The return of the wolves

The current return of wolves to human-dominated landscapes poses a major challenge for the protection of this species, says conservation biologist and private lecturer (PD) Dr. Marco Heurich from the University of Freiburg. He emphasizes that conflicts arise around the conservation of wolves in these landscapes due to farm animal slaughter, competition with hunters and human protection. The question of how humans can coexist with predators triggers a strong emotional debate. Based on these observations, a team of scientists led by Dr. Dries Kuijper from the Mammal Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences analyzed the existing knowledge on how to deal with large carnivores living in the wild in Europe and other parts of the world. The aim was to enable an objective, scientifically sound discussion of various scenarios of wolf management. The researchers have presented their results in the current issue of the scientific journal Biological Conservation.

* This article was originally published here

Medicaid expansion cuts racial disparities in preterm births

(HealthDay)—Overall, state Medicaid expansion did not significantly impact rates of low birth weight or preterm birth outcomes from 2011 to 2016, but there were significant improvements in disparities for black infants relative to white infants for states that expanded Medicaid versus those that did not, according to a study published in the April 23/30 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

* This article was originally published here

PAL: A wearable system for context-aware health and cognition support

Researchers at MIT Media Lab have developed a wearable platform that provides real-time, personalized, and context-aware health and cognition support. Their system, called personalized active learner (PAL), was presented in a paper pre-published on arXiv.

* This article was originally published here

Microsoft and Sony team up for video games in the cloud, but what's it mean for gamers?

Microsoft and Sony usually battle it out for dominance in console video games. But in the growing realm of cloud gaming, in which games stream over the internet just as Netflix does, the two tech titans have decided to team up.

* This article was originally published here

Dog-like robot jumps, flips and trots

Putting their own twist on robots that amble through complicated landscapes, the Stanford Student Robotics club's Extreme Mobility team has developed a four-legged robot that is not only capable of performing acrobatic tricks and traversing challenging terrain but is also designed with reproducibility in mind. Anyone who wants their own version of the robot, dubbed Stanford Doggo, can consult comprehensive plans, code and a supply list that the students have made freely available online.

* This article was originally published here

Eyes in the sky project will show power plant pollution marks

Air pollution is responsible for millions of deaths every year, worldwide. According to a State of Global Air report, air pollution is the fifth greatest global mortality risk.

* This article was originally published here