Purdue University
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - An international team of researchers has determined key structural features of the largest known virus, findings that could help scientists studying how the simplest life evolved and whether the unusual virus causes any human diseases.
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Roundup Ready crops have made weed control much easier for farmers, but a new study shows their reliance on the technology may be weakening the herbicide's ability to control weeds.
MADISON, WI, APRIL 7, 2009 -- A recent study conducted in the Midwestern United States examined the effects of harsh wet conditions on both cultivated and uncultivated soils, vastly advancing the knowledge of water's effects on aggregation.
SALT LAKE CITY, March 22, 2009 -- Confusion about what constitutes plagiarism -- not malicious intent -- is the leading cause of plagiarism at the graduate school level, according to an expert presenting here today on the increasingly worrisome problem at the 237th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). George M.
Ice in Antarctica suddenly appeared -- in geologic terms -- about 35 million years ago. For the previous 100 million years the continent had been essentially ice-free.
One of agriculture's most versatile crops could one day play a role in combating climate change, Purdue University research shows.
Researchers at Purdue University have precisely measured the impact of a high-fat diet on the spread of cancer, finding that excessive dietary fat caused a 300 percent increase in metastasizing tumor cells in laboratory animals.
Civil engineers using a specialized laboratory at Purdue University have demonstrated the effectiveness of a simple, inexpensive method to strengthen buildings that have a flaw making them dangerously vulnerable to earthquakes.
Parts of the human brain think about the same word differently, at least when it comes to prepositions, according to new language research in stroke patients conducted by scientists at Purdue University and the University of Iowa. People who speak English often use the same prepositions, words such as "on," "in," "around" and "through," to indicate time as well as location. For example, compare "I will meet you 'at' the store," to "I will meet you 'at' 3 p.m." These examples show how time may be thought of metaphorically in terms of space.
Physical Review E has announced the publication of an article by a team of researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), Purdue University, Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), and the Russian Academy of Science (RAS) stating that they have replicated and extended previous experimental results that indicated the occurrence of nuclear fusion using a novel approach for plasma confinement.
A longstanding theory that provides much of the basis for our understanding of climate change – that the mile-thick ice sheet covering Antarctica developed because of a shift in ocean currents millions of years ago – has been challenged by Purdue University scientists.
Though climate scientists have theorized for decades that the circulation of warm ocean currents was responsible for keeping Antarctica largely ice-free during the Eocene epoch prior to 35 million years ago, a series of deep-sea core samples taken recently from the ocean floor south of Australia indicates that this theory needs reworking. The sampled sediments, which were deposited during the period when Australia and Antarctica were beginning to drift apart, show that cold-loving plankton, including diatoms and dinoflagellates, were common in the waters then located to the east of the two then-adjacent continents.
Even though men are often perceived to be at the top, especially in the corporate world, new gender research from Purdue University shows that men are not generally the preferred gender. This new research shows that when adults' automatic attitudes are measured, they have more positive feelings about women as a group. ''This seems contradictory to other research out there, because men generally enjoy higher status,'' said Stephanie Goodwin, an assistant professor of psychological sciences who studies the social cognitive effects of biases and prejudices. ''Even today, men are generally the ones in positions of power in the family and the workplace, and they tend to make more money.''
The form of vitamin E found in many plant seeds -- but not in most manufactured nutritional supplements -- might halt the growth of prostate and lung cancer cells, according to a Purdue University study. A team led by Qing Jiang (pronounced ''ching zhang'') has found that gamma-tocopherol, which occurs naturally in walnuts, pecans, sesame seeds, and in corn and sesame oils, inhibits the proliferation of lab-cultured human prostate and lung cancer cells. The vitamin's presence interrupts the synthesis of certain fatty molecules called sphingolipids, important components of cell membranes. However, the gamma-tocopherol leaves healthy human prostate cells unaffected, which could give it value as an anticancer agent.
A successful method for healing spinal injuries in dogs has been developed by Purdue University researchers, offering hope for preventing human paralysis. Lab tests have shown that an injection of a liquid polymer known as polyethylene glycol (PEG), if administered within 72 hours of serious spinal injury, can prevent most dogs from suffering permanent spinal damage. Even when the spine is initially damaged to the point of paralysis, the PEG solution prevents the nerve cells from rupturing irrevocably, enabling them to heal themselves.
Researchers have shown that artificial joints might be improved by making the implants out of tiny carbon tubes and filaments that are all aligned in the same direction, mimicking the alignment of collagen fibers and natural ceramic crystals in real bones. The researchers already have shown in a series of experiments that bone cells in Petri dishes attach better to materials that possess smaller surface bumps than are found on conventional materials used to make artificial joints. The smaller features also stimulate the growth of more new bone tissue, which is critical for the proper attachment of artificial joints once they are implanted.
