Science

OPINION

Flu Fear Goes Viral on the Web

There's a very good reason why we call Internet memes and themes "viral." Good and bad information spreads on the Web in much the same way those nasty bundles of nucleic acid and proteins do when they attack your body's cells and make you sick. Some of the Internet news items I've seen related to th...

Consumer Reports has unleashed its findings on toxic levels of Bisphenol A in food packaging on a largely unsuspecting public. Before the report, many felt the BPA danger had passed with the introduction of BPA-free baby bottles and so-called microwave-safe plastics. Not so, says the report: Certain...

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology has developed technology that could help fight blindness. It's aimed at the millions of people impacted by two of the major causes of blindness: age-related macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa. The MIT project is one of several that use a physical ...

Talk of a flu pandemic has evolved into a bit of flu panic. Rumors fly as some people die and others deny. Much of this fevered buzz is on and around the Internet. The fear that the Internet itself will crash is growing. The alarm is based on the presumption that as the flu spreads, so does the base...

Although not quite the equivalent of Star Trek's tricorder, GE's Vscan represents a long step forward in mobile medical technology. The handheld device does on-the-go ultrasound readings only, but those readings can give doctors faster, more in-depth info than the best of preliminary doctor exam rou...

It seems that no vaccine in recent history has met with as much public suspicion and fear as the new H1N1 vaccine. Commonly referred to as the "swine flu," H1N1 causes a wide range of symptoms, from mild to lethal. The body count is already high for this time of year, and it is expected to soar much...

In a modern age paradox, the Internet has become a source of both edification and addiction. Teens are required to spend hours on the Web doing research and homework for school, but constant online activity can affect young minds in seriously bad ways, according to a new study. Although earlier stud...

The European Union has updated volume standards for portable devices that play music, such as MP3 players and mobile phones. Going forward, new products will be required to maintain their default setting at 80 decibels. The new rules upgrade EU directives CEN, CENELEC and ETSI, which require that wa...

Tests of a promising new gene therapy to treat Alzheimer's disease are moving to the phase II level, bringing the reversal of dementia damage one step closer to becoming a real medical possibility. Developed by scientists in The Memory Disorders Program at Georgetown University, CERE-110 is a virus ...

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has determined who will get the vaccine for the H1N1 flu virus in the event of a shortage, but the priority groups don't line up well with the groups most likely to die from the disease. The H1N1 vaccine priority groups, in order, are pregnant women; pe...

The focus of a U.S. Senate hearing Monday afternoon is the potential danger of cellphone use -- specifically, the risk of brain cancer. That link was suggested as long ago as last decade, when cellphones were slightly smaller than a shoebox and just beginning to become part of the everyday landscape...

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, or ADHD, stems from a biological problem with the brain's chemistry that controls feelings of reward and motivation, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The research was coauthored by medical doctors Nora Vo...

Dell is expanding its electronic medical records offerings with a new hardware, software and service bundle designed to help hospitals ease the transition from paper to digital records. The service is an end-to-end solution that touches upon all aspects of this process in the hospital setting, Dell ...

As the DARPA approaches its self-imposed deadline to make high-tech prosthetics that begin to approach the abilities of natural limbs by 2009, the research communities that have made it happen are beginning to ask, "Can we create companies that can turn a mind-blowing prototype or demo into real pro...

The Food and Drug Administration is looking into reports that orlistat, a drug used to control obesity, might have played a role in 32 cases of liver injury that occurred between 1998 and 2008. The FDA is also investigating an undisclosed number of other cases of liver damage that might be related t...

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