November 2006 |
Biologists Invent Chemical-free Device To Kill Head Lice | |||
|
NSF-supported biologists have invented a chemical-free, hairdryer-like device, the "LouseBuster," and conducted a study showing it eradicated head lice infestations on children. The machine exterminated lice eggs, or "nits," and killed enough lice to prevent their reproduction. Treatments for lice have traditionally included chemical shampoos, louse combs and home remedies. Annual U.S. sales of anti-louse shampoos exceed $160 million, yet they are not very effective at killing the nits. Repeat treatments are often required, and many parents dislike using insecticide shampoos on children. Lice are also rapidly evolving resistance to the chemicals. The LouseBuster blows warm air through a flexible hose, which has a rake-like hand piece on the end. In one 30-minute treatment, it kills lice and nits by drying them out. Comparatively, chemical treatments require multiple applications one to two weeks apart. The LouseBuster is in the early stages of commercial development by a University of Utah spin-off company, Larada Sciences. Patents are pending on the LouseBuster technology, which the researchers hope will be on the market within two years for use in schools and clinics. See NSF's "LouseBuster Instrument Shown to Kill Head Lice" for more on this medical breakthrough. | ||
Computers "Think" and Name Images | |||
|
Penn State researchers supported by NSF "taught" computers how to interpret images using a vocabulary of up to 330 English words, so that a computer can describe a photograph of two polo players, for instance, as "sport," "people," "horse," and "polo." The new system, which can automatically annotate entire online collections of photographs as they are uploaded, will result in a significant time-savings for the millions of Internet users who now manually tag or identify their images. It will also facilitate retrieval of images through the use of search terms. Penn State has filed a provisional patent application on the invention. See Penn State's "Researchers Teach Computers How to Name Images By Thinking" for more on the computer's vocabulary. |
||
Biodiversity Loss in Ocean Threatens Ecosystem and Economy | |||
An international team of ecologists and economists reported that the loss of species biodiversity is profoundly reducing the ocean's ability to produce seafood, resist diseases, filter pollutants and rebound from stresses such as overfishing and climate change. Already, 29% of edible fish and seafood species have declined by 90% -- a drop that means the collapse of these fisheries. |
|||
|
||
A team of scientists from the NSF Science and Technology Center for Ultrafast Optics and the University of Michigan's Medical School’s Kellogg Eye Center developed the high-precision laser technology that underpins the popular LASIK eye surgery. From July to September of 2006, more than 132,000 IntraLase® procedures were performed worldwide, resulting in vision improvement for many. |
NSF is set to ring in the International Polar Year that will explore new frontiers in polar science. We caught up with Gretchen Hofmann, an NSF-funded researcher, at McMurdo Station in Antarctica during her interview with "Good Morning America." We listened in and learned about some of the exciting work that's taking place at one of the world's southernmost research stations. | |||||||||||||||
How do the animals adapt to the long periods of darkness? Hofmann: Under the sea ice -- which right now is anywhere from 3 to 21 feet thick -- there's a teaming life. There's a really rich benthos, sea stars, fish, all sorts of different organisms that we would see in temperate areas. Here in the polar regions, they're highly adapted to these very, very cold temperatures. And right now, we have research programs under way to study how these organisms are adapted to these extreme conditions. During the International Polar Year (IPY), we're focusing on how these organisms survive in such extreme conditions. How does what you're learning there help us back at home? Hofmann: The organisms down here -- although they're cooler and they're unusual -- show us how animals that never see any change in temperature function. And by looking at that, it really tells a little bit about what we can expect to see in organisms that may or may not be able to respond to changes in ocean temperatures and other things in other parts of oceans. Second, one of the things that's really hidden about this wonderful NSF-supported research program is the really strong education component. I have my graduate students down here; we have teachers here. We're bringing this really exciting science home to everyone. How cold is it right now? Hofmann: It's really cold! The air temperature dropped to about 20 below zero, Fahrenheit. And we have about a 20-knot wind, which makes the wind chill probably 30 below. So, it's chilly! |
|
||||||||||||||
(back to top) | |||||||||||||||
What Competitiveness Crisis -- U.S. News & World Report (11/20/06) -- National Science Foundation figures show that U.S. universities awarded more science and engineering Ph.D.s last year than ever before, but that 41 percent of the degrees went to foreign-born students. Marshall Receives Grant to Train Teachers in Math, Science -- Associated Press (11/17/06) -- Marshall University has received a $2 million National Science Foundation grant under the Appalachian Math and Science Partnership program administered by the University of Kentucky to help teachers in pre-K through 12th grade improve student performance in math and science. Grid and Bear It -- Government Computer News (11/20/06) -- The National Science Foundation in 2001 spent $53 million to build the TeraGrid network, which today links eight supercomputing facilities. Asia's New Gods -- Newsweek (11/13/06) -- National Science Foundation figures show that the U.S. share of global high-tech exports dropped from 31 percent to 18 percent between 1980 and 2001 while Asia's share increased from 7 percent to 25 percent. |
|
|
|||||
|
|||||
(back to top) | |||||
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science with an annual budget of nearly $5.58 billion. NSF funding reaches all 50 states through grants to roughly 1,700 universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives about 40,000 competitive requests for funding and makes about 10,000 new funding awards. The NSF also awards over $400 million in professional and service contracts yearly. Contact NSF's Office of Legislative and Public Affairs for more information, to unsubscribe, or for permission to reuse newsletter images. |
|