Next-Generation Retinal Implant

On Thursday, scientists at the University of Southern California (USC) announced their plans to test an improved retinal implant in blind patients. The new implant, which scientists hope will improve patients' vision even more, has four times the resolution of the previous version.

"My expectation, without really knowing what is going to happen, is that this will be useful for people in allowing them to find a lit doorway or the edge of an object when going into a room," says James Weiland, a scientist at USC involved in the project.
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DNA Bar-Coding Finds New Birds

A new approach to cataloguing biodiversity, known as DNA bar-coding, has identified more than a dozen potentially new North American bird species previously overlooked by legions of ecologists and bird-watchers. The birds, which are largely indistinguishable from previously known species by look or sound, were identified by slight variations in a tiny piece of DNA.

Researchers ultimately hope to use the technique to create a database of almost all life on earth. "These findings set the groundwork to expand this initiative not just in birds but across animal life and beyond," says Mark Stoeckle, a molecular biologist at Rockefeller University in New York City, who was involved in the project.
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Regrowing Teeth

According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the average American will lose about eight teeth by the time he or she turns 50. Common replacements include dentures, which have been known to erode the underlying bone over time, and dental implants, which are prone to falling out after several years' use. Thus, the ability to regrow a natural tooth, with the accompanying bone, root, and nerves, could provide a significantly healthier alternative for many.

Recently, a Japanese team from the Tokyo University of Science, led by associate professor Takashi Tsuji, reported in Nature Methods that it had successfully regrown a tooth from cells extracted from mouse embryos. The researchers were able to transplant the tooth into an adult mouse, and the tooth bud continued to grow to full size.
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New Sub Dives Crushing Depths

Scientists at the University of Washington have developed an autonomous underwater vehicle that can stay out to sea for up to a year and dive to depths of nearly 9,000 feet -- nearly three times deeper than the deepest-diving military submarines.
Known as Deepglider, the 71-inch long, 138-pound device is made of carbon fiber that can withstand the deep ocean's immense pressure. The energy-efficient, battery-powered glider carries sensors to measure oceanic conditions including salinity and temperature -- information that is key to understanding climate change. When the measurements are complete, Deepglider rises to the surface and transmits the data via satellite to onshore scientists.
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Surveillance Cameras Get Smarter

The next time you walk by a shop window, take a glance at your reflection. How much do you swing your arms? Is the weight of your bag causing you to hunch over? Do you still have a bit of that 1970s disco strut left?

Look around - You might not be the only one watching. The never-blinking surveillance cameras, rapidly becoming a part of daily life in public and even private places, may be sizing you up as well. And they may soon get a lot smarter.

Researchers and security companies are developing cameras that not only watch the world but also interpret what they see. Soon, some cameras may be able to find unattended bags at airports, guess your height or analyze the way you walk to see if you are hiding something.
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A Better Artificial Skin

A patient's skin cells, genetically modified and grown in a test tube, could provide the next generation of artificial skin. As a first step in creating such replacement skin, scientists in Cincinnati have engineered bacteria-resistant skin cells in the lab and are now testing them in animals. Ultimately, they hope to produce a type of artificial skin that can sweat, tan, and fight off infection.

"We're using genetic modification to try to get the cultured skin to behave more like normal skin," says Dorothy Supp, a researcher at the Cincinnati Shriners Hospital for Children who led the project.
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Imaging pinpoints brain regions that ’see the future’

Human memory, the ability to recall vivid mental images of past experiences, has been studied extensively for more than a hundred years. But until recently, there’s been surprisingly little research into cognitive processes underlying another form of mental time travel — the ability to clearly imagine or “see” oneself participating in a future event.
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Scientists discover early key to regeneration

Science may be one step closer to understanding how a limb can be grown or a spinal cord can be repaired. Scientists at The Forsyth Institute have discovered that some cells have to die for regeneration to occur. This research may provide insight into mechanisms necessary for therapeutic regeneration in humans, potentially addressing tissues that are lost, damaged or non- functional as a result of genetic syndromes, birth defects, cancer, degenerative diseases, accidents, aging and organ failure. Through studies of the frog (Xenopus) tadpole, the Forsyth team examined the cellular underpinnings of regeneration.
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Nanoparticle assembly enters the fast lane

The speed of nanoparticle assembly can be accelerated with the assistance of the molecule that carries life’s genetic instructions, DNA, a team of researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory recently found. Nanoparticles, particles with dimensions on the order of billionths of a meter, could potentially be used for more efficient energy generation and data storage, as well as improved methods for diagnosing and treating disease. Learning how to control and tailor the assembly of these miniscule particles into larger functional systems remains a major challenge for scientists.
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How does your brain respond when you think about gambling or taking risks?

Should you leave your comfortable job for one that pays better but is less secure? Should you have a surgery that is likely to extend your life but poses some risk that you will not survive the operation? Should you invest in a risky startup company whose stock may soar even though you could lose your entire investment? In the Jan. 26 issue of the journal Science, UCLA psychologists present the first neuroscience research comparing how our brains evaluate the possibility of gaining versus losing when making risky decisions.
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Robotic exoskeleton replaces muscle work

A robotic exoskeleton controlled by the wearer’s own nervous system could help users regain limb function, which is encouraging news for people with partial nervous system impairment, say University of Michigan researchers.

The ankle exoskeleton developed at U-M was worn by healthy subjects to measure how the device affected ankle function. The U-M team has no plans to build a commercial exoskeleton, but their results suggest promising applications for rehabilitation and physical therapy, and a similar approach could be used by other groups who do build such technology.
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