Brent Christner, LSU professor of biological sciences, in partnership
with colleagues in Montana and France, recently found evidence that
rain-making bacteria are widely distributed in the atmosphere. These
biological particles could factor heavily into the precipitation
cycle,
affecting climate, agricultural productivity and even global warming.
Christner and his colleagues will publish their results in the
prestigious journal Science on Feb. 29.

Christner's team examined precipitation from global locations and
demonstrated that the most active ice nuclei – a substrate that
enhances the formation of ice – are biological in origin. This is
important because the formation of ice in clouds is required for snow
and most rainfall. Dust and soot particles can serve as ice nuclei,
but
biological ice nuclei are capable of catalyzing freezing at much
warmer
temperatures. If present in clouds, biological ice nuclei may affect
the
processes that trigger precipitation.

Chimp and human communication trace to same brain region
An area of the brain involved in the planning and production of spoken
and signed language in humans plays a similar role in chimpanzee
communication, researchers report online on February 28th in the
journal
Current Biology.
"Chimpanzee communicative behavior shares many characteristics with
human language," said Jared Taglialatela of the Yerkes National
Primate Research Center. "The results from this study suggest that
these similarities extend to the way in which our brains produce and
process communicative signals."

Just what is it about autism that produces the three hallmark
behaviors of social impairment, language difficulties, and rigidity,
or an "insistence on sameness'? Scientists at this year's Keystone
meeting on the pathophysiology of autism in Santa Fe, NM, are looking
for clues from a molecule we hear an awful lot about in discussions of
non-autistic brain activity: Serotonin.

It turns out that a significant number of children with autism -- up
to 30%% -- have elevated levels of serotonin in their blood. The vast
majority of that is stored in platelets, which carry a serotonin
transporter, also known as SERT, which brings in serotonin from the
gut. Not surprisingly, some doctors have found that selective
serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), the drugs-of-choice for
depression and related symptoms, help treat some aspects of autism,
such as anxiety and compulsive behaviors.

ScienceDaily (Feb. 28, 2008) — Research on autistic spectrum disorder
(ASD) shows that neurofeedback (EEG biofeedback) can remediate
anomalies in brain activation, leading to symptom reduction and
functional improvement. This evidence raises the hopes for a
behavioral, psychophysiological intervention moderating the severity
of ASD.

Autism is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by a lack of
appropriate eye contact, facial expression, social interaction,
communication, and restricted repetitive behavior. ASD represents a
group of disorders, including Autism, PDD-nos, Rett’s Disorder, Child
Disintegrative Disorder, and Asperger’s Disorder. The Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (2006) reported the prevalence of ASD
as 2 to 6 per 1,000.

This Is Your Brain On Jazz: Researchers Use MRI To Study Spontaneity,
Creativity

Because fMRI uses powerful magnets, the researchers designed an
unconventional
keyboard with no iron-containing metal parts that the magnets could
attract.
(Credit: iStockphoto/Eva Serrabassa)ScienceDaily (Feb. 28, 2008) - A
pair of
Johns Hopkins and government scientists have discovered that when jazz
musicians
improvise, their brains turn off areas linked to self-censoring and
inhibition,
and turn on those that let self-expression flow.

Dear members of this group,

You are invited to sign the open letter bellow to support teaching of
the theory of evolution and philosophical approaches on religion in
Romanian public schools, by sending us an email at
freedomofconscience@gmail.com no later than Monday, 24 March 2008.
The whole letter is below and the link to the open letter is here
(if the link doesn't work, please go to www.humanism.ro and then
English and you will find the details on this issue):

http://www.humanism.ro/articles.php?page=62&article=223

My best wishes,

Remus Cernea
Executive director
The Solidarity for Freedom of Conscience
www.humanism.ro
freedomofconscience@gmail.com
+4.0727.583.594

Open Letter to The Romanian Ministry of Education, Research, and Youth

Put the theory of evolution and philosophical approaches to religion
back in biology and philosophy curricula in Romanian public schools!

NYT
February 27, 2008

Drug-Resistant TB Rates at Record Levels
By LAWRENCE K. ALTMAN

Drug-resistant tuberculosis cases in parts of the former Soviet Union
have reached the highest rates ever recorded globally, the World
Health Organization said Tuesday. The rates could soar even higher,
spreading the potentially fatal disease elsewhere, a top W.H.O.
official said, releasing findings from the largest global survey of
the problem.

The highest rate was in Baku, Azerbaijan, where 22.3 percent of new
tuberculosis cases were resistant to the standard anti-TB drug regimen
during the survey period, from 2002 to 2006. That exceeded the
previous high of 14.2 percent, in Kazakhstan.

Drug-resistant TB is widespread in the Inner Mongolia and Heilongjiang
regions of China, where the rates are about 7.25 percent, the W.H.O.
said.

Autism's origins: Mother's antibody production may affect fetal brain

The mothers of some autistic children may have made antibodies against
their fetuses' brain tissue during pregnancy that crossed the placenta
and caused changes that led to autism, suggests research led by Johns
Hopkins Children's Center investigators and published in the February
issue of the Journal of Neuroimmunology.

The causes of autism, a disorder manifesting itself with a range of
brain problems and marked by impaired social interactions,
communication disorders and repetitive behaviors, remain unknown for
an estimated 90 percent of children diagnosed with it. Genetic,
metabolic and environmental factors have been implicated in various
studies of autism, a disorder affecting 1 in 150 U.S. children,
according to estimates by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention.

"Now our research suggests that the mother's immune system may be yet
another factor or a trigger in those already predisposed," says lead
investigator Harvey Singer, M.D., director of
pediatric neurology at Hopkins Children's.

NYT
February 26, 2008

Poll Finds a Fluid Religious Life in U.S.
By NEELA BANERJEE

WASHINGTON — More than a quarter of adult Americans have left the
faith of their childhood to join another religion or no religion,
according to a survey of religious affiliation by the Pew Forum on
Religion and Public Life.

The report, titled “U.S. Religious Landscape Survey,” depicts a highly
fluid and diverse national religious life. If shifts among Protestant
denominations are included, then it appears that 44 percent of
Americans have switched religious affiliations.

For at least a generation, scholars have noted that more Americans are
moving among faiths, as denominational loyalty erodes. But the survey,
based on telephone interviews with more than 35,000 Americans, offers
one of the clearest views yet of that trend, scholars said. The United
States Census does not track religious affiliation.

NYT
February 26, 2008
Findings
The Advantages of Closing a Few Doors
By JOHN TIERNEY
The next time you’re juggling options — which friend to see, which
house to buy, which career to pursue — try asking yourself this
question: What would Xiang Yu do?

Xiang Yu was a Chinese general in the third century B.C. who took his
troops across the Yangtze River into enemy territory and performed an
experiment in decision making. He crushed his troops’ cooking pots and
burned their ships.

He explained this was to focus them on moving forward — a motivational
speech that was not appreciated by many of the soldiers watching their
retreat option go up in flames. But General Xiang Yu would be
vindicated, both on the battlefield and in the annals of social
science research.