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Comics have typically been shunned by educators and parents who want to promote literacy among children. After all, kids should be reading "real" books, which are more complex and require more effort to understand than colorful, picture-filled comic books.  But according to University of Illinois library scientist Carol L. Tilley, this critical view of comics is unnecessary--and even harmful. Tilley says that comics are just as sophisticated as other forms of literature, and children benefit from reading them at least as much as they do from reading other types of books.

A photograph of John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald holding a rifle and a copy of The Militant communist paper in 1963 is authentic, says Dartmouth Computer Scientist Hany Farid, a pioneer in the field of digital forensics, who digitally analyzed the iconic image of Oswald pictured in a backyard a few months before the assassination. Oswald and various conspiracy theorists claimed that the incriminating photo was a fake, stating the lighting and shadows were inconsistent, but after analyzing the photo with modern-day forensic tools, Farid says the photo almost certainly was not altered.Experts long ago said that this image had not been tampered with, but a surprising number of skeptics still assert that there was a conspiracy.

Everybody understands that good parents have to lay down rules for their children as they grow up. However, too many rules can be a bad thing, says a new report in Current Directions in Psychological Science.According to the authors, numerous studies have found that in Western countries, when parents are too strict with their children, they can impede their psychological development. It has also been suggested that this effect may not be as strong in East Asian countries — researchers have posited that certain aspects of East Asian culture may make children more accepting of their parents' intrusive behavior.

Scientists have successfully differentiated human embryonic stem cells (hESC) into major cell types of lung epithelial tissue, a technique which could provide an alternative to lung transplants for patients with lung injury due to chronic pulmonary disease and inherited genetic diseases such as cystic fibrosis.

Hormones called androgens are considered important in the development of masculine characteristics like aggression and strength and some believe that prenatal androgens affect finger length during development in the womb.High levels of androgens, such as testosterone, increase the length of the fourth finger in comparison to the second finger. Some archaeologists and anthropologists are using finger ratios as an indicator of the levels of exposure to the hormone and recently compared this data with social behavior in primate groups. 

While more than half the academic life science researchers responding to a 2007 survey indicated having some relationship with private industry, the prevalence of such relationships – particularly direct funding for research studies – appears to be dropping. The Results of a survey, appearing in the November/December 2009 issue of Health Affairs,also suggest that interest in commercial applications of research appears to be growing, even among investigators without industry funding. The new study is a follow-up to 1985 and 1995 surveys by members of the same team.

Capitalism isn't perfect.  Because business, like science, is about excellence and not fairness some people are going to make more money than other people.  Some are going to be better at marketing and some are even going to cheat.A professor in chemical engineering with no private sector experience has figured out how to redo capitalism so it works great - in a numerical model.

The details of your personal life, such as grocery purchases, pizza topping preferences and Amazon wish lists, are collected every day ― by both websites and traditional retailers. Thoughthis data seems fairly innocuous, when it's put together it can tell whoever is gathering it awhole lot about your health, finances and behavior; and that means it can easily be used against you.Dr. Michael Birnhack of Tel Aviv University's Faculty of Law and Prof. Niva Elkin-Koren from the University of Haifa recently completed a comprehensive study on information privacy laws in Israel and found compelling reasons for lawmakers everywhere to take notice.

With the publication of a paper in the upcoming issue of Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, science has finally confirmed what most people have long thought. According to the study, physical appearance says a lot when seeing someone for the first time. What most people likely don't know, however, is that first impressions based solely on appearance are actually fairly accurate.

With the help of inebriated fruit flies, scientists have discovered an entire network of genes the tiny creatures share with humans that help explain why some people tolerate alcohol better than others and may one day lead to a cure for alcoholism. Their findings also yield more information about the negative side effects of excessive drinking, like liver damage. The study appears in the October issue of the Genetics.

Patients with early stage, non-small cell lung cancer who are not able to undergo surgery, now have a highly effective treatment option. Physicians say that option, radical stereotactic radiosurgery performed with CyberKnife, leads to a 100 percent overall survival after threeyears in patients with good lung function before treatment. These results were presented today at the annual CHEST meeting in San Diego.For patients with small tumors characterized as early-stage disease, surgical removal of the affected lobe (lobectomy) is the standard of care. However, surgery is sometimes not an option because of other pre-existing medical conditions such as emphysema or heart disease.

Richard P. Phipps, Ph.D., professor of Environmental Medicine, Microbiology and Immunology, and of Pediatrics at the University of Rochester Medical Center cautions that during flu vaccination season many common pain killers – Advil, Tylenol, aspirin – at the time of injection may blunt the effect of the shot and have a negative effect on the immune system.A study by researchers in the Czech Republic reported similar findings in the Oct. 17, 2009, edition of The Lancet. They found that giving acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol, to infants weakens the immune response to vaccines.