Peer Reviewed

Japanese researchers find compound disrupts mRNA quality control

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam – The world’s major rice-producing nations – including China and India – are calling for closer collaboration in efforts to feed Asia’s billions of rice consumers in the face of unprecedented new challenges.

Assistant Prof. Junichi Ushiba of Faculty of Science and Technology succeeded to develop Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) technology that enable people stroll through the virtual world of Second Life® (*1) using their own imagination. This project is the first to apply the technology to an Internet virtual world.

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Life’s a beach, Genes tell our evolutionary tale, The shadowy genome, Biggest black hole has even bigger companion, Rise and shine, Gene essential to sperm production identified, Old trick, new dog, A sunny outlook for nanowires and Sex determination linked to fitness

Research conducted over the period of 10 years among rural women entrepreneurs in Malaysia revealed that women’s involvement in micro enterprise contributed significantly (about 30%) to the family income and was able to bring the family out of poverty.

Superheated water under high pressure can be used to break down dead animal waste into useful amino acids

These 2 papers from the Asian Institute of Technology outlines problems faced and possible solutions for e-governance in Bangladesh

Other papers include The brain and feeding, I can see clearly now, Count down, and up, Negative light brings positive aspects to semiconductors, Using biomarkers to predict Alzheimer’s disease, Genetic risk factor for colorectal cancer and Cost-effective individual genome sequencing

A new approach proves that the nuclear force is strongly repulsive at close distances

Asymmetry in neutrons produced by proton collisions makes a good detector for spin-polarized protons photo

Innovative use of existing film technology may lead to a new type of thin-film display photo

Hiroyuki Kamiguchi and team members aim to elucidate the mechanism of how the neuronal processes find their way, and to develop techniques to regenerate neuronal networks that have been injured owing to brain or spinal cord damage.

RIKEN has taken on the challenge of developing the world’s fastest and most efficient supercomputer.

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Climate change: Getting steamy, Genomics: Evolution in the lab, Planetary science: Tiger stripes, jets and Enceladus and Materials: Ferrotoroidic ordering found

The avian flu virus H5N1 infects the respiratory tract and spreads to other organs in the human body. Other highlights from Nature China include Endometrial cancer, Turn pollution into power, Colon cancer and heart disease, Climate change and dust storms and Helical nanofibres

The Bang Pa Canal in Thailand is a vital source of fresh water for many area farmers but due to dumping of untreated wastewater into the canal, it's water quality is severely deteriorated. This recently launched project by the Asian Institute of Technology will benefit 900 households in 7 villages.

Hanoi, Vietnam – In the face of growing pressure on one of Asia’s most important food production systems, experts are warning that farmers must get more help to make them more efficient.

Research by the Asian Institute of Technology has shown that companies which include corporate social responsibilities within their corporate strategies will be the successful companies of the future.

Summaries of other newsworthy papers include Materials: Domains of influence and Fighting off an immune attack

A new route to synthesize an antibiotic may also lead to new drugs

Squashed carbon balls show promising electronic properties

Physicists have long known that, when cooled to very low temperatures, electrons can be placed on the surface of liquefied helium. Now, researchers from RIKEN and Keio University have discovered they can effectively excite these electrons using microwave radiation.

New development to contribute to the application of quantum codes that will be essential for absolutely secure information management.

Of the world’s many bird species, the Pink-headed Duck has long been a mystery. It has not been seen since 1935, in northeast India (Bangladesh). It is so strangely coloured that, even after reading this book, some people question whether such a bird can really exist.

The issue of social reproduction is becoming central to the increasingly marginalized status of migrants both in Thailand and in Burma, particularly the issue of babies born to Burmese migrant workers in Thailand, which is creating a whole generation of stateless children.

When ASEAN took in Myanmar as a partner, Myanmar’s fate becomes ASEAN’s fate. This review outlines ASEAN's decisive role, Buddhism in Myanmar, a previous rebellion led by monks and why Than Shwe and his junta must not be overthrown.

In this week's Nature, Yasunobu Uchiyama and colleagues from the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, Japan report the discovery of a brightening and decay in the X-ray emitting shells around a supernova.

Summaries of newsworthy papers include Anaesthesia without paralysis, Cancer: Stem cells and metastasis, High-temperature superconductivity: An organic perspective, Physics: A single artificial-atom laser and Supercurrents in a Bose-Einstein condensate

Nature reports on how the National Science Foundation (NSF) is looking into how researchers account for time spent on federally funded projects. Auditors have found that the records kept are often not accurate, undermining the ability of the NSF to ensure that its grants are spent appropriately.

Through many decades, the Golden Triangle, led by Myanmar, has been competing with the 'Golden Crescent' --the poppy-growing region in and around Afghanistan, and originally including also Turkey -- for the position of the main opium-producing area in the world.