Science & Technology

TeitelbaumSteven Teitelbaum, professor of pathology and immunology, was one of several experts invited to testify before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee, chaired by Senator Arlen Specter, regarding the benefits of stem cell research. Read Teitelbaum’s testimony here.

Richard Burkhardt will examine the scientific, social and political aspects in the development of ethology as a modern science in his Thomas Hall Lecture at 4 p.m. on October 25. He teaches history at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and specializes in the history of evolutionary theory and ethology, which is the study of animal behavior by means of comparative zoological methods.

Designed to bring together great scientific minds in a comfortable, productive atmosphere, the Farrell Learning and Teaching Center became the new focal point at the School of Medicine in August. Read more about the $35 million state-of-the-art facility in the following St. Louis Post-Dispatch article.

Communities exposed to toxic lead emissions recently won an important victory in federal court through a case filed by the Interdisciplinary Environmental Clinic (IEC) at Washington University in St. Louis. “The court chastised the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for long-neglecting its duty to review the lead standard every five years, and placed the agency on a firm schedule for conducting the review,” says Maxine I. Lipeles, IEC director and professor of law and engineering. “Because the lead standard must be revised to protect public health, and the existing standard is out of date, we believe that the EPA is virtually required to revise the standard downward. That would help protect children in communities across the country where smelters and other facilities emit significant amounts of lead into the air. The decision should also caution the EPA to act more promptly in reviewing the other five national ambient air quality standards * for nitrogen oxides, ozone, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and particulate matter.”

Fish in ponds can be a flowering plant’s best friend, according to WUSTL ecologists.Fish and flowering plants would seem to have as much in common as pigs and beauty soap. But ecologists at Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Florida have found an amazing relationship between the different species that provides a new direction for understanding how ecosystems “hook up.” A team of researchers, headed by Tiffany Knight, Ph.D., Washington University assistant professor of biology in Arts & Sciences, has shown a correlation between the presence of fish in ponds and well-pollinated St. John’s wort (Hypericum fasciculatum, Hypericaceae) at a Florida research station.

Photo by David Kilper / WUSTL PhotoThoroughman (background) and Taylor tracked the moves that people make.Practice makes perfect when people learn behaviors, from baseball pitching to chess playing to public speaking. Biomedical engineers at Washington University in St. Louis have now identified how people use individual experiences to improve performance.

Photo by David Kilper / WUSTL PhotoScott (left) and Elbert looking for sticky proteins.Biomedical engineers at Washington University in St. Louis have found a new role for the blood protein serum amyloid P in the body’s response to medical materials, which may help to explain a variety of problems associated with heart-lung bypass, hemodialysis and the use of artificial vascular grafts. Donald Elbert, Ph.D., Washington University assistant professor of biomedical engineering, used advanced protein separations and mass spectrometry to track the proteins on the surfaces of various polymers used in medical devices. The analysis techniques, collectively called ‘proteomics,’ are most often used to study protein expression in cells.

In 1992, Mae Jemison climbed aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour and became the first woman of color to go into space. On Wed., Oct. 26, she will deliver the Black Arts & Sciences Festival lecture for the Assembly Series at 11 a.m. in Graham Chapel.

Nanoparticles attached to fibers in a blood clotNano-sized particles developed at the School of Medicine offer hope of replacing numerous medical tests, scans, or surgeries with a simple injection. The tiny spheres can travel through the bloodstream deep into the body to locate and highlight tumors undetectable by typical methods. While at the tumor site, the nanoparticles can deliver therapeutic agents to destroy the tumor.

Also known as the World Year of Physics, 2005 is featuring worldwide events of interest to physicists and the general public.