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ACS News Service Weekly PressPac: February 03, 2010

ACS News Service Weekly PressPac: February 03, 2010

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News Items in This Edition

Scientists in Poland are describing how a medical imaging technique has taken on a second life in revealing forgery of an artist’s signature and changes in inscriptions on paintings that are hundreds of years old. A report on the technique, called optical coherence tomography (OCT), is in ACS’ Accounts of Chemical Research, a monthly journal. Piotr Targowski notes that easel...

Scientists in Texas are reporting that a technique used in the search for new drugs could also be used in the quest to discover new, environmentally friendly materials for fighting global warming. Such materials could be used to capture the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from industrial smokestacks and other fixed sources before it enters the biosphere. The new study appears in ACS’...

Scientists have published the first report on a new way of preventing potentially harmful plasticizers — the source of long-standing human health concerns — from migrating from one of the most widely used groups of plastics. The advance could lead to a new generation of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastics that are safer than those now used in packaging, medical tubing, toys, and other products...

In an advance with overtones of Star Trek phasers and other sci-fi ray guns, scientists in Canada are reporting development of an internal on-off “switch” that paralyzes animals when exposed to a beam of ultraviolet light. The animals stay paralyzed even when the light is turned off. When exposed to ordinary light, the animals become unparalyzed and wake up. Their study appears in the Journal....

Amid concern about the potential toxic effects of the fluorochemicals used in nonstick cookware, water-repellent clothing, and other consumer products, manufacturers are using new versions of these chemicals that may be safer. That’s the topic of the cover story in the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), ACS’ weekly newsmagazine. C&EN Senior Editor Stephen K. Ritter cites indications that long-chain compounds like perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) can cause…

Journalists’ Resources

  • Media Registration ACS 239th National Meeting, March 21-25, 2010, San Francisco
    News media accreditation and housing reservations are now open for the 239th National Meeting & Exhibition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world’s largest scientific society. It will be held March 21-25 in San Francisco. Reporters and editors can apply for complimentary registration now at meeting registration. Hotel reservations and other information are available at housing.
  • Press releases, briefings, and more from ACS’ 238th National Meeting
    www.eurekalert.org/acsmeet.php

    http://www.ustream.tv/channel/acslive
  • Must-reads from C&EN: Valentine treats too sweet for words
    The cloyingly sweet taste of those tiny candy hearts and other Valentine’s Day treats are a reminder that too much of a good thing — sweet taste, in this case — can be bad. Food scientists actually are searching for sweetness inhibitors and zinc salts that block the perception of “sweet” as possible solutions. For a copy of the story, go to too sweet.
  • ACS Pressroom Blog The ACS Office of Public Affairs’ (OPA) pressroom blog highlights research from ACS’ 38 peer-reviewed journals and National Meetings.
  • Bytesize Science blog Educators and kids, put on your thinking caps: The American Chemical Society has a blog for Bytesize Science, a science podcast for kids of all ages.
  • ACS satellite pressroom: Daily news blasts on Twitter
    The satellite press room has become one of the most popular science news sites on Twitter. To get our news blasts and updates, create a free account at https://twitter.com/signup. Then visit http://twitter.com/ACSpressroom and click the ‘join’ button beneath the press room logo.
  • ACS Press Releases
    Press releases
    on a variety of chemistry-related topics.
  • General Chemistry Glossary
  • Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) Web site on everyday chemicals
    Whether you want to learn more about caffeine, benzoyl peroxide (acne treatment), sodium chloride (table salt), or some other familiar chemical, CAS Common Chemistry can help. The new Web site provides non-chemists and others with useful information about everyday chemicals by searching either a chemical name or a corresponding CAS Registry Number. The site includes about 7,800 chemicals of general interest as well as all 118 elements from the Periodic Table, providing alternative names, molecular structures, a Wikipedia link, and other information.
  • Science Connections from CAS
    CAS - Science Connections
    is a series of articles that showcases the value of CAS databases in light of important general-interest science and technology news. Topics range from fruit flies to Nobel Prize winners, with the CAS - Science Connections series pointing to CAS databases for a more complete understanding of the latest news.

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