A new international study led by a Korean researcher has succeeded in identifying a gene linked with depression, which may create a new target for drugs for the mood disorder.In a series of experiments on rats, researchers found that a gene called neuritin in the brain plays a key role in depression and other mood disorders. They also discovered that by boosting the gene’s activity one can protect the brain from the disorders.To test whether neuritin is directly linked to depressed behavior, Son

June 26, 2012

KT has launched a new information and technology service targeting the industrial automotive industry.Korea’s second-largest mobile carrier said the new service, named “Smart Eco Drive,” is integrated with vehicle telematics applications and offers drivers real-time monitoring and analysis on the condition of their automobiles. Telematics is the combining of telecommunications and information technology, but commonly refers to automation in vehicles. Data including speed, driving time and locati

June 26, 2012

KT and the Wireless Broadband Alliance will be holding a conference called Wi-Fi Global Congress from June 26 to 28 in Seoul.KT, Korea’s second largest mobile carrier, said Tuesday that as the host of the international event, the company and some 80 telecom participants will seek ways to boost Wi-Fi roaming and develop new wireless technology via global partnerships.The three-day conference will aim to further make Wi-Fi roaming accessible around the world by the first half of 2013, KT noted.Con

June 26, 2012

Spurred by a classroom demonstration involving a sex toy, Tennessee recently enacted a pro-abstinence sex education law that is among the strictest in the nation.The most debated section of the bill bars educators from promoting "gateway sexual activity." But supporters seemed too squeamish during floor debate to specify what that meant, so critics soon labeled it the "no holding-hands bill."One t

June 26, 2012

SK Planet said Monday that the number of users of its mobile payment platform has exceeded 5 million since the company launched it two years ago.Named “Smart Wallet,” the mobile platform allows consumers to use coupons, gift cards, royalty and credit cards via their smartphones without having to carry all of different plastic cards for shopping.The platform was launched in June 2010, and hit 1 million users in nine months, and 3 million November last year, the company said.SK Planet, the mobile

June 25, 2012

The giant tortoise Lonesome George, whose failed efforts to produce offspring made him a symbol of disappearing species, was found dead on Sunday, officials at the Galapagos National Park announced.Lonesome George was believed to be the last living member of the Pinta island subspecies and had become an ambassador of sorts for the islands off Ecuador's coast whose unique flora and fauna helped ins

June 25, 2012

Stanford University researchers say they are working on a device that would allow them to “pretty much hack” into the brain of British genius Stephen Hawking.Professor Philip Low and his colleagues at Stanford in California have been working with the disabled British theoretical physicist to develop technology that would enable them to communicate with Hawking through brain waves, The Daily Telegraph reported Sunday.“We‘d like to find a way to bypass his body, pretty much hack his brain,” said L

June 25, 2012

Men who smoke before conception can damage the DNA of their offspring in the womb that may give him or her a higher risk of disease, British researchers say.Diana Anderson of the School of Life Sciences at the University of Bradford in England, and colleagues found evidence showing why men should be urged to stop smoking before trying to conceive in the same way women have been urged to quit tobacco. A fertile sperm cell takes about three months to fully develop; therefore men would ultimately n

June 25, 2012

Officials at the Houston Zoo said the "Apps for Apes" program, which provides apes with iPad apps designed for children, helps mentally stimulate the primates.Zookeepers said the facility is the first in Texas to participate in the "Apps for Apes" program, which was developed by New York primate advocacy group Orangutan Outreach and pioneered at zoos in Wisconsin and Toronto. The program helps to

June 22, 2012

CHICAGO (AP) ― The most common type of obesity surgery may increase patients’ chances for alcohol abuse, according to the largest study to demonstrate a potential link.Patients who had gastric bypass surgery faced double the risk for excessive drinking, compared with those who had a less drastic weight-loss operation.Gastric bypass surgery shrinks the stomach’s size and attaches it to a lower portion of the intestine. That limits food intake and the body’s ability to absorb calories. Researchers

June 21, 2012

Men who drink several cups of tea a day for decades have a higher risk of prostate cancer, researchers in Scotland say. Dr. Kashif Shafique of the Institute of Health & Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow and colleagues found those who drank more than seven cups of tea per day for years had a 50 percent higher risk of developing prostate cancer compared with non-tea drinkers or those drinking less than four cups per day.“Most previous research has shown either no relationship with prostate ca

June 21, 2012

Scientists succeeded in producing molecular-scale materials capable of carrying two or more substances that could function as carriers of biological species and diagnostic agents. A team led by professor Lee Eun-seong of the Catholic University of Korea produced particles comprised of two or more micelles by forming them on a silicate surface. A micelle is an aggregate of molecules whose poles have opposing affinity to water. The team then removed the micelles from the surface and succeeded in c

June 20, 2012