Portable devices with painless laser beams could soon replace X-rays as a non-invasive way to diagnose disease. Researchers say that the technique could become widely available in about five years. The method, called Raman spectroscopy, could help spot the early signs of breast cancer, tooth decay and osteoporosis.
Scientists believe that the technology would make the diagnosis of illnesses faster, cheaper and more accurate. Raman spectroscopy is the measurement of the intensity and wavelength of scattered light from molecules.
Painless laser device could spot early signs of disease
After 10 years in US, abortion pill still divisive
Ten years ago, after long and bitter debate, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved use of the abortion pill by American women. It is hailed as safe and effective, but new turmoil may lie ahead as the pill's proponents consider using telemedicine to make it more available.
Already, a pioneering telemedicine program in Iowa has provided the pill to about 1,900 women - with a doctor able to consult with a faraway patient in a video teleconference, then unlock a container by remote control to release the pill. To the alarm of anti-abortion activists, abortion providers in other states are pondering whether similar programs would enable them to serve more women, especially in rural areas.
Diesel Dangers: Mining Companies Get First Look at Government Cancer Study
A long-delayed government epidemiological study of possible ties between diesel exhaust and lung cancer in miners may finally be published this fall -- but only after a mining industry group, represented by the Washington lobbying powerhouse Patton Boggs, finishes a pre-publication review of the study's drafts.
Eighteen years in the making and eagerly awaited by public health officials, the cancer study evaluates more than 12,000 current and former workers from eight mines that produce commodities other than coal. Its goal is to determine whether ultrafine diesel particulate matter -- a component of exhaust from diesel-powered machinery -- poses a serious hazard to miners in confined spaces.
Confession Video: US Soldier Describes Thrill Kill of Innocent Afghans
Dressed in a t-shirt and Army shorts, a 22-year-old corporal from Wasilla, Alaska casually describes on a video tape made by military investigators how his unit's "crazy" sergeant randomly chose three unarmed, innocent victims to be murdered in Afghanistan.
Corporal Jeremy N. Morlock is one of five GI's charged with pre-meditated murder in a case that includes allegations of widespread drug use, the collection of body parts and photos of the U.S. soldiers holding the Afghan bodies like hunter's trophies.
Segway company owner dies riding Segway off cliff
The multi-millionaire owner of Segway was killed Sunday after driving one of the company's popular two-wheeled vehicles off a cliff, British newspapers reported.
Heselden, 62, made millions after inventing a bullet-proof defense shield that became standard equipment for NATO, as well as for British and U.S. troops.
Segway was bought by a British company backed by Heselden.
$93,000 cancer drug: How much is a life worth?
Cancer patients, brace yourselves. Many new drug treatments cost nearly $100,000 a year, sparking fresh debate about how much a few months more of life is worth.
For the last decade, new cancer-fighting drugs have been topping $5,000 a month. Only a few of these keep cancer in remission so long that they are, in effect, cures. For most people, the drugs may buy a few months or years. Insurers usually pay if Medicare pays. But some people have lifetime caps and more people are uninsured because of job layoffs in the recession. The nation's new health care law eliminates these lifetime limits for plans that were issued or renewed on Sept. 23 or later.
Jewish billionaire funds J-Street
After months of denial, heads of pro-Israel, pro-peace US Jewish organization compelled to admit George Soros contributed to its establishment.
After months of denial, leaders of the pro-Israel organization J-Street have been compelled to admit their activities are partly funded by Jewish billionaire George Soros who, in his own words, refuses to be part of activities in support of Israel.
Anger as a Private Company Takes Over Libraries
A private company in Maryland has taken over public libraries in ailing cities in California, Oregon, Tennessee and Texas, growing into the country’s fifth-largest library system. Now the company, Library Systems & Services, has been hired for the first time to run a system in a relatively healthy city, setting off an intense and often acrimonious debate about the role of outsourcing in a ravaged economy.
A $4 million deal to run the three libraries here is a chance for the company to demonstrate that a dose of private management can be good for communities, whatever their financial situation.
Malware believed to be targeting Iran's nuclear power plant may have been created by Israeli hackers
A computer worm which targets industrial and factory systems is almost certainly the work of a national government agency, security experts told the Guardian – but warn that it will be near-impossible to identify the culprit.
The "Stuxnet" computer worm, which has been described as one of the "most refined pieces of malware ever discovered", has been most active in Iran, says the security company Symantec – leading some experts to conjecture that the likely target of the virus is the controversial Bushehr nuclear power plant, and that it was created by Israeli hackers.
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