ASU Insight

Taking apple cider vinegar at bedtime favorably affects waking blood glucose in Type 2 diabetics, according to a preliminary study from ASU. --by Christine Lambrakis

A team of scientists has developed a new way to close the gaps in the global pollution dragnet using NASA satellite data. The technique uses satellite information to improve computer models of ozone events–filling in the blanks while expanding coverage to much larger areas. --by Nicholas Gerbis

Severely low-carbohydrate diets might help you lose weight fast, but they can also lead to bone loss, high cholesterol and low energy, according to ASU researchers and their colleagues. --by Christine Lambrakis

The unknown health and environmental effects of
nanotechnology are a bigger worry for scientists than for the public,
according to a new report. --by Skip Derra

An ASU research team, led by John Chaput, is trying to mimic the process of Darwinian evolution in the laboratory by evolving new proteins from scratch. Using new tricks of molecular biology, the scientists have evolved several new proteins in a fraction of the 3 billion years it took nature.--by Joe Caspermeyer

As consumer electronics such as MP3 players and digital cameras shrink, the need to put more memory in a smaller space grows. Traditional electronics begin to break down at the nanoscale, or molecular level. Researchers at ASU are working to overcome these limitations using nanoionics, a technique for moving ions around on a chip. --by Nicholas Gerbis

New research from the Deep Time Drilling Project indicates that traces of oxygen appeared in Earth's atmosphere earlier than previously thought. The discovery places the traces at 50 to 100 million years before the "Great Oxidation Event." --by Carol Hughes

A new ASU nutrition study has shown that eating a half-cup of pinto beans per day resulted in an 8 percent average drop in total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol. --by Christine Lambrakis

The discovery of a dozen 3-foot-tall "hobbit" skeletons in Indonesia generated heated debate among anthropologists. Do the fossils reveal a new species of early human, or were they simply modern humans with a shared genetic defect? The answers may lie in their wrist bones. Matt Tocheri is using 3D imaging technology to find out.--by Nicholas Gerbis

Space flight has been shown to have a profound impact on human physiology as the body adapts to zero gravity environments. New research shows that microbes are affected as well. Space flight may turn normal germs into highly infectious superbugs, according to Cheryl Nickerson. --by Joe Caspermeyer