Health information written by a doctor is rated as more credible when it appears on a Web site than in a blog or a homepage, according to a study of college students. The findings highlight the relative importance of different online sources to people who seek health information on the Internet. "Most people look for health information online by keying disease symptoms into various search engines," said S. Shyam Sundar, distinguished professor of communications, Penn State. "But the results of that search could range from experts at the Mayo Clinic to somebody's personal blog." (more)
The Volvo Group has chosen Penn State as its first academic preferred partnership in North America to explore and resolve some of the serious issues in commercial transportation markets around the world. "We are very excited that our Academic Partner Program now covers Sweden, France and the U.S.A.," said Jan-Eric Sundgren, head, public affairs and environmental issues, Volvo Group. "This program shows our commitment to form a long-term strategic partnership that will strengthen the competitiveness of both the Volvo Group and our academic partners. Penn State already had ongoing activities in several areas such as student co-operative assignments, advanced engineering studies, biofuel research and vehicle system testing." (more)
A common plant virus lures aphids to infected plants by making the plants more attractive, but when the insects taste the plant, they quickly leave for tastier, healthier ones. In the process, the insects rapidly transmit the disease, according to Penn State entomologists. This type of host alteration has implications beyond agriculture. If pathogens can alter hosts to make transmission more efficient, they may be doing it in insect-transmitted human diseases, such as malaria or dengue fever. (more)
Self-propagating worms are malicious computer programs, which, after being released, can spread throughout networks without human control, stealing or erasing hard drive data, interfering with pre-installed programs and slowing, even crashing, home and work computers. Now a new code, or algorithm, created by Penn State researchers targets the "stealthiest" of these worms, containing them before an outbreak can occur. (more)
Light is better than radio waves when it comes to some wireless communications, according to Penn State engineers. Optical communications systems could provide faster, more secure communications with wider bandwidth and would be suitable for restricted areas like hospitals, aircraft and factories. (more)
Improved delivery of end-of-life care in prison is the focus of a $1.27-million grant from the National Institute of Nursing Research that has Penn State researchers working with employees from six Pennsylvania prisons and the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections. The project will develop an intervention toolkit for use by staff at any prison in the country. End-of-life care -- an attempt to optimize the quality of life for dying patients -- includes hospice and palliative care, and aims to alleviate symptoms and suffering during advanced chronic illness. (more)
Computer simulations for drought-prone areas reveal that when urban water planners combine three approaches of buying water -- permanent rights, options and leases -- the city avoids surplus water and high costs, and reduces shortages, according to civil engineers. "Just like with stock portfolios, if you buy diverse stocks, you diversify your risk," said Patrick Reed, associate professor of civil engineering, Penn State. "Right now, cities don't necessarily diversify their risk through the ways in which they buy water." (more)
The potential effects of climate change on the spread of infectious diseases, such as malaria and dengue fever, are the focus of a nearly $1.9 million grant from the National Science Foundation intended to further the studies of a Penn State-led group of researchers. The grant is part of federal stimulus funding authorized under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. (more)
Modifications to a program originally aimed at strengthening families have shown that parents improved their ability to control anger, exhibited less negativity and acted more positively toward their children, according to preliminary testing by Penn State researchers. (more)
A majority of Pennsylvania's mobile home residents say they are overwhelmingly satisfied with their homes despite problems like construction quality, social stigma and financing associated with them, according to Penn State geographers. "The fact that there are problems associated with living in a mobile home was not a surprise to us," said Destiny Aman, graduate student in geography. "But, residents were overwhelmingly satisfied with their housing choice despite the problems, and that points to a real opportunity for housing policy to address issues and improve the quality of life for mobile home residents." (more)
