Science Sunday: Wrap-up of recent advancements in science from EurekAlert!

Wireless energy transfer can potentially recharge laptops, cell phones without cords:

Recharging your laptop computer -- and also your cell phone and a variety of other gadgets -- might one day be doable in the same convenient way many people now surf the Web: wirelessly. A Massachusetts Institute of Technology team will present research on the physics of electromagnetic fields, showing how wireless energy could power future gadgets. The MIT team is also working on demonstrating the technology in practice.

U-M researchers use nanoparticles to target brain cancer:

Tiny particles one-billionth of a meter in size can be loaded with high concentrations of drugs designed to kill brain cancer. What's more, these nanoparticles can be used to image and track tumors as well as destroy them, according to researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

'Trojan Horse' agent halts bone metastasis in mice:

A novel vascular targeting agent completely prevented the development of bone tumors in 50 percent of the mice tested in a preclinical study, providing early evidence that it could treat, or thwart, growth of tumors in bone, a common destination for a number of cancers when they start to spread.

New genetic test predicts risk of metastasis in patients with deadly eye cancer:

Doctors at UCLA's Jules Stein Eye Institute have pioneered the first technique to biopsy tumor tissue from the living eye and test it for a genetic marker linked to aggressive metastasis. The new test is life-changing, because ocular melanoma doesn't just cause blindness -- it can kill you in as quickly as a year.

Significant reduction in blood pressure with implantable device system:

A device first implanted in the United States at the University of Rochester Medical Center as part of a clinical trial is showing a significant reduction in blood pressure in patients who suffer from severe hypertension and cannot control their condition with medications or lifestyle changes.

Silver bullet: UGA researchers use laser, nanotechnology to rapidly detect viruses:

Using nanotechnology, a team of University of Georgia researchers has developed a diagnostic test that can detect viruses as diverse as influenza, HIV and RSV in 60 seconds or less. In addition to saving time, the technique -- which is detailed in the November issue of the journal Nano Letters -- could save lives by rapidly detecting a naturally occurring disease outbreak or bioterrorism attack.

SimCity for real:

Social policy makers and town planners will soon be able to play "SimCity" for real using grid computing and e-Science techniques to test the consequences of their policies on a real, but anonymous, model of the UK population.

MIT math model could aid natural gas production:

IT engineers have developed a mathematical model that could help energy companies produce natural gas more efficiently and ensure a more reliable supply of this valuable fuel. The researchers are now collaborating with experts at Shell to apply the model to a natural gas production system in Malaysia.

Scientists use pixels to ease amputees' pain:

Scientists at the University of Manchester are using 3-D computer graphics to combat the pain suffered by amputees.

Nearly unbreakable:

Max Planck Scientists discover a novel construction principle at the nanoscale which prevents bones from breaking at excessive force.