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The first ASME Asia Congress and Exhibition, sponsored by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), will be held in Singapore, September 30 to October 2, 1997, at the Singapore International Convention & Exhibition Centre. This conference provides a forum for engineers to examine environmental issues and technological advancements relevant to this region's industries, particularly those involved in power generation, offshore technology, oil and gas.

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Topics: Picking a sunscreen is easy if you follow some simple rules; Don't be shy about telling your eye care professional what to look for when you get glasses; Weight training in kids requires special precautions; Beware of once exotic bugs that can now pop up in your food supply.

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The M.W. Kellogg Company in Houston has pledged $100,000 to a foundation operated by ASME International (American Society of Mechanical Engineers), a gift which will be put toward programs to enhance science, technology and engineering throughout the world.

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IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Repeated exposure to molds often found in damp hay and grain can irritate the lungs causing a disease known as farmer's lung or hypersensitivity pneumonitis. The syndrome causes coughing and shortness of breath, and is "reasonably common in the Midwest," says Dr. Gary Hunninghake, University of Iowa professor of internal medicine, who has studied the disease for many years.

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Breeding trees that can be more easily processed into paper, with less harm to the environment, has long been a goal of researchers. Now, thanks to the discovery of abnormal, brown-colored wood in a mutant pine tree, scientists at North Carolina State University may be a step closer to achieving that goal.

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Government social welfare programs have helped create a less secure labor environment for the typical American worker by inadvertently harming family values, according to a new study by two University of Notre Dame economists.

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Big-cat expert, Dr. Alan Rabinowitz of the Wildlife Conservation Society, applauds last week's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service decision to list the jaguar as an endangered species on U.S. soil. Rabinowitz released a report last week on the status of jaguars in the southwest.

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Harvard Medical School and Children's Hospital researchers have achieved the first successful repair, in animals, of congenital anomalies by combining the emerging technologies of video-guided fetal surgery and the engineering of a scarce commodity--live replacement tissue.

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A study of first and second-generation African Caribbeans living in England found many undiagnosed cases of high blood pressure and more whose blood pressure medications were not adequately controlling their hypertension. It is the first study to focus on blood pressure, dietary salt and salt sensitivity among first and second-generation African Caribbeans living in the United Kingdom.

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British colleagues warned Baltimore hypertension researcher Dr. Elijah Saunders that he would not be able to recruit enough African Caribbeans for a study of high blood pressure and dietary salt. He not only signed up the 150 he needed, he has 200 more waiting in line.

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Sales managers have low expectations when African-Americans apply for professional sales jobs, but according to a study conducted at the University of South Florida, that can have a paradoxical effect: interested, qualified African-Americans may be seen as even more qualified than equally-qualified Caucasians.

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Atlantic City, N.J., was a relative cool spot as it broke five low temperature records and tied another in June, while Baltimore tallied three low temperature records, and Charleston, W. Va., marked its first 90-degree reading in more than a year, according to the climatologists at the Northeast Regional Climate Center at Cornell University.

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Elevated levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere benefit some plants by making them more tolerant to cold temperatures. If carbon dioxide levels double within the next century as we are expecting, some plant species should be able to withstand temperatures a few degrees cooler than they can now. Northeastern farmers and home gardeners may be able to plant some crops earlier in the spring. This will also affect the distribution and mixture of species.

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The National Science Foundation has awarded grants for seven new projects to study Martian meteorite ALH84001 in greater depth. The grants are part of a coordinated program with NASA to further investigate possible traces of ancient life in the Martian rock.

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Scientists at The University of Texas-Houston Medical School and the University of Alberta in Canada have determined the three-dimensional structure of cardiac troponin C (cardiac TnC), a protein responsible for regulating muscle contraction in the heart.

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Preparing for marriage is crucial, but a Purdue University expert on family budgeting suggests that the slogan "look before you leap" may be just as important when it comes to divorce.

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The technology that makes the fastest computers so fast ã parallel processing ã is starting to wend its way from the research community into personal computers, and a Purdue University engineer is helping speed that delivery with a new program that automatically translates conventional computer programs so they can run faster.

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A new type of influenza vaccine given in a nasal spray is very effective at preventing the flu in healthy young children, according to results from a large multicenter study supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the biopharmaceutical company Aviron.

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The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that, based on an initial analysis of a pivotal Phase III trial, Avironís (pronounced Av-uh-ron; Nasdaq: AVIR) intranasal cold adapted influenza vaccine prevented culture-confirmed influenza in nearly all of the children who received it.

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Alzheimerís disease patients who take part in clinical trials are 50 percent less likely to be placed in a nursing home, according to a study published in the July issue of the American Academy of Neurologyís scientific journal, Neurology.

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The drug pramipexole improves symptoms for advanced Parkinsonís disease patients, according to a study published in the July issue of the American Academy of Neurologyís scientific journal, Neurology.

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The following stories appear in the American Thoracic Society (ATS) July Journals: 1) Cost for care of seriously ill elderly patients in ICU more expensive than cost of care for seriously ill pediatric patients; 2) Chronic cough results from several different mechanisms and cannot be ascribed to one or two mechanisms; 3) ATS statement provides guidance on lung cancer treatment and distinguishing between small-cell and non small-cell lung cancers.

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Stopping human cells from committing suicide when their environment changes is crucial to the biotechnology industry, where such cells are used to manufacture pharmaceuticals. A team of engineers and scientists at Johns Hopkins is working to disable the weapons the cells use to kill themselves.

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A certain amount of suspicion is a good thing but too much can be unhealthy. University of Iowa researchers have shown that personality traits and attitudes can affect how well patients follow their medical regimen.

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Surgical repair of heel bone (calcaneus) fractures can sometimes result in poor wound healing and complications for the patient. Heel bone fractures are the most common fracture encountered in orthopaedic foot and ankle surgery. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh set out to precisely identify these risk factors and discovered that not only can patient behaviors such as excess weight and smoking increase the possibility of complications, but so can physician behaviors such as the surgeon's technique or whether you are treated in a hospital or as an outpatient in an ambulatory clinic.

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Forty percent of those afflicted with diabetes suffer a nerve condition, neuropathy, which can sometimes cause burning foot pain so severe it restricts a patient's activity and even his or her ability to wear shoes. A new remedy using the drug Mexiletine helps relieve this pain and allows these patients to return to their former levels of activity, according to a study presented at the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society's (AOFAS) 13th Annual Summer Meeting.

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Physicians have a new tool for treating a wide range of skin diseases.

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It sounds strange, but it works. To help eliminate pain caused by arthritic knees, Temple surgeons are intentionally fracturing patients leg bones and then letting the patients pull apart the fracture 1 millimeter a day.

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Highlights from the June issue of AHCPR's monthly publication, Research Activities: 1) Health Insurance Plans Vary Dramatically in Their Coverage of New Technologies; 2) Higher Dental Prices Often Denote Higher Quality of Care; 3) Evidence Does Not Yet Support Annual Screening of Men Over 50 to Detect Prostate Cancer; 4) Broad Exposure to Other Children and Being Poor Are Linked to Increased Risk for Childhood Middle-Ear Effusion

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1) Most nature trails emphasize flora and fauna. This week, though, the spotlight is on the wild and varied climate of Colorado's Front Range; 2) A computer forecasting system for Analysis and Prediction of Storms has won a first prize in the 1997 Discover Magazine Awards for Technological Innovation; 3) Global climate change: A recent modeling study predicts that developed countries--the primary emitters of carbon dioxide--would benefit while underdeveloped countries would suffer.

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Scientists from Cornell University will help the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge in Seneca Falls, N.Y., exact revenge against purple loosestrife, a beautiful but prolific weed that strangles wetlands. More than 20,000 Galerucella pusilla and G. calmariensis -- leaf-eating beetles without a common name -- will be released Thursday, July 17, at 9 a.m. at the refuge.

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Frozen concentrated orange juice generally has the highest vitamin C levels compared to other commercial orange and grapefruit juice products, but even if you favor one of the others, you're probably still getting your daily requirement of the vitamin. That's according to a new, ten-year study reported in the July 16 issue of the American Chemical Society's Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

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Montreal, July 13 -- More than 175 of the world's top high school chemistry students arrive here today for the 29th annual International Chemistry Olympiad, which runs through July 21st. The Olympians, who represent 47 countries, will attempt laboratory experiments and a rigorous exam designed at a level that would challenge most second or third-year college students

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Dr. Sidney Harris has begun his duties as the new dean of the College of Business Administration at Georgia State University, effective July 15. The 47-year-old Atlanta native is the university's first African-American dean and represents only one of about 3 percent of African-American business school deans in the country.

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A new study of patients with heart disease who used nicotine patches shows that the patches are a safe smoking cessation therapy for this group, and that they may also improve blood and oxygen flow to the heart.

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The $368.5 billion proposed tobacco settlement does not address the needs of communities of color. While the recent Koop-Kessler report provides a starting point for discussion among these communities, the American Lung Association encourages a comprehensive analysis of the settlement's impact on communities of color.

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Recent revelations about the cause of a 1979 flash off South Africa point to an ongoing concern for the capability of satellites looking for clandestine nuclear weapons.

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The current method of surgical bunion repair is too costly. Researchers in Nebraska have discovered that the common practice of internal fixation -- using surgical screws or other hardware to hold an injured joint in place during the healing process -- does not significantly improve healing or pain reduction in certain bunion repair procedures, yet this hardware can cost in excess of $1,200.

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New information reported at the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society's (AOFAS) 13th Annual Summer Meeting will allow surgeons to treat more people with diabetes -- a population group popularly thought too risky for surgery -- normally and without fear of serious complications.

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Basic logic tells us making two surgical repairs in one operation is more cost-effective than performing each repair separately. A study presented today at the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society's 13th Annual Summer Meeting reveals that in some cases this "doubling-up" is not only cost-effective, it leads to better healing and greater patient satisfaction as well.

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Researchers have shown that radiation from radon gas does not need to hit a cell nucleau -- or even the cell itself -- to create DNA-damaging effects.

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U.S. and Mexican researchers are perfecting methods for sampling volcanic discharges from safe distances.

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Researhers from the UCSD School of Medicine report the first successful use of gene therapy to achieve partial recovery from spinal cord injuries.

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TipSheet from the American College of Physicians: 1) Muscle dysfunction, rather than osteoarthritis, results in weak quadriceps muscles in the knee. 2) Protease inhibitor indinavir can cause kidney problems. 3) African American women have higher heart disease rates than white women, while African-American men have a lower rate than white men.

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A twofold increased risk of heart attack was found among women who have higher than normal blood levels of the protein homocysteine and lower than normal blood levels of the vitamin folate, according to a study in today's American Heart Association journal Circulation.

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British researchers say they have demonstrated for the first time that signs of a common respiratory infection can be a useful yardstick for predicting whether survivors of heart attack will suffer another attack, which may be fatal, or need treatment to restore blood flow to their hearts. Antibiotic treatment appears to quickly nullify the risk for these heart disease problems, the scientists report in today's American Heart Association journal Circulation.

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A readily available, but underused, diagnostic test could help prevent unnecessary angioplasties, a procedure used to clean out blocked blood vessels to the heart, report researchers in today's Circulation, a journal of the American Heart Association.

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A twofold increased risk of heart attack was found among women who have higher than normal blood levels of the protein homocysteine and lower than normal blood levels of the vitamin folate, according to a study in today's American Heart Association journal Circulation.

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"Younger At Last: The New World of Vitality Medicine" (Simon & Schuster), by Steven Lamm, M.D., is based on a revolutionary new program designed for a culture where success personally and professionally is increasingly linked to the attributes of youthfulness. Dr. Lamm's book features a chapter on Pycnogenol (R) French maritime pine bark extract. This supplement functions as both an antioxidant and as a circulation enhancer throughout the body.

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Dr. Michael L. Hergert has been appointed Dean of the College of Business Administration at San Diego State University effective July 1. The announcement was made by SDSU Vice President for Academic Affairs Ronald Hopkins.