Your mother may have taught you that it's rude to point, but according to new research, gesturing may actually help improve communication. These findings suggest that when gesture and speech convey the same information, they are easier to understand than when they convey different information. In addition, these results indicate that gesture and speech form an integrated system that helps us in language comprehension.

Ecosystems of terminus lakes around the world could benefit from a new system being developed to desalinate water using a specialized low-cost solar pond and patented membrane distillation system powered by renewable energy.

Researchers have discovered that patients with chronic hepatitis C virus who consumed more than 308 mg of caffeine daily had milder liver fibrosis. The daily amount of caffeine intake found to be beneficial is equivalent to 2.25 cups of regular coffee.

Astrophysicists using supercomputers to simulate the Big Bang have a new mathematical tool to model the early universe. Researchers have built a computer model of the "Dark Ages." The model -- successfully tested on two supercomputers -- tightly couples physical processes present during cosmic reionization. Resulting simulations when scientists model various scenarios are highly accurate, numerically stable and computationally scalable to the largest supercomputers.

Running, although it has proven cardiovascular and other health benefits, can increase stresses on the joints of the leg. In a new study, researchers compared the effects on knee, hip and ankle joint motions of running barefoot versus running in modern running shoes. They concluded that running shoes exerted more stress on these joints compared to running barefoot or walking in high-heeled shoes.

Researchers have developed a way to view the effects of a proposed drug treatment in real time using a mild electrical field to stimulate C. elegans nematodes. The discovery opens up significant possibilities for developing high-throughput micro-screening devices for drug discovery and other applications for treating diseases such as Huntington's, Parkinson's and muscular dystrophy.

Researchers have found that incidence of childhood maltreatment, especially emotional abuse and neglect, are prevalent in migraine patients.

Researchers have developed a "molecular worm" algorithm that makes it easier and faster to simulate the passage of a molecule through the labyrinth of a chemical system, a progression that is critical to catalysis and other important chemical processes.

A new study shows that poor lung function during adolescence and through midlife may be influenced by several factors, including birth weight, height, and gender.

When Alaska's Kasatochi Volcano erupted on Aug. 7, 2008, it virtually sterilized Kasatochi Island, covering the small Aleutian island with a layer of ash and other volcanic material several meters thick. The eruption also provided a rare research opportunity: the chance to see how an ecosystem develops from the very first species to colonize the island.