No need to wonder when the cows are coming home: Smart tags already track items from cattle to library books. The Radio-Frequency Identification (RIFD) tags are replacing the magnetic stripe used in security badges, mass-transit passes, and ATM cards. Soon the tags could be on all important personal documents, such as passports and medical records—but security and privacy issues need to be addressed first. They’re vulnerable, says Kevin Fu, computer science professor at UMass Amherst, because they can operate without human intervention and a physically connected power source. Fu is developing much-needed cryptographic protocols, hardware, and applications for smart tags boosted by a $1.1 million grant from the National Science Foundation.
Most proteins know how to get into shape. They fold themselves into their unique conformation in order to fulfill their cellular duty—if they are behaving properly. Diseases such as Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, and mad cow are all associated with ill-folded proteins that clump together. UMass Amherst biochemistry and molecular biology professor Lila Gierasch and her collaborator, Zoya Ignatova, have been conducting research to understand what causes a protein to fold properly or not. The protein’s local environment plays a role, and other molecules in the neighborhood can assist or hinder the process, says Gierasch, who recently received $2.5 million from the National Institutes of Health to further her research. “It’s a delicate balance,” she says. “Proteins can tip to the dark side very readily.”
As we age, so does our ability to keep on an even keel, which is why older adults are at a greater risk of falling. Graham E. Caldwell, associate professor of kinesiology, heads up a research team that has received a two-year, $133,405 grant to study muscular properties and balance control in older adults. The project will relate the properties of muscles controlling the ankle joint to balance performance in healthy young people (ages 21-35) and older people (ages 65-80). The team will construct a musculoskeletal model to simulate the postural sway in both sets of subjects. Researchers hope they’ll be able to develop ways in which deficits in balance may be reduced to improve the quality of life. for elders.- Yogurt enriched with fruit or made from soy could play an important dietary role for people living with Type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. UMass Amherst Food scientist Kalidas Shetty led a team that screened extracts from a sampling of yogurts for properties that could help keep diabetes and hypertension in check, such as the activity level of enzymes that help moderate blood glucose levels. The researchers found that certain fruit-enriched yogurts contain active natural compounds that may curb some aspects of diabetes and could be a sound food-therapy strategy for people living with the disease. That’s good news for the nearly 20 million Americans afflicted with diabetes.
- Researchers in the engineering department at UMass Amherst have designed a vest that gives the wearer a hug, offering a sense of security that’s especially beneficial to people with autism or high anxiety. Therapeutic vests aren’t a new idea, but the UMass Amherst vest is innovative in its use of air pressure, making the vest more lightweight and adjustable than others on the market. Students created the vest by cutting off the sleeves of a jacket and attaching an inner body of air bladders connected to an electric pump. Next, researchers will survey volunteer users to find out if the vest makes them feel more relaxed; they’ll also “read” volunteers’ skin using gauges similar to lie detectors to quantify wearers’ physiological response.
Shakespeare’s Fingerprint
To thine own text be true: Arthur F. Kinney, director of the Massachusetts Center for Renaissance Studies at UMass Amherst, is leading research to determine what exactly The Bard wrote. Using computational stylistics to count the frequency of common and rare words in texts, researchers can detect Shakespeare’s writing style. Kinney says this method has “proven that Shakespeare is part-author of Arden of Faversham. They guessed that in the 19th century, but no one would believe it in the 20th century. Now we know.” Shakespeare’s literary fingerprint can now be applied to a large body of works where authorship is unknown or questioned. “This will be the next turn in Shakespeare studies,” Kinney says. He and fellow researchers are compiling first-round findings in By Me, William Shakespeare.
Not-So-Smart (Yet) Tag
Know When to Fold ’em
Balancing Act
Eat Yogurt, Control Diabetes?
Need a Hug?
The Jet Set
Want to avoid jet lag? Travel in increments. UMass Amherst professor Hava Siegelmann spent almost two years building a computer model to analyze data on the circadian rhythms . . . of rats. The rodents, like humans, have a series of internal clocks that are influenced by exposure to light. Each cell and organ has its own clock that is synced with a master clock in the brain, says Siegelmann. Jumping time zones confuses the clock, so traveling in steps allows the body to adjust. “Medications may be counterproductive if they affect future oscillatory behavior,” she says. “Instead, take a stopover if you are traveling for more than six hours—relax for a day and then continue.” The research also has implications for rotational shift workers, such as airline attendants and nurses, because the body has more difficulty adjusting to some shifts than others.
