Washington, Oct 19 : A new study from Brigham Young University has revealed that teens’ religious faith can reduce the risk of marijuana use by half.

The research team has found that religious involvement makes teens half as likely to indulge in drug abuse.

"Some may think this is an obvious finding, but research and expert opinion on this issue have not been consistent," said Brigham Young University sociology professor Stephen Bahr and an author on the study.

"After we accounted for family and peer characteristics, and regardless of denomination, there was an independent effect that those who were religious were less likely to do drugs, even when their friends were users," he added.

Washington - Calling Senator Barack Obama the "right man for a perilous moment," the Washington Post newspaper Friday endorsed the Democratic candidate for the US presidency, adding its national weight to 39 other regional newspapers - including the Boston Globe and St Louis Post Dispatch - that have declared for the centre-left candidate.

Washington - Ice in the Arctic summer sea has been melting at almost record levels amid general temperature increases, according to an expert report released late on Thursday.

The review by the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) warns that the Arctic's continued warming shows the dramatic effects of climate change even more than other regions.

Autumn air temperatures were a record 5 degrees Celsius above normal due to the amount of sea ice lost in recent years, according to the report.

Washington, October 17: Ohio State University researchers have overcome two of the major obstacles to solar power by developing a new material that can absorb all the energy contained in sunlight, and generate electrons in a way that makes them easier to capture.

The researchers have revealed that they created the hybrid material by combining electrically conductive plastic with metals, including molybdenum and titanium.

"There are other such hybrids out there, but the advantage of our material is that we can cover the entire range of the solar spectrum," explained Malcolm Chisholm, Distinguished University Professor and Chair of the Department of Chemistry at Ohio State.

Washington, Oct. 16: A fast-growing anti-Republican wave threatens to significantly shrink the party''s ranks in Congress.

According to the Washington Times, nearly a dozen Senate Republicans are locked in tight races with Democrats.

Analysts and operatives agree that such a change could put Democrats within reach of a filibuster-proof, 60-vote majority.

Democrats also are poised to make significant gains in the House, where they now have a 36-seat majority in the 435-member chamber.

Analysts are predicting that Republicans could lose as many as 30 additional seats, which are nearly double recent expectations for net losses.

Washington, Oct 16: A sensitive laser instrument developed at the U. S. Department of Energy''s Idaho National Laboratory (INL) could help mission scientists choose Martian surface samples with the most promise for yielding signs of life.

INL''s instrument blasts off tiny bits of mineral and looks for chemical signatures of molecules commonly found in cells.

While other methods require extensive sample handling, this analysis relies on a "point-and-shoot" laser technique that preserves more of the rock and reduces contamination risk.

The researchers reported that they could detect biomolecules at concentrations as low as 3 parts per trillion.