A new strain of the coronavirus — similar to SARS — is spreading across China and to nearby countries, including the U.S.. Although it's relatively early on, the virus appears to be fairly infectious and capable of human-to-human transmission, a serious concern given the many travelers expected to visit China for the upcoming Lunar New Year. The World Health Organization intends to convene an eme
A strategy Texas uses to reduce antipsychotic medication for foster children can serve as a model for other state Medicaid programs, researchers report. "Youth in the United States foster care system are about five times more likely to take antipsychotic medications, a class of medications to manage their mental and behavioral health, than children in the general public," says Thomas Mackie, assi
The virus first emerged in China, but has now been confirmed in Thailand, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and the United States. The Wuhan coronavirus, also known as 2019-nCoV, has reached the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CNBC reported on Tuesday that a single patient—a male in his 30s, who is currently isolated and ill but stable—has been diagnosed in S
The deadly coronavirus that's infected hundreds, and killed at least six in China, has officially made its way to the continental United States. Authorities have now confirmed a case of 2019-nCoV, a mysterious virus that causes flu-like symptoms, in Washington State, according to The New York Times . While there are already cases in Japan, Thailand, and South Korea , the fact that the virus has n
Researchers at the Case Western University School of Medicine in Cleveland, Ohio say they have identified a previously unknown gene and associated protein (which they have named 'aggregatin') which could potentially be suppressed to slow the advance of Alzheimer's disease. 'Based on the data we have, this protein can be an unrecognized new risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD),' said Xinglong W
Rice University engineers build full lithium-ion batteries with silicon anodes and an alumina layer to protect cathodes from degrading. By limiting their energy density, the batteries promise excellent stability for transportation and grid storage use.
Salk researchers have discovered that a powerful combination of 2 experimental drugs reverses the cellular and molecular signs of osteoarthritis in rats as well as in isolated human cartilage cells. Their results were published in the journal Protein & Cell on Jan. 16, 2020.
TikTok user Alx James trying out the soy sauce phenomenon (TikTok user @alxjames/) People on the internet think they can taste soy sauce with their testicles . There's just no delicate way to say that. But here's the truth: if you can taste with your balls, you should be able to taste with your bladder, your lungs, and your intestines, too. That's right. All of those bodily locations have taste r
Whether the example is Ariana Grande's anxiety bops or Post Malone's anthems of addiction and paranoia , mental health has become one of the central topics of today's popular music. But is that really so new? The strangeness of the brain has long been a songwriting muse, and sounds often articulate what's going on in one's head better than words can. Folk singers and emo rappers alike have docume
An industrial chemical — phased out since 2002, but previously used in stain and water-repellent products and firefighting foam — alters the gut microbiome of mice and could have implications for human health, according to an international team of researchers.
The European Union on Tuesday announced 200 million euros ($222 million) of funding for the Ariane 6 rocket launcher and for small and medium-sized space technology companies.
Fires started by people have steadily increased in recent decades, sparking a major shift in U.S. wildfire norms, according to a new CU Boulder-led study.
A new University of Colorado Denver study examined how information provided in a dispatched call for service influences a police officer's decision to use deadly force.
Tesla is accustomed to bad press — CEO Elon Musk has often fired off snarky responses on Twitter before the end of the news cycle. However, Musk is a bit more controlled these days. Tesla has issued an official response to last week's claims of unintended acceleration , and it's leaving no question as to its position. Tesla says the petition is completely false . Tesla kicks off its brief respons
The crab-eating fox and the coyote may soon swap territories, initiating the first American cross-continental exchange in more than three million years
A study now suggests a comprehensive solution package for feeding 10 billion people within our planet's environmental boundaries. Supplying a sufficient and healthy diet for every person whilst keeping our biosphere largely intact will require no less than a technological and socio-cultural U-turn. It includes adopting radically different ways of farming, reduction of food waste, and dietary chang
Researchers have uncovered a metabolic system which could lead to new strategies for therapeutic cancer treatment. A team has found a link between a metabolic system in a yeast, and now mammals, which is critical for the regulation of cell growth and proliferation.
A Duke University research team has identified a new function of a gene called huntingtin, a mutation of which underlies the progressive neurodegenerative disorder known as Huntington's Disease. Using genetic mouse models, they have discovered that neurons in the striatum, a brain area involved in controlling movement, require the huntingtin gene for regulating the body's movements, maintaining ce
Oregon's unique health care delivery system for low-income patients is resulting in fewer infant deaths, according to a recent study. The study found that Oregon's implementation of Coordinated Care Organizations (CCOs) in 2012 was associated with infant mortality rates falling significantly among Medicaid patients relative to non-Medicaid patients, who are not managed by the new delivery system.
Caltech's Lihong Wang has adapted his picosecond imaging technology to take pictures and video of transparent objects like cells and phenomena like shockwaves.
Climate models might underestimate crop losses because they don't factor how infested plants react to rising temperatures, according to a new study. Recent models tell us that, as our climate warms up, herbivores and pests will cause increased damage to agricultural crops. One study predicted that crop yield lost to insects increases 10 to 25% for every 1 degree Celsius (1.8 degrees Fahrenheit) i
Scientific and public appreciation for microbes — and the key role their communal actions play in environmental health, food production, and human wellness — has grown in recent years. While initially considered to be static, uniform entities, microbial communities are highly complex and contain internal chemical swapfests that are in constant flux. Researchers have demonstrated that the dynamic
Genetic research in zebrafish has surprised the researchers behind the study. The results have the potential to change the prevalent perception of the cardiac disorder atrial fibrillation.
A novel composite film — created by the bonding of an antimicrobial layer to conventional, clear polyethylene plastic typically used to vacuum-package foods such as meat and fish — could help to decrease foodborne illness outbreaks, according to researchers.
An increasing number of drugs are available for long-term management of moderate to severe UC, leading to questions about treatment strategies for optimal patient care. A new clinical guideline from the American Gastroenterological Association, published in Gastroenterology, the official journal of the AGA Institute, provides recommendations for the management of adult outpatients with moderate to
Lee Johnston (BMW Ashcourt Racing) hurtles a short distance from the dreaded Armco barriers, with the city in the background. (Diego Mola/) John McGuinness (PBM Ducati) between the walls and the barriers at the Melco Hairpin. (Diego Mola/) Peter Hickman (BMW Bathams Racing) photographed from the roof of a house on the streets turned racetrack in Macau. (Diego Mola/) Lee Johnston faces Maternity B
Scientific and public appreciation for microbes—and the key role their communal actions play in environmental health, food production, and human wellness—has grown in recent years. While initially considered to be static, uniform entities, microbial communities are highly complex and contain internal chemical swapfests that are in constant flux.
Scientific and public appreciation for microbes—and the key role their communal actions play in environmental health, food production, and human wellness—has grown in recent years. While initially considered to be static, uniform entities, microbial communities are highly complex and contain internal chemical swapfests that are in constant flux.
Fires started by people have steadily increased in recent decades, sparking a major shift in U.S. wildfire norms, according to a new CU Boulder-led study. The research found human-caused wildfires are more frequent, smaller, less hot and occur over longer seasons than fires started by lightning.
Recent advances in computer graphics are making it possible to create computer-generated (CG) representations of human beings that are difficult to distinguish from their real-world counterparts. 'Digital human face detection in video sequences via a physiological signal analysis,' a paper published today in the Journal of Electronic Imaging (JEI), presents a viable, innovative way to discern betw
Despite their reputation as blood-suckers, mosquitoes actually spent most of their time drinking nectar from flowers. Scientists have identified the chemical cues in flowers that stimulate mosquitoes' sense of smell and draw them in. Their findings show how cues from flowers can stimulate the mosquito brain as much as a warm-blooded host — information that could help develop less toxic repellents
The findings reveal that the flu vaccine reduced hospitalizations associated with the flu by more than half. They also validate guidelines in the United States and Israel that recommend two vaccine doses for children up to age 8 who have never been vaccinated or who previously received one dose.
306 law enforcement officers from 18 agencies were involved in a simulation examining impact of dispatch information on an officer's decision to fire their weapon. When officers were told the subject had a gun but were then shown a video of a man rapidly producing a cellphone, 62% of officers shot. The findings show a relationship between inaccurate dispatched information about the presence of a w
Scientists from Cornell University and the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) have successfully demonstrated the world's first capture and reuse of energy in a multi-turn particle accelerator, where electrons are accelerated and decelerated in multiple stages and transported at different energies through a single beamline. This advance paves the way for ultra-br
Recent research finds that repeated flooding events have a cumulative effect on the structural integrity of earthen levees, suggesting that the increase in extreme weather events associated with climate change could pose significant challenges for the nation's aging levee system.
It takes a lot of energy to collect, clean and dispose of contaminated water. Some contaminants, like arsenic, occur in low concentrations, calling for even more energy-intensive selective removal processes.
A team of University of Illinois researchers estimated the mortality costs associated with air pollution in the U.S. by developing and applying a novel machine learning-based method to estimate the life-years lost and cost associated with air pollution exposure.
Recent research finds that repeated flooding events have a cumulative effect on the structural integrity of earthen levees, suggesting that the increase in extreme weather events associated with climate change could pose significant challenges for the nation's aging levee system.
Scientists have reported the fabrication and use of single crystal copper-nickel alloy foil substrates for the growth of large-area, single crystal bilayer and trilayer graphene films.
Have I got a fish story for you. Any angler beginning a yarn like that usually ends up spinning a tall tale, an exaggeration or bald-faced lie. Researchers, however, have demonstrated that anglers can produce accurate and complex environmental models similar to those of trained scientists.
Researchers have engineered an improved biological tool that controls calcium (Ca2+) levels in the brain via blue light. This monster-OptoSTIM1 causes a change in mice's fear learning behavior without the need of optic fiber implants in the brain.
New technologies are needed to combat climate change. Now bioinformatics specialists might have found a way of enabling plants to store more carbon dioxide.
Information about an artwork has no effect on the aesthetic experience of museum visitors. The characteristics of the artwork itself have a much stronger impact on observers.
Harvesting sunlight, IBS scientists reported a new strategy to transform carbon dioxide (CO2) into oxygen (O2) and pure carbon monoxide (CO) without side-products in water. This artificial photosynthesis method could bring new solutions to environmental pollution and global warming.
Treating septic shock in children with a combination of intravenous vitamin C, vitamin B1 and hydrocortisone (a commonly used steroid) is associated with lower mortality, according to a study from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago.
A new study shows that air pollutants from the smoke of fires from as far as Canada and the southeastern US traveled hundreds of miles and several days to reach Connecticut and New York City, where it caused significant increases in pollution concentrations.
Results of a new study show that a large number of physicians in the US may have received marketing payments from pharmaceutical companies that produce stimulant medications. Led by researchers at Boston Medical Center's (BMC) Grayken Center for Addiction, the first of its kind study found that one in 18 physicians received some form of pharmaceutical marketing about stimulants, most often in the
If you have just had knee, shoulder or hip surgery, you may want to take anti-inflammatories in the morning or at noon, but not at night. A McGill-led study shows, for the first time, that circadian clock genes are involved in healing from surgery. Indeed, the researchers demonstrated that anti-inflammatory medications are most effective in promoting post-operative healing and recovery when taken
Drums without drums. (Steve Harvery via Unsplash/) When drum machines burst onto the scene in the 1970s, it marked an enormous shift in popular music at large—not only because of the cutting-edge sound and functionality they introduced but because of the new world of possibilities they made available to artists. At their core, most of these devices are simply equal parts synthesizer and sequencer
Now that Chinese officials have confirmed that the mysterious pneumonia-like virus known as 2019-nCoV can spread between humans, the government is taking extra precautions to curb the outbreak. That includes sending teams in hazmat suits onto airplanes to go down the aisle and scan passengers for the disease, Business Insider reports . The government has started taking the temperatures of passeng
A hitherto unknown antibiotic-resistant bacteria species, in the same family as E. coli and Salmonella spp., has been found and classified in Sweden. The proposed taxonomic name of the species — the first of the new genus — is Scandinavium goeteborgense, after the city of Gothenburg, Sweden, where the bacterium was isolated and the research was done.
Scientists think that current models are incomplete and that we may be underestimating crop losses. A new study shows that infested tomato plants, in their efforts to fight off caterpillars, don't adapt well to rising temperatures. This double-edged sword worsens their productivity.
A recent study suggests that maternal depression in the postpartum period, and even beyond, is associated with the development of atopic dermatitis throughout childhood and adolescence.
Although Taal volcano has gone quiet since its eruption early last week , Philippine authorities are maintaining high alert levels, due to fears that the volcano may just be in a lull, building to another eruption soon. At least 50,000 residents were evacuated, but many have been making brief trips home, leading to stepped-up enforcement around the evacuation zone. Close to the volcano, the lands
Alien Detection During a recent interview with The Observer, Helen Sharman, the first British astronaut, said not only that she believes aliens exist , but also that they could be living undetected among us here on Earth. Now, an astrobiologist has responded by detailing what form these invisible aliens might take — and how they might have gotten here. Shadow Biosphere Samantha Rolfe, the princip
Carbon dioxide (CO2), the major product of metabolism, has a strong impact on cerebral blood vessels, a phenomenon known as cerebrovascular reactivity. Several vascular risk factors such as hypertension or diabetes dampen this response, making cerebrovascular reactivity a useful diagnostic marker for incipient vascular pathology, but its functional relevance, if…
The pathological hallmark of synucleinopathies, including Lewy body dementia and Parkinson's disease (PD), is the presence of Lewy bodies, which are primarily composed of intracellular inclusions of misfolded α-synuclein (α-syn) among other proteins. α-Syn is found in extracellular biological fluids in PD patients and has been implicated in modulating immune…
The lipid dependence of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor from the Torpedo electric organ has long been recognized, and one of the most consistent experimental observations is that, when reconstituted in membranes formed by zwitterionic phospholipids alone, exposure to agonist fails to elicit ion-flux activity. More recently, it has been suggested…
Fluid fills intracellular, extracellular, and capillary spaces within muscle. During normal physiological activity, intramuscular fluid pressures develop as muscle exerts a portion of its developed force internally. These pressures, typically ranging between 10 and 250 mmHg, are rarely considered in mechanical models of muscle but have the potential to affect…
Insects are highly successful, in part through an excellent ability to osmoregulate. The renal (Malpighian) tubules can secrete fluid faster on a per-cell basis than any other epithelium, but the route for these remarkable water fluxes has not been established. In Drosophila melanogaster, we show that 4 genes of the…
Heterotrimeric G proteins are important transducers of receptor signaling, functioning in plants with CLAVATA receptors in controlling shoot meristem size and with pathogen-associated molecular pattern receptors in basal immunity. However, whether specific members of the heterotrimeric complex potentiate cross-talk between development and defense, and the extent to which these functions…
Leguminous plants establish endosymbiotic associations with rhizobia and form root nodules in which the rhizobia fix atmospheric nitrogen. The host plant and intracellular rhizobia strictly control this symbiotic nitrogen fixation. We recently reported a Lotus japonicus Fix− mutant, apn1 (aspartic peptidase nodule-induced 1), that impairs symbiotic nitrogen fixation. APN1 encodes…
CORE CONCEPTS Correction for "Core Concept: Albedo is a simple concept that plays complicated roles in climate and astronomy," by Sid Perkins, which was first published December 17, 2019; 10.1073/pnas.1918770116 (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 116, 25369–25371). The editors note that on page 25371, left column, third paragraph, a date…
CORE CONCEPTS Correction for "Core Concept: To improve weather and climate models, researchers are chasing atmospheric gravity waves," by Adam Mann, which was first published September 24, 2019; 10.1073/pnas.1912426116 (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 116, 19218–19221). The editors note that reference 2 appeared incorrectly. The last name of the author…
MEDICAL SCIENCES Correction for "Epithelial to mesenchymal plasticity and differential response to therapies in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma," by Rebecca L. Porter, Neelima K. C. Magnus, Vishal Thapar, Robert Morris, Annamaria Szabolcs, Azfar Neyaz, Anupriya S. Kulkarni, Eric Tai, Abhijit Chougule, Alessandra Hillis, Gabriel Golczer, Hongshan Guo, Teppei Yamada, Tomohiro Kurokawa,…
MICROBIOLOGY Correction for "Structural bases for F plasmid conjugation and F pilus biogenesis in Escherichia coli," by Bo Hu, Pratick Khara, and Peter J. Christie, which was first published June 25, 2019; 10.1073/pnas.1904428116 (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 116, 14222–14227). The authors note that the following statement should be added…
Fin-to-limb transition in vertebrate evolution Artist's reconstruction of tetrapodomorphs. From Top to Bottom: S. taylori, E. foordi, and T. roseae. Dorsal and ventral fin rays shown in orange and blue, respectively. Image courtesy of Alex Boersma (artist). The transformation of fins into limbs is marked by the appearance of digits,…
For Prebble et al. (1), the cultivation of introduced semiaquatic tropical taro (Colocasia esculenta) on cooler southern Pacific islands during the Polynesian "initial colonization period" (ICP) (1200 to 1500 CE) represents a "striking" Neolithic example of nonoptimal, marginal crop production. In that respect, ICP taro pollen from Ahuahu, a warm-temperate,…
We welcome Barber's (1) comments and are grateful for the opportunity to respond. Our study of wetland taro (Colocasia esculenta) gardens during the initial colonization period (ICP) (1200 to 1500 CE) in New Zealand did not overlook the evidence from the Aupouri Peninsula (2–4). We agree that gardens were probably…
A recent PNAS study, Johnson et al. (1), investigates the role of race in fatal police shootings. Unlike previous studies which focused on victim race alone, the paper features original data about the race of officers who use deadly force and offers a rare accounting of other shooting attributes that…
A recent PNAS article reports "no evidence of anti-Black or anti-Hispanic disparities across [fatal] shootings" by police officers (ref. 1, p. 15877). This claim is based on the results of a regression model that suggested "a person fatally shot by police was 6.67 times less likely (odds ratio [OR] =…
Recently, we (1) published a report showing that, among civilians fatally shot, officer race does not predict civilian race and there is no evidence of anti-Black or anti-Hispanic disparities. As Knox and Mummolo (2) correctly state, this is different from the likelihood of being shot given a person's race, Pr(shot∣race)….
More than 2% of the human genome is claimed by genes encoding proteases, or protein-degrading enzymes. A diverse family of more than 550 members, human proteases perform a raft of functions in cells, from recycling damaged proteins to regulating signaling and growth. So it follows that proteases have been implicated…
On the first Earth Day, April 22, 1970, Mary Lou Guerinot decided that she would major in biology in college in the hope of promoting environmental sustainability. As the 50th anniversary of Earth Day approaches, Guerinot, now a professor of biological sciences at Dartmouth College and a member of the…
Regulation of wells is largely concerned with precluding leakage along them. Studies of the proportion of wells in large populations that leak provide one means of reviewing the effectiveness of these regulations. The article entitled "A portrait of wellbore leakage in northeastern British Columbia, Canada" in PNAS (1) provides the…
In PNAS, Sieh et al. (1) present the best candidate yet for the long-sought source crater of the Australasian tektite strewn field. Unlike the other 4 or so tektite strewn fields, each of which can be traced back to a large impact crater, the Australasian field's source has yet to…
The host range for Aspergillus fumigatus is wide, including mammals, aves, and insecta (stonebrood). This is linked to the significant adaptability of this important fungal pathogen. It is thermotolerant, able to grow up to 70 °C, and astonishingly also remains viable down to −20 °C (1). It is microaerophilic and…
Inspired by the patterns of multicellularity in choanoflagellates, the closest living relatives of animals, we quantify the biophysical processes underlying the morphogenesis of rosette colonies in the choanoflagellate Salpingoeca rosetta. We find that rosettes reproducibly transition from an early stage of 2-dimensional (2D) growth to a later stage of 3D…
Tomkins et al. [A. G. Tomkins et al., Nature 533, 235–238 (2016)] suggested that iron oxides contained in 2.7-Ga iron micrometeorites can be used to determine the concentration of O2 in the Archean upper atmosphere. Specifically, they argued that the presence of magnetite in these objects implies that O2 must…
Sonar sensors are universally applied in autonomous vehicles such as robots and driverless cars as they are inexpensive, energy-efficient, and provide accurate range measurements; however, they have some limitations. Their measurements can lead to ambiguous estimates and echo clutter can hamper target detection. In nature, echolocating bats experience similar problems…
Feline infectious peritonitis virus (FIPV) is an alphacoronavirus that causes a nearly 100% mortality rate without effective treatment. Here we report a 3.3-Å cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) structure of the serotype I FIPV spike (S) protein, which is responsible for host recognition and viral entry. Mass spectrometry provided site-specific compositions of…
The reaction scheme of rotary catalysis and the torque generation mechanism of bovine mitochondrial F1 (bMF1) were studied in single-molecule experiments. Under ATP-saturated concentrations, high-speed imaging of a single 40-nm gold bead attached to the γ subunit of bMF1 showed 2 types of intervening pauses during the rotation that were…
Many proteins are refractory to targeting because they lack small-molecule binding pockets. An alternative to drugging these proteins directly is to target the messenger (m)RNA that encodes them, thereby reducing protein levels. We describe such an approach for the difficult-to-target protein α-synuclein encoded by the SNCA gene. Multiplication of the…
Lytic polysaccharide monooxygenases (LPMOs) are a recently discovered class of monocopper enzymes broadly distributed across the tree of life. Recent reports indicate that LPMOs can use H2O2 as an oxidant and thus carry out a novel type of peroxygenase reaction involving unprecedented copper chemistry. Here, we present a combined computational…
Presynaptic plasticity is known to modulate the strength of synaptic transmission. However, it remains unknown whether regulation in presynaptic neurons can evoke excitatory and inhibitory postsynaptic responses. We report here that the Caenorhabditis elegans homologs of MAST kinase, Stomatin, and Diacylglycerol kinase act in a thermosensory neuron to elicit in…
Programmed death-1 homolog (PD-1H), a CD28/B7 family molecule, coinhibits T cell activation and is an attractive immunotherapeutic target for cancer and inflammatory diseases. The molecular basis of its function, however, is unknown. Bioinformatic analyses indicated that PD-1H has a very long Ig variable region (IgV)-like domain and extraordinarily high histidine…
Steroid estrogens modulate physiology and development of vertebrates. Conversion of C19 androgens into C18 estrogens is thought to be an irreversible reaction. Here, we report a denitrifying Denitratisoma sp. strain DHT3 capable of catabolizing estrogens or androgens anaerobically. Strain DHT3 genome contains a polycistronic gene cluster, emtABCD, differentially transcribed under…
Bio-based production technologies may complement or replace petroleum-based production of chemicals, but they face a number of technical challenges, including product toxicity and/or water insolubility. Plants and microorganisms naturally biosynthesize chemicals that often are converted into derivatives with reduced toxicity or enhanced solubility. Inspired by this principle, we propose a…
Coulomb interactions play a major role in determining the thermodynamics, structure, and dynamics of condensed-phase systems, but often present significant challenges. Computer simulations usually use periodic boundary conditions to minimize corrections from finite cell boundaries but the long range of the Coulomb interactions generates significant contributions from distant periodic images…
In 2008, a huge red star in another galaxy reached the end of its life. A star as heavy as this one, born with 25 times the mass of the Sun, was supposed to go out in a fiery flash of light known as a supernova, millions or billions of…
Spherical nucleic acids (SNAs) are nanostructures formed by chemically conjugating short linear strands of oligonucleotides to a nanoparticle template. When made with modified small interfering RNA (siRNA) duplexes, SNAs act as single-entity transfection and gene silencing agents and have been used as lead therapeutic constructs in several disease models. However,…
Startling reports described the paradoxical triggering of the human mitogen-activated protein kinase pathway when a small-molecule inhibitor specifically inactivates the BRAF V600E protein kinase but not wt-BRAF. We performed a conceptual analysis of the general phenomenon "activation by inhibition" using bacterial and human HtrA proteases as models. Our data suggest…
By constructing an in vivo-assembled, catalytically proficient peroxidase, C45, we have recently demonstrated the catalytic potential of simple, de novo-designed heme proteins. Here, we show that C45's enzymatic activity extends to the efficient and stereoselective intermolecular transfer of carbenes to olefins, heterocycles, aldehydes, and amines. Not only is this a…
Translation initiation controls protein synthesis by regulating the delivery of the first aminoacyl-tRNA to messenger RNAs (mRNAs). In eukaryotes, initiation is sophisticated, requiring dozens of protein factors and 2 GTP-regulated steps. The GTPase eIF5B gates progression to elongation during the second GTP-regulated step. Using electron cryomicroscopy (cryo-EM), we imaged an…
Traditional single-molecule methods do not report whole-molecule kinetic conformations, and their adaptive shape changes during the process of self-assembly. Here, using graphene liquid-cell electron microscopy with electrons of low energy at low dose, we show that this approach resolves the time dependence of conformational adaptations of macromolecules for times up…
Assemblies of structural maintenance of chromosomes (SMC) proteins and kleisin subunits are essential to chromosome organization and segregation across all kingdoms of life. While structural data exist for parts of the SMC−kleisin complexes, complete structures of the entire complexes have yet to be determined, making mechanistic studies difficult. Using an…
Members of the cofilin/ADF family of proteins sever actin filaments, increasing the number of filament ends available for polymerization or depolymerization. Cofilin binds actin filaments with positive cooperativity, forming clusters of contiguously bound cofilin along the filament lattice. Filament severing occurs preferentially at boundaries between bare and cofilin-decorated (cofilactin) segmen
Many large proteins suffer from slow or inefficient folding in vitro. It has long been known that this problem can be alleviated in vivo if proteins start folding cotranslationally. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this improvement have not been well established. To address this question, we use an all-atom simulation-based…
The prediction of interresidue contacts and distances from coevolutionary data using deep learning has considerably advanced protein structure prediction. Here, we build on these advances by developing a deep residual network for predicting interresidue orientations, in addition to distances, and a Rosetta-constrained energy-minimization protocol for rapidly and accurately generating structure…
Cancer is a genetic disease fueled by somatic evolution. Hierarchical tissue organization can slow somatic evolution by two qualitatively different mechanisms: by cell differentiation along the hierarchy "washing out" harmful mutations and by limiting the number of cell divisions required to maintain a tissue. Here we explore the effects of…
Studies of the adult Drosophila midgut have led to many insights in our understanding of cell-type diversity, stem cell regeneration, tissue homeostasis, and cell fate decision. Advances in single-cell RNA sequencing provide opportunities to identify new cell types and molecular features. We used single-cell RNA sequencing to characterize the transcriptome…
Loss of the tumor suppressor tuberous sclerosis complex 1 (Tsc1) in the liver promotes gluconeogenesis and glucose intolerance. We asked whether this could be attributed to aberrant expression of small RNAs. We performed small-RNA sequencing on liver of Tsc1-knockout mice, and found that miRNAs of the delta-like homolog 1 (Dlk1)–deiodinase…
The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane-resident stress sensor inositol-requiring enzyme 1 (IRE1) governs the most evolutionarily conserved branch of the unfolded protein response. Upon sensing an accumulation of unfolded proteins in the ER lumen, IRE1 activates its cytoplasmic kinase and ribonuclease domains to transduce the signal. IRE1 activity correlates with its…
The circadian clock regulates many aspects of immunity. Bacterial infections are affected by time of day, but the mechanisms involved remain undefined. Here we show that loss of the core clock protein BMAL1 in macrophages confers protection against pneumococcal pneumonia. Infected mice show both reduced weight loss and lower bacterial…
Cysteine thiols of many cancer-associated proteins are attractive targets of anticancer agents. Herein, we unequivocally demonstrate a distinct thiol-targeting property of gold(III) mesoporphyrin IX dimethyl ester (AuMesoIX) and its anticancer activities. While the binding of cysteine thiols with metal complexes usually occurs via M–S bond formation, AuMesoIX is unique in…
A rational design of an electrocatalyst presents a promising avenue for solar fuels synthesis from carbon dioxide (CO2) fixation but is extremely challenging. Herein, we use density functional theory calculations to study an inexpensive binary copper−iron catalyst for photoelectrochemical CO2 reduction toward methane. The calculations of reaction energetics suggest that…
Design of asymmetric catalysts generally involves time- and resource-intensive heuristic endeavors. In view of the steady increase in interest toward efficient catalytic asymmetric reactions and the rapid growth in the field of machine learning (ML) in recent years, we envisaged dovetailing these two important domains. We selected a set of…
Streptococcus pneumoniae is an opportunistic human pathogen that utilizes the competence regulon, a quorum-sensing circuitry, to acquire antibiotic resistance genes and initiate its attack on the human host. Interception of the competence regulon can therefore be utilized to study S. pneumoniae cell−cell communication and behavioral changes, as well as attenuate…
Buffering variability in morphogen distribution is essential for reproducible patterning. A theoretically proposed class of mechanisms, termed "distal pinning," achieves robustness by combining local sensing of morphogen levels with global modulation of gradient spread. Here, we demonstrate a critical role for morphogen sensing by a gene enhancer, which ultimately determines…
Continental shelves have generally been interpreted as drowned coastal plains associated with the allogenic effect of sea-level variation. Here, without disputing this mechanism we describe an alternative autogenic mechanism for subaqueous shelf formation, driven by the presence of dissolved salt in seawater and surface waves. We use a numerical model…
The crater and proximal effects of the largest known young meteorite impact on Earth have eluded discovery for nearly a century. We present 4 lines of evidence that the 0.79-Ma impact crater of the Australasian tektites lies buried beneath lavas of a long-lived, 910-km3 volcanic field in Southern Laos: 1)…
Atmospheric sulfate aerosols have important impacts on air quality, climate, and human and ecosystem health. However, current air-quality models generally underestimate the rate of conversion of sulfur dioxide (SO2) to sulfate during severe haze pollution events, indicating that our understanding of sulfate formation chemistry is incomplete. This may arise because…
Studies of the factors governing global patterns of biodiversity are key to predicting community responses to ongoing and future abiotic and biotic changes. Although most research has focused on present-day climate, a growing body of evidence indicates that modern ecological communities may be significantly shaped by paleoclimatic change and past…
Land-use change is a major driver of biodiversity loss worldwide. Although biodiversity often shows a delayed response to land-use change, previous studies have typically focused on a narrow range of current landscape factors and have largely ignored the role of land-use history in shaping plant and animal communities and their…
Consumers face numerous risks that can be minimized by incorporating different life-history strategies. How much and when a consumer adds to its energetic reserves or invests in reproduction are key behavioral and physiological adaptations that structure communities. Here we develop a theoretical framework that explicitly accounts for stochastic fluctuations of…
Many large-bodied marine fishes that form spawning aggregations, such as the Nassau grouper (Epinephelus striatus), have suffered regional overfishing due to exploitation during spawning. In response, marine resource managers in many locations have established marine protected areas or seasonal closures to recover these overfished stocks. The challenge in assessing management…
While surface microstructures of butterfly wings have been extensively studied for their structural coloration or optical properties within the visible spectrum, their properties in infrared wavelengths with potential ties to thermoregulation are relatively unknown. The midinfrared wavelengths of 7.5 to 14 µm are particularly important for radiative heat transfer in…
The hierarchy of channel networks in landscapes displays features that are characteristic of nonequilibrium complex systems. Here we show that a sequence of increasingly complex ridge and valley networks is produced by a system of partial differential equations coupling landscape evolution dynamics with a specific catchment area equation. By means…
Hybrid-poplar tree plantations provide a source for biofuel and biomass, but they also increase forest isoprene emissions. The consequences of increased isoprene emissions include higher rates of tropospheric ozone production, increases in the lifetime of methane, and increases in atmospheric aerosol production, all of which affect the global energy budget…
Documenting novel cases of tool use in wild animals can inform our understanding of the evolutionary drivers of the behavior's emergence in the natural world. We describe a previously unknown tool-use behavior for wild birds, so far only documented in the wild in primates and elephants. We observed 2 Atlantic…
The fin-to-limb transition was marked by the origin of digits and the loss of dermal fin rays. Paleontological research into this transformation has focused on the evolution of the endoskeleton, with little attention paid to fin ray structure and function. To address this knowledge gap, we study the dermal rays…
Autosomal recessive diseases, such as cystic fibrosis (CF), require inheritance of 2 mutated genes. However, some studies indicate that CF carriers are at increased risk for some conditions associated with CF. These investigations focused on single conditions and included small numbers of subjects. Our goal was to determine whether CF…
Friedreich's ataxia (FRDA) is a human hereditary disease caused by the presence of expanded (GAA)n repeats in the first intron of the FXN gene [V. Campuzano et al., Science 271, 1423–1427 (1996)]. In somatic tissues of FRDA patients, (GAA)n repeat tracts are highly unstable, with contractions more common than expansions…
Nucleic acid vaccines introduce the genetic materials encoding antigenic proteins into host cells. If these proteins are directed into the secretory pathway with a signal/leader sequence, they will be exposed to the host's glycosylation machinery, and, if their amino acid sequences contain consensus sequons for N-linked glycosylation, they may become…
We explored the presence of extrachromosomal circular DNA (eccDNA) in the plasma of pregnant women. Through sequencing following either restriction enzyme or Tn5 transposase treatment, we identified eccDNA molecules in the plasma of pregnant women. These eccDNA molecules showed bimodal size distributions peaking at ∼202 and ∼338 bp with distinct…
Major efforts are underway to identify agents that can potentiate effects of immune checkpoint inhibition. Here, we show that ascorbic acid (AA) treatment caused genomewide demethylation and enhanced expression of endogenous retroviral elements in lymphoma cells. AA also increased 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (5hmC) levels of CD8+ T cells and enhanced their cytotoxic…
Primary human hepatocytes (PHHs) are an essential tool for modeling drug metabolism and liver disease. However, variable plating efficiencies, short lifespan in culture, and resistance to genetic manipulation have limited their use. Here, we show that the pyrrolizidine alkaloid retrorsine improves PHH repopulation of chimeric mice on average 10-fold and…
Human noroviruses (HuNoVs) cause sporadic and epidemic outbreaks of gastroenteritis in all age groups worldwide. We previously reported that stem cell-derived human intestinal enteroid (HIE) cultures support replication of multiple HuNoV strains and that some strains (e.g., GII.3) replicate only in the presence of bile. Heat- and trypsin-treatment of bile…
Drug resistance in fungal pathogens has risen steadily over the past decades due to long-term azole therapy or triazole usage in agriculture. Modification of the drug target protein to prevent drug binding is a major recognized route to induce drug resistance. However, mechanisms for nondrug target-induced resistance remain only loosely…
Viruses activate inflammasomes but then subvert resulting inflammatory responses to avoid elimination. We asked whether viruses could instead use such activated or primed inflammasomes to directly aid their propagation and spread. Since herpesviruses are experts at coopting cellular functions, we investigated whether Epstein−Barr virus (EBV), an oncoherpesvirus, exploits inflammasomes to…
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the causative agent of hepatitis E in humans and the leading cause for acute viral hepatitis worldwide. The virus is classified as a member of the genus Orthohepevirus A within the Hepeviridae family. Due to the absence of a robust cell culture model for HEV…
Microglial activation plays a central role in poststroke inflammation and causes secondary neuronal damage; however, it also contributes in debris clearance and chronic recovery. Microglial pro- and antiinflammatory responses (or so-called M1-M2 phenotypes) coexist and antagonize each other throughout the disease progress. As a result of this balance, poststroke immune…
Brownian escape is key to a wealth of physico-chemical processes, including polymer folding and information storage. The frequency of thermally activated energy barrier crossings is assumed to generally decrease exponentially with increasing barrier height. Here, we show experimentally that higher, fine-tuned barrier profiles result in significantly enhanced escape rates, in…
In an era of large-scale science-related challenges and rapid advancements in groundbreaking science with major societal implications, communicating about science is critical. The profile of science communication has increased over the last few decades, with multiple sectors calling for such activities. As scientists respond to calls for public-facing communication, we…
We report a randomized trial of a research ethics training intervention designed to enhance ethics communication in university science and engineering laboratories, focusing specifically on authorship and data management. The intervention is a project-based research ethics curriculum that was designed to enhance the ability of science and engineering research laboratory…
Overweight and obese vitamin D-deficient children who took a relatively high dose of vitamin D every day for six months had lower blood pressure and improved insulin sensitivity than their peers who took a lower dose. The study did not show improvements in other markers of cardiovascular and metabolic health, a finding that indicates vitamin D supplementation alone may not be the cure-all for chil
Researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center found that reducing sodium intake in adults with elevated blood pressure or hypertension decreased thirst, urine volume and blood pressure, but did not affect metabolic energy needs. These results support the traditional notion that decreasing sodium intake is critical to managing hypertension — disputing recent studies.
It takes a lot of energy to collect, clean and dispose of contaminated water. Some contaminants, like arsenic, occur in low concentrations, calling for even more energy-intensive selective removal processes.
Air quality models have long failed to accurately predict atmospheric levels of secondary organic aerosol, which comprises a substantial fraction of the fine particulate matter in cities. But CMU researchers have found a missing source of emissions that may explain roughly half of that SOA, closing much of the model-measurement gap.
Despite the protections in place to support breastfeeding for employees, the burden still falls on working mothers to advocate for the resources they need, according to a new study from the University of Georgia.
Many drugs are derived from natural products. But before natural products can be exploited, chemists must first determine their structure and stereochemistry. This can be a major challenge, particularly when the molecules cannot be crystallized and contain only few hydrogen atoms. A new NMR-based method, developed at the Leibniz-Forschungsinstitut für Molekulare Pharmakologie (FMP), now simplifies
Recent research finds that repeated flooding events have a cumulative effect on the structural integrity of earthen levees, suggesting that the increase in extreme weather events associated with climate change could pose significant challenges for the nation's aging levee system.
Sea eagles in England | Loneliness and churches | Circumcision and Shakespeare | English usage | Sperm donations So a sea eagle has chosen to live in Oxfordshire ( Report , 18 January). It is not the first time. Archaeologists digging near Oxford have discovered sea eagle bones on bronze age and Anglo-Saxon sites. And the name of the village Earley, on the Thames near Reading, means "eagle wood" –
A study analyzing the first 1,000 patients from the Rhode Island Consortium for Autism Research and Treatment found that girls receive autism diagnoses an average of 1.5 years later than boys, and people with autism often have co-occurring medical and psychiatric conditions.
'These are the first biomechanical data characterizing concussion risk in kids,' said Steve Rowson, an associate professor of biomedical engineering and mechanics and the director of the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab. 'Children aren't just scaled-down adults: Differences in anatomy and physiology, like head-neck proportions and brain development, contribute to differences in tolerance to head impact. T
Recent studies have shown metallic objects have their own magnetic fingerprints based on size, shape and physical composition. In AIP Advances, from AIP Publishing, scientists look to leverage these observations to potentially create a smaller and cheaper system that is just as effective as their larger counterparts.
Scholars from the Gies College of Business at Illinois studied the effects of acute fine particulate matter exposure on mortality, health care use and medical costs among older Americans through Medicare data and changes in local wind direction.
Oxytocin, often dubbed the 'love hormone', is known to promote social bonding. Researchers at KU Leuven have now discovered that administering oxytocin to adult men with autism makes them more open to close emotional bonds with others. The hormone has positive long-term effects as well. The researchers published their findings in the journals Molecular Autism and Biological Psychiatry: Cognitive N
A recent study suggests that maternal depression in the postpartum period, and even beyond, is associated with the development of atopic dermatitis throughout childhood and adolescence.
Have I got a fish story for you. Any angler beginning a yarn like that usually ends up spinning a tall tale, an exaggeration or bald-faced lie. Michigan State University researchers, however, have demonstrated that anglers can produce accurate and complex environmental models similar to those of trained scientists.
Scientific and public appreciation for microbes — and the key role their communal actions play in environmental health, food production, and human wellness — has grown in recent years. While initially considered to be static, uniform entities, microbial communities are highly complex and contain internal chemical swapfests that are in constant flux. Researchers at University of Illinois have dem
Versatile, simple-to-use USB microphones. (Amazon/) Recording serious audio through a microphone tends to require a bounty of equipment: XLR cables, preamps, audio interfaces, and more. Luckily, there are several USB microphones on the market that can capture high-quality audio without all the fuss. Just plug them directly into your computer via USB and you're in business. Record podcasts and hit
A new program called "prehabilitation" designed to help patients get physically and mentally ready for an upcoming surgery may also help reduce overall costs and get them home faster, a new study shows. The program uses the weeks before surgery to encourage patients to move more, eat healthier, cut back on tobacco, breathe deeper, reduce their stress, and focus on post-operation goals. In 2017, a
Americans' feelings toward members of the other political party have worsened over time faster than those of residents of European and other prominent democracies, according to a new study. Political polarization among Americans has grown rapidly in the last 40 years—a phenomenon possibly due to increased racial division, the rise of partisan cable news, and changes in the composition of the Demo
Opposing desires to congregate and maintain some personal space drive fruit flies to form orderly clusters, according to a study published today in eLife.
The Australian crater Yarrabubba is the oldest known on Earth, according to new measurements, and it might be linked to the end of a "Snowball Earth" ice age.
Opposing desires to congregate and maintain some personal space drive fruit flies to form orderly clusters, according to a study published today in eLife.
Viruses are probably the most peculiar "life forms" known to us, with each species having unique characteristics. One thing common to all viruses is that they attack a "host" cell and hijack its machinery, using it for its own replication. A type of large virus, called "giant virus," has interesting ways of attacking its host organism—an amoeba. Virologists have been trying to understand what make
The development of next-generation-sequencing (NGS) has enabled researchers to investigate genomes that might previously have been considered too complex or too expensive. Nevertheless, the analysis of complex plant genomes, which often have an enormous amount of repetitive sequences, is still a challenge. Therefore, bioinformatics researchers from Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plan
Smaller guitars for smaller hands. (Laith Abuabdu via Unsplash/) Picking up a guitar as a young kid can be intimidating and frustrating: pressing down on the strings feels painful, the bulky body is unwieldy, and the whole instrument keeps slipping off your lap! But all shredders have to start somewhere. That's why some guitars are made smaller and easier to handle than others. Thinner strings, s
MIDI keyboards for portable playing. (Amazon /) The MIDI keyboard is arguably the most indispensable tool for music recording available thanks to its sheer versatility. From the moment you plug it into your computer's USB port, you can use it to play any sound you can think of, from drum kits to synthesizers to pianos to violins. Many MIDI keyboards are full-sized so as to mimic the feel of a tra
The U.S. government this week is pondering how much the public needs to know about funding decisions for studies and experiments that involve tinkering with already dangerous viruses. (Image credit: SPL/Dr. Klaus Boller/Science Source)
Pioneer of psychopharmacology who was one of the first researchers to test systematically how psychoactive drugs affect the mind The development of drugs to treat mental afflictions was historically a hit-and-miss affair, without much understanding of their actions on brain pathways, and even less of their wider psychological impact. Hannah Steinberg, who has died aged 95, was one of the first res
Distek, Inc., a leading manufacturer of laboratory testing instruments for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry for over 40 years, along with our industrial design partner – Phase One Design, has been awarded the IDEA (International Design Excellence Awards) Bronze trophy for the BIOne 1250 Bioprocess Control System.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00145-x Collision with a huge object more than 2 billion years ago might even have altered the planet's climate.
Viruses are probably the most peculiar "life forms" known to us, with each species having unique characteristics. One thing common to all viruses is that they attack a "host" cell and hijack its machinery, using it for its own replication. A type of large virus, called "giant virus," has interesting ways of attacking its host organism—an amoeba. Virologists have been trying to understand what make
The development of next-generation-sequencing (NGS) has enabled researchers to investigate genomes that might previously have been considered too complex or too expensive. Nevertheless, the analysis of complex plant genomes, which often have an enormous amount of repetitive sequences, is still a challenge. Therefore, bioinformatics researchers from Leibniz Institute of Plant Genetics and Crop Plan
In the warmer and brighter shallow waters of Kāne'ohe Bay, O'ahu, the Hawaiian rice coral (Montipora capitata) hosts more heat-tolerant symbiotic microalgae in their tissues compared to corals in deeper waters. This pattern was demonstrated in a recent study by scientists at the University of Hawai'i (UH) at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), and they suggest that whil
Big Fireball Early Sunday morning, SpaceX launched its astronaut-ferrying Crew Dragon spacecraft on top of a Falcon 9 rocket from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida. Then, 84 seconds after launch, the rocket blew up in a gigantic fireball several miles above the Atlantic Ocean — a spectacular failure that was all part of the plan, Space.com reports . the only time you'll hear ppl
Economists working with Professor Marko Sarstedt from Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg are demanding that the same scientific standards be applied to economics and the behavioral sciences in general as are used in the natural sciences. They believe that the inherent uncertainties in measured values must be described and quantified in order to enhance the reproducibility of measurement series
Space is becoming increasingly militarised and European satellites are under-protected, experts warned Tuesday, voicing dismay at cuts proposed in the EU's draft budget.
While Vermonters support banning food waste from landfills—and a whopping 72 percent already compost or feed food scraps to their pets or livestock—few say they are willing to pay for curbside composting pick-up, new University of Vermont research shows.
Findings from a 700,000-year-old fossil bone indicate that a close relative of the most abundant seabird species in the North Atlantic, the modern dovekie, or 'little auk,' used to thrive in the Pacific Ocean and Japan.
A stacked nanocarbon antenna makes a rare earth element shine 5 times more brightly than previous designs, with applications in molecular light-emitting devices.
In the warmer and brighter shallow waters of Kāne'ohe Bay, O'ahu, the Hawaiian rice coral (Montipora capitata) hosts more heat-tolerant symbiotic microalgae in their tissues compared to corals in deeper waters. This pattern was demonstrated in a recent study by scientists at the University of Hawai'i (UH) at Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST), and they suggest that whil
Research from the University of Massachusetts Medical School, reveals the molecular process in which synaptic connections in the brain are damaged in multiple sclerosis and how this contributes to neurodegenerative symptoms. The paper, published in Immunity, also shows how gene therapy may be used to preserve neural circuits and protect against vision loss in the disease.
Virginity testing is a complex, culturally mediated practice that is poorly understood by Western clinicians. Although there is published literature on the ethics of 'virginity' testing and on the lack of reliability of a hymen examination to determine 'virginity,' little practical guidance has been published for clinicians who may encounter requests for virginity testing in the clinical setting.
Cultural differences play a pivotal role in how people in different parts of the world perceive when it is acceptable to sacrifice one person to save a larger group, new research has shown.
Opposing desires to congregate and maintain some personal space drive fruit flies to form orderly clusters, according to a study published today in eLife.
A novel composite film — created by the bonding of an antimicrobial layer to conventional, clear polyethylene plastic typically used to vacuum-package foods such as meat and fish — could help to decrease foodborne illness outbreaks, according to researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.
Creating sustainable markets poses particular obstacles: a sustainable market must be continuously shaped and reshaped. This is the conclusion of three researchers in business administration and innovation at Linkoping University, who have used the Swedish biogas market as a case.
Host cells infected with giant viruses behave in a unique manner. To gain deeper insight into the infection mechanism of giant viruses, scientists at Tokyo University of Science developed a specialized algorithm that can track the movement of host cells. This method could also be used to study any other type of cells, such as cancer cells, neurons, and immune cells, serving as an efficient tool in
Scientists of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have developed a tool to eliminate essential proteins from cells with a flash of light. The new method makes it possible to study the function of essential proteins.
A type of algae crucial to the survival of coral reefs may be able to resist the impacts of ocean acidification caused by climate change. In a world-first, scientists discover coralline algae are able to build tolerance over multiple generations.
Phenylpyrovirogradnaya oligophrenia is a disease that results in degradation of the amino acid called phenylalanine. This amino acid presents in protein-containing food. High levels of phenylalanine can cause problems of mental development throughout life.
Despite reports that global emissions of the potent greenhouse gas were almost eliminated in 2017, an international team of scientists has found atmospheric levels growing at record values.
In a troubling development, officials have now confirmed that the mysterious virus that recently surfaced in China can spread from person to person — and the number of confirmed cases is rising. Respiratory disease expert Zhong Nanshan, who's heading the Chinese government's investigation into the pneumonia-like virus, confirmed to state media that people exposed to other patients have started to
In 2009, 105 single-family homes in the city of Cordoba were demolished in order to expand the airport. At first, the debris from the demolition was going to be sent to a landfill, as is common procedure. But, the University of Cordoba came up with the idea to recycle all the debris in situ and use it to build an experimental stretch of road on the CH-2 highway that goes around the runway at the a
A new approach to reclaiming lands disturbed by surface mining is having the desired result of improving ecosystem diversity, including restoration of foundation species such as sagebrush, according to a study by University of Wyoming researchers.
A study in mice finds that a compound modeled on a protein found in bananas safely protects against multiple strains of the influenza virus, Ebola and coronaviruses.
Genetic research in zebrafish at the University of Copenhagen has surprised the researchers behind the study. The results have the potential to change the prevalent perception of the cardiac disorder atrial fibrillation.
A new method to produce vaccines that have a longer shelf-life, are cheaper and can be stored without the need for cooling is being presented in the open-access journal BMC Biotechnology.
Findings from a 700,000-year-old fossil bone indicate that a close relative of the most abundant seabird species in the North Atlantic, the modern dovekie, or 'little auk,' used to thrive in the Pacific Ocean and Japan.
A study led by researchers from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) now suggests a comprehensive solution package for feeding 10 billion people within our planet's environmental boundaries. Supplying a sufficient and healthy diet for every person whilst keeping our biosphere largely intact will require no less than a technological and socio-cultural U-turn. It includes adopting
Women in low and medium-income countries struggle with many health issues in pregnancy and childbirth, but little attention is given to antenatal depression — which is on the rise in many developing countries, new PLOS ONE paper shows. A study by Flinders University public health researchers found rising levels of reported antenatal depression in these countries, and recommends more services are
The shipping sector has potential to gain profit by reducing carbon dioxide emissions. Recent research shows that shipping companies and ports can achieve cost savings by, for example, investing in digital route planning or equipping vessels with solar panels.
A stacked nanocarbon antenna makes a rare earth element shine 5 times more brightly than previous designs, with applications in molecular light-emitting devices.
Recent models are telling us that, as our climate warms up, herbivores and pests will cause increased damage to agricultural crops. One study predicted that crop yield lost to insects increases 10 to 25 percent for every 1 degree Celsius increase.
Recent models are telling us that, as our climate warms up, herbivores and pests will cause increased damage to agricultural crops. One study predicted that crop yield lost to insects increases 10 to 25 percent for every 1 degree Celsius increase.
A new search led by Montana State University has revealed more than a dozen massive black holes in dwarf galaxies that were previously considered too small to host them, and surprised scientists with their location within the galaxies.
Organic self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) have been around for over forty years. The most widely used form is based on thiols, bound to a metal surface. However, although the thiol SAMs are very versatile, they are also chemically unstable. Exposure of these monolayers to air will lead to oxidation and breakdown within a single day. University of Groningen scientists have now created SAMs using buc
Researchers are aiming to fight counterfeit drugs with an edible "security tag" they can embed into medicine. To imitate the drug, a counterfeiter would have to crack a complicated puzzle of patterns not fully visible to the naked eye. Counterfeit drugs are a thriving business, making up at least 10% of global pharmaceutical commerce while also claiming thousands of lives each year. Manufacturing
Updated on January 21 at 1:45 p.m. Everyone's going to hate the Senate impeachment trial of Donald Trump. The president, who would prefer that there is no trial at all, will hate that it's happening in the first place. Senators as a whole, who may have to sit— sans chatter or phones —into the wee hours of the morning hearing the case, are going to be miserable. Most of the Democrats among those s
Presently, Earth is the only known location where life exists in the Universe. This year the Nobel Prize in physics was awarded to three astronomers who proved, almost 20 years ago, that planets are common around stars beyond the solar system. Life comes in various forms, from cell-phone-toting organisms like humans to the ubiquitous micro-organisms that inhabit almost every square inch of the pla
Yes, fat cells deep under your skin can sense light. And when bodies do not get enough exposure to the right kinds of light, fat cells behave differently.
Solar energy has always been a good idea, in theory. It's good for the environment because it's 100 percent renewable and emissions free, and it's good for your long term finances because sunlight is free. But beyond the hypotheticals, is solar worth it in 2020? Have we finally reached the point where theory can become reality? For some people the answer is yes. But for others, the answer is stil
Yes, fat cells deep under your skin can sense light. And when bodies do not get enough exposure to the right kinds of light, fat cells behave differently.
A winter storm which has killed three people lashed much of eastern Spain for a third day Tuesday, cutting power, forcing the closure of schools and severing road and rail links.
German sportswear giant Adidas said Tuesday more than half of the polyester used in its products this year would come from recycled material, including millions of shoes made from plastic waste.
A crater in western Australia was formed by a meteor strike more than 2.2 billion years ago and is the world's oldest known impact site, new research published Wednesday shows.
Researchers (UNIGE) have identified the SLC6A6 gene, which encodes taurine. When there are pathogenic mutations of the SLC6A6 gene, an individual will suffer from a lack of taurine and will lose his sight and develops a weak heart. They hypothesized that a taurine supplement might make it possible to compensate for this deficiency. The supplement was given to a young girl to help stop the progress
New pioneering research shows that entrepreneurs communicate to strengthen their professional image and stakeholder relationships — and avoid blaming others.
New research from the Prevention Research Center of the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation suggests that legalization and greater retail availability of recreational marijuana is positively associated with marijuana use among adolescents.
New technologies are needed to combat climate change. Now bioinformatics specialists from Würzburg might have found a way of enabling plants to store more carbon dioxide.
A research project at the University of Cordoba (Spain) studied the behavior of a highway made from recycled materials in situ from nearby demolished homes for 10 years.
The international team works on a computational model able to predict the properties of new molecules based on the analysis of fundamental chemical laws. The project was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (title 'Using AI methods for the planning of chemical synthesis').
IBS researchers have engineered an improved biological tool that controls calcium (Ca2+) levels in the brain via blue light. This monster-OptoSTIM1 causes a change in mice's fear learning behavior without the need of optic fiber implants in the brain.
New year, new promise? Despite decades of research, scientists do not fully know all the places HIV hides in the human body. A new study published in the Journal of Clinical Investigation enrolled people with HIV who also happened to have a terminal illness to study where HIV hides in the human body so doctors can better treat and maybe even cure HIV.
Three out of four rice-based products tested have concentrations of arsenic that exceed the EU guideline for safe rice consumption for babies and toddlers. The research used European guidelines because Australia does not have safety standards specifically for children.
A study has used sleep tracking devices and mood measures (anxiety and depression) to determine how well esports athletes around the world sleep, and the effect this has on their mental health and well being. Preliminary results have shown that esports athletes are not getting the sleep (7-9hrs p/night for young adults aged 18-25) needed to best support optimal mental health and performance.
IBS CMCM scientists have reported the fabrication and use of single crystal copper-nickel alloy foil substrates for the growth of large-area, single crystal bilayer and trilayer graphene films.
New Wheels After SpaceX nailed its most recent critical test of its Crew Dragon spacecraft over the weekend, NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Doug Hurley are inching closer to the first crewed SpaceX mission headed for the International Space Station. The two space veterans were put through a dry run of pre-launch activities over the weekend, riding from the crew quarters to the launch pad in s
Camas, a seed-producing forb, grows in prairie and wetland habitats in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) and carries profound prehistoric and current significance as a food resource and article of commerce among indigenous cultures of the PNW. The forb once flourished among the region but decreased in population after the conversion to modern forms of agricultural production.
News aggregators help to simplify consumers' search for news stories by gathering content based on viewing history or other factors. Commonly used aggregators include Google News, Yahoo! News, and others. They offer links to news stories published by news outlets and save consumers considerable time and effort in finding news.
If you don't like how an open-source word processor is presenting your beautiful, timeless prose, you can dig into the code and make it do what you want. (Andrew Neel via Unsplash/) Computers normally come stocked with rudimentary word processing and text editing software, such as WordPad and Notepad on Windows. But once you're ready to go beyond the basics, you usually end up staring down a rath
Camas, a seed-producing forb, grows in prairie and wetland habitats in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) and carries profound prehistoric and current significance as a food resource and article of commerce among indigenous cultures of the PNW. The forb once flourished among the region but decreased in population after the conversion to modern forms of agricultural production.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00154-w Updates on the Wuhan respiratory illness, which has infected hundreds of people.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00156-8 The good news: the worst ozone-depleting gases are already banned. Plus, top biologists name the technology to watch in 2020 and the alternative theories challenging the Big Bang.
Medicines made from coiled protein fragments could provide a new handle on hard-to-treat diseases like cancer, but they are difficult to design. But a new technique, developed at the University of Michigan, could change that.
X-ray crystal structure visualization technique has been known for over a hundred years. While it keeps improving, it is extremely difficult to focus rays on objects that are invisible to the naked eye, such as proteins. However, to get a clear image and effectively visualize the structure of a crystal, a sample should be positioned correctly. An international team of scientists suggested an optic
Rapid progress in the field of metallic nanotechnology is sparking a science revolution that is likely to impact all areas of society, according to professor of physics Ventsislav Valev and his team at the University of Bath in the UK.
Nightclubs and bars must create a supportive environment that cracks down on unwanted sexual attention and allows women to enjoy their nights out, according to a new study.
A team of Russian scientists working in cooperation with international colleagues used a new method combining visual microscopic observations and photoemission spectrum registration that can be used to create a map of the physical and chemical state of a cell surface. The team studied the cells of the colon bacillus Escherichia coli that are a promising material for the development of nature-like
Medicines made from coiled protein fragments could provide a new handle on hard-to-treat diseases like cancer, but they are difficult to design. But a new technique, developed at the University of Michigan, could change that.
Researchers synthesized novel OLEDs based on efficient ring-shaped molecular macrocycles. This work may help lead to sensitive, yet inexpensive, chemical detectors.
Researchers have found an explanation for why very little nitrogen could previously be accounted for in the nebulous covering of comets: the building block for life predominantly occurs in the form of ammonium salts, the occurrence of which could not previously be measured. The salts may be a further indication that comet impacts may have made life on Earth possible in the first place.
A new study supports a growing body of research that links human exposure to aluminum with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Researchers found significant amounts of aluminum content in brain tissue from donors with familial AD. The study also found a high degree of co-location with the amyloid-beta protein, which leads to early onset of the disease.
Rapid progress in the field of metallic nanotechnology is sparking a science revolution that is likely to impact all areas of society, according to a professor of physics.
Researchers synthesized novel OLEDs based on efficient ring-shaped molecular macrocycles. This work may help lead to sensitive, yet inexpensive, chemical detectors.
Scientists have discovered that the bacterium which causes bovine TB can survive and grow in small, single-celled organisms found in soil and dung. It is believed that originally the bacterium evolved to survive in these single-celled organisms known as amoebae and in time progressed to infect and cause TB in larger animals such as cattle.
Researchers discover that neonicotinoid seed treatments are driving a dramatic increase in insecticide toxicity in U.S. agricultural landscapes, despite evidence that these treatments have little to no benefit in many crops.
This story contains spoilers for the first two episodes of Schitt's Creek Season 6. Even without the Kardashian-esque budget he'd been accustomed to before his family's bankruptcy, Schitt's Creek 's David Rose (played by Dan Levy) loves to throw a good soiree. Toward the end of the sitcom's fifth season last year, a minor calamity ensued when David planned a surprise birthday party for his boyfri
Mesenchymal stromal cells from fat tissue and bone marrow are widely used in therapeutic trials for their anti-inflammatory qualities, but new Mayo Clinic research finds that liver cells may be of greater value. The study, published in Liver Transplantation, finds that liver mesenchymal stromal cells have immunoregulatory qualities that make them more effective than similar cells derived from adip
In a new study, scientists at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory report a new synthetic system that could guide electron transfer over long distances.
News aggregators help to simplify consumers' search for news stories by gathering content based on viewing history or other factors. Commonly used aggregators include Google News, Yahoo! News, and others. They offer links to news stories published by news outlets and save consumers considerable time and effort in finding news.
Fat cells beneath the skin can sense light, and they behave differently when exposed to light that mimics indoor lighting vs. natural sunlight. Not enough sunlight can affect the body's metabolism, according to new study in Cell Reports from experts at Cincinnati Children's.
'The decreased brain activation seen in this study may be a sign of more efficient processing after treatment,' said Dr. Boukrina. 'At baseline, individuals with MS often show hyperactivation during cognitive tasks which may be a necessary compensation in order to complete the task. After treatment, the task becomes less demanding, and this may account for the reduction in activation.' Identifying
Michigan State University scientists think that current models are incomplete and that we may be underestimating crop losses. A new study shows that infested tomato plants, in their efforts to fight off caterpillars, don't adapt well to rising temperatures. This double-edged sword worsens their productivity.
A hitherto unknown antibiotic-resistant bacteria species, in the same family as E. coli and Salmonella spp., has been found and classified in Sweden. The proposed taxonomic name of the species — the first of the new genus — is Scandinavium goeteborgense, after the city of Gothenburg, Sweden, where the bacterium was isolated and the research was done.
The new virus has killed at least six and infected nearly 300 people in China, with confirmed cases in the United States, Taiwan, Thailand, Japan and South Korea.
United States President Donald Trump reportedly wishes he'd kept his thoughts on a flavored vape ban to himself. In September, soon after the vaping-related illness now known as EVALI killed a sixth person, Trump announced that his administration was considering banning all flavored vape juices , the kind often preferred by — and seemingly targeted toward — minors. "Not only is it a problem overa
Unlike cuprates — the first known class of unconventional superconductors — the new nickelates are inherently metallic, sharing electrons with intervening layers of rare earth material to create a 3D metallic state. This is an entirely new type of ground state for transition metal oxides such as cuprates and nickelates, researchers said. It opens new directions for experiments and theoretical st
Unlike cuprates — the first known class of unconventional superconductors — the new nickelates are inherently metallic, sharing electrons with intervening layers of rare earth material to create a 3D metallic state. This is an entirely new type of ground state for transition metal oxides such as cuprates and nickelates, researchers said. It opens new directions for experiments and theoretical st
New study shows that peach-fronted conures have a surprisingly advanced talent for collaboration when it comes to finding food. This is important knowledge for biologists working with conservation of wild bird populations.
Scientists have shown that the peppery furrow shell (Scrobicularia plana) makes considerable changes to its feeding habits when faced with warmer and more acidified oceans.
Terahertz radiation is used for security checks at airports, for medical examinations and also for quality checks in industry. However, radiation in the terahertz range is extremely difficult to generate. Scientists have now succeeded in developing a terahertz radiation source that breaks several records: it is extremely efficient, and its spectrum is very broad — it generates different wavelengt
Camas, a seed-producing forb, grows in prairie and wetland habitats in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) and carries profound prehistoric and current significance as a food resource and article of commerce among indigenous cultures of the PNW. The forb once flourished among the region but decreased in population after the conversion to modern forms of agricultural production.
A project taking the first steps towards ending the use of horses to treat diphtheria has succeeded. Funded by the PETA International Science Consortium Ltd. and carried out at the Institute of Biochemistry, Biotechnology, and Bioinformatics at the Technische Universität Braunschweig in Germany, the project created human antibodies capable of blocking the poisonous toxin that causes diphtheria. Th
Neurolinguists from HSE University have confirmed experimentally that for people with aphasia, it is easier to retrieve verbs describing situations with several participants (such as 'someone is doing something'), although such verbs give rise to more grammar difficulties. The results of the study have been published in Aphasiology.
Medicines made from coiled protein fragments could provide a new handle on hard-to-treat diseases like cancer, but they are difficult to design. But a new technique, developed at the University of Michigan, could change that.
Can Haz A body farm — that's a research facility that studies human decomposition — had a devastating break-in: feral cats showed up to munch on the cadavers. The Forensic Investigation Research Station at Colorado Mesa University was prepared for hungry animals, Newsweek reports . The facility had infrared cameras already in place, which captured footage they're now using to glean new insights i
Unlike cuprates — the first known class of unconventional superconductors — the new nickelates are inherently metallic, sharing electrons with intervening layers of rare earth material to create a 3D metallic state. This is an entirely new type of ground state for transition metal oxides such as cuprates and nickelates, researchers said. It opens new directions for experiments and theoretical st
A patient-specific tumor organoid platform developed by Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine (WFIRM) researchers and their cancer center colleagues could someday take the guessing game out of immunotherapy treatments.
To better treat people with depression, not only must we treat the neurons affected by the disease, but we must also restore the integrity of the barrier that regulates exchanges between blood circulation and the brain. This is the conclusion of a study published today in PNAS by Université Laval researchers and their international collaborators.
Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology and Gothenburg University in Sweden have achieved something long thought almost impossible — counting the molecules of the neurotransmitter glutamate released when a signal is transferred between two brain cells. With a new analysis method, they showed that the brain regulates its signals using glutamate in more ways than previously realised.
Scientists at UCL have discovered how immune cells, essential for tackling life-threatening infections and cancers, are able to 'recycle' material within themselves in order to stay healthy and function, a breakthrough finding which could lead to more effective immunotherapies.
After years of research on cell surface receptors called Frizzleds, researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden provide the proof-of-principle that these receptors are druggable by small molecules. The results, which are published in the scientific journal Nature Communications, open for new strategies to treat different types of cancer.
Lead from metal-organic perovskite compounds can be absorbed particularly easily by plants. The bioavailability is significantly higher than that of lead from inorganic compounds as found in batteries. This is shown in a study by HZB researcher Antonio Abate with partners in China and Italy, published in Nature communications.
Researchers found that when default settings, showing a preset number of opioid pills, were modified downward, physicians prescribed fewer pills. Fewer pills could improve prescription practices and protect patients from developing opioid addictions.
An analysis of self-reported national dietary data from more than 37,000 US adults suggests associations between low-carbohydrate and low-fat diets and the risk of death may depend on the quality and food sources of the carbohydrates, proteins and fats people eat.
A randomized clinical trial with 48 healthy volunteers assessed the absorption of six active ingredients (avobenzone, oxybenzone, octocrylene, homosalate, octisalate and octinoxate) in four sunscreen products formulated as lotion and sprays (aerosol, nonaerosol and pump). This study builds on a prior trial from Food and Drug Administration (FDA) researchers published by JAMA in 2019.
According to research published in JAMA, female and male soccer players had similar rates of head collision events during elite tournaments such as the World Cup but half of the female players involved received medical assessments, compared with only one third of the impacted male players.
Commercially insured children in the US are seeing pediatricians less often than they did a decade ago, according to a new analysis led by a pediatrician-scientist at the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. But whether that's good or bad is unclear, the researchers say in the study, published today in JAMA Pediatrics.
An abundance of microRNA-21 predicts lower survival in people with hard-to-treat 'triple-negative' breast cancer. An innovative compound from Disney Lab targets the oncogenic sequence and removes it, killing the cancer cells and stopping their spread in a mouse model, while leaving healthy cells untouched.
This is a rather eerie result . Two researchers at Stanford report that the often-used model system of Xenopus frog eggs have self-organizing properties. Extracts from homogenized eggs had already been known to be more functional than one might have predicted (the paper has a number of references to such studies), but this paper finds that homogenate from such eggs, if left standing, organizes it
The new coronavirus has sickened people in several countries, and there has been at least one confirmed case of human-to-human transmission — Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
Smaller amps for when you don't have the room. (Markus Spiske via Unsplash/) Getting the perfect guitar tone doesn't always require a heavy amp. If you've got limited space, can't play at blaring volumes, or simply don't want to lug something around that weighs half your body weight, getting a desktop amp might be the move for you. The biggest names in guitar amps are now making lightweight model
A colony of arctic terns in Iceland (Melinda Conners, Stony Brook University/) When we think of areas set aside to protect species, they tend to be fixed land expanses: national parks, wilderness reserves, and refuges. But such rigid definitions of protected habitat don't cut it for many creatures swimming in the open seas, inhabiting zones with more fluid boundaries. That's why scientists want p
Lead from metal-organic perovskite compounds can be absorbed particularly easily by plants. The bioavailability is significantly higher than that of lead from inorganic compounds, as found in batteries. This is shown in a study by HZB researcher Antonio Abate with partners in China and Italy, published in Nature Communications.
Contrary to previous belief, a neuroscientist from the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences has shown the existence of a particular type of sphincter in the brain's blood supply in mice. The discovery changes the understanding of the blood circulation and may lead to new knowledge about migraine and dementia.
C. elegans worms were genetically edited by CRISPR to introduce human mutations that cause retinitis pigmentaria. The final aim of the project was study which factors influence disease development apart from the main mutation.
Undertaken to inform the development of the first-ever Dietary Guidelines (2020-2025) to include specific recommendations for infants and toddlers, this study analyzed infant data from the 2001-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). It found grain consumption by infants aged 6-23 months was generally associated with significantly higher nutrient intakes, better diet qualit
Patient enrollment in clinical trials as the first course of treatment after cancer diagnosis is low, despite the fact that enrollment may increase life expectancy, according to researchers at Penn State. They also found that white males with private health insurance and metastatic cancers treated at academic medical centers are more likely than other groups to enroll in clinical trials.
Biophysicists shed light on the structure and functioning mechanism of the CysLT receptors, which regulate inflammatory responses associated with allergic disorders. Their findings are reported in Nature Communications.
Rapid progress in the field of metallic nanotechnology is sparking a science revolution that is likely to impact all areas of society, according to professor of physics Ventsislav Valev and his team at the University of Bath in the UK.
Experiments performed by Brazilian scientists showed that Zika virus inhibits tumor cell proliferation even when inactivated by high temperature. The study was supported by FAPESP and published in Scientific Reports.
The new study published in the journal Autism suggests a form of low intensity CBT could offer new hope for people with co-occurring autism and depression.
Developing new medicines and understanding how they target specific organs often gives a crucial advantage in the fight against human diseases. An international team led by researchers at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory and Cellzome, a GSK company, has developed a technology to systematically identify drug targets in living animals. In their results, published in Nature Biotechnology on
Mice given a new drug targeting a key gene involved in lipid and glucose metabolism could tolerate a high-fat diet regimen (composed of 60% fat from lard) without developing significant liver damage, becoming obese, or disrupting their body's glucose balance.
Under the leadership of astrophysicist Kathrin Altwegg, Bernese researchers have found an explanation for why very little nitrogen could previously be accounted for in the nebulous covering of comets: the building block for life predominantly occurs in the form of ammonium salts, the occurrence of which could not previously be measured. The salts may be a further indication that comet impacts may
Endogenous proteins that play a vital part in allergies and parasitic infection can prevent the immune system from wrongly attacking the body and causing inflamed joints, a study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published in the scientific journal PNAS reports. The researchers hope that the results will give rise to new drugs for rheumatoid arthritis.
Lead from metal-organic perovskite compounds can be absorbed particularly easily by plants. The bioavailability is significantly higher than that of lead from inorganic compounds, as found in batteries. This is shown in a study by HZB researcher Antonio Abate with partners in China and Italy, published in Nature Communications.
Crash Course Reuters reported last week that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) may launch an investigation into driver complaints about crash-causing "sudden unintended acceleration" that might affect half a million Tesla vehicles. But Tesla fired back in a strongly worded statement Monday, saying the claims were "completely false" and "brought by a Tesla short-seller." B
"If DNA is the blueprint of life, enzymes are the laborers that carry out its instructions," says chemical biologist Adam Garske. In this fun talk and demo, he shows how scientists can now edit and design enzymes for specific functions — to help treat diseases like diabetes, create energy-efficient laundry detergent and even capture greenhouse gases — and performs his own enzyme experiment onsta
Climate change is causing subarctic tundra to warm twice as fast as the global average, and this warming is speeding up the activity of the plant life. Researchers from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and the Helmholtz Zentrum München, Germany, have now elucidated how this warming affects the tundra ecosystem and the origin of an increased amount of volatile compounds released from the tund
"Yellow streaks in sunset sky, wind and daylong rain is nigh." This old weather proverb originates from fishermen who found colors and shapes in clouds at sunset could predict an incoming storm. Nowadays, state-of-the-art satellite observations for tropical cyclone cloud structures, as well as the evolution of surrounding weather systems, are utilized to assist weather forecasters to make decision
What has made Ray Dalio, the billionaire who founded the biggest hedge fund in the world, so financially successful? Dalio himself has offered an explanation: In 2017, he summed up his accumulated wisdom in a book called Principles: Life & Work , which was purchased by more than 2 million people worldwide and received testimonials from a phalanx of other billionaires, including Bill Gates, Mark C
PLUS. Corona-virussen fra Kina viser sig måske alligevel at smitte mennesker imellem. WHO diskuterer omfanget i morgen, og dansk forsker følger spændt med.
Climate change is causing subarctic tundra to warm twice as fast as the global average, and this warming is speeding up the activity of the plant life. Researchers from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and the Helmholtz Zentrum München, Germany, have now elucidated how this warming affects the tundra ecosystem and the origin of an increased amount of volatile compounds released from the tund
Researchers discover that neonicotinoid seed treatments are driving a dramatic increase in insecticide toxicity in U.S. agricultural landscapes, despite evidence that these treatments have little to no benefit in many crops.
A new study by the University of Barcelona (UB) concluded that irregularity in eating schedules during the weekend, named by the authors as eating jet lag, could be related to the increase of body mass index (BMI), a formula that measures weight and height to determine whether someone's weight is healthy.
The international team works on a computational model able to predict the properties of new molecules based on the analysis of fundamental chemical laws. The project was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (title 'Using AI methods for the planning of chemical synthesis').
Nightclubs and bars must create a supportive environment that cracks down on unwanted sexual attention and allows women to enjoy their nights out, according to a new study.
A new study published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease (JAD) supports a growing body of research that links human exposure to aluminum with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Researchers found significant amounts of aluminum content in brain tissue from donors with familial AD. The study also found a high degree of co-location with the amyloid-beta protein, which leads to early onset of the disease.
ETH scientists have further developed QLED technology for screens. They have produced light sources that for the first time emit high-intensity light in only one direction. This reduces scattering losses, which makes the technology extremely energy efficient.
A frequent side effect of cancer immunotherapies can probably be stopped by light activation of immune cells, as researchers at the Medical Center — University of Freiburg have shown.
Wildfires in south eastern Brazil produce airborne pollution that worsens air quality in major cities such as Sao Paulo — cancelling out efforts to improve the urban environment and posing health risks to citizens, according to a new study.
Terahertz radiation is used for security checks at airports, for medical examinations and also for quality checks in industry. However, radiation in the terahertz range is extremely difficult to generate. Scientists at TU Wien have now succeeded in developing a terahertz radiation source that breaks several records: it is extremely efficient, and its spectrum is very broad — it generates differen
Fibrosis may affect different body organs. It develops as a reaction to long-time inflammation and is supposed to isolate the inflammation site from surrounding tissues. For example, chronic liver fibrosis may occur if the liver is constantly influenced by toxins, viruses, or metabolic disturbances. Liver damage is caused by the hepatocytes death, the main type of liver cells that secure the funct
During crystallization atoms are arranged in a 3D lattice structured in a specific way. The distances between the atoms in that lattice are determined by the atoms themselves. The X-ray wavelength is comparable to interatomic distances, so the rays can be refracted on the planes. Due to this effect one can analyze crystal structure. The X-ray images show the distances between the planes.
Research by scientists at Ghent University (Belgium), University of Plymouth (UK) and University of South Carolina (USA) shows the peppery furrow shell (Scrobicularia plana) makes considerable changes to its feeding habits when faced with warmer and more acidified oceans.
För unga män har risken att utsättas för skjutvapenvåld i Sverige femfaldigats sedan 1996. Orsaken är oklar, men en hypotes är att det varit för lite brottsförebyggande arbete. Den 2 december 2019 sköts en 25-årig man till döds i stadsdelen Hermodsdal i Malmö. Tre dagar senare larmades polis och ambulans till en annan del av staden. Där hittade de en 20-årig man, också han skjuten till döds. Det
New research has found that environmental efforts aimed at eliminating deforestation from oil palm production have the potential to benefit vulnerable tropical mammals.
Killing and eating of potential competitors, also known as intraguild predation, is a rare event that occurs only in specific situations such as severe scarcity of food resources, resulting in the competition between predators.
New research has found that environmental efforts aimed at eliminating deforestation from oil palm production have the potential to benefit vulnerable tropical mammals.
Killing and eating of potential competitors, also known as intraguild predation, is a rare event that occurs only in specific situations such as severe scarcity of food resources, resulting in the competition between predators.
Scientists from the University of Surrey and University of Geneva have discovered that the bacterium which causes bovine TB can survive and grow in small, single-celled organisms found in soil and dung. It is believed that originally the bacterium evolved to survive in these single-celled organisms known as amoebae and in time progressed to infect and cause TB in larger animals such as cattle.
Some titanium oxides are known for their unique properties, such as increased photocatalytic activity (i.e. they effectively use light to speed up chemical reactions). Titanium oxide-based coatings are able to clean themselves under the influence of light. Moreover, they can potentially be used to purify air and water from harmful substances and to desalinate seawater.
Many teenagers are struggling to control their impulses on the internet, in a scramble for quick thrills and a sense of power online, potentially increasing their risks of becoming cyber criminals.
The correct assembly of plant genomes can be hampered by a large amount of repetitive sequences. Researchers have developed a bioinformatics tool for the automatic detection of repetitive genome regions, based on the identification of k-mers (nucleotide sequences of a pre-determined length). The tool was published under the name "Kmasker plants" in The Plant Journal.
Australian researchers have uncovered a metabolic system which could lead to new strategies for therapeutic cancer treatment. A team at Flinders University and the St Vincent's Institute of Medical Research have found a link between a metabolic system in a yeast, and now mammals, which is critical for the regulation of cell growth and proliferation.
The risk of administering modern intravenous iodinated contrast media in patients with reduced kidney function has been overstated, according to new consensus statements from the American College of Radiology and the National Kidney Foundation.
A team of scientists from Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University used Raman spectroscopy to study the thrombocytes of patients with cardiovascular diseases and compared their spectra with those of healthy people. The researchers identified informative areas of the spectra and confirmed that Raman spectroscopy was a promising method allowing one to diagnose the diseases associated with changes in
Composites are a new type of materials that consist of heterogeneous components (metals, ceramics, glass, plastic, carbon, etc.) and combine their properties. To create such a material, a filler with certain stability and rigidity is placed into a flexible matrix. Various compositions and matrix-filler ratios create a wide range of materials with given sets of characteristics.
New study shows that peach-fronted conures have a surprisingly advanced talent for collaboration when it comes to finding food. This is important knowledge for biologists working with conservation of wild bird populations.
Information about an artwork has no effect on the aesthetic experience of museum visitors. The characteristics of the artwork itself have a much stronger impact on observers. Psychologists from the University of Basel reached these conclusions in a new study.
New research has found that environmental efforts aimed at eliminating deforestation from oil palm production have the potential to benefit vulnerable tropical mammals.
Nature-like object studies are an actively developing field of science based on the use of biological materials. Among other things, it includes technologies for the development of nanosized constructions on the basis of biological macromolecules: DNA, protein capsules and conjugators, and nucleoprotein complexes.
Climate change is causing the subarctic tundra to warm twice as fast as the global average, and this warming is speeding up the activity of the plant life. Researchers from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, and the Helmholtz Zentrum München, Germany, have now elucidated how this warming affects the tundra ecosystem and the origin of an increased amount of volatile compounds released from the
What rules shaped humanity's original social networks? The earliest social networks were tightly knit cultural groups made of multiple biologically related families. That single group would then develop relationships with other cultural groups in their local area. Researchers used statistical physics and computer models common in evolutionary biology to explain the origin of common community struc
A team of researchers at the Max Planck Institut für Kohlenforschung has found a way to get bismuth to behave like a transition metal. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group describes their method to get bismuth to orchestrate bond-swapping events.
New pioneering research shows that entrepreneurs communicate to strengthen their professional image and stakeholder relationships—and avoid blaming others.
Precise determination of the chemical structure of a molecule is of vital importance to any molecular related field and is the key to a deep understanding of its chemical, physical, and biological functions. Scanning tunneling microscopy and atomic force microscopy have outstanding abilities to image molecular skeletons in real space, but these techniques usually lack chemical information necessar
Scientists for the first time have developed a single molecule that can absorb sunlight efficiently and also act as a catalyst to transform solar energy into hydrogen, a clean alternative to fuel for things like gas-powered vehicles.
From sea shores to salt flats, a high incidence of spiders spin a life in or around water. Researchers at the California Academy of Sciences and William Paterson University found that nearly one fifth of all spider families are associated with saltwater or freshwater aquatic habitats. Their findings—recently published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society and aptly titled "The Life Aqua
Six deaths and nearly 300 cases have been linked to a new virus that originated in China. Authorities now believe the virus can spread from person to person
From sea shores to salt flats, a high incidence of spiders spin a life in or around water. Researchers at the California Academy of Sciences and William Paterson University found that nearly one fifth of all spider families are associated with saltwater or freshwater aquatic habitats. Their findings—recently published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society and aptly titled "The Life Aqua
Researchers at Osaka University synthesized novel OLEDs based on efficient ring-shaped molecular macrocycles. This work may help lead to sensitive, yet inexpensive, chemical detectors.
Presently, many scientists believe Mars is the best candidate in the search for life beyond Earth because it is relatively nearby and there is good evidence that liquid water flowed on Mars' surface billions of years ago. A new study provides evidence that some early Martian minerals were formed in watery environments that were salty and near neutral pH, similar to Earth's modern oceans, and thus
Harvesting sunlight, IBS scientists reported a new strategy to transform carbon dioxide (CO2) into oxygen (O2) and pure carbon monoxide (CO) without side-products in water. This artificial photosynthesis method could bring new solutions to environmental pollution and global warming.
In a study published online in PNAS on Jan. 20, 2020, Prof. SUN Bing's team from the Center for Excellence in Molecular and Cellular Science, Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with Prof. LIU Jie from Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, revealed a new mechanism involved in the pathogenesis of IBD and suggested therapeutic targets for cli
A University of Liverpool research paper, published in American Psychologist, provides new evidence for using a humane, respectful and compassionate approach to interrogating high-value detainees (HVDs — i.e., terrorist suspects) to encourage cooperation and disclosure of information.
Many bacterial pathogens excrete toxins as soon as they have entered the host in order to suppress its immune response. Researchers at Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) have analysed what happens on the molecular level when the diarrhea pathogen Yersinia pseudotuberculosis switches into attack mode. To this end, they examined so-called RNA thermometers, which signal to the bacteria whether they are in
Killing and eating of potential competitors has rarely been documented in the zoological literature, even though this type of interaction can affect population dynamics. In a recent publication in the open-access journal Subterranean Biology, Brazilian scientists presented their notes regarding the predation of an assassin bug by a spider in neotropical caves. Underground, where food resources are
Economists working with Professor Marko Sarstedt from University of Magdeburg are demanding that the same scientific standards be applied to economics and the behavioral sciences in general as are used in the natural sciences.
The idea of reinforcement learning—or learning based on reward—has been around for so long it's easy to forget we don't really know how it works. If DeepMind's new bombshell paper in Nature is any indication, a common approach in AI, one that's led to humanity's defeat in the game of Go against machines, may have the answer. We all subconsciously learn complex behaviors in response to positive an
Research has shown that explaining aloud what you are learning, whether to yourself or to someone else, leads to a better understanding of the subject. But in situations where you are working independently, it is not particularly intuitive to start explaining things. Researchers at the University of Twente have discovered that primary school children can better explain what they are studying when
A team of researchers from the University of Oklahoma, Virginia Tech and the University of Notre Dame has found that populations of mayflies in parts of North America have fallen dramatically in recent years. In their paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes using weather radar data to calculate mayfly populations and what they learned about them.
During the past 20 years, insecticides applied to U.S. agricultural landscapes have become significantly more toxic—over 120-fold in some midwestern states—to honey bees when ingested, according to a team of researchers, who identified rising neonicotinoid seed treatments in corn and soy as the primary driver of this change. The study is the first to characterize the geographic patterns of insecti
A team of researchers from the University of Oklahoma, Virginia Tech and the University of Notre Dame has found that populations of mayflies in parts of North America have fallen dramatically in recent years. In their paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes using weather radar data to calculate mayfly populations and what they learned about them.
During the past 20 years, insecticides applied to U.S. agricultural landscapes have become significantly more toxic—over 120-fold in some midwestern states—to honey bees when ingested, according to a team of researchers, who identified rising neonicotinoid seed treatments in corn and soy as the primary driver of this change. The study is the first to characterize the geographic patterns of insecti
Researchers from the University of Sheffield have, for the first time, manufactured 3-D printed parts that show resistance to common bacteria. This could stop the spread of infections such as MRSA in hospitals and care homes, saving the lives of vulnerable patients.
Scientists of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have developed a tool to eliminate essential proteins from cells with a flash of light. The new method makes it possible to study the function of essential proteins.
For well over a century, scientists have thought climate is a key factor affecting the evolution of animal body sizes. However, a recent study has shown that, for squamates, a group of reptiles that includes lizards and snakes, there are no consistent global correlations between body size and climate.
Forget the peculiar creatures populating the pages of Alice in Wonderland. This is your chance to follow in the footsteps of the intrepid explorers who have just delved deep into a West African fantasy world filled with fanged frogs, lipstick-wearing snakes and folding tortoises.
Researchers from the University of Sheffield have, for the first time, manufactured 3-D printed parts that show resistance to common bacteria. This could stop the spread of infections such as MRSA in hospitals and care homes, saving the lives of vulnerable patients.
Scientists of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have developed a tool to eliminate essential proteins from cells with a flash of light. The new method makes it possible to study the function of essential proteins.
This past week the New York Times reported on a set of studies now underway by the U.S. Corps of Engineers of projects designed to protect this region from floodwaters. One proposal is for a six-mile-long sea wall that would cost around $120 billion and take over two decades to build. A recent piece by Anne Barnard in the New York Times discussed the controversy about the flood control options bei
In the early hours of Monday January 20 2020, something unusual was happening in the atmosphere above the southern British Isles. Just after midnight, air pressure records for London were broken at Heathrow airport, where the barometer reached 1,049.6 millibars. That's the highest level since records began in 1692. It broke the previous record for London of 1,049.1 millibars, which was recorded at
For well over a century, scientists have thought climate is a key factor affecting the evolution of animal body sizes. However, a recent study has shown that, for squamates, a group of reptiles that includes lizards and snakes, there are no consistent global correlations between body size and climate.
Forget the peculiar creatures populating the pages of Alice in Wonderland. This is your chance to follow in the footsteps of the intrepid explorers who have just delved deep into a West African fantasy world filled with fanged frogs, lipstick-wearing snakes and folding tortoises.
Almost half of current food production is harmful to our planet—causing biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation and water stress. But as world population continues to grow, can that last?
Cultural differences play a pivotal role in how people in different parts of the world perceive when it is acceptable to sacrifice one person to save a larger group, new research has shown.
Type III solar radio bursts are generated by non-thermal electron beams propagating through the solar corona and interplanetary space. In dynamic spectra, the flux of solar type III radio bursts have a time profile of rising and decay phases at a given frequency, which has been actively studied since the 1970s.
A team of researchers from several institutions in the U.K. and one in the U.S. has found that human culture evolves just as slowly as biological evolution. In their paper published in the journal Nature Human Behavior, the group describes how they developed metrics for cultural evolution and compared them with metrics for biological evolution.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00146-w Chinese officials have confirmed that the virus is spreading between people, but it's still unclear how easily this happens.
As levels of NOx emissions in urban areas, primarily due to diesel emissions, fall, we may face exposure to more hazardous ultrafine particles than researchers had previously believed. Despite the clear public health benefits from reduced NOx emissions, a reduction in NOx gases does not mean that we have completely removed air pollution. Other airborne health hazards are present, including ultraf
Rural school gardens get students back in touch with their food, a new study finds. As technology and supermarkets have made buying food easier and more convenient than ever, researchers believe people are growing more distant from the food they consume. As knowledge about crops, food production, and healthy eating is lost over generations—a process sociologists call "de-skilling"—some school dis
Researchers have identified 107 genes that increase a person's risk of developing the eye disease glaucoma, and now developed a genetic test to detect those at risk of going blind from it. The research, led by QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute and Flinders University in Australia, has been published today in the international Nature Genetics journal.
Organic self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) have been around for over forty years. The most widely used form is based on thiols, bound to a metal surface. However, exposure of these monolayers to air will lead to breakdown within a single day. University of Groningen scientists have now created SAMs using buckyballs functionalized with 'tails' of ethylene glycol. These have all the properties of thio
The strong spatial confinement of a plasmonic field at an atomically sharp tip has made it possible to visualize the inner structure of a single molecule and image its vibrational modes in real space. Researchers from University of Science and Technology of China demonstrate that Ångström-resolved Raman maps for vibrational modes can be used to visually construct the chemical structure of a molecu
Researchers at the California Academy of Sciences and William Paterson University found that nearly one fifth of all spider families are associated with saltwater or freshwater aquatic habitats. Their findings–recently published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society and aptly titled 'The Life Aquatic with Spiders'–address the common misconception that all spiders dwell on land, and re
Engineered defects in ferroelectric materials provides key to improved polarisation stability, a significant step forward for domain-wall nanoelectronics in data storage. Researchers achieved stability greater than one year (a 2000% improvement).
A laser system that generates spinning light particles could lead to the strong kind of computational power needed to solve complex biological problems. The system, which improves on previous ones, is described in the journal Quantum Science and Technology.
Electrons are tough to pin down in biology. Learning how to harness electrons is no fool's errand because, when electrons move, they are the electricity that powers life.
Electrons are tough to pin down in biology. Learning how to harness electrons is no fool's errand because, when electrons move, they are the electricity that powers life.
Listening to the environment—singing birds and chirping crickets—is increasingly used as a means of monitoring change in ecosystems. Together with two colleagues from Melbourne and Paris, Griffith University senior lecturer Dr. Simon Linke has led a major drive to kickstart acoustic monitoring in freshwater systems.
Listening to the environment—singing birds and chirping crickets—is increasingly used as a means of monitoring change in ecosystems. Together with two colleagues from Melbourne and Paris, Griffith University senior lecturer Dr. Simon Linke has led a major drive to kickstart acoustic monitoring in freshwater systems.
Quantum-enhanced metrology has been an active area of research for several years now due to its many possible applications, ranging from atomic clocks to biological imaging. Past physics research established that having a non-classical probe, such as squeezed light or an entangled spin state, can have significant benefits compared to classical probes. This idea was explored further in several rece
For almost a century, astronomers have hypothesized that the universe contains more matter than what can be observed by the human eye. It is now believed that approximately 80 percent of the universe's mass is made up of a type of matter that does not emit light or energy and that scientists are still unable to observe directly, referred to as dark matter.
In the warmer and brighter shallow waters of Kāne'ohe Bay, O'ahu Hawaiian rice coral host more heat-tolerant microbes in their tissues compared to rice coral communities in cooler and darker deep waters, according to research published recently by scientists at the University of Hawai'i. While this is advantageous in the short term–helping corals weather a heat wave, for example–the price they p
Geomorphic reclamation is a relatively novel approach intended to mimic the topography of nearby undisturbed lands, with a wide variety of terrain that is stable and less susceptible to erosion.
A new search led by MSU astrophysicist Amy Reines has revealed more than a dozen massive black holes in dwarf galaxies that were previously considered too small to host them, surprising scientists with their location within the galaxies.
The team has learned more about how a TBI triggers a reduction in growth hormone secretion and why most TBI patients improve after growth hormone replacement treatment.
Effective July 1, 2020, Vermont will be the first state in the nation to ban all household food waste from landfills statewide. New research shows a whopping 72% of Vermonters already compost or feed food scraps to pets/livestock, but few are willing to pay for curbside composting pickup, a strategy being implemented in many urban areas. The study offers important considerations for municipalities
Sorry if you got this logo tattooed on you. (Techathlon/) Consider this the Techathlon closing ceremonies. We're unfurling the flags, firing up the coordinated drone performances, and cranking Journey songs throughout the Techathlon stadium because this is officially our last show. The past year doing this show has brought about the full gamut of emotions. We've laughed. We've pretended we weren'
Australia is a land that has known fire. Our diverse plant and animal species have become accustomed to life with fire, and in fact some require it to procreate.
The world's largest and most sensitive radio telescope is officially open for business, according to Xinhua, China's official state-run media. The FAST Radio Telescope saw fist light in 2016, but has been undergoing testing and commissioning since then. FAST stands for Five-hundred meter Aperture Spherical Telescope.
Australia is a land that has known fire. Our diverse plant and animal species have become accustomed to life with fire, and in fact some require it to procreate.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00152-y The fires are a wake-up call. The country's leaders must now act on overwhelming evidence and public opinion.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00153-x Vigilance, preparedness, speed, transparency and global coordination are now crucial to stopping a new infectious disease from becoming a global emergency.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00095-4 How Nature reported an interview with Einstein from 1920, and fears that England was losing the race to reach the North Pole, from 1870.
2019 is set to be the second warmest year on record, ending the warmest decade on record, another reminder that climate change is the defining issue of our time.
That a billion animals may die as a result of this summer's fires has horrified the world. For many conservation biologists and land managers, however, the unprecedented extent and ferocity of the fires has incinerated much more than koalas and their kin.
Indian astronomers have conducted a comprehensive photometric, kinematic and variability study of a young open cluster known as NGC 1960. Results of the research shed more light on the properties of this cluster and its member stars. The study was detailed in a paper published January 13 on arXiv.org.
The latest release of the Australian Bureau of Statistics Prisoners in Australia data provides a surprising change: for the first time in seven years, the national imprisonment rate has not increased. In fact, it has decreased by 1%.
Canada must prepare for the growing need to retrain workers displaced by disruptive technologies. To do so, governments must have a thorough sense of the effectiveness of current employment retraining programs.
That a billion animals may die as a result of this summer's fires has horrified the world. For many conservation biologists and land managers, however, the unprecedented extent and ferocity of the fires has incinerated much more than koalas and their kin.
It's far easier to avoid burning fossil fuels than it is to clean up CO2 emissions once they're in the Earth's atmosphere. But the world no longer has the luxury of choice—drastic emission reductions and rapid CO2 removal and storage will both be necessary to avoid the worst impacts of global heating.
Computer pioneer's things taken from British school in 1984 Items seized after woman offered them for loan to university The British scientist Alan Turing's Princeton doctoral degree, OBE medal and other items of memorabilia have been recovered in Colorado , 35 years after they were taken from Sherborne School in Dorset . Related: Alan Turing on the £50 note is a triumph for British science – and
PLUS. Sikkerhedstesten skal simulere en lækage ved fyldning af brintfærgen, som skal idriftsættes i norske Rogaland i 2021. Flydende brint er aldrig blevet testet i så stor skala før.
Each year, an average of 120 gigatons of carbon dioxide (CO2) worldwide is released through soil and vegetation respiration. Plants are capable of taking in nearly 123 gigatons through photosynthesis in the same period. But as humans release another ten gigatons of carbon dioxide into this cycle, mainly by burning fossil fuels such as crude oil and natural gas, there are seven gigatons of excess C
There is growing interest in the creative economy in emerging markets in terms of its impact on employment and economic growth, as well as social and cultural impacts.
Improved ship utilization rates and investments in environmentally sustainable technologies for enhanced energy efficiency would significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions within navigation. A recent study carried out in the Laboratory of Industrial Management at Åbo Akademi University also indicates that such measures would contribute to lowering of freight costs.
What rules shaped humanity's original social networks? Researchers in Japan developed new mathematical models to understand what conditions produced traditional community structures and conventions around the world, including taboos about incest.
A few days ago, the European Commission presented its Green Deal, which aims to make the EU climate neutral by 2050 in order to protect the environment and improve people's health and quality of life. One of the planned measures is the introduction of stricter exhaust regulations. The limit values for pollutant emissions from vehicles have already been laid down by law. The current target value is
Each year, an average of 120 gigatons of carbon dioxide (CO2) worldwide is released through soil and vegetation respiration. Plants are capable of taking in nearly 123 gigatons through photosynthesis in the same period. But as humans release another ten gigatons of carbon dioxide into this cycle, mainly by burning fossil fuels such as crude oil and natural gas, there are seven gigatons of excess C
A 500-day global observation campaign spearheaded more than three years ago by ESA's galaxy-mapping powerhouse Gaia has provided unprecedented insights into the binary system of stars that caused an unusual brightening of an even more distant star.
The largest survey of the EU Settlement Scheme to date, with over 3,000 respondents, has revealed the serious negative impacts on EU/EEA and Swiss citizens and their family members in the UK.
The discovery last year of the first nickel oxide material that shows clear signs of superconductivity set off a race by scientists around the world to find out more. The crystal structure of the material is similar to copper oxides, or cuprates, which hold the world record for conducting electricity with no loss at relatively high temperatures and normal pressures. But do its electrons behave in
Industriell råplast, som plastpellets, ger upphov till höga koncentrationer nära utsläppskällorna. Men de flesta plastartiklar i havet är fragment av större plast. Det visar nya studier vid Göteborgs universitet. – Mängderna industriell råplast som vi hittar visar att det är mycket viktigt att existerande regelverk, som exempelvis miljöbalken, tillämpas för att undvika onödigt spill av plast, säg
Only three new treatments available in 10 or more poorer countries, report finds Many antibiotics are unavailable in poorer countries despite higher infection rates, exacerbating the threat of drug-resistant superbugs, according to a report to be presented to world leaders and the bosses of top pharmaceutical companies in Davos. The report, released by the Access to Medicine Foundation, an Amster
Et fly bliver hurtigst klar til afgang, hvis småbørnsforældre, gangbesværede og andre langsommere passagerer sætter sig først. Det viser fysikere, der har forsøgt at optimere boarding-tiden ved hjælp af geometrien bag Einsteins rumtid.
Wildfires in south eastern Brazil produce airborne pollution that worsens air quality in major cities such as Sao Paulo—canceling out efforts to improve the urban environment and posing health risks to citizens, according to a new study.
A new report published in Nature Sustainability this week examines the potential impacts on food production of zero budget natural farming, a farming system that is sweeping India.
Projected ocean warming and acidification not only impacts the behavior of individual species but also the wider marine ecosystems which are influenced by them, a new study shows.
A novel composite film—created by the bonding of an antimicrobial layer to conventional, clear polyethylene plastic typically used to vacuum-package foods such as meat and fish—could help to decrease foodborne illness outbreaks, according to researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.
the British Antarctic Survey, the world's largest Emperor penguin colony has suffered unprecedented breeding issues for the past three years, is uniquely vulnerable to ongoing and projected climate change, and could virtually disappear by the year 2100. In order to study penguin populations, researchers first need to accurately count them. A new crowd counting solution from Intel AI Builder member
A seaweed species crucial to the survival of coral reefs may be able to gain resistance to ocean changes caused by climate change, new Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington research recently published in Nature Climate Change shows.
Life can be very challenging for new migrants who are faced with the realities of racism, loneliness and underemployment in their adopted countries. It is important for host communities to understand how best to help migrants settle in and achieve well-being.
Projected ocean warming and acidification not only impacts the behavior of individual species but also the wider marine ecosystems which are influenced by them, a new study shows.
A novel composite film—created by the bonding of an antimicrobial layer to conventional, clear polyethylene plastic typically used to vacuum-package foods such as meat and fish—could help to decrease foodborne illness outbreaks, according to researchers in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences.
the British Antarctic Survey, the world's largest Emperor penguin colony has suffered unprecedented breeding issues for the past three years, is uniquely vulnerable to ongoing and projected climate change, and could virtually disappear by the year 2100. In order to study penguin populations, researchers first need to accurately count them. A new crowd counting solution from Intel AI Builder member
A seaweed species crucial to the survival of coral reefs may be able to gain resistance to ocean changes caused by climate change, new Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington research recently published in Nature Climate Change shows.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00116-2 Better health and social policy would save more lives than sophisticated drugs.
Few places in the United States concentrate as much history in 14 acres as the grounds of the Virginia state capitol. Thomas Jefferson designed the capitol building; Patrick Henry laid its cornerstone; in 1807, Chief Justice John Marshall sat there to preside over the treason trial of former Vice President Aaron Burr. The capitol's second floor displays a Carrara-marble statue of George Washingto
Researchers are replicating "mass mortality events" with pig carcasses. The ecological consequences could hint at what's happening in Australia right now.
Some of the hearing loss we've blamed on age might be due to how many fire trucks we've stood next to. But there are still ways to diagnose—and protect—against that environmental damage. (Anthony Gerace/) Tucked inside the air traffic control tower in Portland, Maine, Samantha Bassett was busy making sure planes didn't crash into each other. All systems seemed normal that day in May 2014. Aircraf
I've covered sports for 40 years, not politics. Maybe that's why I'm so bamboozled by this impeachment case in the U.S. Senate. Republicans are going to try Donald Trump with no witnesses? Some jurors have already announced they're voting not guilty ? The guy who makes the rules—Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky—gets his marching orders from the accused himself? Can you imagine if we did sports
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00114-4 Thought leaders predict the tech developments that could have a big impact in the coming year.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00128-y Activity on the volcanic island Taal has eased, but scientists say the threat is far from over.
Tesla has made waves in the car industry, recently becoming the most valuable US auto manufacturer. It reached this lofty position on the strength of its all-electric designs and a robust autonomous system called Autopilot. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is now investigating reports that Tesla's vehicles are suffering from unintended acceleration. When you hear the phr
The BBC headline reads: Immune discovery 'may treat all cancer' . Most health headlines, even of legitimate scientific discoveries, tend to be overhyped. All health discoveries, apparently, will either eventually cure cancer or the common cold. This headline is also overhyped, in my opinion, but this is a legitimate discovery with possible implications for future cancer treatment. What the scient
A new scientific survey has reinforced the importance of one of the world's only remaining breeding populations of Indochinese tigers and provided evidence of tiger cubs in eastern Thailand's Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex.
A new scientific survey has reinforced the importance of one of the world's only remaining breeding populations of Indochinese tigers and provided evidence of tiger cubs in eastern Thailand's Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex.
It may seem surprising, but theories and formulas derived from physics turn out to be useful tools for understanding the ways democratic elections work, including how these systems break down and how they could be improved.
An ambitious mission to drill into the Antarctic ice sheet to extract some of the oldest ice on the planet will provide vital clues about a mysterious shift in the behaviour of our planet's climate.
Genghis Khan's conquering armies fed on dried curd as they crossed the vast steppes of Eurasia, ancient Romans imported pungent cheeses from France, and Bedouin tribes crossing the Arabian Desert have for centuries survived on camel's milk.
Material falling into a black hole casts X-rays out into space—and now astronomers have used the echoes of this radiation to map the dynamic behavior and surroundings of a black hole itself.
https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-plans-1-million-people-to-mars-by-2050-2020-1 Elon says that he plans to have 1 million people on Mars by 2050. 1,000 Starships will be launched every 26 months (during the Earth-Mars transfer window) over a period of 30 days (so an average of 33 starships a day). Each starship will carry 100 passengers, so thats 100,000 passengers to Mars every 26 months
Despite reports that global emissions of the potent greenhouse gas hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) were almost eliminated in 2017, an international team of scientists, led by the University of Bristol, has found atmospheric levels growing at record values.
Under the leadership of astrophysicist Kathrin Altwegg, Bernese researchers have found an explanation for why very little nitrogen could previously be accounted for in the nebulous covering of comets: the building block for life predominantly occurs in the form of ammonium salts, the occurrence of which could not previously be measured. The salts may be a further indication that comet impacts may
SAN MARCOS, Texas—In the autumn of 2012, Ricardo Gonzalez Jurado was 25 feet off the ground, balancing on metal scaffolding as he sawed a stack of wood. Gonzalez Jurado owns a Central Texas yoga retreat—an oasis deep in the woods where he's built a cluster of small houses for customers seeking a few days of bodily and spiritual cleansing. That day, he was precariously constructing a large, hollow
Bangladesh's high court has ordered the shutdown of 231 factories that have contributed to Dhaka's main river becoming one of the world's most polluted, a lawyer said Tuesday.
The world is using up more than 100 billion tonnes of natural resources per year for the first time ever while global recycling of raw materials has fallen, according to a report released Tuesday.
Alexander Hamilton called it—almost. In his essay "Federalist No. 65," Hamilton recognized the possibility that the Senate's judgment in an impeachment trial "will be regulated more by the comparative strength of parties, than by the real demonstrations of innocence or guilt." He pushed that concern aside, though, and concluded that only the Senate was up to the task of conducting a presidential-
The activist punched a hole in the promises emerging from a forum of the global political and business elite at Davos, telling the leaders to stop investing in fossil fuels immediately.
PLUS. Når metroen til Nordhavn åbner omkring 1. april, vil pladserne omkring metrostationerne stadig fremstå ufærdige. Først i 2025 vil begge stationspladser være helt færdige.
The centuries old philosophy of Stoicism may hold the key to a kind of happiness that is more grounded in reality. The two main ideas of stoic happiness are that problems are caused by your reactions to events not the events themselves, and the only things you can control are your thoughts and your actions. Choosing strategic pessimism over optimism and positive thinking is one way to avoid "unne
PLUS. Danmark har meget kystnær beboelse, der ligger lavt ved å-systemer. Når man er truet af vand fra to sider, kan nødpumpestationer være en god løsning – som pumpen ved Ishøj Havn, der holder vandstanden nede i et å-system i hele seks kommuner.
Nature, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/d41586-020-00115-3 Museum entomologist Erica McAlister finds joy in the huge and growing diversity of her collections while extracting DNA from century-old specimens.
The International Journal of Sport Psychology has retracted a paper by the late — and controversial — psychologist Hans Eysenck, whose work has faced doubts since the early 1990s. The paper, published in 1990, was one of dozens by Eysenck and Ronald Grossarth-Maticek found to be "unsafe" by King's College London, but appears to be … Continue reading
On January 13, 2020, a political scientist named Daniel Drezner tweeted a screenshot of a Washington Post article, along with a cheeky comment: "I'll believe that Trump is growing into the presidency when his staff stops talking about him like a toddler." The screenshot showed a quotation about handling the president from a former senior administration official: "He'd get spun up, and if you boug
Sixty years ago, a sharecropper's son invented a technology to identify faces. Then the record of his role all but vanished. Who was Woody Bledsoe, and who was he working for?
Mauro Ferrari joins organisation at a tricky time and says his focus is on identifying 'breakthrough people' At the age of 43, Mauro Ferrari astonished his peers by giving up his career as a highly regarded professor of engineering at the University of California in Berkeley to enrol at medical school. He had been driven to find a cure for the cancer that had killed his wife at the age of 32, lea
Helsingør Kommune har udleveret personoplysninger på kommunens elever til Youtube uden at have fået samtykke fra forældrene. Da problemet blev opdaget, orienterede kommunen ikke Datatilsynet om sagen.
På fem år er er der sket en fordobling af antallet af rygere, der siger ja tak til at være med i Vestegnen og Sydamagers rygestoptilbud 'Bliv en vinder uden tobak'. Det er et forbilledligt initiativ, som gør projektet til vinder af Kommunal Sundheds store initiativpris 'Den Gyldne Tråd'.
New research has found preparing land for palm oil plantations and the growth of young plants causes significantly more damage to the environment, emitting double the amount of greenhouse gases than mature plantations.
Despite reports that global emissions of the potent greenhouse gas were almost eliminated in 2017, an international team of scientists, led by the University of Bristol, has found atmospheric levels growing at record values.
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-019-14249-0 FPGAs have long been of interest as reconfigurable circuits, but their electronic nature provides eventual limitations. Here the authors demonstrate a photonic digital signal processor that is field programmable using arrays of microdisk resonators.
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-019-13928-2 Current inhibitors of platelet integrin αIIbβ3 cause excessive bleeding, which limited their clinical use in cardiac patients. Here the authors design pure orthosteric αIIbβ3 inhibitors that prevent platelet aggregation and thrombosis without causing bleeding in humanized mouse models of thrombosis
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-019-14251-6 Supramolecular catalytic assemblies attract enormous interest due to their activity that rivals natural enzymes. Using ab initio molecular dynamics, the authors show that a gold catalyst in a Ga4L612- nanocage, while impeded by reorganization energy, is accelerated by hosting a catalytic water molecule.
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-019-14016-1 Migratory cross-coupling reactions are powerful tools to form bonds at predictable positions. Here the authors report a nickel-catalyzed migratory Suzuki–Miyaura cross-coupling of unactivated alkyl electrophiles with aryl and vinyl boron reagents and provide experimental and computational mechanistic evidence
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-019-14254-3 Fluorinated or fluoroalkylated allenes are versatile building blocks for medicinal and material chemistry. Here, the authors show a regioselective trifunctionalization of 1,3-enynes proceeding through double C-F bond formation and concomitant installation of a -NSO2Ph group to the allene moiety.
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-020-14299-9 Histone mimicry of viral components is a strategy to subvert host factors for virus replication. Here, the authors show that an acetylated histone-like motif of the small Hepatitis Delta Antigen (S-HDAg) interacts with the chromatin remodeler BAZ2B to recruit the DNA-dependent RNA polymerase II for HDV RNA re
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-020-14292-2 Sonogashira cross-coupling is a powerful strategy to prepare functionalized internal alkynes. Here, the authors report a domino sequence for the generation of γ-/δ-alkynyl nitriles and γ-alkynyl ketones from the coupling of terminal alkynes with O-acyloximes derived from cycloalkanones and acylic ketones, res
Nature Communications, Published online: 21 January 2020; doi:10.1038/s41467-019-14280-1 Trait introgression requires universal markers, but cross-species transferability of current SNP markers can be as low as 2%. Here, the authors use an AmpSeq haplotype strategy targeting the collinear core genome for marker development and show transferability increases to 91.4% in the Vitis genus.
'Bliv en vinder uden tobak' er en tværsektoriel indsats, der med en enkel metode har opnået markante resultater på et område, der kan være svært at lykkes med, lyder det fra to medlemmer af Den Gyldne Tråds dommerkomite.