221 articles from MONDAY 30.3.2020

New coronavirus study reveals increased risks from middle age

First comprehensive study of deaths and hospitalisations in mainland China shows just how much of a factor age is Coronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe first comprehensive study of Covid-19 deaths and hospitalisations in mainland China has revealed in stark detail the increase in risk for coronavirus patients once they reach middle age.The analysis found that while the...

Saliva test for cannabis could someday help identify impaired drivers

In the U.S., those who consume alcohol and drive are often subjected to roadside stops, breathalyzer tests and stiff penalties if their blood alcohol content exceeds certain limits. Currently, no such test exists for cannabis intoxication, although the substance is known to impair driving, among other activities. Scientists now report that they are one step closer to a convenient saliva test for...

Sturgeon genome sequenced

Sturgeons lived on earth already 300 million years ago and yet their external appearance seems to have undergone very little change. A team of researchers has now succeeded in sequencing their genome, delivering a missing piece of the puzzle essential to understanding the ancestry of vertebrates.

How at risk are you of getting a virus on an airplane?

Fair or not, airplanes have a reputation for germs. However, there are ways to minimize the risks. This research is especially used for air travel where there is an increased risk for contagious infection or disease, such as the recent worldwide outbreak of the coronavirus, which causes COVID-19 disease.

New maps of Malaysian Borneo reveal worsening carbon losses along forest edges

Tropical forests are heavily fragmented as they are cleared for agricultural expansion and logging. Forest fragmentation leads to declines in carbon storage beyond just those trees that are cleared—the remaining forest at the edge of each clearing experiences environmental alterations such as increased sunlight and decreased soil moisture that can impact growing conditions for trees. These "edge...

Projecting the outcomes of people's lives with AI isn't so simple

The machine learning techniques scientists use to predict outcomes from large datasets may fall short when it comes to projecting the outcomes of people's lives, according to a mass study led by researchers at Princeton University in a collaboration with researchers across many institutions, including Virginia Tech.

Tree rings could pin down Thera volcano eruption date

Charlotte Pearson's eyes scanned a palm-sized chunk of ancient tree. They settled on a ring that looked "unusually light," and she made a note without giving it a second thought. Three years later, and armed with new methodology and technology, she discovered that the light ring might mark the year that the Thera volcano on the Greek island of Santorini erupted over the ancient Minoan...

'Immunity passports' could speed up return to work after Covid-19

German researchers studying how lockdown restrictions could be lifted for some peopleCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverage“Immunity passports” for key workers could be a way of getting people who have had coronavirus back into the workforce more quickly, scientists and politicians in the UK have suggested.Researchers in Germany are currently preparing a mass study into...

Covid-19: deaths outside hospitals to be included in UK tally for first time

ONS to publish additional data but chief medical officer doesn’t expect a large increase in reported deathsCoronavirus – latest UK updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe reported death toll from coronavirus in the UK is set to increase beyond the NHS’s daily tally on Tuesday when fatalities outside of hospitals are counted for the first time.Figures from NHS and Public Health England’s...

'They are leading us to catastrophe': Sweden's coronavirus stoicism begins to jar

There’s a surreal calm in the last country in Europe to hold out against lockdown. But the death toll is rising and some are voicing dissentCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe Øresund Bridge – yes, that bridge – is an engineering marvel linking the Swedish city of Malmö and Copenhagen that normally transports 70,000 people daily. It has fallen eerily silent....

Univ. of Washington studies antimalarial drug’s use to head off COVID-19, with Gates Foundation’s aid

University of Washington researchers are among the leaders of a newly announced clinical trial investigating whether hydroxychloroquine, a drug that's commonly used to counter malaria and autoimmune disease, can prevent COVID-19. The multi-site trial, managed by UW in collaboration with New York University's Grossman School of Medicine, aims to determine definitively whether taking the...

Ecosystem services are not constrained by borders

What do chocolate, migratory birds, flood control and pandas have in common? Many countries benefit from ecosystem services provided outside their nations. This can happen through economic relationships, biological and geographical conditions, but we hardly know how and where these ecosystem service flows occur. Scientists at the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) and the German...

The desire for information: Blissful ignorance or painful truth?

We live in a time of unprecedented access to information. And in this era of sheltering-in-place around the nation and the globe, the desire for news may be higher than ever—at least for some people. But do we really want all this information, all the time? Some may indeed prefer to think happier thoughts and maintain an (overly) optimistic outlook about the health threat we face. On the other...

Hidden messages in protein blueprints

Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Heidelberg Institute of Stem Cell Technology and Experimental Medicine (HI-STEM) and the Max Planck Institute in Freiburg have identified a new control mechanism that enables stem cells to adapt their activity in emergency situations. For this purpose, the stem cells simultaneously modify the blueprints for hundreds of proteins...

Coronavirus live news: Italy reports 812 new deaths as global toll passes 35,000

Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in self-isolation; Moscow announces lockdown of 12m people; Syria records first deathCoronavirus latest: at a glanceNew study sheds light on infection mechanismHungary passes law that critics say will let Orbán rule by decreeUK coronavirus updates – liveSee all our coronavirus coverage 5.30pm BST Before dawn hundreds of British travellers had...

NASA Science Live: Episode 2 - Going Interstellar

The second episode of NASA Science Live takes you to the very edge of our solar system where interstellar space begins. Starting with the Voyager mission at the boundary and traveling on to some of the closest and brightest stars, watch as we answer questions like: What does "going interstellar" mean, how are we currently exploring outside our solar system and what plans do we have for the...

Unique structural fluctuations at ice surface promote autoionization of water molecules

Hydrated protons at the surface of water ice are of fundamental importance in a variety of physicochemical phenomena on earth and in the universe. Hydrated protons can be introduced by the autoionization of water molecules; thus, the autoionization and subsequent proton transfer processes determine the proton activity inherent to water molecular systems. A recent experimental study on the H/D...

Hidden messages in protein blueprints

Scientists have identified a new control mechanism that enables stem cells to adapt their activity in emergency situations. For this purpose, the stem cells simultaneously modify the blueprints for hundreds of proteins encoded in the gene transcripts. In this way, they control the amount of protein produced and can also control the formation of certain proteinisoforms. If this mechanism is...

Heart attack on a chip: Scientists model conditions of ischemia on a microfluidic device

Researchers led by biomedical engineers at Tufts University invented a microfluidic chip containing cardiac cells that is capable of mimicking hypoxic conditions following a heart attack—specifically when an artery is blocked in the heart and then unblocked after treatment. The chip contains multiplexed arrays of electronic sensors placed outside and inside the cells that can detect the rise and...

Unique structural fluctuations at ice surface promote autoionization of water molecules

Water ice is one of the most abundant solid substances in nature and hydrated protons on ice surfaces critically influence physical and chemical properties of ice. Hydrated protons are easily doped into the hydrogen-bond (HB) networks when acidic impurities are present. In contrast, in pure water molecular systems, they are generated solely by the thermal ionization of water molecules (H2O⇆H+hyd...