351 articles from THURSDAY 25.6.2020

NASA's Disk Detective Project Relaunches with 150,000 Stars

Disk Detective is back! Disk Detective is the NASA citizen science project that previously discovered “Peter Pan” disks (the longest-lived disks that form planets), as well discovered the youngest nearby disk around a brown dwarf (a ball of gas too small to be considered a star). The project is relaunching with a new batch of 150,000 stars to analyze and looking to the public for help....

Unorthodox desalination method could transform global water management

Over the past year, researchers have been refining their unconventional desalination approach for hypersaline brines -- temperature swing solvent extraction (TSSE) -- that shows great promise for widespread use. The team now reports that their method has enabled them to attain energy-efficient zero-liquid discharge of ultrahigh salinity brines -- the first demonstration of TSSE for ZLD...

Spacewatch: China launches last BeiDou satellite to rival GPS

Third iteration hoisted into space offers alternative to US, EU and Russian navigation systemsChina launched the final satellite of its BeiDou navigation satellite system (BDS) from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province at 9.43am local time (0243 BST) on 23 June 2020.Developed by the China Academy of Space Technology, the satellite is the 30th in the constellation, and was...

Critical new allergy pathway

Researchers have identified the sequence of molecular events by which tiny, tick-like creatures called house dust mites trigger asthma and allergic rhinitis.

COVID-19 costs primary care billions

On average, a full-time primary care physician in the U.S. will lose more than $65,000 in revenue in 2020. Overall, the U.S. primary care sector will lose nearly $15 billion. Losses stem from drastic reductions in office visits and fees for services during COVID-19 shutdowns from March to May. Losses threaten practice viability, reducing further an already insufficient number of primary care...

Microbiome of anticancer compound-producing marine invertebrate

Could the cure for melanoma - the most dangerous type of skin cancer -- be a compound derived from a marine invertebrate that lives at the bottom of the ocean? A group of scientists think so, and are looking to the microbiome of an Antarctic ascidian called Synoicum adareanum to better understand the possibilities for development of a melanoma-specific drug.

X-rays size up protein structure at the 'heart' of COVID-19 virus

Researchers have performed the first room temperature X-ray measurements on the SARS-CoV-2 main protease -- the enzyme that enables the virus to reproduce. It marks an important first step in the ultimate goal of building a comprehensive 3D model of the enzymatic protein that will be used to advance supercomputing simulations aimed at finding drug inhibitors to block the virus's replication...

MicroCT reveals detailed head morphology of arthropod, Leanchoilia illecebrosa

An international collaboration between researchers at Harvard University and Yunnan University in China uses microCT to study and restudy arthropod fossils from the early Cambrian in the Chengjiang biota in the Yunnan Province of China. Their latest study shows with unprecedented clarity the head morphology of the species Leanchoilia illecebrosa and demonstrates the presence of a labrum thus...

Selling something? Tap into consumer arrogance

Deny it you might, but even modest consumers brag about their purchases every once in a while. But can marketers leverage our tendency to brag about our buys to market products or services more successfully?

Researchers discover new boron-lanthanide nanostructure

The discovery of carbon nanostructures like two-dimensional graphene and soccer ball-shaped buckyballs helped to launch a nanotechnology revolution. In recent years, researchers from Brown University and elsewhere have shown that boron, carbon's neighbor on the periodic table, can make interesting nanostructures too, including two-dimensional borophene and a buckyball-like hollow cage structure...

Mountain meadow restoration can bring birds back

In a new study led by scientists at Point Blue Conservation Science and in collaboration with The Institute for Bird Populations, authors evaluated the successes of mountain meadow restorations by analyzing eight years of bird data collected by field biologists. The authors concluded that, when "pond and plug" and similar techniques were followed, the number of birds of many species increased over...

Mountain meadow restoration can bring birds back

Ecologists evaluated the successes of mountain meadow restorations by analyzing eight years of bird data collected by field biologists. The authors concluded that, when ''pond and plug'' and similar techniques were followed, the number of birds of many species increased over time as habitat conditions improved.

Why are plants green?

When sunlight shining on a leaf changes rapidly, plants must protect themselves from the ensuing sudden surges of solar energy. To cope with these changes, photosynthetic organisms have developed numerous tactics. Scientists have been unable, however, to identify the underlying design principle. A physicist has now constructed a model that reproduces a general feature of photosynthetic light...

These muscle cells are guideposts to help regenerative flatworms grow back their eyes

If anything happens to the eyes of the tiny, freshwater-dwelling planarian Schmidtea mediterranea, they can grow them back within just a few days. New research provides insight about how the worms accomplish this feat: researchers have identified a new type of cell that likely serves as a guidepost to help route axons from the eyes to the brain as the worms complete the difficult task of regrowing...

Mystery of solar cycle illuminated

The sun's convection zone plays a key role in the generation and evolution of the Sun's magnetic field. Analyzing data sets spanning more than 20 years, researchers have obtained the most comprehensive picture of the north-south flow of plasma in the convection zone ever. The flow goes around the convection zone in each hemisphere in about 22 years.

Super-Earths discovered orbiting nearby red dwarf

The nearest exoplanets to us provide the best opportunities for study, including searching for evidence of life outside the Solar System. Astronomers have now detected a system of super-Earth planets orbiting the nearby star Gliese 887, the brightest red dwarf star in the sky. The newly discovered super-Earths lie close to the red dwarf's habitable zone, where water can exist in liquid form.

MicroCT reveals detailed head morphology of arthropod, Leanchoilia illecebrosa

Researchers used microCT to study and re-study arthropod fossils from the early Cambrian in the Chengjiang biota in the Yunnan Province of China. Their latest study shows with unprecedented clarity the head morphology of the species Leanchoilia illecebrosa and demonstrates the presence of a labrum thus supporting the hypothesis that megacheirans are distant relatives of modern chelicerates (e.g....

New automotive radar spots hazards around corners

Using radar commonly deployed to track speeders and fastballs, researchers have developed an automated system that will allow cars to peer around corners and spot oncoming traffic and pedestrians. The system, easily integrated into today's vehicles, uses Doppler radar to bounce radio waves off surfaces such as buildings and parked automobiles.

Helping consumers in a crisis

A new study shows that the central bank tool known as quantitative easing helped consumers substantially during the last big economic downturn -- a finding with clear relevance for today's pandemic-hit economy.

Monster black hole found in the early universe

Astronomers have discovered the second-most distant quasar ever found. It is the first quasar to receive an indigenous Hawaiian name, Poniua'ena. Data show the supermassive black hole powering Poniua'ena is surprisingly massive, challenging current theories of how supermassive black holes formed and grew in the young universe.

New study looks at post-COVID-19 emerging disease in children

In recent weeks, a multisystem hyperinflammatory condition has emerged in children in association with prior exposure or infection to SARS-CoV-2. A new case series examines the spectrum of imaging findings in children with the post-COVID-19 inflammatory condition known in the US as Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C).