330 articles from WEDNESDAY 16.9.2020
Wildfire smoke brings haze, vivid sunsets to East Coast
The smoke from dozens of wildfires in the western United States is stretching clear across the country — and even pushing into Mexico, Canada and Europe. The wildfires racing across tinder-dry landscape in California, Idaho, Oregon and Washington are extraordinary, but the long reach of their smoke isn't unprecedented. The sun was transformed into a perfect orange orb as it set over New York...
CDC director says coronavirus vaccine won’t be widely available until late 2021
The estimation runs counter to Donald Trump’s recent messaging that a vaccine will be available ‘in a matter of weeks’The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has told a Senate panel that he thinks it will take one year before a coronavirus vaccine will be “generally available to the American public”.That estimation contrasts with recent bullish messaging by...
Podcast: COVID-19 is helping turn Brazil into a surveillance state
Leading discussions about the global rules to regulate digital privacy and surveillance is a somewhat unusual role for a developing country to play. But Brazil had been doing just that for over a decade. But in 2014 Edward Snowden’s bombshell about the US National Security Agency’s digital surveillance activities included revelations that the agency had…
NASA mulls possible mission to Venus after recent discovery of possible life
NASA is considering approving by next April up to two planetary science missions from four proposals under review, including one to Venus that scientists involved in the project said could help determine whether or not that planet harbors life. The U.S. space agency in February shortlisted four proposed missions that are now being reviewed by a NASA panel, two of which would involve robotic...
Fires continue to rage in US as smoke reaches Europe
Devastating wildfires that have ravaged the US West Coast continued to rage on Wednesday as smoke from the deadly blazes spread across the country and even reached Europe.
Researchers 3-D print tiny multicolor microstructures
Researchers have developed an automated 3-D printing method that can produce multicolor 3-D microstructures using different materials. The new method could be used to make a variety of optical components including optical sensors and light-driven actuators as well as multimaterial structures for applications such as soft robotics and medical applications.
Multi-stakeholder communication is key for better monitoring of marine ecosystems
A sustained dialogue must be established between molecular ecologists, policymakers and other stakeholders for DNA-based approaches to be adopted in marine monitoring and assessment, according to KAUST scientists and colleagues.
Satellite finds a strengthening tropical storm Noul
NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite passed over the South China Sea and captured a visible image of Tropical Storm Noui as it continued to organize and intensify.
Endangered wildlife, habitat burned in Washington's wildfires
Entire wildlife areas have been destroyed and endangered populations of animals gravely depleted by wildfires burning in Eastern Washington.
Common public screening methods unreliable; student athletes may need heart test after COVID-19
COVID-19 screening tests used at airports, schools, and other public places are not particularly effective, a large analysis shows. Researchers synthesized the evidence from 22 studies of various screening methods, including taking people's temperature, asking about symptoms, travel history and exposure to infected or possibly infected people, and combinations of those and other approaches. With...
Canada not yet ready to deploy rapid COVID testing devices, says health minister
Health Minister Patty Hajdu said today that Health Canada is not yet satisfied with any of the options it has been reviewing for rapid COVID-19 testing devices — and they will not be deployed across the country until regulators are satisfied they work to a certain...
Turbulence affects aerosols and cloud formation
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
Turbulent air in the atmosphere affects how cloud droplets form. New research in a cloud chamber changes the way clouds, and therefore climate, are modeled.
World's smallest ultrasound detector created
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
Researchers have developed the world's smallest ultrasound detector. It is based on miniaturized photonic circuits on top of a silicon chip. With a size 100 times smaller than an average human hair, the new detector can visualize features that are much smaller than previously possible, leading to what is known as super-resolution imaging.
The persistence of plastic
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
The amount of synthetic microfiber we shed into our waterways has been of great concern over the last few years, and for good reason: Every laundry cycle releases in its wastewater tens of thousands of tiny, near-invisible plastic fibers whose persistence and accumulation can affect aquatic habitats and food systems, and ultimately our own bodies in ways we have yet to discover.
Medical robotic hand? Rubbery semiconductor makes it possible
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
A medical robotic hand could allow doctors to more accurately diagnose and treat people from halfway around the world, but currently available technologies aren't good enough to match the in-person experience. Now researchers have reported that they have designed and produced a smart electronic skin and a medical robotic hand capable of assessing vital diagnostic data by using a newly invented...
New gene implicated in neuron diseases
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
Failures in a quality control system that protects protein-building fidelity in cells can lead to motor neuron degeneration and related diseases, according to a new study shows.
Discoveries made in how immune system detects hidden intruders
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
Research has led to better understanding on how components of the body's immune system find intruding or damaged cells, which could lead to novel approaches to viral and cancer treatments.
T cells take the lead in controlling SARS-CoV-2 and reducing COVID-19 disease severity
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
A multi-layered, virus-specific immune response is important for controlling SARS-CoV-2 during the acute phase of the infection and reducing COVID-19 disease severity, with the bulk of the evidence pointing to a much bigger role for T cells than antibodies. A weak or uncoordinated immune response, on the other hand, predicts a poor disease outcome.
As pandemic progressed, people's perceived risks went up
- ScienceDaily
- 20/9/16 21:48
A recent study documents how personal risk assessment and protective behaviors are linked.
Scientists explain how diverse species coexist in microbial communities
Diversity in many biological communities is a sign of an ecosystem in balance. When one species dominates, the entire system can go haywire. For example, the uncontrolled overgrowth of certain oceanic algae species causes toxic red tides that kill fish and other sea life, and sicken humans. On a more individual level, the human gut hosts a large community of different bacteria that is crucial for...