29 articles from SATURDAY 16.1.2021

Joe Biden names scientific advisers and seeks to bring Eric Lander into cabinet

Human Genome Project co-leader to be chief science voiceBiden must find words for a wounded nationJoe Biden has named the geneticist Eric Lander as his top scientific adviser and will elevate the position to the cabinet for the first time, a move meant to indicate a decisive break from Donald Trump’s treatment of science. Related: History-maker Kamala Harris will wield real power as...

Carbon capture is vital to meeting climate goals, scientists tell green critics

Supporters insist that storage technology is not a costly mistake but the best way for UK to cut emissions from heavy industryEngineers and geologists have strongly criticised green groups who last week claimed that carbon capture and storage schemes – for reducing fossil fuel emissions – are costly mistakes.The scientists insisted that such schemes are vital weapons in the battle against...

Turn it down: how to silence your inner voice

Your internal monologue shapes mental wellbeing, says psychologist Ethan Kross. He has the tools to improve your mind’s backchatAs Ethan Kross, an American experimental psychologist and neuroscientist, will cheerfully testify, the person who doesn’t sometimes find themselves listening to an unhelpful voice in their head probably doesn’t exist. Ten years ago, Kross found himself sitting up...

Nasa’s Boeing deep space rocket set for ‘once-in-a-generation’ test

Test is step before first unmanned launch later this year, in push to land humans on the moon again by 2024Nasa’s Boeing-built deep space exploration rocket, Space Launch System (SLS), is set to fire its behemoth core stage for the first time on Saturday, a crucial test for a years-delayed US government project facing mounting pressure from emerging private sector technology.The SLS hot fire...

Will your neighbors get vaccinated?

As the coronavirus vaccines have rolled out across the US, the process has been confusing and disastrous. States, left by the federal government to fend for themselves, have struggled to get a handle on the logistics of distribution. Many, including Georgia, Virginia, and California, have fallen woefully behind schedule. But even if there were a…

Global report: coronavirus death toll reaches 2 million

‘Heart-wrenching milestone’ says UN chief; China reports 130 new cases in flare-up; India starts mass vaccination campaignCoronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverageMore than two million people have lost their lives to the Covid-19 pandemic worldwide, with the United Nations secretary general, António Guterres, lamenting the impact of the “vicious virus”.“Our world...

Better diet and glucose uptake in the brain lead to longer life in fruit flies

Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have discovered that fruit flies with genetic modifications to enhance glucose uptake have significantly longer lifespans. Looking at the brain cells of aging flies, they found that better glucose uptake compensates for age-related deterioration in motor functions, and led to longer life. The effect was more pronounced when coupled with dietary...