279 articles from WEDNESDAY 27.1.2021
A mild way to upcycle plastics used in bottles into fuel and other high-value products
Plastic is ubiquitous in people's lives. Yet, when plastic-containing items have fulfilled their missions, only a small amount is recycled into new products, which are often of lower quality compared to the original material. And, transforming this waste into high-value chemicals requires substantial energy. Now, researchers reporting in ACS' JACS Au have combined a ruthenium-carbon catalyst and...
Up-trending farming and landscape disruptions threaten Paris climate agreement goals
One of President Joe Biden's first post-inauguration acts was to realign the United States with the Paris climate accord, but a new study led by researchers at the University of California, Irvine demonstrates that rising emissions from human land-use will jeopardize the agreement's goals without substantial changes in agricultural practices.
Microscopy systems using customized chips could expand on-site identification of pathogens
The development of cost-efficient, portable microscopy units would greatly expand their use in remote field locations and in places with fewer resources, potentially leading to easier on-site analysis of contaminants such as E. coli in water sources as well as other practical applications.
Purported phosphine on Venus more likely to be ordinary sulfur dioxide, new study shows
In September, a team led by astronomers in the United Kingdom announced that they had detected the chemical phosphine in the thick clouds of Venus. The team's reported detection, based on observations by two Earth-based radio telescopes, surprised many Venus experts. Earth's atmosphere contains small amounts of phosphine, which may be produced by life. Phosphine on Venus generated buzz that the...
Optical scanner design for adaptive driving beam systems can lead to safer night driving
Car accidents are responsible for approximately a million deaths each year globally. Among the many causes, driving at night, when vision is most limited, leads to accidents with higher mortality rates than accidents during the day. Therefore, improving visibility during night driving is critical for reducing the number of fatal car accidents.
Precision measurements of intracluster light suggest possible link to dark matter
A combination of observational data and sophisticated computer simulations have yielded advances in a field of astrophysics that has languished for half a century. The Dark Energy Survey, which is hosted by the U.S. Department of Energy's Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, has published a burst of new results on what's called intracluster light, or ICL, a faint type of light found inside...
Wildfire ravages massive section of Argentine forest
A wildfire raging in the south of Argentina has consumed a vast swathe of forestland in three days, local authorities said Wednesday—an area half the size of Liechtenstein.
First ever 'pioneer' factor found in plants enables cells to change their fate
Cells don't express all the genes they contain all the time. The portion of our genome that encodes eye color, for example, doesn't need to be turned on in liver cells. In plants, genes encoding the structure of a flower can be turned off in cells that will form a leaf.
Forests with diverse tree sizes and small clearings hinder wildland fire growth
A new 3-D analysis shows that wildland fires flare up in forests populated by similar-sized trees or checkerboarded by large clearings and slow down where trees are more varied. The research can help fire managers better understand the physics and dynamics of fire to improve fire-behavior forecasts.
Juicing technique could influence healthfulness of fresh-squeezed juice
With the New Year, many people are making resolutions to eat healthier, by eating more vegetables, for example. But those who don't like the taste or texture of some vegetables might prefer to drink them in a home-squeezed juice. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Food Science & Technology have found that the choice of household juicing technique can influence the phytochemical content and...
Biden signs 'existential' executive orders on climate and environment
Oil and gas extraction will be paused and wind energy will expand under Joe Biden's climate plan.
Biden directs billions in federal spending power to climate change
President Joe Biden continues to make good on his campaign pledge to accelerate progress on climate change, rapidly working down the list of what he can accomplish on his own in his early days in office.
On Wednesday, January 27, he will sign a second set of executive orders and memorandums on climate change that direct federal agencies to purchase US-made, zero-emissions vehicles and...
The Guardian view on Britain's pandemic record: a monument to failure | Editorial
The terrible scale of the tragedy cannot be attributed to misfortune. It is a product of negligent governmentIn Soho, central London, stands a replica of a 19th-century public water pump without a handle. The missing part is not a result of vandalism but a tribute to John Snow, the physician who correctly surmised that the pump, supplying contaminated water, was a super-spreading device for...
Cough and sore throat more common with UK Covid variant – study
ONS survey finds people more likely to have cough compared with old variants, though loss of taste or smell less likelyCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageCoughs, sore throats and fatigue are more common in people who test positive for the new variant of coronavirus, but a loss of taste or smell is less likely, a study has found.The highly transmissible variant of...
Purported phosphine on Venus more likely to be ordinary sulfur dioxide
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
Astronomers revisited and comprehensively reinterpreted the radio telescope observations underlying a widely reported 2019 claim that phosphine gas was present in the atmosphere of Venus. In a paper accepted to the Astrophysical Journal, they report that sulfur dioxide, a common gas in the atmosphere of Venus, is likely what was detected instead of phosphine.
Up-trending farming and landscape disruptions threaten Paris climate agreement goals
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
Earth system science researchers conducted an analysis of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and land use since 1961, finding some opportunities for mitigation as well as areas where curtailment will require sacrifices.
First ever 'pioneer' factor found in plants enables cells to change their fate
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
To start the process of unpacking tightly bundled genetic material, plants depend on the LEAFY pioneer protein, according biologists.
T cells can mount attacks against many SARS-CoV-2 targets -- even on new virus variant
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
A new study suggests that T cells try to fight SARS-CoV-2 by targeting a broad range of sites on the virus -- beyond the key sites on the virus's spike protein. By attacking the virus from many angles, the body has the tools to potentially recognize different SARS-CoV-2 variants.
How breast cancer cells hide from immune attack
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
Researchers at the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center have identified how breast cancer cells hide from immune cells to stay alive. The discovery could lead to better immunotherapy treatment for patients.
Diving into Devonian seas: Ancient marine faunas unlock secrets of warming oceans
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
Paleontologists use ancient marine faunas to test long-term changes in our warming oceans.
How heavy is dark matter? Scientists radically narrow the potential mass range for the first time
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
Scientists have calculated the mass range for Dark Matter - and it's tighter than the science world thought.
Pain patients who take opioids can't get in the door at over half of primary care clinics
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:01
People who take opioid medications for chronic pain may have a hard time finding a new primary care clinic that will take them as a patient if they need one, according to a new 'secret shopper' study of hundreds of clinics across the country. Stigma against long-term users of prescription opioids, likely related to the prospect of taking on a patient who might have an opioid use disorder or...
A NEAT reduction of complex neuronal models accelerates brain research
- ScienceDaily
- 21/1/27 20:00
Unlike their simple counterparts in artificial intelligence (AI) applications, neurons in the brain use dendrites - their intricate tree-like branches - to find relevant chunks of information. Now, neuroscientists have discovered a new computational method to make complex dendrite models much simpler. These faithful reductions may lead AI applications to process information much like the brain...