3-D imaging provides new insights into reproductive biology of parasite-carrying flies
To better understand the unique reproductive biology of tsetse flies, which are carriers of the parasites that cause a deadly infection known as African sleeping sickness, researchers explored the intact organs and tissues of tsetse flies using a powerful 3D X-ray imaging technique at Berkeley Lab.
Researchers design next-generation photodetector
Northwestern University researchers have developed a new approach to quantum device design that has produced the first gain-based long-wavelength infrared (LWIR) photodetector using band structure engineering based on a type-II superlattice material.
US, EU importing potentially illegal wood from Brazil: report
US and EU firms are importing large amounts of wood potentially linked to illegal deforestation after Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's administration controversially lifted sanctions against the country's biggest flooring exporter, a report said Tuesday.
SpaceX Starship prototype rocket crashes in fireball ... again
A prototype of a SpaceX rocket the company hopes will one day journey to Mars crashed in a fiery explosion as it tried to land upright after a test flight Tuesday.
Sea ice kept oxygen from reaching deep ocean during last ice age
Extensive sea ice covered the world's oceans during the last ice age, which prevented oxygen from penetrating into the deep ocean waters, complicating the relationship between oxygen and carbon, a new study has found.
COVID-19 lockdowns temporarily raised global temperatures
The lockdowns and reduced societal activity related to the COVID-19 pandemic affected emissions of pollutants in ways that slightly warmed the planet for several months last year, according to new research led by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).
Addressing power differences may spur advantaged racial groups to act for racial equality
When different groups of people come into contact, what's the key to motivating advantaged racial groups to join historically disadvantaged racial minority groups to strive for racial equality and social justice? It's a complex conundrum studied for years by social scientists like Linda Tropp, professor of social psychology at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Wildfire smoke may carry 'mind-bending' amounts of fungi and bacteria, scientists say
When wildfires roar through a forest and bulldozers dig into the earth to stop advancing flames, they may be churning more into the air than just clouds of dust and smoke, scientists say.
Scientists advocate breaking laws—of geography and ecology
Recent global calamities—the pandemic, wildfires, floods—are spurring interdisciplinary scientists to nudge aside the fashionable First Law of Geography that dictates "everything is related to everything else, but near things are more related than distant things."
A new hands-off probe uses light to explore electron behavior in a topological insulator
Topological insulators are one of the most puzzling quantum materials—a class of materials whose electrons cooperate in surprising ways to produce unexpected properties. The edges of a TI are electron superhighways where electrons flow with no loss, ignoring any impurities or other obstacles in their path, while the bulk of the material blocks electron flow.
Novel polymer toughens up and changes color upon mechanical stress
A fascinating and crucial ability of biological tissue, such as muscle, is self-healing and self-strengthening in response to damage caused by external forces. Most human-made polymers, on the other hand, break irreversibly under enough mechanical stress, which makes them less useful for certain critical applications like manufacturing artificial organs. But what if we could design polymers that...
Cells that detect brain activity drive the need for sleep in fruit flies
The longer someone stays awake, the more likely they'll start getting tired as their brain needs sleep. But how the brain senses that need for sleep hasn't always been clear. Now, Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers have shown in fruit flies that certain groups of brain cells called astrocytes sense electrical activity in different regions of the brain and use these signals to facilitate the...
Nature's value must be included in economics to preserve biodiversity
Nature is a 'blind spot' in economics that can no longer be ignored by the accounting systems that dictate national finances and the decision-makers behind them.
The underestimated mutation potential of retrogenes
Genetic information is stored in DNA and transcribed as mRNA. The mRNA is usually translated into proteins. However, it has long been known that mRNA can also be reverse transcribed to DNA and integrated back into the genome. Such cases are referred to as retrogenes. In an article, a team from the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology in Plön and the Zoological Institute of the Chinese...
Get on your bike: Active transport makes a significant impact on carbon emissions
Cycling, e-biking or walking can help tackle the climate crisis—even if you swap the car for active transport just one day a week—according to a new study led by researchers from the University of Oxford's Transport Studies Unit.
NASA's Psyche mission moves forward, passing key milestone
Now just a year and a half from launch, the mission to explore a metal-rich asteroid will soon begin assembling and testing the spacecraft.
Sustainability benchmarks for plastics recycling and redesign
Researchers developing renewable plastics and exploring new processes for plastics upcycling and recycling technologies will now be able to easily baseline their efforts to current manufacturing practices to understand if their efforts will save energy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Modeling the brain during pain processing
The many different sensations our bodies experience are accompanied by deeply complex exchanges of information within the brain, and the feeling of pain is no exception. So far, research has shown how pain intensity can be directly related to specific patterns of oscillation in brain activity, which are altered by the activation and deactivation of the 'interneurons' connecting different regions...
Crocodile tears? Research findings can help to increase population size of endangered species
The findings of a new study examining the behaviors of alligator and caiman hatchlings have enhanced our understanding of how we can conserve, and increase, the population of endangered crocodilian species.
How to tell if your dog is a genius
Anyone who has lived with a dog will know their capacity for learning the meaning of words, even ones you don't want them to know. How many times have you had to spell the words "walk" or "dinner" in the hope of avoiding an explosion of excitement?
Soldiers, snakes and marathon runners in the hidden world of fungi
Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have discovered the individual traits of fungi, and how their hyphae—that is, the fungal threads that grow in soil—behave very differently as they navigate through the earth's microscopic labyrinths.
Venus flytraps found to produce magnetic fields
The Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) is a carnivorous plant that encloses its prey using modified leaves as a trap. During this process, electrical signals known as action potentials trigger the closure of the leaf lobes. An interdisciplinary team of scientists has now shown that these electrical signals generate measurable magnetic fields. Using atomic magnetometers, it proved possible to record...
How to blackmail your family
Raising kids can be tough, and sometimes you need all the help you can get. Biologists at the University of Bristol argue that some animals might be able to blackmail reluctant relatives into assisting with the rearing of young. The study is published today [2 February] in The American Naturalist.
Study challenges ecology's 'Field of Dreams' hypothesis
If you build it, they might not come. That's the key finding of a new study on habitat restoration practices that challenges a commonly accepted principle in ecology.
Researchers create novel photonic chip
Researchers at the George Washington University and University of California, Los Angeles, have developed and demonstrated for the first time a photonic digital to analog converter without leaving the optical domain. Such novel converters can advance next-generation data processing hardware with high relevance for data centers, 6G networks, artificial intelligence and more.