291 articles from TUESDAY 23.2.2021

Transforming urban systems: Toward sustainability

Urban areas are on the rise and changing rapidly in form and function, with spillover effects on virtually all areas of the Earth. The UN estimates that by 2050, 68% of the world's population will reside in urban areas. In the inaugural issue of npj Urban Sustainability, a new Nature Partner Journal out today, a team of leading urban ecologists outlines a practical checklist to guide...

Announcing the MIT Technology Review Covid Inequality Fellowships

Early in the pandemic, some headlines argued that covid-19 was the great equalizer—because anyone, no matter their circumstance, could catch it. In reality, it was clear that the virus was affecting some groups of Americans in disproportionate, devastating ways.  Black Americans, Hispanic Americans, Indigenous communities, and other people of color have been affected the most, and...

Reclusive neutron star may have been found in famous supernova

Since astronomers captured the bright explosion of a star on February 24, 1987, researchers have been searching for the squashed stellar core that should have been left behind. A group of astronomers using data from NASA space missions and ground-based telescopes may have finally found it.

Agile underwater glider could quietly survey the seas

Autonomous underwater vehicles have become versatile tools for exploring the seas. But they can be disruptive to the environment or have trouble traveling through confined spaces. Researchers are studying an alternative: highly maneuverable, low-cost underwater gliders that operate silently.

Five ways parents can help kids avoid gender stereotypes

In the last century, significant progress has been made in advancing gender equity in the United States. Women gained the right to vote, fathers have become more involved parents and more people and institutions recognize gender identities beyond the binary categories of male and female.

For selenium in rivers, timing matters

Selenium contamination of freshwater ecosystems is an ongoing environmental health problem around the world. A naturally occurring trace element, selenium levels are high in some geologic formations like sedimentary shales that form much of the bedrock in the Western United States. Soils derived from this bedrock, and weathering of shale outcrops, can contribute high levels of selenium to...

Getz glaciers on the run

Using a 25-year record of satellite observations over the Getz region in West Antarctica, scientists have discovered that the pace at which glaciers flow towards the ocean is accelerating. This new research, which includes data from the Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission and ESA's CryoSat mission, will help determine if these glaciers could collapse in the next few decades and how this would affect...

Visualizing the process of digestion in the oldest known animal-microbe symbiosis

Marine biologists have been able to visualize for the first time how tropical sponges and their symbiotic bacteria work together to consume and recycle organic food. The research led by Meggie Hudspith and Jasper de Goeij from the University of Amsterdam, was a collaborative project with colleagues from the Australian Universities of Sydney, Queensland and Western Australia, and the research...

Biopolymer-coated nanocatalyst can help realize a hydrogen fuel-driven future

To combat climate change, shifting from fossil fuels to clean and sustainable energy sources is imperative. A popular candidate in this regard is hydrogen, an eco-friendly fuel that produces only water when used. However, the efficient methods of hydrogen production are usually not eco-friendly. The eco-friendly alternative of splitting water with sunlight to produce hydrogen is inefficient and...

Protective ship coatings as an underestimated source of microplastic pollution

Shipping traffic can be a major source of tiny plastic particles floating in the sea, especially out in the open ocean. In a paper published in the scientific journal Environmental Science & Technology, a team of German environmental geochemists based at the University of Oldenburg's Institute of Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment and led by Dr. Barbara Scholz-Boettcher for the first...

Researchers develop two new rapid COVID-19 diagnostic tests

University of Minnesota Medical School researchers have developed two new rapid diagnostic tests for COVID-19—one to detect COVID-19 variants and one to help differentiate with other illnesses that have COVID-19-like symptoms. The findings were recently published in the journal Bioengineering.

Alaska thunderstorms may triple with climate change

Warming temperatures will potentially alter the climate in Alaska so profoundly later this century that the number of thunderstorms will triple, increasing the risks of widespread flash flooding, landslides, and lightning-induced wildfires, new research finds.

Fishing selects small, shy fish for survival

Fishing primarily removes larger and more active fish from populations. It thus acts as a selection factor that favors shy fish, as a recent study by the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) shows. The promotion of rather small, shy and overall harder to catch fish has consequences for the quality of the fishery and makes it difficult to accurately survey the...

Cre-Controlled CRISPR: Conditional gene inactivation just got easier

The ability to turn a gene off only in a specific cell type is essential to modern life science. Thanks to the Cre-Controlled CRISPR it has just became simpler. The new method developed by researchers from the Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden (CRTD) at TU Dresden with support from the DRESDEN-concept Genome Center (DCGC) offers a fast and easy approach for conditional gene inactivation....

Delayed radio flares from a tidal disruption event

A team of researchers from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI) led by Dr. Assaf Horesh have discovered the first evidence of radio flares emitted only long after a star is destroyed by a black hole. Published in the periodical Nature Astronomy, the discovery relied upon ultra-powerful radio telescopes to study these catastrophic cosmic events in distant galaxies called Tidal Disruption...

Mouse study shows bacteriophage therapy could fight drug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae

Using viruses instead of antibiotics to tame troublesome drug-resistant bacteria is a promising strategy, known as bacteriophage or "phage therapy." Scientists at the National Institutes of Health have used two different bacteriophage viruses individually and then together to successfully treat research mice infected with multidrug-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae sequence type 258 (ST258). The...

Scientists use DNA origami to monitor CRISPR gene targeting

The remarkable genetic scissors called CRISPR/Cas9, the discovery that won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, sometimes cut in places that they are not designed to target. Though CRISPR has completely changed the pace of basic research by allowing scientists to quickly edit genetic sequences, it works so fast that it is hard for scientists to see what sometimes goes wrong and figure out how to...

Spintronics: New production method makes crystalline microstructures universally usable

New storage and information technology requires new higher performance materials. One of these materials is yttrium iron garnet, which has special magnetic properties. Thanks to a new process, it can now be transferred to any material. Developed by physicists at Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU), the method could advance the production of smaller, faster and more energy-efficient...

How women, migrants and workers are represented in the German Bundestag

Members of the German Bundestag who belong to underrepresented groups are more active in the legislative process and, early on, typically tend to advocate more for the interests of their groups. However, a current study by the universities in Konstanz, Basel, Geneva and Stuttgart indicates that, after a few years, most of them do move on to other political fields. This is tied to the...

'Missing ice problem' finally solved

During glacial periods, the sea level falls, because vast quantities of water are stored in the massive inland glaciers. To date, however, computer models have been unable to reconcile sea-level height with the thickness of the glaciers. Using innovative new calculations, a team of climate researchers led by the Alfred Wegener Institute has now managed to explain this discrepancy. The study, which...

Terahertz imaging of graphene paves the way to industrialisation

X-ray scans revolutionized medical treatments by allowing us to see inside humans without surgery. Similarly, terahertz spectroscopy penetrates graphene films allowing scientists to make detailed maps of their electrical quality, without damaging or contaminating the material. The Graphene Flagship brought together researchers from academia and industry to develop and mature this analytical...

A third of claims since universal credit began made during pandemic

Charities say new figures show £20-a-week Covid benefit top-up should be extended beyond MarchCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageThe scale of the hardship caused by Covid-19 has been laid bare with new figures showing that more than a third of claims since universal credit was introduced have been made during the pandemic.The number of people claiming the payment has...

Climate crisis hitting 'worst case scenarios', warns Environment Agency

Sir James Bevan says extreme flooding in UK indicates urgent need for change if humanity is to surviveThe climate emergency is already hitting “worst case scenario” levels that if left unchecked will lead to the collapse of ecosystems, with dire consequences for humanity, according to the chief executive of the Environment Agency.Warning that this is not “science fiction”, Sir James Bevan...

Study sheds light on unique social character of forest elephants

A new study offers rare insights into the unique social character of forest elephants, the least understood of the world's three currently existing elephant species. Limited access to food in the central African forest probably affects why females of this species form smaller family units than other elephants.