304 articles from WEDNESDAY 3.3.2021
Hammer time! Baby fish brain lights up listening to U Can't Touch This – video
Australian DJ and neuroscientist Rebecca Poulsen – AKA BeXta – is studying what happens to a zebrafish larvae brains when they hear certain sounds. Then she played one MC Hammer's 1990 hit … 'You can see when the vocal goes ‘ohhh-oh’, specific neurons light up and you can see it pulses to the beat,' she says. 'To me it looks like neurons responding to different parts of the music'...
Vancouver pilots 30 km/h 'slow zone' in Grandview-Woodland neighbourhood
The speed limit in the area bounded by Clark Drive and Commercial Drive, First Avenue and Grandview Highway North is dropping to 30 km/h from 50...
Covid deaths high in countries with more overweight people, says report
Governments urged to prioritise obese people for vaccinations over greater risk of death from coronavirusCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageCountries with high levels of overweight people, such as the UK and the US, have the highest death rates from Covid-19, a landmark report reveals, prompting calls for governments to urgently tackle obesity, as well as prioritising...
Alberta utility TransAlta vows to be carbon neutral by 2050 as it notes $167M loss
Power generator TransAlta Corp. says it has set a goal to be carbon neutral by 2050 and to cut greenhouse gas emissions to 60 per cent below 2015 levels by...
Belly fat resistant to every-other-day fasting
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 22:16
Scientists have mapped out what happens to fat deposits during intermittent fasting (every second day), with an unexpected discovery that some types of fat are more resistant to weight loss.
Bahamas were settled earlier than believed
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 22:16
It's believed early settlers to the islands eventually changed the landscape of the Bahamas.
Researchers discover that privacy-preserving tools leave private data anything but
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 22:16
Researchers explored whether private data could still be recovered from images that had been 'sanitized'' by such deep-learning discriminators as privacy protecting GANs (PP-GANs).
Nature: New compound for male contraceptive pill
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 22:16
In a new article spells out an innovative strategy that has led to the discovery of a natural compound as a safe, effective and reversible male contraceptive agent in pre-clinical animal models. Despite tremendous efforts over the past decades, the progress in developing non-hormonal male contraceptives has been very limited.
High end of climate sensitivity in new climate models seen as less plausible
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 22:16
Researchers found that the latest generation of high-sensitivity climate models do not provide a plausible scenario of Earth's future climate. These models project that clouds moderate greenhouse gas-induced warming -- particularly in the northern hemisphere -- much more than climate records show actually happens. The results provide a cautionary tale on interpreting climate simulations, which can...
Climate change 'winners' may owe financial compensation to polluters
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 22:16
New economic and philosophical research argues that policymakers must consider both the beneficial effects of climate change to 'climate winners' as well as its costs in order to appropriately incentivize actions that are best for society and for the environment.
Researchers can store the Declaration of Independence in a single molecule
Just how much space would you need to store all of the world's data? A building? A block? A city?
'Best case' goals for climate warming which could still result in massive wildfire risk
The landmark 2015 Paris Agreement resulted in multiple studies examining the impact of global temperature increases, but these rarely investigate the effect of warming on "fire weather" conditions. Now, in a new study, scientists have found that by projecting two different types of fire weather conditions, an additional half-degree of warming could drastically increase the likelihood and...
Study: Employment rose among those in free money experiment
After getting $500 per month for two years without rules on how to spend it, 125 people in California paid off debt, got full-time jobs and had "statistically significant improvements" in emotional health, according to a study released Wednesday.
High end of climate sensitivity in new climate models seen as less plausible
A recent analysis of the latest generation of climate models—known as a CMIP6—provides a cautionary tale on interpreting climate simulations as scientists develop more sensitive and sophisticated projections of how the Earth will respond to increasing levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.
Small-scale fisheries offer strategies for resilience in the face of climate change
Coastal communities at the forefront of climate change reveal valuable approaches to foster adaptability and resilience, according to a worldwide analysis of small-scale fisheries by Stanford University researchers.
Camera traps reveal newly discovered biodiversity relationship
In one of the first studies of its kind, an analysis of camera-trap data from 15 wildlife preserves in tropical rainforests has revealed a previously unknown relationship between the biodiversity of mammals and the forests in which they live.
NASA to Provide Update on Perseverance ‘Firsts’ Since Mars Landing
Portal origin URL: NASA to Provide Update on Perseverance ‘Firsts’ Since Mars LandingPortal origin nid: 468805Published: Wednesday, March 3, 2021 - 15:43Featured (stick to top of list): noPortal text teaser: Since NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover touched down at Jezero Crater Feb. 18, mission controllers have made substantial progress as they prepare the rover for...
Breakthrough greatly enhances ultrafast resolution achievable with X-ray free-electron lasers
A large international team of scientists from various research organizations, including the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory, has developed a method that dramatically improves the already ultrafast time resolution achievable with X-ray free-electron lasers (XFELs). It could lead to breakthroughs on how to design new materials and more efficient chemical processes.
Independent music squashed out of streaming playlists and revenue
Bands and artists on independent record labels get less than their fair share of access to the most popular playlists on streaming platforms such as Spotify—argues a new paper from the University of East Anglia.
The Guardian view on Rishi Sunak's budget: Britain will go backwards with tax rises and spending cuts | Editorial
The chancellor would like Britain’s relief response to be seen like Joe Biden’s in the US. But President Biden believes in the power of government, Mr Sunak does notRishi Sunak, the chancellor, has emerged in recent months with the plausible aura of a future Tory leader. This budget was a crucial one for two reasons. First, it was the biggest fiscal event since the UK left the orbit of the...
Small-scale fisheries offer strategies for resilience in the face of climate change
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:48
Small-scale fisheries, which employ about 90 percent of the world's fishers and supply half the fish for human consumption, are on the frontlines of climate change. They may offer insights into resilience.
Maezawa wants you: Japan billionaire seeks 'crew' for moon trip
Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa searches for a crew to join him on first private SpaceX trip around the...
Ghosts of past pesticide use can haunt organic farms for decades
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:26
Although the use of pesticides in agriculture is increasing, some farms have transitioned to organic practices and avoid applying them. But it's uncertain whether chemicals applied to land decades ago can continue to influence the soil's health after switching to organic management. Now, researchers have identified pesticide residues at 100 Swiss farms, including all the organic fields studied,...
New, highly precise 'clock' can measure biological age
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:26
Scientists have developed a method that can determine an organism's biological age with unprecedented precision. Researchers expect new insights into how the environment, nutrition, and therapies influence the aging process.
Color blindness-correcting contact lenses
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:26
Imagine seeing the world in muted shades -- gray sky, gray grass. Some people with color blindness see everything this way, though most can't see specific colors. Tinted glasses can help, but they can't be used to correct blurry vision. And dyed contact lenses currently in development for the condition are potentially harmful and unstable. Now researchers report infusing contact lenses with gold...
Tenfold increase in CO2 emissions cuts needed to stem climate emergency
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:26
New research shows 64 countries cut their fossil CO2 emissions during 2016-2019, but the rate of reduction needs to increase tenfold to meet the Paris Agreement aims to tackle climate change.
Ecosystems across the globe 'breathe' differently in response to rising temperatures
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
Land stores vast amounts of carbon, but a new study suggests that how much of this carbon enters the atmosphere as temperatures rise depends on how far that land sits from the equator.
Conquering the timing jitters
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
A large international team has developed a method that dramatically improves the time resolution achievable with X-ray free-electron lasers. Their method could have a broad impact in the field of ultrafast science.
Temperature and aridity fluctuations over the past century linked to flower color changes
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
Researchers combined descriptions of flower color from museum flower specimens dating back to 1895 with longitudinal- and latitudinal-specific climate data to link changes in temperature and aridity with color change in the human-visible spectrum (white to purple).
Journey of a skull: How a single human cranium wound up alone in a cave in Italy
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
A lone cranium in an Italian cave wound up there after being washed away from its original burial site, according to a new study.
Humans control majority of freshwater ebb and flow on Earth
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
Satellite observations show that more than half of seasonal freshwater level changes on Earth happen in human-managed reservoirs, underscoring the profound impact humanity has on the global water cycle.
Birds: Scientists find strongest evidence yet of 'migration gene'
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
Biologists say they have found the strongest evidence yet of a 'migration gene' in birds.
Study reveals details of immune defense guidance system
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
At the beginning of an immune response, a molecule known to mobilize immune cells into the bloodstream, where they home in on infection sites, rapidly shifts position, a new study shows. Researchers say this indirectly amplifies the attack on foreign microbes or the body's own tissues.
Mantis shrimp inspires new breed of light sensors
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
Inspired by the eyes of mantis shrimp, researchers have developed a new kind of optical sensor that is small enough to fit on a smartphone but is capable of hyperspectral and polarimetric imaging.
Reconstructing historical typhoons from a 142-year record
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:25
A team of scientists has, for the first time, identified landfalls of tropical cyclones (TCs) in Japan for the period from 1877 to 2019; this knowledge will help prepare for future TC disasters.
Filming a 3D video of a virus with instantaneous light and AI
- ScienceDaily
- 21/3/3 20:24
A research team demonstrates highly efficient 3D nano-imaging with XFEL and machine learning.