268 articles from MONDAY 3.5.2021

Bornean rajah scops owl rediscovered after 125 years

The Bornean subspecies of Rajah scops owl (Otus brookii brookii), documented in the wild for the first time since 1892, may be its own unique species and deserving of a conservation designation. Researchers reported the rediscovery and photographed this elusive subspecies in the mountainous forests of Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia.

Short-term exposure to air pollution may impede cognition; Aspirin could help

Exposure to air pollution, even over the course of just a few weeks, can impede mental performance, according to a new study. However, these adverse effects were lessened in people taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like aspirin. The study is among the first to explore short-term air pollution exposures and the use of NSAIDs to mitigate their effects.

CVS and Walgreens wasted 128,500 Covid vaccine doses, report finds

US pharmacy chains responsible for vast majority of the recorded 182,874 wasted doses, according to Kaiser Health NewsUS pharmacy chains CVS and Walgreens are responsible for the vast majority of wasted vaccine doses, which total more than 180,000 reported to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), according to a story from Kaiser Health News.As of late March, the CDC recorded...

EPA rule to phase out gases used in refrigerators, coolants

In the first Biden administration rule aimed at combating climate change, the Environmental Protection Agency is proposing to phase down production and use of hydrofluorocarbons, highly potent greenhouse gases commonly used in refrigerators and air conditioners.

Equipping crop plants for climate change

Biologists at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU in Munich) have significantly enhanced the tolerance of blue-green algae to high light levels—with the aid of artificial evolution in the laboratory. 

Will your future clothes be made of algae?

Living materials, which are made by housing biological cells within a non-living matrix, have gained popularity in recent years as scientists recognize that often the most robust materials are those that mimic nature.

When will your elevator arrive? Two physicists do the math

The human world is, increasingly, an urban one—and that means elevators. Hong Kong, the hometown of physicist Zhijie Feng (Boston University), adds new elevators at the rate of roughly 1500 every year...making vertical transport an alluring topic for quantitative research.

The level of satisfaction with life in Spain is marked by household financial capacity

In recent decades, Spain has undergone rapid social changes in terms of gender equality, despite, as a result of the Franco dictatorship, starting from a more backward position than most European countries. This process is hampered by the economic downturn that began in 2008, underlining the importance of the economic context in the development of gender inequality levels. Little attention has...