108 articles from FRIDAY 6.8.2021

Apple defends its new anti-child-abuse tech against privacy concerns

Apple has boasted a few iconic ads during the company’s 45-year history, from the famous 1984 Super Bowl ad for Macs to the company’s combative 2019 ad campaign promising that “what happens on your iPhone stays on your iPhone.” On Thursday, Apple announced new technologies to detect child sexual abuse material (CSAM) right on iPhones—and suddenly, it seems what’s on your iPhone no...

The 'phytoplankton factory' -- from nutrients to algae growth

Phytoplankton are the foundation of ocean ecosystems: like rainforests, they consume carbon from the atmosphere, form the basis of the marine food web and have a decisive influence on fish abundance and global climate. A recent study provides new insights into the complex biogeochemical processes at the base of the marine ecosystem.

Scientists name new frog-legged beetle fossil for Sir David Attenborough

A new frog-legged beetle species, Pulchritudo attenboroughi, or Attenborough's Beauty, was announced today in the scientific journal Papers in Palaeontology. Frank Krell, Denver Museum of Nature & Science Senior Curator of Entomology, and Francesco Vitali, National Museum of Natural History of Luxembourg Invertebrate Zoology Collections Curator, worked together to identify this new species.

Small fungus formulations could make big difference to protect moose from winter ticks

In the battle to save moose from winter ticks, fungi on small grains of millet could be the ultimate weapon. Morris Animal Foundation-funded researchers at the University of Vermont recently produced granular formulations of insect-killing fungi and successfully tested their efficacy against winter tick larvae under laboratory conditions. The team reported their findings in Biocontrol Science and...

Defunding the police: Calls not easily transferable to other sectors without significant expenditures, adjustments

Following the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in May of 2020, many have argued for defunding the police. But these appeals have not been guided by research into the scale or nature of issues that police handle. A new study analyzed millions of 911 calls for service across nine U.S. police agencies to determine how defunding the police might be handled.

Novel molecular imaging technique casts complex coordination molecules in a new light

High-angle annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscopy can be used to determine complex conformational structures of both crystalline and amorphous polynuclear non-planar coordination molecules, as shown by scientists from Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech). Using iridium as a tracer metal, they were successful in determining the different conformations of a highly...