3,290 articles from FEBRUARY 2022
The UN’s climate report highlights the dangers of natural solutions
A variety of researchers have highlighted the potential to leverage nature to combat climate change, by planting trees or growing crops to suck carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.
But a bleak new report from the UN’s climate panel stresses that relying heavily on these approaches could present real risks as well.
The nearly 4,000-page analysis, released on Monday, warns that more than 3...
Impacts, adaptation and vulnerability: What's new in the latest IPCC release
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on Monday released the second part of its sixth major assessment report.
New optical tweezers put on the pressure to change color
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 23:20
Scientists demonstrate an optical trapping technique using nanotextured black silicon that can efficiently trap polymer chains. By adjusting the laser intensity, these 'optical tweezers' can control the florescence color emitted through a local concentration of a perylene-modified polymer solution. From a low intensity blue to high intensity orange, this reversible and fully remote technology can...
Plastic labelling needs 'sustainability scale'
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 23:20
Labelling of plastic products needs a drastic overhaul including a new 'sustainability scale' to help consumers, researchers say.
New screening system may point the way to clean, renewable hydrogen power
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 23:20
A new, highly sensitive system for detecting the production of hydrogen gas may play an important role in the quest to develop hydrogen as an environmentally friendly and economical alternative to fossil fuels.
Researchers establish first-of-its-kind framework to diagnose 3D-printing errors
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 23:20
Additive manufacturing, or 3D printing, can create custom parts for electromagnetic devices on-demand and at a low cost. These devices are highly sensitive, and each component requires precise fabrication. Until recently, though, the only way to diagnose printing errors was to make, measure and test a device or to use in-line simulation, both of which are computationally expensive and inefficient....
Immunotherapy drug bolsters head and neck cancer treatment
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 23:08
A clinical trial has shown that the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab increased survival rates for head and neck cancer patients with intermediate risk.
Bullying in school may hamper skill development, healthy adulthood
Kids who experience bullying are victims of injury or discomfort from peer teasing, harassment, and physical abuse. While some costs of bullying—school absenteeism, suicidal thoughts and actions—have been documented, little research has been done on the two-way relationship between bullying and skill accumulation in children.
Ancient oxygen levels provide clues to the timing of life and death on Earth
Oxygen is critical for life, but what promoted the first rise in atmospheric oxygen on Earth and precisely when it happened have been challenging scientists for the last 70 years.
Climate change is causing high tree mortality in southern Amazon
A team of Brazilian and British scientists has discovered that extreme wind and water deficiency are the main causes of tree death in the southern Amazon.
Researchers examine the performance of a fusion pilot plant to generate electricity
The U.S. fusion community has actively called for an immediate design effort for a cost-effective pilot plant to generate electricity in the 2040s. This effort and related community recommendations are documented in the 2020 report of the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory Committee entitled "Powering the Future: Fusion & Plasmas."
Scaling laws in enzymes may help predict life 'as we don't know it'
The only references we have for "life" are the forms we know on Earth. Astrobiologists suspect that the search for alien life, and even for the origins of life on Earth, may require a broader scope. A NASA-funded team of researchers is developing tools to predict the features of life as we don't know it. In a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the team...
Scientists discover a new molecular pathway shared by two neurodegenerative disorders
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 22:16
Researchers from two independent research teams have discovered how the mislocalization of a protein, known as TDP-43, alters the genetic instructions for UNC13A, providing a possible therapeutic target that could also have implications in treating amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and other forms of dementia. ALS and FTD are two neurodegenerative disorders in...
Scaling laws in enzymes may help predict life ‘as we don’t know it'
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 22:16
A team of researchers is developing tools to predict the features of life as we don't know it.
Study finds that pro-worker ideas in political platforms resonate with voters
A new paper co-written by a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign expert who studies the intersection of labor unions and politics has found that political parties whose manifestos contained greater percentages of pro-worker ideas were more appealing to voters.
NASA exploring ways to keep ISS afloat without Russian help: official
NASA is exploring ways to keep the International Space Station in orbit without Russian help, but doesn't see any immediate signs Moscow is withdrawing from the collaboration following the invasion of Ukraine, a senior official said Monday.
US Supreme Court hears climate case as UN issues stark warning
A divided US Supreme Court heard arguments on Monday in an environmental regulation case with potentially far-reaching implications for the Biden administration's fight against climate change.
Europe's joint Mars mission with Russia postponed by war
The launch of a joint Europe-Russian mission to Mars this year is now "very unlikely" due to sanctions linked to the war in Ukraine, the European Space Agency said Monday.
Why Russia (Probably) Won’t Crash the Space Station
Ukraine is not the only theater of conflict in the current war between Russia and the former Soviet republic. The 30 nations of NATO are coordinating sanctions, sending supplies, and moving troops and weaponry into position to defend the alliance from a wider war. All 193 member countries of the United Nations are involved too, as the U.N. scheduled an emergency meeting of the General...
Plastic labeling needs 'sustainability scale,' says new report
Labeling of plastic products needs a drastic overhaul, including a new "sustainability scale" to help consumers, researchers say.
Physicists bring a once-theoretical effect of quantum matter into observable reality
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 21:06
Physicists have experimentally observed a quirky behavior of the quantum world: a 'quantum boomerang' effect that occurs when particles in a disordered system are kicked out of their locations. Instead of landing elsewhere as one might expect, they turn around and come back to where they started and stop there.
Under pressure: A new theory lets us predict when soft materials will fail
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 21:06
Researchers recently announced a major theoretical and experimental breakthrough that allows scientists to predict, with an unprecedented precision, when a soft material will crack and fail. The findings have immediate implications for the engineering and manufacture of a wide range of polymers. They also provide insights into how natural soft materials -- such as the connective tissues in our...
Adaptive HEALEY ALS Platform Trial hopes to bring new treatments to patients faster
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 21:06
A new article describes the approach, structure, and launch of the HEALEY ALS Platform Trial- the first platform trial for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) designed to accelerate the development of effective and breakthrough treatments for people with the illness.
Overlooked channels influence water flow and flooding along Gulf Coast
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 21:06
An unnoticed network of channels is cutting across the coastal plain landscape along the Gulf Coast and influencing how water flows, according to new research that could help predict flooding from major storms in the future.
Snail competition leads to fewer parasites that cause schistosomiasis
Schistosomiasis is a debilitating disease caused by a parasitic worm that develops in freshwater snails before infecting people. Knocking back snail populations with pesticides is one method to control the spread of the disease, also known as "snail fever."
Chemical link between wildfire smoke and ozone depletion
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 21:06
Atmospheric chemists have found that the smoke from Australia's 'Black Summer' wildfires set off chemical reactions in the stratosphere that contributed to the destruction of ozone. The study is the first to establish a chemical link between wildfire smoke and ozone depletion.
Climate changed-driven migration is a focus of a new international report
An Oregon State University (OSU) researcher is a lead author of an international report released today that explores the impact of climate change-driven human migration.
Overlooked channels influence water flow and flooding along Gulf Coast
An unnoticed network of channels is cutting across the coastal plain landscape along the Gulf Coast and influencing how water flows, according to research from The University of Texas at Austin that could help predict flooding from major storms in the future.
Under pressure: A new theory helps predict when soft materials will fail
Researchers led by a team from the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently announced a major theoretical and experimental breakthrough that allows scientists to predict, with an unprecedented precision, when a soft material will crack and fail. The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, have immediate implications for the engineering and manufacture of a...
Physicists report on 'quantum boomerang' effect in disordered systems
Physicists at UC Santa Barbara have become the first to experimentally observe a quirky behavior of the quantum world: a "quantum boomerang" effect that occurs when particles in a disordered system are kicked out of their locations. Instead of landing elsewhere as one might expect, they turn around and come back to where they started and stop there.
Study reveals chemical link between wildfire smoke and ozone depletion
The Australian wildfires in 2019 and 2020 were historic for how far and fast they spread, and for how long and powerfully they burned. All told, the devastating "Black Summer" fires blazed across more than 43 million acres of land, and extinguished or displaced nearly 3 billion animals. The fires also injected over 1 million tons of smoke particles into the atmosphere, reaching up to 35 kilometers...
Indian Ocean warming could weaken summer monsoon rainfall in South Asia
The South Asian monsoon, also known as Indian summer monsoon (ISM), is crucial for the food security and socioeconomic well-being of 40% of the world's population. From a historical perspective, fluctuations in monsoon rainfall have been linked to the rise and fall of civilizations in the Indian subcontinent. Now researchers are increasingly concerned that global warming may threaten the stability...
Researchers map wildlife and infrastructure to maximize tourism in Costa Rica
With lush green jungles brimming with wildlife, Costa Rica has become a global tourism hotspot—and government leaders would like to keep it that way. They worked with researchers from the Stanford Natural Capital Project to understand how nature supports the country's most visited and valuable tourist destinations. The team found that tourists flock to areas where roads and hotels make it easy...
Supreme Court hears case that may derail Biden's climate plan
The justices heard an appeal from 19 mostly Republican-led states, led by coal state West Virginia.
Kilonova afterglow potentially spotted for first time
For the first time, Northwestern University-led astronomers may have detected an afterglow from a kilonova.
Climate change: A threat to human wellbeing and health of the planet
- ScienceDaily
- 22/2/28 19:15
Human-induced climate change is causing dangerous and widespread disruption in nature and affecting the lives of billions of people around the world, despite efforts to reduce the risks. People and ecosystems least able to cope are being hardest hit, said scientists in the latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report.
Climate change has 'irreversibly' changed Florida, a new global report says
Unchecked climate change has already changed Florida permanently and irreversibly—and the world has a limited window to stop it from getting worse, according to a new global report from the world's top scientists.
Pathogen-repellent wrap shown to shed viruses as well as bacteria
New research by the inventors of a promising pathogen-repellent wrap has confirmed that it sheds not only bacteria, as previously proven, but also viruses, boosting its potential usefulness for interrupting the transmission of infections.
Big data arrives on the farm
A new analysis by Glenn Stone, professor of anthropology and of environmental studies in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, examines how digital technologies are beginning to make inroads into agriculture in lower-income countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
New lightweight super material could battle bullets, deflect space debris
University of Wisconsin–Madison engineers have created a nanofiber material that outperforms its widely used counterparts—including steel plates and Kevlar fabric—in protecting against high-speed projectile impacts.
Social networking for fossils shows community impacts of mass extinctions
By applying an algorithm akin to what Facebook uses to make friend suggestions, researchers have identified communities of ancient life in the fossil record and tracked how their numbers changed through each of the planet's mass extinctions.