114 articles from MONDAY 16.5.2022

Seeing through the fog: Pinpointing young stars and their protoplanetary disks

Imagine walking through a dense, hazy fog in the middle of the night, seeing patches of light from cars and towns shimmering in the distance. It's nearly impossible to tell if the lights are deep in the fog or beyond it. Astronomers trying to find young stars face a similar problem: the light from stars they're hunting is shimmering through great big regions of hazy gas and dust in space, called...

New method melds data to make a 3-D map of cells' activities

Just as it's hard to understand a conversation without knowing its context, it can be difficult for biologists to grasp the significance of gene expression without knowing a cell's environment. To solve that problem, researchers at Princeton Engineering have developed a method to elucidate a cell's surroundings so that biologists can make more meaning of gene expression information.

Unraveling the genetic keys to improve canola crop yield

An international team of researchers, including one from The University of Western Australia (UWA), has successfully unraveled the genomes of 418 unique samples of rapeseed from across the globe to identify traits that breeders can use to improve crop yield.

New theory promises to reshape how we think about polymer superstructures

Polymer scientists recently announced that they have solved a longstanding mystery surrounding a nanoscale structure, formed by collections of molecules, called a double-gyroid. This shape is one of the most desirable for materials scientists, and has a wide range of applications; but, until now, a predictable understanding of how these shapes form has eluded researchers.

Shaping the future of light through reconfigurable metasurfaces

The technological advancement of optical lenses has long been a significant marker of human scientific achievement. Eyeglasses, telescopes, cameras, and microscopes have all literally and figuratively allowed us to see the world in a new light. Lenses are also a fundamental component of manufacturing nanoelectronics by the semiconductor industry.

New theory promises to reshape how we think about polymer superstructures

Polymer scientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst recently announced in the journal Nature Communications that they have solved a longstanding mystery surrounding a nanoscale structure, formed by collections of molecules, called a double-gyroid. This shape is one of the most desirable for materials scientists, and has a wide range of applications; but until now, a predictable...

New trait-based approach to global change ecology moves from description to prediction

It's not enough to understand what the effects of climate change are. Society needs ways to get ahead of these changes, to predict them before they actually happen. And when it comes to conservation, the approach scientists use to study species in the wild could be critical to these predictions, according to a recent research review led by biologist Stephanie Green and published in Proceedings of...

Study sheds new light on the mechanism of individual cell memory, using yeast as a model

Whi3 is a mnemon (Whi3mnem), or in other words, a protein that stores information in individual cells by forming stable super-assemblies. This memory state is then inherited by only one individual daughter cell at mitosis (individual memory). For example, when facing an uncommitted mating partner, budding yeast cells coalesce the G1/S inhibitor Whi3 into a dominant mnemon super-assembly that...

'Homo sapiens is too arrogant: Call us Homo faber, the toolmaker'

We need to dispel the arrogant and misguided idea that modern humans are superior to earlier human species. It is thanks in part to all our predecessors such as Neanderthals that we are who we are today. This is according to Marie Soressi, Professor of Hominin Diversity Archaeology.

New drought benchmark reached in Europe between 2018 and 2020

These were days, months and years that many will come to remember: the drought from 2018 to 2020. An international team of researchers led by scientists from the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) has succeeded in categorizing the historical dimensions of this event. Based on their findings, no drought covering such a large area for an extended period and coinciding with warmer...

Policymakers underestimate methane's climate and air quality impacts, says a new study

Methane emissions have been increasing rapidly in recent years, contributing significantly to global warming. Despite this, methane is not adequately treated within existing national and international governance frameworks. Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS) researchers highlight the urgent need for action in a new study published in Environmental Science & Policy.

Boost in nerve-growth protein helps explain why running supports brain health

Exercise increases levels of a chemical involved in brain cell growth, which bolsters the release of the 'feel good' hormone dopamine, a new study shows. Dopamine is known to play a key role in movement, motivation, and learning. Experts have long understood that regular running raises dopamine activity in the brain and may protect nerve cells from damage. In addition, past research has tied...

Departmental policies key to police officers' decisions to activate body-worn cameras

Body-worn cameras (BWCs) have become increasingly common in U.S. police departments, but we know little about their use in the field, including the factors related to whether and why police activate them. A new study examined the prevalence and correlates of BWC activation in Phoenix, Arizona. The study found that departmental policy may be the most important factor in determining BWC activation,...

Seeing molecules inside a nanometer-sized 'sardine can'

Researchers have successfully developed a new technique allowing them to observe gas molecules packing into metal-organic frameworks (MOF) using infrared spectroscopy. Their innovation was to measure polarized light absorption of guest molecules in a MOF film to deduce molecule alignment using this common piece of lab equipment. This method is the first to show guest alignment and does so in...

The European drought event from 2018 to 2020 was the most intense in over 250 years

These were days, months and years that many will come to remember: the drought from 2018 to 2020. An international team of researchers has succeeded in categorizing the historical dimensions of this event. Based on their findings, no drought covering such a large area for an extended period and coinciding with warmer temperature has occurred in Europe since the middle of the 18th century. The...

Perception-based nanosensor platform could advance detection of ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer kills 14,000 women in the United States every year. It's the fifth leading cause of cancer death among women, and it's so deadly, in part, because the disease is hard to catch in its early stages. Patients often don't experience symptoms until the cancer has begun to spread, and there aren't any reliable screening tests for early detection.

Amazon deforestation threatens newly discovered fish species in Brazil

Researchers have discovered and described two new species of Amazonian fish -- one with striking red-orange fins and the other so small it is technically considered a miniature fish species. Both species inhabit waters located at the bleeding edge of human encroachment into the Amazon rainforest roughly 25 miles north of the Brazilian city of Apuí. The study's authors said that ongoing...

CRISPR now possible in cockroaches

Researchers have developed a CRISPR-Cas9 approach to enable gene editing in cockroaches, according to a new study. The simple and efficient technique, named 'direct parental' CRISPR (DIPA-CRISPR), involves the injection of materials into female adults where eggs are developing rather than into the embryos themselves.

From degrowth to a sustainable food system transformation

Proponents of degrowth have long argued that economic growth is detrimental to the environment. Now, scientists show that concerning the food sector, curbing growth alone would not make our food system sustainable -- but changing what we eat and putting a price on carbon would.

Precursor of spine and brain forms passively

Researchers have conducted a detailed study of neurulation -- how the neural tube forms during embryonic development. They conclude that this happens less actively than previously thought. This also has implications for understanding defects such as spina bifida.

Chinese penduline tit buries eggs to prevent them from blowin' in the wind

Many animal species bury their eggs, for a number of different reasons. While it is firmly established that Eurasian penduline tits bury them because of sexual conflict, their Chinese counterparts seem to have an entirely different reason. Experimental manipulations show that for these birds burial prevents the eggs from falling out of the nest in strong winds.