117 articles from MONDAY 27.6.2022
Johnson issues open invitation to Russian scientists ‘dismayed by Putin’s violence’
Prime minister asks disaffected Russian academics to defect to the UK alongside Ukrainian colleaguesRussia-Ukraine war: latest updatesBoris Johnson has issued an open invitation for disaffected Russian scientists to defect to the UK, as he used the G7 summit to argue that allowing Russia to prevail in Ukraine would usher in a highly damaging era of global instability.As part of an expansion to a...
Microbe protects honey bees from poor nutrition, a significant cause of colony loss
Indiana University researchers have identified a specific bacterial microbe that, when fed to honey bee larvae, can reduce the effects of nutritional stress on developing bees—one of the leading causes of honey bee decline.
Single-atom tractor beams power chemical catalysis
By trapping light into tiny gaps only a few atoms wide, a team from the NanoPhotonics Center at the Cavendish Laboratory at the University of Cambridge has magnified optical forces a thousand-fold, strong enough to force atoms into positions that drive chemical reactions more efficiently.
In non-volatile memory technologies, 2D materials may drive a major leap forward
Non-volatile memories—which are able to retain information even when power is removed—are largely employed in computers, tablets, pen drives and many other electronic devices. Among the various existing technologies, magnetoresistive random-access memories (MRAM), currently used only in specific applications, are expected to expand considerably on the market in the decade to come.
Novel gel proves itself to be a highly tunable color filter
Color these scientists happy. An exotic gel they studied at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has an unexpected property: The material's temperature determines which color of light can pass through it.
Curiosity rover takes inventory of key life ingredient on Mars
Scientists using data from NASA's Curiosity rover have measured the total organic carbon—a key component in the molecules of life—in Martian rocks for the first time.
Studying galaxy growth spurts in the early universe with NASA's Roman
In the American Wild West, high noon was a time for duels and showdowns. When it comes to the history of the universe, cosmic noon featured fireworks of a different sort. Some 2 to 3 billion years after the big bang most galaxies went through a growth spurt, forming stars at a rate hundreds of times higher than we see in our own galaxy, the Milky Way, today. When it launches by May 2027, NASA's...
Urban density strongly correlates with house sparrow health
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 23:00
A new study shows that house sparrows' health closely correlates with urban density, and that sparrows are carrying surprisingly high loads of lead in their bodies.
Patients treated with monoclonal antibodies during COVID-19 delta surge had low rates of severe disease, study finds
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 23:00
A study of 10,775 high-risk adult patients during the COVID-19 delta variant surge in late 2021 finds that treatment with one of three anti-spike neutralizing monoclonal antibodies for mild to moderate symptoms led to low rates of severe disease, hospitalization, ICU admission and mortality, according to researchers.
Top predators could 'trap' themselves trying to adapt to climate change
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 23:00
Over a 30-year period, African wild dogs shifted their average birthing dates later by 22 days, an adaptation that allowed them to match the birth of new litters with the coolest temperatures in early winter. But as a result of this significant shift, fewer pups survived their most vulnerable period because temperatures during their critical post-birth 'denning period' increased over the same time...
Structural racism drives higher COVID-19 death rates in Louisiana, study finds
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 22:59
Higher COVID-19 mortality rates among Black communities in Louisiana can be linked to pervasive health vulnerabilities associated with racism, including the location of many Black neighborhoods near industrial facilities and the higher likelihood among Black families of being uninsured, researchers found. The team identified the spatial distribution of social and environmental stressors across...
Fossils in the 'Cradle of Humankind' may be more than a million years older than previously thought
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 22:59
For decades, scientists have studied these fossils of early human ancestors and their long-lost relatives. Now, a dating method developed by geologists just pushed the age of some of these fossils found at the site of Sterkfontein Caves back more than a million years. This would make them older than Dinkinesh, also called Lucy, the world's most famous Australopithecus fossil.
Doctors prescribe fewer painkillers during nightshifts than during the day, study finds
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 22:59
Physicians were 20 to 30 percent less likely to prescribe an analgesic during nightshifts (compared to daytime shifts) and prescribed fewer painkillers than were generally recommended by the World Health Organization, according to a new study.
Southern resident killer whales not getting enough to eat since 2018
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 22:59
The endangered southern resident killer whale population isn't getting enough to eat, and hasn't been since 2018, a new study has determined. The animals have been in an energy deficit, averaged across spring, summer and fall, for six of the last 40 years -- meaning the energy they get from food is less than what they expend. Three of those six years came in the most recent years of the study,...
Amazon landscape change study highlights ecological harms and opportunities for action
- ScienceDaily
- 22/6/27 22:58
A major study into landscape changes in the Brazilian Amazon sheds new light on the many environmental threats the biome faces -- but also offers encouraging opportunities for ecological sustainability in the world's most biodiverse tropical forest. The study's findings are critical because as the Amazon moves closer towards a 'tipping point', they provide a robust evidence base to inform urgently...
Urban density strongly correlates with house sparrow health
House sparrows (Passer domesticus) have adapted to urban environments, which are changing and growing faster than ever before. A range of both biotic and abiotic factors—including habitat fragmentation, changing food availability, heavy metals, nighttime light, noise and urban density—change the way birds live in an urban environment. Understanding how cities affect birds can help scientists...
Love spectacular photos of Jupiter?
A new NASA citizen science project, Jovian Vortex Hunter, seeks your help spotting vortices---spiral wind patterns—and other phenomena in gorgeous photos of the planet Jupiter.
Learn...
Love spectacular photos of Jupiter? Become a Jovian Vortex Hunter!
At Jovian Vortex Hunter, you’ll examine gorgeous images of Jupiter like this one. Credit: NASA
Help astrophysicists analyze the stunning images from NASA’s Juno spacecraft!
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/juno/main/index.html
A new NASA citizen science project, Jovian Vortex Hunter, seeks your help spotting vortices---spiral wind patterns—and other phenomena in gorgeous photos...
Climate change is affecting when and how violets reproduce
In many Missouri backyards, a carpet of small purple or white violets is a sure sign of spring.
Warmer winters could wipe out Antarctica’s only native insect
The Antarctic midge might be smaller than a pea, but it’s the continent’s largest land animal–and only native insect. The midge has clearly evolved to survive in extreme conditions, yet a warming climate could threaten its existence, a new study finds.
Unlike temperate-zone midges that swarm around water, the Antarctic midge (
Belgica antarctica
) is...
Sea dragons' genes give clues to their distinctive looks
Even with plenty of fish in the sea, sea dragons stand out from the crowd.
Southern resident killer whales have not been getting enough to eat since 2018
The endangered southern resident killer whale population isn't getting enough to eat, and hasn't been since 2018, a new University of British Columbia (UBC) study has determined.
The 2022 hurricane season is tracking behind the pace of those in 2020 and 2021, but it's still early
Though it's early in the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, the number of storms is tracking behind the frenetic pace of 2021 and 2020.
Destiny of science modeled and explained in new study
What is the common thread among mRNA vaccines, genomic drugs, NASA's mission to the moon and the harnessing of nuclear power? They all have been products of science convergence, where knowledge from multiple scientific disciplines is integrated into new overarching knowledge that propels modern civilization. In the last 70 years, convergence has achieved more than what science achieved in all its...
Researchers study plants sprouting from century-old seeds after excavation
At a Toronto Port Lands construction site on the city's waterfront, keen-eyed workers recently spotted plants that had sprouted from soil recently exposed by the removal of tons of earth. The plants were hard stem bulrush and cattails, which are commonly found in freshwater marshes.
NASA experiment suggests need to dig deep for evidence of life on Mars
According to a new NASA laboratory experiment, rovers may have to dig about 6.6 feet (two meters) or more under the Martian surface to find signs of ancient life because ionizing radiation from space degrades small molecules such as amino acids relatively quickly.
Researchers' oceanside nursery provides home to thousands of at-risk corals
In a 600-gallon tank overlooking Port Everglades, small pieces of brain coral and massive star coral grow serenely below the surface of the water. Although some of these pieces are the size of a quarter, all 2,376 fragments at this nursery could make a difference.
Webb's NIRISS instrument is ready to see cosmos in over 2,000 infrared colors
One of the James Webb Space Telescope's four primary scientific instruments, known as the Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph instrument (NIRISS) has concluded its post-launch preparations and is now ready for science.