153 articles from THURSDAY 7.7.2022

Researchers achieve record entanglement of quantum memories

A network in which data transmission is perfectly secure against hacking? If physicists have their way, this will become reality one day with the help of the quantum mechanical phenomenon known as entanglement. For entangled particles, the rule is: If you measure the state of one of the particles, then you automatically know the state of the other. It makes no difference how far away the entangled...

How nuclear war would affect earth today

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has brought the threat of nuclear warfare to the forefront. But how would modern nuclear detonations impact the world today? A new study published today provides stark information on the global impact of nuclear war.

Climate factors predict future mosquito activity

Increases in three climate factors -- temperature, rainfall, and ocean warming -- predicted mosquito population growth in Sri Lanka for the next one to six months, according to a new study. The findings can inform the design and timing of programs to limit the spread of mosquito-borne diseases like dengue.

Understanding how microbiota thrive in their human hosts

Scientists have made substantial progress in understanding how gut bacteria succeed in their human hosts on a molecular level. They investigated how bacteria produce inositol lipids, substances vital for many cellular processes in humans and other eukaryotes but hitherto rarely observed in bacteria. The results indicate that inositol lipids have implications for the symbiosis between the bacteria...

Towards autonomous prediction and synthesis of novel magnetic materials

In materials science, candidates for novel functional materials are usually explored in a trial-and-error fashion through calculations, synthetic methods, and material analysis. However, the approach is time-consuming and requires expertise. Now, researchers have used a data-driven approach to automate the process of predicting new magnetic materials. By combining first-principles calculations,...

Study examines memory in expert birdwatchers

According to a new study that examined memory in expert birdwatchers, having expert knowledge in a subject helps us memorize new information. This is because, while forgetting often happens when similar memories interfere with each other, expert knowledge provides a mental organizational structure, or scaffolding, that helps us keep new items that we want to learn distinct from each other. This...

Thin mica shows semiconducting behavior, say scientists in new study

Muscovite mica (MuM) is a highly stable mineral that is commonly used as an insulator. However, the electrical properties of single-layer and few-layered MuM are not well understood. Now, a group of researchers reports and explains unusually high conductivity in MuM flakes that are only a few molecule layers thick. Their findings could open doors to the development of two-dimensional electronic...

Snapping shrimp orbital hood protects against shockwave blasts

A team of researchers from the University of Tulsa and the University of South Carolina, has found that the reason bigclaw snapping shrimp do not suffer from their own shock waves is that they are protected by orbital hoods. In their paper published in the journal Current Biology, the group describes experiments they conducted in their lab that involved removing the hoods from wild shrimp.

Turkish astronomers discover new short-period pulsating variable star

Astronomers from the Istanbul University in Turkey report the finding of a new short-period pulsating variable star during observations of the field of exoplanet host star XO-2. The newly detected object is most likely a Delta Scuti type variable with a pulsation period of less than one hour. The discovery was detailed in a paper published June 29 on arXiv.org.

Taxing animal production to reduce animal density in agriculture

A huge proportion of the world's population is vegetarian, eating no meat for a range of reasons, including lack of availability and poverty, ethical and religious reasons, personal health and environmental health reasons. Among that number are many who are vegan, eating no animal products. However, the environmental impact of raising livestock remains incredibly high; natural ecosystems are...

Removing the nitrogen bottleneck in the world's food supply

A University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa researcher is a part of a team that developed a synthetic way to transform nitrogen into a bioavailable form that could allow for the production of ammonia fertilizer at a much lower cost and ultimately lead to greater food production across the globe. Though nitrogen is inexhaustible in the atmosphere, scientists say creating enough bioavailable forms of...

NASA Helps Decipher How Some Distant Planets Have Clouds of Sand

Portal origin URL: NASA Helps Decipher How Some Distant Planets Have Clouds of SandPortal origin nid: 481074Published: Thursday, July 7, 2022 - 09:36Featured (stick to top of list): noPortal text teaser: A new study using archival observations by the now-retired Spitzer Space Telescope found a common trait among distant worlds where the exotic clouds form.Portal...