153 articles from THURSDAY 13.10.2022
Can shifting social norms help mitigate climate change?
Climate change is the result of many human activities, from carbon emissions to deforestation, and it will take multiple and varied interventions to mitigate it, including legislation, regulation, and market-based solutions implemented at local, national, and global levels. Demand-side factors, such as changes in social norms, can also help by creating political pressure for increased climate...
NASA's Lucy spacecraft prepares to swing by Earth
On Oct. 16, at 7:04 a.m. EDT, NASA's Lucy spacecraft, the first mission to the Jupiter Trojan asteroids, will skim the Earth's atmosphere, passing a mere 220 miles (350 kilometers) above the surface. By swinging past Earth on the first anniversary of its launch, Lucy will gain some of the orbital energy it needs to travel to this never-before-visited population of asteroids.
Machine learning takes hold in nuclear physics
Scientists have begun turning to new tools offered by machine learning to help save time and money. In the past several years, nuclear physics has seen a flurry of machine learning projects come online, with many papers published on the subject. Now, 18 authors from 11 institutions summarize this explosion of artificial intelligence-aided work in "Machine Learning in Nuclear Physics," a paper...
NASA's Swift and Fermi missions detect exceptional cosmic blast
Astronomers around the world are captivated by an unusually bright and long-lasting pulse of high-energy radiation that swept over Earth on Sunday, Oct. 9. The emission came from a gamma-ray burst (GRB)—the most powerful class of explosions in the universe—that ranks among the most luminous events known.
Investigating gender equity: Researchers analyze gender distribution of institutional leadership roles
To accelerate gender parity in the field of wilderness medicine, in which women are significantly underrepresented, a team of researchers analyzed the gender distribution of key leadership roles at the Wilderness Medical Society (WMS) and among authors and reviewers of content published in WMS's official journal, Wilderness & Environmental Medicine (WEM). Their findings, which document past and...
Drug discovery method identifies naturally occurring metabolite that converts 'bad' fat to 'good' fat
"Metabolism" describes the body's chemical changes that create the necessary materials for growth and overall health. Metabolites are the substances made and used during these metabolic processes—or, as a new discovery out of Scripps Research and its drug development arm, Calibr, indicates, they could also be potent molecules for treating severe diseases.
Research team develops a theory to improve the energy efficiency of electronic devices
The University of Alicante Quantum Chemistry group has predicted and published the existence of a new natural phenomenon in matter-radiation interaction, which has recently been experimentally confirmed. This finding is the subject of the review that the group's researcher Juan Carlos Sancho García has submitted to the journal Nature, having been invited to publish in its "News & Views" section.
Mathematical model could bring us closer to effective stem cell therapies
Stem cells are the very definition of potential: they have contained in their DNA the potential to become virtually any cell in the body. Scientists have been working for decades to harness this power to use as medicine—think replacing damaged cells with brand new ones—that could treat or even cure everything from diabetes to heart disease.
The missing link: Fatty acid metabolism impacts plant immunity
That healthy salad you ate for lunch contains fatty acids—surprised? Fatty acids, lipids, and fats in our food may sound undesirable, but they are foundational to human life and to the plants we consume. Their interaction with certain proteins helps regulate plant growth.
Class background still marker for 'success' in later life, research shows
Class background remains a barrier to accessing opportunities in later life, even among those who are successful, research by the University of York has found.
Massive Puerto Rico telescope destroyed 2 years ago won't be rebuilt
The National Science Foundation announced Thursday that it will not rebuild a renowned radio telescope in Puerto Rico, which was one of the world's largest until it collapsed nearly two years...
Will cell-based milk change the dairy industry? This California lab could lead the way
Biotechnology startup TurtleTree wants to change the way people consume milk.
A molecular multi-qubit model system for quantum computing
Molecules could make useful systems for quantum computers, but they must contain individually addressable, interacting quantum bit centers. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, a team of researchers has now presented a molecular model with three different coupled qubit centers. As each center is spectroscopically addressable, quantum information processing (QIP) algorithms could be developed for this...
Improved adaptation: Bacteria can profit from the genetic material of other bacteria
Bacteria can exchange genetic material among themselves—even across species. Rather than being passed on from ancestor to offspring, genetic information is exchanged among organisms living at the same time. By systematically characterizing the fitness effects of this so-called horizontal gene transfer, researchers at the University of Cologne's Institute of Biological Physics have found that...
Wildlife populations have fallen nearly 70% in 50 years, WWF warns
Global wildlife populations have fallen by nearly 70% in less than 50 years, conservationists warned as they called for immediate action to halt the nature and climate crises.
Researchers develop method with single-molecule precision to engineer enzyme 'stickiness'
Rutgers University scientists have developed an analytical toolkit to measure the binding forces of single proteins when they are pulled away from their substrate—such as an enzyme—that will help the development of new nanomaterials, improve biofuel production and global carbon cycling, and identify new and better drug targets, according to a new study.
Flatworm-inspired medical adhesives stop blood loss
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
Every year around 2 million people die worldwide from hemorrhaging or blood loss. Uncontrolled hemorrhaging accounts for more than 30% of trauma deaths. To stop the bleeding, doctors often apply pressure to the wound and seal the site with medical glue. But what happens when applying pressure is difficult or could make things worse? Or the surface of the wound is too bloody for glue? Drawing...
Seismic sensing reveals flood damage potential
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
Rapidly evolving floods are a major and growing hazard worldwide. Currently, their onset and evolution is hard to identify using existing systems. However, seismic sensors already in place to detect earthquakes could be a solution to this problem. Researchers show that a seismometer can sense a flood, such as the devastating one that hit Germany in July 2021, up to 1.5 km away. This could act as...
Distinct brain networks associated with risk and resilience in depression
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
A new study that links the location of brain injury to levels of depression in patients following the injury has identified two distinct brain networks; one associated with increased depression symptoms and one associated with decreased depression symptoms. The large-scale study expands on previous findings and suggests that these brain networks might be potential targets for neuromodulation...
Air pollution tips the scale for obesity in women
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
Obesity has been a major global health issue in recent decades as more people eat unhealthy diets and fail to exercise regularly.
New measurements quantifying qudits provide glimpse of quantum future
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
Using existing experimental and computational resources, a multi-institutional team has developed an effective method for measuring high-dimensional qudits encoded in quantum frequency combs, which are a type of photon source, on a single optical chip.
The missing link: Fatty acid metabolism impacts plant immunity
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
A recent study reveals a new dimension to the role of FA biosynthesis in plants by providing a direct link to the plant defense mechanism.
Developing self-complementary macrocycles with ingenious molecules
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
Virus capsids can be formed through the self-complementary assembly of a single class of protein molecules. However, mimicking nature by making higher-ordered structures from artificial molecules has proven difficult to achieve. A new assembly method can produce stable and controllable supramolecular structures, from hexamers to cuboctahedrons that include 6 and 108 monomer units, respectively,...
Researchers build understanding of the virus universe using metatranscriptome mining
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
Researchers have discovered new RNA bacteriophages, viruses that attack bacteria, advancing understanding of virus evolution.
Model demonstrates how RNA splicing defects contribute to Alzheimer's disease
- ScienceDaily
- 22/10/13 20:56
Scientists have created a model to study the role of RNA splicing defects in Alzheimer's disease, revealing degeneration and toxicity caused by neuron hyperexcitability.