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39 articles from ScienceDaily

Biblical military campaigns reconstructed using geomagnetic field data

Researchers reconstructed the geomagnetic fields recorded in 21 archaeological destruction layers throughout Israel and used the data to develop a reliable new scientific tool for archaeological dating. The new tool enables the verification of Old Testament accounts of the Egyptian, Aramean, Assyrian, and Babylonian military campaigns against the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah.

Study uncovers mechanisms necessary for SARS-CoV-2 infection in macrophages

Researchers have identified a receptor, CD169 (also called Siglec1), that is exclusively expressed on macrophages and contributes to the hyper-inflammatory response of macrophages upon infection with SARS-CoV-2. These findings, they believe, may provide an explanation of how SARS-CoV-2 infection of macrophages in lungs of COVID-19 patients promote inflammatory responses.

Fossil bird's skull reconstruction reveals a brain made for smelling and eyes made for daylight

Piecing together the crushed skull of a fossil bird that lived alongside the dinosaurs helped researchers extrapolate what its brain would have looked like: big olfactory bulbs would have meant that this bird, the earliest known animal to eat fruit, had a better sense of smell than most modern birds. And the bones around its eye sockets revealed that it would have been better at seeing by day than...

Study looks inside the brain during sleep to show how memory is stored

A new study looks deep inside the brain, where previous learning was reactivated during sleep, resulting in improved memory. Neuroscientists teamed up with clinicians to study the brain electrical activity in five of the center's patients in response to sounds administered by the research team as part of a learning exercise. While prior studies have used EEG recordings captured by electrodes on...

Young child's brain, not age, determines nap transitions, research suggests

Why do some 4- and 5-year-olds still nap like clockwork every afternoon, while other preschoolers start giving up habitual napping at age 3? It's a question many parents no doubt ponder and one that a sleep scientist has been considering for years. Now, sleep scientists describe a new theory about why and when young children transition out of naps. It's not about age as much as the brain.

Laying geological groundwork for life on Earth

New research analyzing pieces of the most ancient rocks on the planet adds some of the sharpest evidence yet that Earth's crust was pushing and pulling in a manner similar to modern plate tectonics at least 3.25 billion years ago. The study also provides the earliest proof of when the planet's magnetic north and south poles swapped places.

'That just sounds wrong' -- New study shows how our brains tell us when a sound is off

Whether it's a car door not properly closed, a shanked kick in football, or a misplaced note in music, our ears tell us when something doesn't sound right. A team of neuroscientists has recently uncovered how the brain works to make distinctions between 'right' and 'wrong' sounds -- research that provides a deeper understanding of how we learn complex audio-motor tasks like speaking or playing...

Study explains why adults' hearts don't regenerate

As heart cells mature in mice, the number of communication pathways called nuclear pores dramatically decreases, according to new research. While this might protect the organ from damaging signals, it could also prevent adult heart cells from regenerating, the researchers found.

Insects contribute to atmospheric electricity

By measuring the electrical fields near swarming honeybees, researchers have discovered that insects can produce as much atmospheric electric charge as a thunderstorm cloud. This type of electricity helps shape weather events, aids insects in finding food, and lifts spiders up in the air to migrate over large distances. The research demonstrates that living things can have an impact on atmospheric...

One in 10 older Americans has dementia

In the first nationally representative study of cognitive impairment prevalence in more than 20 years, researchers found almost 10% of older adults have dementia and 22% have mild cognitive impairment.

UK's oldest human DNA obtained, revealing two distinct Palaeolithic populations

The first genetic data from Palaeolithic human individuals in the UK -- the oldest human DNA obtained from the British Isles so far -- indicates the presence of two distinct groups that migrated to Britain at the end of the last ice age, according to new research. Published today in Nature Ecology and Evolution, the new study by UCL Institute of Archaeology, the Natural History Museum and the...

Tandem solar cells with perovskite: Nanostructures help in many ways

By the end of 2021, scientists had presented perovskite silicon tandem solar cells with an efficiency close to 30 percent. This value was a world record for eight months, a long time for this hotly contested field of research. Scientists now describe how they achieved this record value with nanooptical structuring and reflective coatings.

Forest recovery after Montana's 2017 fire season

Researchers found thousands of seedlings growing after recent fires in Montana, especially at sites with cooler, damper conditions -- often found in the shade of the dead trees and upper canopy, as well as on the north side of mountains with higher elevations and more undergrowth. Researchers found fewer seedlings at sites with less shade and drier, hotter conditions.

Using carbon-carbon clumping to detect the signature of biotic hydrocarbons

The mystery of the origin of hydrocarbons found in extraterrestrial environment may finally be resolved, thanks to a technique based on a 13C-13C abundance analysis. By measuring the abundance of clumped 13C-13C isotope in the hydrocarbons, it can be inferred if a hydrocarbon was produced via biological processes. This could open doors to distinguishing such hydrocarbons from abiotic ones, aiding...

Intranasal COVID vaccine that works against variants in animals

An intranasal vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 could quickly get to the respiratory tract, where the virus most commonly causes symptoms. And a spray or droplets could be a more palatable option for people who fear needles. But so far, only a few countries have approved COVID nasal vaccines. Now researchers report that they've developed one that can fight off the original virus and two variants in...