Toxins force construction of 'roads to nowhere'
Toxins released by a type of bacteria that cause diarrheal disease hijack cell processes and force important proteins to assemble into "roads to nowhere," redirecting the proteins away from other jobs that are key to proper cell function, a new study has found.
Rapid fluctuations in oxygen levels coincided with Earth's first mass extinction
Rapid changes in marine oxygen levels may have played a significant role in driving Earth's first mass extinction, according to a new study led by Florida State University researchers.
Artificial neural networks learn better when they spend time not learning at all
Depending on age, humans need 7 to 13 hours of sleep per 24 hours. During this time, a lot happens: Heart rate, breathing and metabolism ebb and flow; hormone levels adjust; the body relaxes. Not so much in the brain.
The tilt in our stars: The shape of the Milky Way's halo of stars is realized
A new study has revealed the true shape of the diffuse cloud of stars surrounding the disk of our galaxy. For decades, astronomers have thought that this cloud of stars—called the stellar halo—was largely spherical, like a beach ball. Now a new model based on modern observations shows the stellar halo is oblong and tilted, much like a football that has just been kicked.
How Webb's NIRSpec instrument opened up 200 windows to our origins
Astronomy is driven by big questions, and they don't come much bigger than wondering how the first stars and galaxies began to form—eventually giving rise to our own existence.
Researchers discover Egypt's oldest tomb oriented to winter solstice
Researchers of the University of Malaga (UMA) and the University of Jaen (UJA) have discovered Egypt's oldest tomb oriented to the winter solstice. Located in the necropolis of Qubbet el-Hawa (Aswan), it is precisely oriented to the sunrise of the winter solstice, in such a way that the sun's rays bathed with its light the place that was intended to house the statue of a governor of the city of...
Researchers turn asphaltene into graphene for composites
Asphaltenes, a byproduct of crude oil production, are a waste material with potential. Rice University scientists are determined to find it by converting the carbon-rich resource into useful graphene.
Looking at oxygen storage dynamics in three-way catalysts
In light of vehicular pollutants contributing to decreasing air quality, governments across the globe are posing stricter emission regulations for automobiles. This calls for the development of more efficient exhaust gas after-treatment systems, which are systems to "clean" exhaust gas before it is released into the atmosphere).
New technique accurately measures how 2D materials expand when heated
Two-dimensional materials, which consist of just a single layer of atoms, can be packed together more densely than conventional materials, so they could be used to make transistors, solar cells, LEDs, and other devices that run faster and perform better.
Fruit flies use corrective movements to maintain stability after injury
Fruit flies can quickly compensate for catastrophic wing injuries, researchers found, maintaining the same stability after losing up to 40% of a wing. This finding could inform the design of versatile robots, which face the similar challenge of having to quickly adapt to mishaps in the field.
Worldwide dataset captures Earth in finest ever detail
A global open-source dataset of high-resolution images of Earth—the most extensive and detailed of its kind—has been developed by experts led by UCL with data from the European Space Agency (ESA).
School choice motivated midterm voters in superintendent races. What that means for students
Pandemic-related school closures at neighborhood public schools led parents to wonder what other options they had. Many voted for the people they hope will give them more choices as they chose state superintendents on their midterm ballots this month.
Scientists develop new fertilizer from food chain waste
Researchers from the Università Cattolica at Piacenza, have developed a new fertilizer from food chain waste, specifically from the waste of the productions of lactic acid bacteria that currently have to be eliminated through purification processes.
In 'momentous' act, regulators approve demolition of four Klamath River dams
In a milestone decision, federal regulators on Thursday signed off on plans to demolish four aging dams along the Klamath River, paving the way for hundreds of miles of native fish habitat along the California-Oregon border to flow freely for the first time in more than a century.
How well do state-of-the-art climate models simulate sea level?
According to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the global mean sea level has risen faster since 1900 than over any preceding century in the last 3000 years. This makes hundreds of coastal cities and millions of people vulnerable to a threat of higher water levels.
Researchers develop a novel integration scheme for efficient coupling between III-V and silicon
Researchers at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has recently developed a novel integration scheme for efficient coupling between III-V compound semiconductor devices and silicon components on silicon photonics (Si-photonics) platform by selective direct epitaxy, unlocking the potential of integrating energy-efficient photonics with cost-effective electronics, as well as...
You could opt to pay extra on your next flight to help the planet. But is it a waste of money?
For people trying to lower their carbon footprint in the world, flying is a conundrum.
Honey bees prosper with quality, not quantity, of food in novel laboratory setup
Honey bee workers collect pollen and nectar from a variety of flowering plants to use as a food source. Honey bees typically forage from up to 1-2 miles away from the hive, though sometimes they travel even further, including up to 10 miles away. However, much of the modern landscape consists of agricultural fields, which limits the foraging options for honey bees in these areas.
A new optical inversion strategy for unscrambling light propagation through multimode optical fibers
Multimode optical fibers (MMFs) are hair-thin strands of glass that are ubiquitous in light-guiding applications. Their development has gone hand-in-hand with the huge growth in rapid transmission of information across the world.
Save the economy, save the planet, says sustainability expert
A new book by UVM economist Jon Erickson, "The Progress Illusion: Reclaiming Our Future from the Fairytale of Economics" (Island Press, Dec. 1) explores the harsh economic realities that have led to sky-high inflation, growing inequality, polarized politics, and climate crisis.
Food marketing and research on kids lacks government oversight
Federal regulations ban tobacco companies from advertising to kids and prohibit profanity on television before 10 p.m. But what is protecting children from predatory advertising of junk food, especially with sneaky online marketing tactics like the use of influencers?
From the air, scientists map 'fast paths' for recharging California's groundwater
Thousands of years ago during the last Ice Age, rivers flowed from giant glaciers in the Sierra Nevada down to the Central Valley, carving into rock and gouging channels at a time when the sea level was about 400 feet lower. When the glaciers retreated, meltwater coursed down and buried the river channels in sediment.
Opinion: Tackling the climate crisis beyond COP
The clock is ticking. The 27th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties (COP27) is nearly halfway through. Beyond the nice words, some announcements designed to make headlines and more explanations about how bad the climate crisis is, COP27's outputs and results are far from what the world expects and what the planet needs.
Turning wastewater into fertilizer is feasible and could make agriculture more sustainable
The wastewater draining from massive pools of sewage sludge has the potential to play a role in more sustainable agriculture, according to environmental engineering researchers at Drexel University.
New research on how makeup applied only to facial features increases perceived skin evenness
Makeup is a form of body art that has been used for millennia to change facial appearance. Though styles of makeup have varied through time and between cultures, the actual modification of the face tends to be quite similar, with an emphasis on making the skin appear more even and the facial features more prominent. For instance, think Cleopatra eyes or Kylie Jenner lips.