100 articles from FRIDAY 12.5.2023

'Absolutely gargantuan': astrophysicist explains largest cosmic explosion ever witnessed – video

Scientists at Southampton University say they accidentally stumbled upon the largest explosion ever recorded in the cosmos. Known as AT2021lwx, Philip Wiseman, a lead researcher at the university says his team believed it happened around 8bn years ago. Wiseman said it was only detectable from the earth because of the sheer magnitude of the explosion, which they believe was caused by a giant gas...

Earth’s upper atmosphere is a sensitive explosion detector

Scientists have detected the ripple effects of small ground-level explosions 100 kilometers up in ionized layers of the upper atmosphere. The result suggests the remote sensing technique could be used to monitor explosive events—natural or human—hundreds of times smaller than before. “It was a big surprise to me,” says Jihye Park, a geodetic scientist at Oregon State University...

Astronomers Explain What Caused the Largest Cosmic Explosion Ever Seen

It was only last October that telescopes spotted a gamma ray burst—caused by the collapse of a black hole—that was so powerful astronomers quickly dubbed it BOAT, for “Brightest of all Time.” That was a fair enough nickname for such a sensational emission—for a little while anyway. But BOAT has just been busted to second most powerful. According to a new study...

Researcher uses mammal DNA to zoom into the human genome with unprecedented resolution

Scientists have precisely identified base pairs of the human genome that remained consistent over millions of years of mammalian evolution, and which play a crucial role in human disease. The team analyzed the genomes of 240 mammals, including humans and identified base pairs that were 'constrained' -- meaning they remained generally consistent -- across mammal species over the course of...

Healthy teeth thanks to the 'washing machine effect'

Ruminants like cows have developed an unusual way of digesting their food: they ingest plants, give them a rough chewing and then swallow the half-chewed mash before regurgitating it repeatedly and continuing to chew. This has clear advantages: the regurgitated mushy food contains much less hard grit, sand and dust than the food that they first ingested. This protects the teeth from being ground...

Healthy teeth thanks to the 'washing machine effect': Research explains tooth abrasion in cows

Ruminants like cows have developed an unusual way of digesting their food: they ingest plants, give them a rough chewing and then swallow the half-chewed mash before regurgitating it repeatedly and continuing to chew. This has clear advantages, as a research team including the University of Göttingen has shown: the regurgitated mushy food contains much less hard grit, sand and dust than the food...

Researchers track antimicrobial resistance in E. coli isolated from swine

The spread of drug-resistant microbes has become a global health concern that threatens our ability to treat infections. The widespread use of antimicrobials in livestock, such as swine farms, exacerbates this problem. Therefore, we need surveillance systems to monitor these microbes to support the public health authorities. To this end, researchers have tracked the antimicrobial resistance of...

China has its own secret space plane, and it just landed

A lot has changed since the last Space Age. Unlike the days of Sputnik, Vostok, Mercury, and Apollo, the current era is not defined by two superpowers constantly vying for dominance and one-upmanship. More than ever, international cooperation is the name of the game, with space agencies coming together to advance common exploration and science goals.

What do London employers really think about hybrid working?

The long-anticipated return to the London office is underway—but this does not mean a return to the traditional office-based working culture. Working practices are now predominantly characterized by a hybrid approach, and this transformation of at least some sectors to a "new normal" constitutes a significant paradigm shift in the world of work.

Study finds the brains of modern dog breeds are larger than those of ancient breeds

Modern dog breeds that are genetically more distant from wolves have a relatively larger brain size compared to ancient breeds that are thousands of years old, according to the findings of Hungarian and Swedish researchers. The increase in brain size cannot be attributed to the roles or life history characteristics of the breeds, suggesting that it is likely influenced by urbanization and a more...

World’s largest collection of ancient rock art threatened by Australia’s petrochemical plants

The Murujuga rock art, the world’s largest and oldest collection of petroglyphs, has survived 40,000 years or so out in the open on a finger of land extending from Australia’s northwestern coast. “Murujuga is the most important rock art site in the world,” says Michel Lorblanchet, an archaeologist at CNRS, the French national research agency, who is noted for his work on European...

New artificial intelligence algorithm for more accurate plant disease detection

Every year, plant diseases caused by bacteria, viruses, and fungi contribute to major economic losses. The prompt detection of these diseases is necessary to curb their spread and mitigate agricultural damage, but represents a major challenge, especially in areas of high-scale production. Smart agriculture systems use camera surveillance equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) models to detect...