167 articles from WEDNESDAY 17.5.2023

Curved spacetime in a quantum simulator

The connection between quantum physics and the theory of relativity is extremely hard to study. But now, scientists have set up a model system, which can help: Quantum particles can be tuned in such a way that the results can be translated into information about other systems, which are much harder to observe. This kind of 'quantum simulator' works very well and can lead to new insights about the...

Extremely hot days are warming twice as fast as average summer days in North-West Europe

New study analyzed data on near-surface air temperatures recorded for North-West Europe over the past 60 years. The findings show that the maximum temperature of the hottest days is increasing at twice the rate of the maximum temperature of average summer days. The results highlight the need for urgent action by policy makers to adapt essential infrastructure to the impacts of climate change.

Is it an ant? Is it a plant? No, it's a spider!

A species of tiny, colorful jumping spider employs two lines of defense to avoid being eaten: camouflaging with plants and walking like an ant. Researchers report that this combination of camouflage and movement mimicry helps the spiders evade spider-eating spiders but does not deter hungry praying mantises.

What did the earliest animals look like?

Surprisingly, genome comparisons have failed to resolve a major question in animal evolution: Which living animals are the descendants of the earliest animals to evolve in the world's oceans? Scientists performed a detailed chromosomal analysis that comes down definitively in favor of comb jellies, or ctenophores, as the most recent common ancestor of all animals, or the sister taxa to all...

Radio signal reveals supernova origin

Astronomers reveal the origin of a thermonuclear supernova explosion. Strong emission lines of helium and the first detection of such a supernova in radio waves show that the exploding white dwarf star had a helium-rich companion.

How breast cancer arises

Researchers trace the origin of certain breast cancers to genomic reshuffling -- rearrangement of chromosomes -- that activates cancer genes and ignites disease. The finding offers a long-missing explanation for many cases of the disease that remain unexplained by the classical model of breast cancer development. The study shows the sex hormone estrogen -- thus far thought to be only a fuel for...

An edible CBD coating could extend the shelf life of strawberries

Soon, you'll be able to get a box of freshly picked, sweet strawberries from the grocery store or local farm stand. But it's disappointing when you get them home and find that the ones at the bottom have started to rot. To increase the berries' shelf life, researchers have incorporated cannabidiol -- a non-hallucinogenic compound from cannabis known as CBD -- and sodium alginate into an edible...

How 5-minute battery swaps could get more EVs on the road

Charging has emerged as the primary way people keep their EV batteries full of juice while on the go, but some companies have an alternative in mind that they think could be even quicker than the fastest chargers today: battery swapping. Today, a San Francisco–based startup called Ample demonstrated its new battery-swap system, which it says can exchange a depleted EV battery for a fresh one...

Exploring the centromere and its role in the formation of new species

Centromeres, the DNA sections often found at the center of the chromosomes, display enormous interspecies diversity, despite having the same vital role during cell division across almost the entire tree of life. An international team of researchers has discovered that the variation in centromere DNA regions can be strikingly large even within a single species.

An edible CBD coating could extend the shelf life of strawberries

Soon, you'll be able to get a box of freshly picked, sweet strawberries from the grocery store or local farm stand. But it's disappointing when you get them home and find that the ones at the bottom have started to rot. To increase the berries' shelf life, researchers reporting in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces have incorporated cannabidiol—a non-hallucinogenic compound from cannabis known...

Study tracks how newcomers may change ecosystem functions

In a study tracking climate-induced changes in the distribution of animals and their effects on ecosystem functions, North Carolina State University researchers show that resident species can continue managing some important ecological processes despite the arrival of newcomers that are similar to them, but resident species' role in ecosystem functioning changes when the newcomers are more...

Comb jelly ancestor may have been first animal to branch from tree of life

The first single-celled organisms drifted at sea. Then, some 700 million to 800 million years ago, clusters of cells joined together to form Earth’s first multicellular animal. More recently, the animal family tree split into two branches. One lineage gave rise to all other animals on Earth, from brontosauruses to badgers. The other, dubbed “sister of all other animals,” continued...

They moved to a Buddhist retreat in rural America. Have they found happiness?

Nestled in Arkansas, the Buddhist center is remote and summers are sweltering. I spent a week shadowing practitioners to learn whether it changed them in the ways they had hopedAni Wangmo and I are being tailgated. We’re in a white pickup truck, and the man behind us is driving a mid-size silver Pontiac. There’s real risk: deer and armadillo are splattered all over the narrow, cliffside Ozark...

NASA’s Spitzer, TESS Find Potentially Volcano-Covered Earth-Size World

Portal origin URL: NASA’s Spitzer, TESS Find Potentially Volcano-Covered Earth-Size WorldPortal origin nid: 487212Published: Wednesday, May 17, 2023 - 11:00Featured (stick to top of list): noPortal text teaser: Astronomers have discovered an Earth-size exoplanet, or world beyond our solar system, that may be carpeted with volcanoes.Portal image: A planet covered...