Predatory dinosaurs such as T. rex sported lizard-like lips, suggests study
A new study suggests that predatory dinosaurs, such as Tyrannosaurus rex, did not have permanently exposed teeth as depicted in films such as Jurassic Park, but instead had scaly, lizard-like lips covering and sealing their mouths.
Moiré superlattices show superpower in photonics and optoelectronics
Researchers from the Institute of Physics (IOP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, collaborating with international colleagues, have presented an overview of recent progress in emerging moiré photonics and optoelectronics. It was published in Science on March 30.
AI predicts enzyme function better than leading tools
A new artificial intelligence tool can predict the functions of enzymes based on their amino acid sequences, even when the enzymes are unstudied or poorly understood. The researchers said the AI tool, dubbed CLEAN, outperforms the leading state-of-the-art tools in accuracy, reliability and sensitivity. Better understanding of enzymes and their functions would be a boon for research in genomics,...
Newly discovered trigger for major depression opens new possibilities for treatments
A common amino acid, glycine, can deliver a "slow-down" signal to the brain, likely contributing to major depression, anxiety and other mood disorders in some people, scientists at the Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology have found.
News at a glance: A particle’s weighty measurement, Marburg in Africa, and a fossil called “the blob”
PARTICLE PHYSICS
Particle mass dispels hint of new physics
A fleeting, weighty elementary particle called the W boson has just the mass predicted by theory, physicists working with Europe’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC) reported this week at a conference in Italy. The finding comes from ATLAS, one of four large particle detectors fed by the LHC,...
Tyrannosaurus rex had lips over its teeth, research suggests
Contrary to depiction in movies like Jurassic Park, scientists now believe T rexes were not ‘toothy lipless things’While T rex is often depicted prowling the landscape while sporting a toothy grin, its fearsome teeth may actually have been concealed behind a pair of thin, scaly lips, research suggests.Experts say the perception that theropods were lipless arose because of the huge size of...
Hubble finds Saturn's rings heating its atmosphere
The secret has been hiding in plain view for 40 years. But it took the insight of a veteran astronomer to pull it all together within a year, using observations of Saturn from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and retired Cassini probe, in addition to the Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft and the retired International Ultraviolet Explorer mission.
Interviews with icons yield lessons on productivity in 'Wisdom Years'
The Wonder Years can be great, sure: first loves, long summers, panoramic dreams exclusive to those with a lifetime of runway. The Working Years, too: established identity, new family and old friends, freedom to pursue personal goals and professional satisfaction.
How to Harness Mega Seaweed Blobs For a More Sustainable Future
On Oct. 7, 1492, Christopher Columbus, aboard his ship the Santa María, had been at a complete standstill for 21 days, trapped in a very strange sea which he would later name the Sargasso Sea—sargazo in Spanish meaning “gulfweed.” Today, the Sargasso Sea—an elliptical expanse in the southwestern Atlantic at the center of which lies Bermuda—is six times the...
Asian swamp eels spread in the Everglades: 'Potentially the worst species we've had yet'
For a crayfish in the Florida Everglades, its worst nightmare is three feet long, dark brown and pure muscle, with a mouth like a vacuum that sucks up nearly everything it can find—tiny fish, small shellfish, turtle eggs and frogs.
NASA-enabled AI Predictions May Give Time to Prepare for Solar Storms
Portal origin URL: NASA-enabled AI Predictions May Give Time to Prepare for Solar StormsPortal origin nid: 486331Published: Thursday, March 30, 2023 - 13:40Featured (stick to top of list): noPortal text teaser: Like a tornado siren for life-threatening storms in America’s heartland, a new computer model that combines artificial intelligence (AI) and NASA satellite data...
Filipinas stare through the glass ceiling in STEM fields
The Philippines is celebrating March as women's month while citing its achievements in gender equality from increased female educational attainment to political empowerment.
Lawsuit jeopardizes use of crucial wildfire retardant, US Forest Service claims
For most Californians, the sight of aircraft spewing neon pink liquid over flaming trees and brush has become a hallmark of aggressive wildfire suppression campaigns—if not a potent symbol of government's struggle to control increasingly destructive forest fires.
Ancient forests, seaways, and climate: Lessons from Miocene for today's world
Widespread forests once played a significant role in warming the climate during the Middle Miocene Climate Optimum (MMCO), while open Panama and Tethys Seaways served as "shortcuts" for the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC).
Changes in dominance of plant species with high stoichiometric plasticity exacerbate nitrogen–phosphorus imbalance
In terrestrial ecosystems, nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) are major nutrients limiting the increase in primary productivity. The imbalance of N and P input may result in a series of ecological results.
Scientists collect samples from Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt during unprecedented bloom
Scientists aboard a U.S. research vessel in the tropical Atlantic are taking advantage of the ship's long-planned path through the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt to take some of the first samples from a massive, ongoing bloom. Photos and video from the ship show the algae mats on the surface of the eastern Atlantic in the belt that extends from west Africa to the Gulf of Mexico.
Retailer price promotions increase waste awareness, not waste, says study
Contrary to what is often assumed, retailer price promotions such as "Buy One, Get One" or quantity discounts in supermarkets do not cause more food to go to waste. In fact, such offers appear to increase consumer awareness of the risk of wasting food, which in turn spurs them on to prevent waste. Supermarkets could encourage such awareness-driven behavior by designing smart campaigns that help...
It's a bad year for California salmon. Here's how it hurts the economy and environment
State officials were supposed to take a conservative approach to approving salmon fishing season this year—and they did.
DNA testing finds endangered eels on the menu
DNA testing has confirmed widespread—and probably illegal—international trading of critically endangered European eels.
Thermal paint: MXene spray coating can harness infrared radiation for heating or cooling
An international team of researchers, led by Drexel University, has found that a thin coating of MXene—a type of two-dimensional nanomaterial discovered and studied at Drexel for more than a decade—could enhance a material's ability to trap or shed heat. The discovery, which is tied to MXene's ability to regulate the passage of ambient infrared radiation, could lead to advances in thermal...
'Exquisite' sabretooth skull offers clues about Ice Age predator
The recent discovery of a sabretooth cat skull in southwest Iowa is the first evidence the prehistoric predator once inhabited the state.