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The Atlantic
Post-vaccination Inertia Is Real
 
On my kitchen wall hangs a very small and very adorable cat calendar, with May 23 circled in Sharpie. It’s the day my Pfizer vaccine will, at long last, blossom into “ full vaccination ,” as sanctioned by the CDC . I’ll be able to safely venture outdoors unmasked and skip post-exposure quarantines. I’ll be able to schmooze with other immunized people indoors—perhaps even travel across state lines
1h
Biology News – Evolution, Cell theory, Gene theory, Microbiology, Biotechnology
New study has scientists re-evaluating relative brain size and mammalian intelligence
 
Scientists from Stony Brook University and the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior have pieced together a timeline of how brain and body size evolved in mammals over the last 150 million years. The findings, published in Science Advances, show that brain size relative to body size—long considered an indicator of animal intelligence—has not followed a stable scale over evolutionary time.
5h
Phys.org
Fermi satellite data puts new constraints on the possibility of antimatter stars
 
What if some of the antimatter that was thought to have disappeared was hiding in the form of anti-stars? Researchers from the Institute for Research in Astrophysics and Planetology (IRAP—CNRS/CNES/UT3 Paul Sabatier) are using the Fermi gamma-ray space telescope to put the most constraining limits ever on this hypothesis. The results of their work were published on April 20, 2021 in Physical Revie
5h
Future(s) Studies
Hi, I'm Trey Goff, Chief of Staff at Próspera, where we're building the future of human prosperity. Ask me Anything!
 
Hi, Futurology! I'm Trey Goff, Chief of Staff at Honduras Próspera Inc. We have worked with the Honduran government to create what is, in my humble opinion, the world's most advanced special economic zone. My identity has been verified by the moderators. In short, Honduras Próspera's sole focus is catalyzing prosperity and improving lives for profit. We recognize that governance, as an industry (
14h
Quanta Magazine
How to Rewrite the Laws of Physics in the Language of Impossibility
 
They say that in art, constraints lead to creativity. The same seems to be true of the universe. By placing limits on nature, the laws of physics squeeze out reality’s most fantastical creations. Limit light’s speed, and suddenly space can shrink, time can slow. Limit the ability to divide energy into infinitely small units, and the full weirdness of quantum mechanics blossoms. “Declaring somethi
3h
Futurism
Feds Investigating “Directed Energy” Attack Near White House
 
Havana Syndrome Starting in late 2016, US and Canadian embassy staff stationed in Havana, Cuba, started experiencing mysterious health problems, ranging from hearing loss to memory problems and nausea. The symptoms later became known as “Havana syndrome.” Later investigations concluded that the incidents may have involved the deployment of a microwave weapon, deployed by an unknown adversary to t
3h
Futurism
After Public Rage, NYPD Secretly Fires Robot Dog
 
After facing significant backlash for deploying a robot dog, the New York Police Department has decided to cut the experiment short sooner than expected, The New York Times reports . The robot dog, dubbed Digidog, was a futuristic, four-legged machine built by Boston Dynamics, meant to be deployed in dangerous situations to protect officers. But after the robot made several public appearances, th
4h
Science | The Guardian
Michael Collins obituary
 
Astronaut and pilot of the command module Columbia during 1969’s Apollo 11 mission On 20 July 1969, Michael Collins, who has died aged 90, became the most solitary human in the universe – even if he derided that categorisation as “phony philosophy”. He orbited the moon alone, inside Apollo 11’s command module Columbia, and out of touch with ground control for 48 minutes on each orbit. Meanwhile,
6h
The Atlantic
Don’t Wait for Herd Immunity
 
With 200 million doses administered, America’s vaccine-distribution program has been remarkably successful, but now it is hitting a wall. The rate of COVID-19 vaccinations is dropping ; the percentage of people not returning for their second shot has risen. Fortunately, the number of Americans who are resolutely anti-vaccine remains small, a stubborn 13 percent , so finding ways to win over the r
8h
The Atlantic
Can Democrats Avoid a Wipeout in 2022?
 
Updated on April 29, 2021 at 11:13 a.m. ET The good news for Democrats who watched Joe Biden unveil a historically ambitious agenda last night is that newly elected presidents have almost always passed some version of their core economic plan—particularly when their party controls both congressional chambers, as Biden’s does now. The bad news: Voters have almost always punished the president’s pa
4h
Futurism
Family Sues SpaceX for Death, Spinal Injuries
 
Aiming High SpaceX is looking to revolutionize orbit, but it’s dealing with legal problems down on the surface of the Earth. A Texas family is suing the Elon Musk-led spacetech company, along with its affiliate company Dogleg Park LLC, for $20 million dollars after a car crash last June left one of them dead and the other four with spine and leg injuries. The Venegas family says they had to flee
1h
Science | The Guardian
Researchers ‘shocked’ to find Egyptian mummy was a pregnant woman
 
Archaeologists studying Warsaw’s national collection of mummies expected to uncover a male priest Polish researchers examining an ancient Egyptian mummy that they expected to be a male priest were surprised when X-rays and computer tests revealed instead that it was a mummy of a woman who had been seven months pregnant. The researchers said on Thursday it was the world’s first known case of such
1h
Futurism
China Successfully Launches First Module of New Space Station
 
One Down China successfully launched the core module of its upcoming space station — an unofficial rival to the International Space Station (ISS) — on Thursday morning. The module, dubbed Tianhe, is now in low earth orbit after being ferried to space by China’s Long March-5B rocket, where it will stay until it can be assembled alongside other modules that will soon follow, CNN reports . It’s an i
3h
The Atlantic
Stop Spending Time on Things You Hate
 
“ How to Build a Life ” is a weekly column by Arthur Brooks, tackling questions of meaning and happiness. Arthur C. Brooks will discuss the science of happiness live at 11 a.m. ET on May 20. Register for In Pursuit of Happiness here . T he other afternoon, in an effort to avoid doing my work, I picked up Henry David Thoreau’s Walden . It turned out to be a fitting choice, as Thoreau has quite a b
8h
MIT Technology Review
The climate solution actually adding millions of tons of CO2 into the atmosphere
 
Along the coast of Northern California near the Oregon border, the cool, moist air off the Pacific sustains a strip of temperate rainforests. Soaring redwoods and Douglas firs dominate these thick, wet woodlands, creating a canopy hundreds of feet high. But if you travel inland the mix of trees gradually shifts. Beyond the crest of the Klamath Mountains, you descend into an evergreen medley of su
9h
Science | The Guardian
China launches first module of new space station
 
The space station is expected to become fully operational in 2022 after about 10 missions to bring up more parts and assemble them in orbit China has launched the first module of its new space station, a milestone in Beijing’s ambitious plan to place a permanent human presence in space. The Tianhe or “Heavenly Harmony” unmanned core module, containing living quarters for three crew, was launched
13h
MIT Technology Review
Some vaccinated people are still getting covid. Here’s why you shouldn’t worry.
 
Tens of millions of people in the United States have now been fully vaccinated against covid-19. These people are seeing friends, eating out, and—in rare cases—getting infected. But we shouldn’t panic: these kinds of “breakthrough infections” are entirely expected with any mass vaccine rollout. According to new figures released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 87 milli
5h
Futurism
Microsoft Scientist: Emotion-Reading AI Is Doomed To Fail
 
Affective AI Artificial Intelligence developers have an uncanny knack for reinventing bunk pseudoscience. Whether it’s resuscitating phrenology as facial recognition that can supposedly determine someone’s personality or claiming to universally detect emotions based on appearance, the AI field has a long history of claiming to do the impossible. The challenge is that building an algorithm to dete
2h
Phys.org
The Arctic's greening, but it won't save us
 
There was a hope that as more plants start to grow in Arctic and boreal latitudes as our warming climate makes those regions more hospitable for plants, those photosynthesizing plants would work to help sequester the atmospheric carbon dioxide that helped them flourish in the first place. But new research led by scientists at UC Irvine and Boston University, out in Nature Climate Change, suggests
3h
Biology News – Evolution, Cell theory, Gene theory, Microbiology, Biotechnology
Researchers determine which dogs more often establish eye contact with humans
 
Eye contact plays a fundamental role in human communication and relationships. However, humans also make eye contact with dog companions. According to new research by Hungarian ethologists, at least four independent traits affect dogs' ability to establish eye contact with humans. Short-headed, cooperative, young and playful dogs are the most likely to look into the human eye.
5h
Nautilus
What Makes Music Universal – Issue 99: Universality
 
My friend Robert Burton, a neurologist and author, wanted to share a song with me last year, and sent me a link to an NPR Tiny Desk Concert. “It’s wonderful to see truly new and inspiring music,” he wrote. I clicked open the link to a band who appeared to have journeyed from their mountain village in Russia to busk for tourists in the city square. Three women wore long white wedding dresses, thic
12h
Science | The Guardian
Alarm at rise in seizures of illegal veterinary drugs at UK borders
 
Hormones, steroids and antibiotics intended for use on dogs, horses, pigeons and farm animals intercepted by officials The government has been urged to open an investigation into illegal imports of veterinary drugs, after the number seized at the UK border increased dramatically last year. The Veterinary Medicines Directorate, the executive agency that regulates animal drugs, seized more than 40
12h
Science | The Guardian
Mantis shrimp larvae can pack a punch nine days after hatching
 
Impact is on par with adult punch and larvae can move fast enough to capture prey, researchers observed There’s a small, iridescent crustacean you might have heard of: its powerful punch can crack holes in aquarium glass and be deployed at the speed of a bullet. These aggressive critters – called mantis shrimp – can also be trigger happy, keen to pummel prey, predators and even their own kind if
13h
The Atlantic
The Trump Policy That Biden Is Extending
 
President Joe Biden’s first address to a joint session of Congress announced a great many breaks with the recent past. But in one very important way, Biden’s approach represents a depressing continuity with the defeated Trump administration: the turn from free trade to Buy American . All the investments in the American Jobs Plan will be guided by one principle: “Buy American.” American tax dollar
15h
Science | The Guardian
Nearly a quarter of British health workers wary of Covid-19 vaccine
 
Study of 11,584 staff found hesitancy was higher among BAME workers, as well as younger staff Coronavirus – latest updates See all our coronavirus coverage Up to a quarter of British healthcare workers have expressed hesitancy towards Covid-19 vaccines, the first comprehensive study of NHS and care staff suggests. Conspiracy beliefs, a paucity of black and ethnic minority participants in vaccine
1h
Retraction Watch
Mask study was “misleading” and misquotes citations, says Elsevier
 
Three days after we reported that Elsevier would be retracting a paper about COVID-19 and masks whose author claimed a false affiliation with Stanford, the publisher tells us that the “paper is misleading,” “misquotes and selectively cites published papers,” and that the data in one table is “unverified.” As we noted earlier this week: The … Continue reading
7h
MIT Technology Review
The J&J vaccine is back. Next comes trust.
 
Last week US regulators recommended resuming use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, after deciding that a side effect involving blood clots was too rare to justify continuing the brief suspension they had imposed: there were just 15 reported instances out of 8 million doses. But even though the pause lasted just 11 days, it raised new concerns about whether Americans will trust vaccinations. Recen
8h
ScienceDaily
Team builds better tool for assessing infant brain health
 
Researchers have created a new, open-access tool that allows doctors and scientists to evaluate infant brain health by assessing the concentration of various chemical markers, called metabolites, in the brain. The tool compiled data from 140 infants to determine normal ranges for these metabolites.
4h
MIT Technology Review
New business models, big opportunity: Financial services
 
By any measure, 2021 corporate planning isn’t business as usual. As the coronavirus pandemic grinds on, financial services institutions are coming out of crisis mode— addressing immediate cash management and operational challenges—with a renewed readiness for business growth. Fortunately, most businesses across industries are doing a good job of navigating the pandemic and its economic fallout. A
4h
Science | The Guardian
Long Covid: why psychological therapies may have limited benefits | Letter
 
Dr Dominic Salisbury says poor-quality evidence lies behind some treatments such as CBT In reviewing the possible role of psychology in treating long Covid ( Long Covid is very far from ‘all in the mind’ – but psychology can still help us treat it , 27 April), Dr Carmine Pariante misrepresents why many ME/chronic fatigue syndrome patients remain sceptical about psychological interventions such as
1h
MIT Technology Review
Computer vision in AI: The data needed to succeed
 
Developing the capacity to annotate massive volumes of data while maintaining quality is a function of the model development lifecycle that enterprises often underestimate. It’s resource intensive and requires specialized expertise. At the heart of any successful machine learning/artificial intelligence (ML/AI) initiative is a commitment to high-quality training data and a pathway to quality data
4h
Phys.org
eROSITA witnesses the awakening of massive black holes
 
Using the SRG/eROSITA all-sky survey data, scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics have found two previously quiescent galaxies that now show quasi-periodic eruptions. The nuclei of these galaxies light up in X-rays every few hours, reaching peak luminosities comparable to that of an entire galaxy. The origin of this pulsating behavior is unclear. A possible cause is a
5h
Science | The Guardian
Heavenly Harmony: China launches first module of new space station – video
 
China has successfully launched the first module of its new space station, part of an ambitious plan for Beijing to have a permanent human presence in space. The Tianhe, or Heavenly Harmony, unmanned core module, launched from Wenchang in China’s Hainan province, is expected to become fully operational in 2022, with about 10 more missions required to launch and assemble parts China launches first
11h
ScienceDaily
Expressing variety of emotions earns entrepreneurs funding
 
Despite perceptions that entrepreneurs should always be positive about their ventures, a study found that entrepreneurs whose facial expressions moved through a mix of happiness, anger and fear during funding pitches were more successful. Researchers analyzed nearly 500 pitch videos from the online crowdfunding site Kickstarter. Those who varied their emotional expressions had more success on meet
4h
Phys.org
Understanding the charge pumping and relaxation of the chiral anomaly in a Dirac semimetal
 
The 3D Dirac and Weyl semimetals can be characterized by a charge chirality with the parallel or antiparallel locking of electron spin in its momentum. Such materials can exhibit a chiral magnetic effect associated with the near conservation of chiral charge. In this work, Bing Cheng and a research team in physics and astronomy at the Johns Hopkins University and materials science at the Universit
5h
Phys.org
Hubble watches how a giant planet grows
 
Ever made a complete mess in your kitchen while baking? At moments it may look like flour is floating in the air, but once you've added plenty of water and formed your dough, the bread becomes more like a ball. A similar process is at work in a far-flung solar system known as PDS 70, except the flour and water are swapped for gas and dust. In the case of planet PDS 70b, gas and dust are slowly bei
2h
Phys.org
Flies grow bigger up north: Insect size a promising new proxy for palaeoclimate
 
Scientists use many proxies to reconstruct Earth's ancient climates. Pollen, diatoms, geochemical isotopes and fossils, for example, all contribute to piecing together past-climate puzzles. The ubiquity and wide geographic range of insects—like the nonbiting midge (Order Diptera, Family Chironomidae), a type of fly—have made them a useful tool to reconstruct palaeoclimates around the world during
5h
Phys.org
Geoengineering: 'Plan B' for the planet
 
Dismissed a decade ago as far-fetched and dangerous, schemes to tame the effects of global warming by engineering the climate have migrated from the margins of policy debates towards centre stage.
4h
ScienceDaily
How does the brain flexibly process complex information?
 
Human decision-making depends on the flexible processing of complex information, but how the brain may adapt processing to momentary task demands has remained unclear. Researchers have now outlined several crucial neural processes revealing that our brain networks may rapidly and flexibly shift from a rhythmic to a 'noisy' state when the need to process information increases.
3h
ScienceDaily
Global glacier retreat has accelerated
 
Scientists have shown that almost all the world's glaciers are becoming thinner and losing mass – and that these changes are picking up pace. The team's analysis is the most comprehensive and accurate of its kind to date.
3h
Phys.org
Targeting tumors with nanoworms
 
Drugs and vaccines circulate through the vascular system reacting according to their chemical and structural nature. In some cases, they are intended to diffuse. In other cases, like cancer treatments, the intended target is highly localized. The effectiveness of a medicine —and how much is needed and the side effects it causes —are a function of how well it can reach its target.
5h
Phys.org
Star-studded image of the Sextans B dwarf galaxy showcases astronomical curiosities near and far
 
This star-studded image shows the irregular dwarf galaxy Sextans B, which lies around 4.5 million light-years from Earth at the outermost edges of the Local Group. With a total mass of around 200 million times the mass of the Sun, Sextans B hosts an intriguing variety of astronomical objects. Some of the most conspicuous are the ruby-red clouds of atomic hydrogen visible near the center of this im
5h
Nautilus
Our Most Effective Weapon Is Imagination – Issue 99: Universality
 
In his Theaetetus , Plato remarks to Socrates: “This pathos is proper to the philosopher: It is the thaumazein . And philosophy has no other point of departure than this.” The word, which contains the root thauma , the same that appears in thaumaturgy, has often been translated as “wonder.” Philosophy is born out of amazement mixed with the curiosity that arises from facing something inexplicable
12h
Phys.org
Spacecraft magnetic valve used to fill drinks
 
A precision magnetic valve originally designed to help steer a lander down to a comet has found a surprise terrestrial use through ESA's Technology Transfer and Patent Office: adding flavors to beverages within a few thousandths of a second per each can or bottle.
4h
The Atlantic
The Jarring Reality Hong Kong’s Dissidents See From Jail
 
Earlier this month, I stood in line alongside an aide to Tam Tak-chi, both of us readying to meet with the imprisoned political activist at the Hong Kong prison complex where he is being held. As Tam’s assistant waited her turn for supplies she brought for Tam to be inspected, a woman approached from the nearby waiting area and the two exchanged excited hellos before hugging and chatting briefly.
12h
Science | The Guardian
The battle for free will in the face of determinism | Letters
 
Oliver Burkeman’s long read pitches philosophical readers against the more scientifically minded ones I read the online version of Oliver Burkeman’s long read that raises the question of whether free will is an illusion, and shortly afterwards read the same article again in print (The clockwork universe, Journal, 27 April). I was surprised when I realised that the brief reference to quantum physi
1h
ScienceDaily
Baby's first stool can help predict risk of developing allergies
 
Researchers have shown that the composition of a baby's first feces — a thick, dark green substance known as meconium — is associated with whether or not a child will develop allergies within their first year of life. By analyzing meconium samples from 100 infants, they show that the development of a healthy immune system and microbiota may start well before a child is born.
2h
Phys.org
New pumpkin toadlet species found in Brazil
 
A team of researchers from Universidade Estadual Paulista, Universidade Federal do Mato Grosso do Sul and Projeto Dacnis, São Francisco Xavier and Ubatuba has discovered a new species of pumpkin toadlet. In their paper published on the open-access site PLOS ONE, the group describes their study of pumpkin toadlets in Brazil, how they found the new species and what sets it apart from other pumpkin t
4h
Phys.org
Influence of extreme weather and geology on forced migrations in southern Taiwan
 
In August of 2009, typhoon Morakot passed over Taiwan, triggering over 22,000 landslides and adding another chapter to the forced migration of indigenous settlements in the mountainous areas. A new study recently published in the journal Tectonophysics has analyzed how extreme weather such as that caused by Morakot, when coupled with local geological conditions, can trigger landslides that have ca
5h
Phys.org
Researchers discover a new diet-dependent mechanism for regulating RNA maturation
 
Particularly sensitive to chemical modifications, messenger RNAs (mRNAs) are molecules responsible for transmitting the information encoded in our genome, allowing for the synthesis of proteins, which are necessary for the functioning of our cells. Two teams from the University of Geneva (UNIGE), Switzerland, in collaboration with the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), have foc
3h
Phys.org
Touched by light: Photoexcited stannyl anions are great for producing organotin compounds
 
Scientists at Tokyo Institute of Technology developed a new strategy for producing a wide range of organotin compounds, which are the building blocks of many organic synthesis methods. Their approach is based on the photoexcitation of stannyl anions, which alters their electronic state and increases their selectivity and reactivity to form useful compounds. This protocol will be helpful for the ef
5h
Phys.org
Creation without contact in the collisions of lead and gold nuclei
 
When heavy ions, accelerated to the speed of light, collide with each other in the depths of European or American accelerators, quark-gluon plasma is formed for fractions of a second, or even its 'cocktail' seasoned with other particles. According to scientists from the IFJ PAN, experimental data show that there are underestimated actors on the scene: photons. Their collisions lead to the emission
4h
Phys.org
Meteorites reveal magnetic record of protoplanet churn
 
If you stumble upon an unusual rock that could be a meteorite, do not place a magnet on it to see if it's magnetic—you'd end up erasing 4.5 billion years of magnetic history. Meteorites are remnants of our solar system's first protoplanets and, in some cases, retain a record of the magnetic fields they've experienced in the distant past.
4h
Phys.org
We could detect alien civilizations through their interstellar quantum communication
 
Since the mid-20th century, scientists have been looking for evidence of intelligent life beyond our solar system. For much of that time, scientists who are engaged in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) have relied on radio astronomy surveys to search for signs of technological activity (aka "technosignatures"). With 4,375 exoplanets confirmed (and counting!) even greater efforts
4h
Undark Magazine
America’s Forgotten History of Supervised Opioid Injection
 
A Philadelphia nonprofit is stirring controversy with its plan to open a facility that would allow people to inject heroin and other drugs under the watchful eye of a nurse. What critics fail to realize is that there is already a history of government support for such supervised injection sites.
8h
ExtremeTechExtreme – ExtremeTech
NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter Snaps Aerial Photo of Perseverance Rover
 
You’ve probably seen plenty of photos of the Curiosity Mars rover and its successor Perseverance. However, those photos were all taken here on Earth or by the rovers themselves on the red planet. For the first time, we now have an aerial shot of NASA’s robotic explorer, courtesy of the Ingenuity helicopter . Ingenuity rode to Mars attached to the Perseverance rover, but NASA deployed the drone a
7h
Phys.org
New optical hydrogen sensors eliminate risk of sparking
 
Hydrogen as a clean, renewable alternative to fossil fuels is part of a sustainable-energy future, and very much already here. However, lingering concerns about flammability have limited widespread use of hydrogen as a power source for electric vehicles. Previous advances have minimized the risk, but new research from the University of Georgia now puts that risk in the rearview mirror.
1h
Phys.org
An ocean 13 million years in the making
 
Spreading of the seafloor in the Red Sea basin is found to have begun along its entire length around 13 million years ago, making its underlying oceanic crust twice as old as previously believed.
4h
The Atlantic
The Atlantic Daily: Too Timid, Too Inconsistent, Too Late?
 
Every weekday evening, our editors guide you through the biggest stories of the day, help you discover new ideas, and surprise you with moments of delight. Subscribe to get this delivered to your inbox. Yesterday’s new, more relaxed CDC guidelines around mask wearing were greeted with both relief and confusion. The recommendations, which were accompanied by a series of baffling charts , are “simu
4h
Nautilus
How Surprising Connections Can Save the Ocean – Issue 99: Universality
 
Many marine biologists identify a gateway drug into their obsession, and for Heather Koldewey, it was the seahorse. Who can blame her? Seahorses seem to have evolved not entirely in the ocean, but also by way of a whimsical storybook, in which animal body parts are all mixed up. A fish with the head of a horse? A male that gets pregnant, gives birth, and is monogamous? Seahorses led her not only
12h
ScienceDaily
Corals that 'spit' algae
 
Microalgae of the dinoflagellate group have engaged in intracellular symbioses with corals since primeval times. Researchers recently discovered that such symbioses depend on the ability of the algae to suppress the immune system of their host cell and thereby avoid being 'spit out' again. The researchers also found indications that this cellular immune response is an evolutionarily ancient mechan
1h
Phys.org
'The line is getting fuzzier': Asteroids and comets may be more similar than we think
 
As anyone who has ever tried to clean a home knows, ridding yourself of dust is a Sisyphean effort. No surface stays free of it for long. It turns out that space is somewhat similar. Space is filled with interplanetary dust, which the Earth constantly collects as it plods around the sun—in orbit, in the atmosphere, and if it's large enough, on the ground as micrometeorites.
4h
Phys.org
Rapid evolution and host immunity drive the rise and fall of antibiotic resistance during acute infection
 
Antibiotic resistance poses a serious threat to human health. Resistant infections now cause more than 750,000 deaths per year and are predicted to increase to 10 million deaths per year by 2050. It is known that treating patients with antibiotics is associated with the emergence of resistance—and worse outcomes for patients. But how resistance emerges during infections remains poorly understood.
4h
Phys.org
Climate change-resilient infrastructure
 
When President Joe Biden addresses a joint session of Congress tonight a common thread will likely run through much of his narrative: resilience. Beyond touting his administration's accomplishments, Biden is expected to use the spotlight to pitch his $2.3 trillion American Jobs Plan, a wide-ranging infrastructure initiative that promises "every dollar" spent on rebuilding highways, airports, water
4h
Phys.org
Gut fungi: Unexpected source of novel chemicals
 
Anaerobic fungi, which die in the presence of oxygen, dwell in herbivore guts and help them digest their last leafy meal. In their evolutionary history, these fungi branched off early from aerobic fungi, which can breathe oxygen—just like we do. Oxygen is a rich source of energy, and because anaerobic fungi can't harness it, scientists long held that these fungi don't have the energy to make compl
4h
Biology News – Evolution, Cell theory, Gene theory, Microbiology, Biotechnology
Fish have been swallowing microplastics since the 1950s
 
Forget diamonds—plastic is forever. It takes decades, or even centuries, for plastic to break down, and nearly every piece of plastic ever made still exists in some form today. We've known for a while that big pieces of plastic can harm wildlife—think of seabirds stuck in plastic six-pack rings—but in more recent years, scientists have discovered microscopic bits of plastic in the water, soil, and
2min
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Multi-drug resistant infection about to evolve within cystic fibrosis patients
 
Scientists have been able to track how a multi-drug resistant organism is able to evolve and spread widely among cystic fibrosis patients – showing that it can evolve rapidly within an individual during chronic infection. The researchers say their findings highlight the need to treat patients with Mycobacterium abscessus infection immediately, counter to current medical practice.
25min
Futurity.org
Quest for error-free genomes begins with this rare bird
 
The ambitious Vertebrate Genomes Project may have some good news for two endangered species: the kakapo and the vaquita. The flightless kakapo of New Zealand is in trouble. The world’s heaviest parrot—representing one of the most ancestral branches of the parrot family tree—is nearly extinct, with barely 200 adults plodding the underbrush of four small islands. Whether the last of the kakapos hav
35min
The Atlantic
Scenes From Off-World
 
Robotic probes launched by NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA), and others are gathering information across the solar system. We currently have spacecraft in orbit around the Sun, (one on its way to Mercury,) Venus, Earth, the Moon, Mars, Jupiter, and two operational rovers plus a helicopter on the surface of Mars. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station are still performing experimen
35min
Science Magazine
Widespread reforestation before European influence on Amazonia
 
An estimated 90 to 95% of Indigenous people in Amazonia died after European contact. This population collapse is postulated to have caused decreases in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations at around 1610 CE, as a result of a wave of land abandonment in the wake of disease, slavery, and warfare, whereby the attendant reversion to forest substantially increased terrestrial carbon sequestration
45min
Science Magazine
The human dimension of biodiversity changes on islands
 
Islands are among the last regions on Earth settled and transformed by human activities, and they provide replicated model systems for analysis of how people affect ecological functions. By analyzing 27 representative fossil pollen sequences encompassing the past 5000 years from islands globally, we quantified the rates of vegetation compositional change before and after human arrival. After huma
45min
Science Magazine
Equids engineer desert water availability
 
Megafauna play important roles in the biosphere, yet little is known about how they shape dryland ecosystems. We report on an overlooked form of ecosystem engineering by donkeys and horses. In the deserts of North America, digging of ≤2-meter wells to groundwater by feral equids increased the density of water features, reduced distances between waters, and, at times, provided the only water prese
45min
Science Magazine
Electric field control of natural optical activity in a multiferroic helimagnet
 
Controlling the chiral degree of freedom in matter has long been an important issue for many fields of science. The spin-spiral order, which exhibits a strong magnetoelectric coupling, gives rise to chirality irrespective of the atomic arrangement of matter. Here, we report the resonantly enhanced natural optical activity on the electrically active magnetic excitation, that is, electromagnon, in
45min
Science Magazine
Atomic-scale ion transistor with ultrahigh diffusivity
 
Biological ion channels rapidly and selectively gate ion transport through atomic-scale filters to maintain vital life functions. We report an atomic-scale ion transistor exhibiting ultrafast and highly selective ion transport controlled by electrical gating in graphene channels around 3 angstroms in height, made from a single flake of reduced graphene oxide. The ion diffusion coefficient reaches
45min
Science Magazine
A risk-based approach for managing hydraulic fracturing-induced seismicity
 
Risks from induced earthquakes are a growing concern that needs effective management. For hydraulic fracturing of the Eagle Ford shale in southern Texas, we developed a risk-informed strategy for choosing red-light thresholds that require immediate well shut-in. We used a combination of datasets to simulate spatially heterogeneous nuisance and damage impacts. Simulated impacts are greater in the
45min
Science Magazine
Parity-preserving and magnetic field-resilient superconductivity in InSb nanowires with Sn shells
 
Improving materials used to make qubits is crucial to further progress in quantum information processing. Of particular interest are semiconductor-superconductor heterostructures that are expected to form the basis of topological quantum computing. We grew semiconductor indium antimonide nanowires that were coated with shells of tin of uniform thickness. No interdiffusion was observed at the inte
45min
Science Magazine
A widespread pathway for substitution of adenine by diaminopurine in phage genomes
 
DNA modifications vary in form and function but generally do not alter Watson-Crick base pairing. Diaminopurine (Z) is an exception because it completely replaces adenine and forms three hydrogen bonds with thymine in cyanophage S-2L genomic DNA. However, the biosynthesis, prevalence, and importance of Z genomes remain unexplored. Here, we report a multienzyme system that supports Z-genome synthe
45min
Science Magazine
A third purine biosynthetic pathway encoded by aminoadenine-based viral DNA genomes
 
Cells have two purine pathways that synthesize adenine and guanine ribonucleotides from phosphoribose via inosylate. A chemical hybrid between adenine and guanine, 2-aminoadenine (Z), replaces adenine in the DNA of the cyanobacterial virus S-2L. We show that S-2L and Vibrio phage PhiVC8 encode a third purine pathway catalyzed by PurZ, a distant paralog of succinoadenylate synthase (PurA), the enz
45min
Science Magazine
Noncanonical DNA polymerization by aminoadenine-based siphoviruses
 
Bacteriophage genomes harbor the broadest chemical diversity of nucleobases across all life forms. Certain DNA viruses that infect hosts as diverse as cyanobacteria, proteobacteria, and actinobacteria exhibit wholesale substitution of aminoadenine for adenine, thereby forming three hydrogen bonds with thymine and violating Watson-Crick pairing rules. Aminoadenine-encoded DNA polymerases, homologo
45min
Science Magazine
Structural impact on SARS-CoV-2 spike protein by D614G substitution
 
Substitution for aspartic acid (D) by glycine (G) at position 614 in the spike (S) protein of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) appears to facilitate rapid viral spread. The G614 strain and its recent variants are now the dominant circulating forms. Here, we report cryo–electron microscopy structures of a full-length G614 S trimer, which adopts three distinct prefusion
45min
Science Magazine
Toxin-antitoxin RNA pairs safeguard CRISPR-Cas systems
 
CRISPR-Cas systems provide RNA-guided adaptive immunity in prokaryotes. We report that the multisubunit CRISPR effector Cascade transcriptionally regulates a toxin-antitoxin RNA pair, CreTA. CreT (Cascade-repressed toxin) is a bacteriostatic RNA that sequesters the rare arginine tRNA UCU (transfer RNA with anticodon UCU). CreA is a CRISPR RNA–resembling antitoxin RNA, which requires Cas6 for matu
45min
Science Magazine
Structural insights into preinitiation complex assembly on core promoters
 
Transcription factor IID (TFIID) recognizes core promoters and supports preinitiation complex (PIC) assembly for RNA polymerase II (Pol II)–mediated eukaryotic transcription. We determined the structures of human TFIID–based PIC in three stepwise assembly states and revealed two-track PIC assembly: stepwise promoter deposition to Pol II and extensive modular reorganization on track I (on TATA–TFI
45min
Science Magazine
Stepwise pathogenic evolution of Mycobacterium abscessus
 
Although almost all mycobacterial species are saprophytic environmental organisms, a few, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis , have evolved to cause transmissible human infection. By analyzing the recent emergence and spread of the environmental organism M. abscessus through the global cystic fibrosis population, we have defined key, generalizable steps involved in the pathogenic evolution of myc
45min
Science Magazine
Chronoculture, harnessing the circadian clock to improve crop yield and sustainability
 
Human health is dependent on a plentiful and nutritious supply of food, primarily derived from crop plants. Rhythmic supply of light as a result of the day and night cycle led to the evolution of circadian clocks that modulate most plant physiology, photosynthesis, metabolism, and development. To regulate crop traits and adaptation, breeders have indirectly selected for variation at circadian gen
45min
Science Magazine
Modulation of MHC-E transport by viral decoy ligands is required for RhCMV/SIV vaccine efficacy
 
Strain 68-1 rhesus cytomegalovirus (RhCMV) vectors expressing simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) antigens elicit CD8 + T cells recognizing epitopes presented by major histocompatibility complex II (MHC-II) and MHC-E but not MHC-Ia. These immune responses mediate replication arrest of SIV in 50 to 60% of monkeys. We show that the peptide VMAPRTLLL (VL9) embedded within the RhCMV protein Rh67 prom
45min
Phys.org
Lightning and subvisible discharges produce molecules that clean the atmosphere
 
Lightning bolts break apart nitrogen and oxygen molecules in the atmosphere and create reactive chemicals that affect greenhouse gases. Now, a team of atmospheric chemists and lightning scientists have found that lightning bolts and, surprisingly, subvisible discharges that cannot be seen by cameras or the naked eye produce extreme amounts of the hydroxyl radical—OH—and hydroperoxyl radical—HO2.
46min
Phys.org
Study reveals extent of human impact on the world's plant-life
 
Research has shed new light on the impact of humans on Earth's biodiversity. The findings suggest that the rate of change in an ecosystem's plant-life increases significantly during the years following human settlement, with the most dramatic changes occurring in locations settled in the last 1500 years.
46min
Phys.org
Study shows how meningitis-causing bacteria may sense fever to avoid immune killing
 
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have discovered a mechanism through which meningitis-causing bacteria can evade the immune system. In laboratory tests, they found that Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus influenzae respond to increasing temperatures by producing safeguards that keep them from getting killed. This may prime their defenses against our immune system and increase t
46min
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Baby mantis shrimp don't pull their punches
 
Tiny larvae of the Philippine mantis shrimp (Gonodactylaceus falcatus) display the ultra-fast movements for which these animals are known, even when they are smaller than a short grain of rice. Their ultra-fast punching appendages measure less than 1 mm, and accelerate 100 times faster than a Formula One race car. However, they violate a rule of thumb that smaller is faster; the adults punch even
46min
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
New Geology articles published online ahead of print in April
 
Thirty-one new articles were published online ahead of print for Geology in April. Topics include shocked zircon from the Chicxulub impact crater; the Holocene Sonoran Desert; the architecture of the Congo Basin; the southern Death Valley fault; missing water from the Qiangtang Basin; sulfide inclusions in diamonds; how Himalayan collision stems from subduction; ghost-dune hollows; and the history
46min
Futurity.org
Almost all the world’s glaciers are shrinking—and fast
 
A new study shows just how fast glaciers have lost thickness and mass over the past two decades. Glaciers are a sensitive indicator of climate change—and one that can be easily observed. Regardless of altitude or latitude, glaciers have been melting at a high rate since the mid-​20th century. Until now, however, the full extent of ice loss has only been partially measured and understood. The new
1h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Two studies demonstrate new PCI approaches offer benefits to patients and physicians
 
Two studies related to percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) evaluating the use of risk-avoidance strategies and robotic-assisted technology, respectively, are being presented as late-breaking clinical science at SCAI 2021 Scientific Sessions. An analysis of strategically avoiding high-risk PCI cases indicates systematic risk-avoidance does not improve, and may worsen, the quality of hospital P
1h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Study reveals need for equitable access of minimally invasive heart procedure
 
An analysis of growth patterns in transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) programs across United States hospitals is being presented as late-breaking clinical science at the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography& Interventions (SCAI) 2021 Scientific Sessions. The findings indicate that TAVR hospital programs are predominately located in metropolitan areas serving patients with higher socioe
1h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Study: ISCHEMIA trial represents small fraction of patients undergoing intervention
 
Results from a new study find a broad range of patients who typically undergo revascularization for stable ischemic heart disease (SIHD) in the U.S. did not meet enrollment criteria for the ISCHEMIA trial. The data, which was presented today as late-breaking clinical science at the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions (SCAI) 2021 Scientific Sessions, demonstrates a minority of SI
1h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Lateral flow testing should not be used as a green light for activities
 
The United Kingdom government plans to implement mass scale population testing for SARS-CoV-2 infection using Lateral Flow Devices (LFDs), yet the devices' sensitivity is unknown. A study published in the open access journal PLOS Biology by Alan McNally at University of Birmingham, UK, and colleagues suggests while LFDs are highly effective in identifying SARS-CoV-2 in individuals with high quanti
1h
The Atlantic
The Fleeting Promise of a Peaceful Ethiopia
 
The morning after the 2020 presidential election, as ballots were still being counted in several battleground states and then-President Donald Trump drummed up dangerous conspiracy theories about the impending results, many Ethiopians in the U.S. woke up to distressing political news from back home, too. The Ethiopian prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, had announced a military offensive in Tigray, the n
1h
Phys.org
Six out of every 10 teachers believe that changing the design of the classroom is key to improving learning
 
The image of rows of chairs and desks facing a teacher at a blackboard has been a reality for decades. However, research reveals that this way of organizing the classroom furniture in schools is not the best way for favoring the learning process. Especially if the needs of 21st-century students are taken into account, who, according to the OECD, require a social environment that fosters autonomy,
1h
Phys.org
Implementing Industry 4.0 in SMEs by focusing on the customer
 
Small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises (SMEs) face many obstacles and difficulties (economic, technical, cultural, etc.) when it comes to implementing Industry 4.0. "These are transition processes that are economically costly, and in which SMEs often come up against technical and cultural problems, as they are not cognizant of how to make this transition, or of the benefits their compani
1h
Phys.org
An ancient immune response regulates the development of beneficial symbioses in corals
 
Microalgae of the dinoflagellate group are known for their ability to survive in other animal cells. These tiny single-cell organisms have engaged in mutually beneficial relationships with corals since primeval times. By passing on critical nutrients to their hosts, dinoflagellates allow corals to thrive even in barren areas. A research team from the Centre for Organismal Studies (COS) of Heidelbe
1h
Phys.org
Finding the optimal way to repay student debt
 
The burden of student loans in the U.S. continues to grow unabatedly, currently accounting for a total of $1.7 trillion in household debt among nearly 45 million borrowers. "The introduction of income-based repayment over the past decade has made student loans rather complicated products," Paolo Guasoni of Dublin City University said. As borrowers navigate this complex process, they face long-term
1h
Phys.org
Scientists propose improvements to precision crop irrigation
 
With threats of water scarcity complicating the need to feed a growing global population, it is more important than ever to get crop irrigation right. Overwatering can deplete local water supplies and lead to polluted runoff, while underwatering can lead to sub-optimal crop performance. Yet few farmers use science-based tools to help them decide when and how much to water their crops.
2h
Phys.org
Data from China's Fengyun meteorological satellites available to global Earth system science applications
 
Many meteorological satellite networks are constantly scanning Earth, providing vital research data and real-time, life-saving weather information. Since China began its initial development in 1970, the Fengyun (FY) series of meteorological satellites have advanced considerably throughout more than 50 years. While FY satellites primarily focus on the atmosphere, they are capable of observing compl
2h
ScienceDaily
Molecular biologists travel back in time 3 billion years
 
A research group has succeeded in studying 'translation factors' – important components of a cell's protein synthesis machinery – that are several billion years old. By studying these ancient 'resurrected' factors, the researchers were able to establish that they had much broader specificities than their present-day, more specialized counterparts.
2h
Phys.org
Single-cell CRISPR technology deciphers role of chromatin accessibility in cancer
 
In a new resource for the scientific community, published today in Nature Biotechnology, researchers in the lab of Neville Sanjana, Ph.D., at the New York Genome Center (NYGC) and New York University (NYU) developed CRISPR-sciATAC, a novel integrative genetic screening platform that jointly captures CRISPR gene perturbations and single-cell chromatin accessibility genome-wide. With this technology
2h
Vetenskap | SVT Nyheter
Jordens glaciärer smälter rekordsnabbt
 
Forskare har kartlagt nästan alla jordens glaciärer och hur de förändrats från början av 2000-talet fram till idag. Resultatet visar att takten som glaciärerna smälter i har fördubblats. Spela videon ovan för att se hur man observerar glaciärer.
2h
Big Think
Reductionism vs. emergence: Are you “nothing but” your atoms?
 
Reductionism is the view that everything true about the world can be explained by atoms and their interactions. Emergence claims that reductionism is wrong, and the world can evolve new stuff and new laws that are not predictable from "nothing but" atoms. Which perspective on science is correct has huge implications, not only for ourselves but for everything from philosophy to economics to politi
2h
Sciencemag
Two Steps to Activation
 
Engineering immune system cells to do what we’d like them to do is one of the big areas of medical research these days, and this new paper could be a real advance in the area. A team out of UCSF with several collaborators reports on a new way around one of the big problems in this area – these various immune system cells are great and powerful, but they can be too great and powerful if you can’t
2h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
NSU researcher part of a flagship study on vertebrate genomes
 
Today, the G10K sponsored Vertebrate Genomes Project (VGP) announces their flagship study and associated publications focused on genome assembly quality and standardization for the field of genomics. This study includes 16 diploid high-quality, near error-free, and near complete vertebrate reference genome assemblies for species across all taxa with backbones (i.e., mammals, amphibians, birds, rep
2h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Suppressing the impact of COVID-19 using controlled testing and isolation
 
A feedback methodology can test individuals with a high probability of being infected and identify them before symptoms appear. This probability acts as an input to selecting additional individuals for testing. By reducing the lapse in time between contact with an infected person and a COVID-19 test, it has been demonstrated that, when combined with contact tracing, this method may reduce the rate
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Corals that "spit" algae
 
Microalgae of the dinoflagellate group have engaged in intracellular symbioses with corals since primeval times. Researchers from the Centre for Organismal Studies of Heidelberg University recently discovered that such symbioses depend on the ability of the algae to suppress the immune system of their host cell and thereby avoid being "spit out" again. The researchers also found indications that t
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Decrease in prostate cancer diagnoses due to pandemic
 
During the first wave of the corona pandemic, 36 per cent fewer men were diagnosed with prostate cancer in Sweden than in previous years. On the other hand, the number of patients receiving curative treatment for prostate cancer was unaffected. This is shown by a new register study led by Uppsala University researchers, whose results are published in the Scandinavian Journal of Urology.
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Smart cell therapies for solid cancers 'ready to move towards clinical trials'
 
Immunotherapies that fight cancer have been a life-saving advancement for many patients, but the approach only works on a few types of malignancies, leaving few treatment options for most cancer patients with solid tumors. Now, in two related papers published April 28, 2021 in Science Translational Medicine, researchers at UCSF have demonstrated how to engineer smart immune cells that are effectiv
3h
Futurity.org
Did icy clouds give Mars lakes and rivers?
 
At some point in its early history, Mars could have had a thin layer of icy, high-altitude clouds that caused a greenhouse effect, new research suggests. The theory helps explain one of the great puzzles of modern space science that the view from NASA’s Perseverance, which just landed on Mars, neatly sums up: Today Mars is a desert planet, and yet the rover is sitting right next to an ancient riv
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Low risk of infection in babies born to mothers with COVID-19
 
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet and the Public Health Agency of Sweden have studied newborn babies whose mothers tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 during pregnancy or childbirth. The results show that although babies born of test-positive mothers are more likely to be born early, extremely few were infected with COVID-19. The study, which is published in the esteemed journal JAMA, supports the S
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Illinois, Nebraska scientists propose improvements to precision crop irrigation
 
With threats of water scarcity complicating the need to feed a growing global population, it is more important than ever to get crop irrigation right. Overwatering can deplete local water supplies and lead to polluted runoff, while underwatering can lead to sub-optimal crop performance. Yet few farmers use science-based tools to help them decide when and how much to water their crops.
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
COVID-19 stress and remote schools worsened youth mental health
 
A survey of over 32,000 caregivers of youth in Chicago Public Schools found that around a quarter of children and adolescents were described as stressed, anxious, angry or agitated after pandemic-related school closures and the switch to remote learning. Around a third of youth were described by caregivers as lonely and only one-third were described as having positive social and peer relationships
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
How diet controls RNA maturation
 
Particularly sensitive to chemical modifications, mRNAs are molecules responsible for transmitting the information encoded in our genome, allowing for the synthesis of proteins. Two teams (UNIGE) have focused on a specific type of chemical modification – called methylation – of mRNA molecules in the small worm Caenorhabditis elegans. They found that methylation on a particular sequence of an mRNA
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
New atlas of genetic function maps complexities of immune system and immune diseases
 
Researchers in Japan have compiled a first-of-its-kind genetic database for autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases. This resource will allow experts to more deeply understand how immune disorders develop and plan future drug discovery projects. Scientists also hope this atlas of immune-related genome data may eventually be applied to investigations of infectious diseases like COVID-19.
3h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Baby's first poop can help predict risk of developing allergies
 
A team of University of British Columbia researchers has shown that the composition of a baby's first poop–a thick, dark green substance known as meconium–is associated with whether or not a child will develop allergies within their first year of life. By analyzing meconium samples from 100 infants, they show that the development of a healthy immune system and microbiota may start well before a
3h
Phys.org
How reef-building corals got their bones
 
Coral reefs provide shelter, sustenance and stability to a range of organisms, but these vital ecosystems would not exist if not for the skeletal structure created by stony corals. Now, KAUST scientists together with an international team have revealed the underlying genetic story of how corals evolved from soft-bodied organisms to build the myriad calcified structures we see today.
3h
Big Think
Blame evolution for human disease
 
A new essay suggests that evolution both dooms us to certain diseases and provides ways to help improve medical care. Technology like polygenic risk scores already allow us to use genetics to predict and improve health outcomes. Future treatment options may begin with a review of your genetics. For every great evolutionary innovation, there is a new way for things to go wrong. Multicellularity al
3h
Nature
Can Cuba beat COVID with its homegrown vaccines?
 
Nature, Published online: 29 April 2021; doi:10.1038/d41586-021-01126-4 Nature talks to vaccine designer Vicente Vérez Bencomo about the country’s efforts to produce its own coronavirus jabs — and set a record.
3h
Forskning & Framsteg – För dig som är nyfiken på allvar
Forskare hittar fyra varianter av alzheimer
 
Ungefär 100 000 personer har Alzheimers sjukdom i Sverige, i världen är cirka 20 miljoner människor drabbade. Sjukdomen beror på att skadliga proteiner lagras i hjärnan. F&F har tidigare skrivit om hur spridningen av det giftiga proteinet tau kan kopplas till sjukdomen. Nu har Lundaforskarna, tillsammans med forskare vid bland annat McGill University i Kanada, mer i detalj undersökt spridningen av
3h
Scientific American (uploads) on YouTube
Vaccines, Decoded
 
Vaccines are medicines that train the body to defend itself against future disease, and they have been saving human lives for hundreds of years. Vaccines are medicines that train the body to defend itself against future disease. From: Scientific American
4h
Phys.org
Unlocking herbaria biodiversity using a QR code sampling-to-sequencing workflow
 
Within the past decade, next-generation sequencing technologies have revolutionized the way in which genetic data are generated and analyzed. In the field of phylogenetics, this has meant that researchers are rapidly reconstructing the tree of life, a goal that biologists have been working toward since Darwin sketched the first phylogeny in his notebook in 1837.
4h
TED Talks Daily (SD video)
What frogs in hot water can teach us about thinking again | Adam Grant
 
Why are humans so slow to react to looming crises, like a forewarned pandemic or a warming planet? It's because we're reluctant to rethink, say organizational psychologist Adam Grant. From a near-disastrous hike on Panama's highest mountain to courageously joining his high school's diving team, Grant borrows examples from his own life to illustrate how tunnel vision around our goals, habits and id
4h
forskning.se
Därför strejkade arbetarna när Sverige fick el
 
Elektrifieringen ledde till fler strejker, men det var inte de som hotades av den nya tekniken som gick ut i konflikt. I stället rörde det sig om arbetargrupper som fått en starkare förhandlingsposition – tack vare teknikutvecklingen. Arbetsmarknadens villkor påverkas av ny teknik. I dag handlar diskussionen om automatiseringens effekter på arbetsmarknaden, om jobben försvinner när datorerna tar
4h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
International task force determines current Parkinson's disease subtyping may not fit all patients
 
Amsterdam, April 29, 2021 – The clinical presentation and underlying biology of Parkinson's disease (PD) varies significantly, but attempts to cluster cases into a limited number of subtypes have questionable applicability and relevance, reports the international Task Force for PD Subtypes in the Journal of Parkinson's Disease. Their systematic review of studies reporting a subtyping system for th
4h
Phys.org
User-friendly methods for anticipatory evaluation of water quality in reservoirs
 
Reservoirs are indispensable for global drinking water supply. To protect them from silting, overfertilization, and pollution, anticipating monitoring of water quality is required. A Brazilian-German consortium led by Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) has now developed user-friendly measurement and monitoring methods that are particularly suited for regions with limited data availability. Am
4h
Phys.org
Opportunities and risks of technical innovations on angling and the conservation of fish populations
 
Technical progress has also found its way into the nature experience of recreational angling. Device innovations such as echo sounders, underwater cameras or drones make it easier to track and catch fish. An international team with Professor Robert Arlinghaus from the Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB) and the Humboldt Universität zu Berlin has summarized in a study
4h
Phys.org
Using AI to gauge the emotional state of cows and pigs
 
An animal scientist with Wageningen University & Research in the Netherlands has created an artificial-intelligence-based application that can gauge the emotional state of farm animals based on photographs taken with a smartphone. In his paper uploaded to the bioRxiv preprint server, Suresh Neethirajan describes his app and how well it worked when tested.
4h
Phys.org
Mantis shrimp larvae punch just like mom and dad
 
Adult mantis shrimp pack an explosive punch that can split water, but no crustacean emerges fully formed. Minute larvae can undergo six or seven transformations before emerging as fully developed adults and limbs and maneuvers develop over time. So, when do mantis shrimp larvae acquire the ability to pulverize their dinner and how powerful are the punches that these mini crustaceans pack? "We knew
4h
Phys.org
Expanding the phylogenetic diversity of Asgard archaea
 
A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in China and one in the U.S. has found evidence of multiple novel Asgard MAGs that expands the phylogenetic diversity of Asgard. In their paper published in the journal Nature, the group describes their analysis of multiple complete or mostly complete genomes of Asgard archaea.
4h
NeuroLogica Blog
Evolution of Multicellularity
 
When studying the history of life evolutionary biologists and paleontologists have no choice but to look where the light is good. There are fossil windows into specific times and places in the past, and through these we glimpse a moment in biological history. We string these moments together to map out the past, but we know there are a lot of missing pieces. One relatively dark passage in the his
4h
Discovery (uploads) on YouTube
Big Chief vs. Scott Taylor | Street Outlaws: America's List
 
Stream Full Episodes of Street Outlaws: America's List: discovery+ ► https://www.discoveryplus.com/show/street-outlaws-americas-list Discovery ► https://go.discovery.com/tv-shows/street-outlaws-americas-list/ Subscribe to Discovery: http://bit.ly/SubscribeDiscovery Follow Us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@Discovery We're on Instagram! https://instagram.com/Discovery Join Us on Facebook: https
4h
Singularity Hub
Researchers Scoured Billions of Links and Found the Internet Is Both Expanding and Shrinking
 
The online world is continuously expanding—always aggregating more services, more users, and more activity. Last year, the number of websites registered on the “.com” domain surpassed 150,000,000 . However, more than a quarter of a century since its first commercial use, the growth of the online world is now slowing down in some key categories. We conducted a multi-year research project analyzing
4h
forskning.se
Vårkollen – rapportera vårtecken i Valborg
 
Efter en rejäl vinter kom våren i gång ordentligt i södra Sverige. Flera bakslag i vädret gjorde sen läget ovanligt oklart. Svenska Botaniska Föreningen vill veta hur växterna reagerat på denna ryckiga vår, och uppmanar alla att kolla upp en handfull vårtecken under Valborgshelgen. Vårkollen är ett medborgarforskningsprojekt där frivilliga och professionella forskare samarbetar. Det genomfördes f
4h
Biology News – Evolution, Cell theory, Gene theory, Microbiology, Biotechnology
DNA-inspired 'supercoiling' fibers could make powerful artificial muscles for robots
 
The double helix of DNA is one of the most iconic symbols in science. By imitating the structure of this complex genetic molecule we have found a way to make artificial muscle fibers far more powerful than those found in nature, with potential applications in many kinds of miniature machinery such as prosthetic hands and dextrous robotic devices.
4h
Phys.org
Helping robots analyze their surroundings
 
Physicists from the University of Luxembourg have recently presented a new material which can become a key component of a new infrastructure designed to help robots understand their surroundings. The team shows that the material can be used to introduce tailor-made graphical information in the environment, which is invisible to humans but easily readable by robots. The new material and the innovat
4h
Phys.org
Scientists grow de novo reconstructive flaps for bone and soft tissue repair
 
Substantial tissue loss can be the result from different causes, including cancer, injury, and infection. Reconstructive surgery attempts to mitigate the damage. Currently, the clinical "gold standard" in the field of reconstructive surgery is the autograft, which entails harvesting tissue from one part of the patient's body, and the transferring it to the damaged site. For example, to reconstruct
4h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
New algorithm for the diagnostics of dementia
 
A top-level international research team including researchers from the University of Eastern Finland has developed a new algorithm for the diagnostics of dementia. The algorithm is based on blood and cerebrospinal fluid biomarker measurements. These biomarkers can be used to aid setting of an exact diagnosis already in the early phases of dementia.
5h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Mantis shrimp larvae punch just like Ma and Pa
 
Mantis shrimp pack one of the most powerful punches on the planet, splitting water with their explosive blows, but when do their larvae begin letting fly with their ballistic appendages and how fast? The 4.2mm long larvae begin flicking their limbs as early as 9 days after hatching, around when they begin feeding, letting lose accelerations of 22 million deg/s2 and moving at ~0.385m/s, 5-10 times
5h
Futurity.org
High heat disarms SARS-CoV-2 in less than a second
 
A new experimental system shows exposure of SARS-CoV-2 to a very high temperature, even if applied for less than a second, can be sufficient to neutralize the virus so that it can no longer infect another human host. Applying heat to neutralize COVID-19 has been demonstrated before, but in previous studies researchers applied temperatures from one to 20 minutes. This length of time is not a pract
5h
Futurity.org
Your brain responds to happy screams faster than fearful ones
 
Your brain perceives and processes non-alarming screams more efficiently than their alarming counterparts, researchers report. Screaming can save lives. Non-human primates and other mammalian species frequently use scream-like calls when embroiled in social conflicts or to signal the presence of predators and other threats. While humans also scream to signal danger or communicate aggression, they
5h
Big Think
Targeting microbiome can help treat malnourished children
 
30 million children worldwide suffer from moderate acute malnutrition. Lifelong problems from undernourishment include increased risks of diabetes and heart problems. New research shows that targeting the microbiome could help malnourished children grow up healthy. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, an estimated 815 million people — nearly 11 percent of the global
5h
Ingeniøren
Deepfake-satellitbilleder imponerer geodataeksperter
 
PLUS. Forskere viser, hvor let det er at manipulere med satellitbilleder med nye AI-værktøjer, som vi ellers bedst kender fra ansigtsmanipulation. Danmarks geografi er dog så gennemfotograferet, at det bliver svært at manipulere herhjemme.
6h
Futurity.org
‘Location spoofing’ creates deepfake satellite images
 
Research indicates that “deepfake geography,” or realistic but fake images of real places, could become a growing problem. For example, a fire in Central Park seems to appear as a smoke plume and a line of flames in a satellite image. In another, colorful lights on Diwali night in India, seen from space, seem to show widespread fireworks activity. Both images exemplify what the new study calls “l
6h
Futurity.org
Should hormones get universal names across species?
 
New research shows that the human hormone oxytocin is one and the same gene across all major vertebrate lineages. The similarities are so striking that scientists advocate for cleaning up the jargon by applying new standard nomenclature for the hormones known as oxytocin and vasopressin in humans, as well as their respective receptors. Constantina Theofanopoulou, coauthor of the study in Nature ,
6h
Futurism
Lemonade hopes to disrupt the pet insurance industry with pet-first policies
 
If you’ve been lucky enough to spend the pandemic with a furry family member, you know just how much they keep you sane and smiling. There’s truly nothing better than an animal companion to help you weather the terrible storm that was 2020. So why not show your cat or dog just how much you care about their companionship by treating them to comprehensive pet insurance? It may sound odd, but it may
8h
Dagens Medicin
Shhhh, der forskes
 
Selv om hovedpine er en af verdens mest almindelige og samfundsbelastende sygdomme, er området genstand for relativt lidt forskningsmæssig opmærksomhed. Men en dedikeret forskerflok i Danmark har taget opgaven på sig og har placeret sig solidt i den globale elite.
8h
Dagens Medicin
Kultur gør os større som mennesker
 
KULTURKANYLEN Læge og afgående koncerndirektør for Region Sjælland Leif Panduro Jensen er aldeles betaget af livet under vand, og hvis han kunne vælge ét kirurgisk indgreb, ville han have lavet gæller. På landjorden går han efter kulturelle oplevelser, der perspektiverer livet som menneske
8h
Dagens Medicin
Sådan skaber man et globalt tiptop forskerteam
 
Find et smalt forskningsfelt, få et hurtigt gennembrud og gerne med medvind fra den teknologiske udvikling, plej din indre politiker, ansæt de rigtige folk, knokl i årevis, slug et hav af skuffelser, og håb så på en smule held. Sådan lyder opskriften på international succes, hvis man spørger professor Jes Olesen, grundlæggeren af Dansk Hovedpinecenter.
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Dagens Medicin
Derfor er Dansk Hovedpinecenter i verdensklasse
 
På et overset område har centrets forskere skabt konkrete resultater og skubbet selve forskningen fremad på globalt plan. Sådan lyder vurderingen fra Niels-Henrik von Holstein-Rathlou, der har ansvaret for Novo Nordisk Fondens bevillinger til sundhedsvidenskabelig forskning.
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Dagens Medicin
Fra Kaukasus til København
 
Historien om, hvordan migræneforsker Messoud Ashina havnede i Danmark, er lige dele H. C. Andersen og spændingsroman tilsat en god portion storpolitik.
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forskning.se
När får vi medicin mot coronavirus?
 
Ett bra antiviralt medel kan stoppa en pandemi långt innan ett vaccin utvecklats, menar virusforskarna. Tusentals ämnen testas nu på virus från den första svenska coronapatienten – för att hitta medicin mot corona. Kristina Nyström, medicinsk mikrobiolog vid Sahlgrenska akademin, är i ständig närkontakt med coronavirus. Sedan april 2020 går hon regelbundet in i sitt labb via en luftsluss, med sky
9h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Shorter headed dogs, visually cooperative breeds, younger and playful dogs form eye contact faster
 
Eye contact plays a fundamental role in human communication and relationships. When we look into each other's eyes, we show that we are paying attention to each other. However, we do not only look at each other but also at our four-legged companions. According to new research by Hungarian ethologists, at least four independent traits affect dogs' ability to establish eye contact with humans. Short
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Nature Communications – current – nature.com science feeds
Integrative reconstruction of cancer genome karyotypes using InfoGenomeR
 
Nature Communications, Published online: 29 April 2021; doi:10.1038/s41467-021-22671-6 Karyotyping of cancer genomes at the base-level is technically challenging. Here, the authors introduce InfoGenomeR, an algorithm that can infer cancer genome karyotypes from whole-genome sequencing data, and test their model on breast, ovarian and brain cancer samples; and identify private and shared mutations
9h
Nature Communications – current – nature.com science feeds
Etiological, epidemiological, and clinical features of acute diarrhea in China
 
Nature Communications, Published online: 29 April 2021; doi:10.1038/s41467-021-22551-z Diarrhoea is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in China. Here, the authors present results from a large sentinel surveillance scheme from 217 hospitals in all 31 provinces in mainland China, including ~150,000 patients with acute diarrhoea and covering years 2009-2018.
9h
Nature Communications – current – nature.com science feeds
Scalable photonic-based nulling interferometry with the dispersed multi-baseline GLINT instrument
 
Nature Communications, Published online: 29 April 2021; doi:10.1038/s41467-021-22769-x Nulling interferometry is a technique combining lights from different telescopes or apertures to observe weak sources nearby bright ones. The authors report the first nulling interferometer implemented in a photonic chip doing spectrally dispersed nulling on several baselines, simultaneously.
9h
Nature Communications – current – nature.com science feeds
Epididymal epithelium propels early sexual transmission of Zika virus in the absence of interferon signaling
 
Nature Communications, Published online: 29 April 2021; doi:10.1038/s41467-021-22729-5 Zika virus can be sexually transmitted. Here, Pletnev et al. show in an immunocompromised mouse model that the epithelial cells of the epididymis, rather than cells of the testis, vas deferens, prostate, or seminal vesicles, are the most likely source of male-to-female sexually transmitted ZIKV genomes.
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Nature Communications – current – nature.com science feeds
Robust high-dimensional memory-augmented neural networks
 
Nature Communications, Published online: 29 April 2021; doi:10.1038/s41467-021-22364-0 The implementation of memory-augmented neural networks using conventional computer architectures is challenging due to a large number of read and write operations. Here, Karunaratne, Schmuck et al. propose an architecture that enables analog in-memory computing on high-dimensional vectors at accuracy matching 3
9h
Nature Communications – current – nature.com science feeds
Decrypting bacterial polyphenol metabolism in an anoxic wetland soil
 
Nature Communications, Published online: 29 April 2021; doi:10.1038/s41467-021-22765-1 It is thought that polyphenols inhibit organic matter decomposition in soils devoid of oxygen. Here the authors use metabolomics and genome-resolved metaproteomics to provide experimental evidence of polyphenol biodegradation and maintained soil microbial community metabolism despite anoxia.
9h
Futurity.org
Why silver dissipates from gold-silver nanoparticles
 
A new study reveals a two-step mechanism behind silver’s dissipation from gold-silver nanoparticles. The discovery could help fine-tune nanoparticle alloys for specific uses. Gold-silver alloys are useful catalysts that degrade environmental pollutants, facilitate the production of plastics and chemicals, and kill bacteria on surfaces, among other applications. In nanoparticle form, these alloys
9h
Dagens Medicin
Immunterapi øger risikoen for hjerteproblemer
 
Immun-checkpointhæmmere øger risikoen for ­betændelse i hjertet, hjerteinsufficiens, hjerterytme­forstyrrelser og blodpropper hos patienter med ­lungekræft og modermærkekræft. Resultatet er dog ikke overraskende, siger professor og læge.
10h
The Atlantic
Podcast: The Murderers Who Never Killed
 
Listen and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | Google Podcasts One night in the spring of 2005, Anissa Jordan was sitting in a car in San Francisco while her boyfriend attempted to rob a young man nearby. Shortly after, police arrested both Anissa and her boyfriend. Anissa was detained and dressed in an orange jumpsuit before she learned that the young man had been shot and killed th
10h
forskning.se
Barn utan pengar har oftare sämre relationer med klasskamrater
 
Att ha mindre pengar eller inte kunna delta i aktiviteter som kostar pengar är kopplat till en ökad risk för en sämre social situation i skolan. Det visar en avhandling från Stockholms universitet. – Jag ser ett samband mellan barnens ekonomiska resurser och de sociala relationerna i skolklassen i min forskning. Störst risk för att ha sämre sociala relationer finner jag för de elever som ofta mis
11h
Future(s) Studies
What is the next big thing for the advancement of mankind?
 
The last big thing that brought us to a new age I believe was the advancement of cellular technology when smartphones became invented and popularized. Your phone connects everyone together in real time and has all of mankind's knowledge in the palm of your hand. submitted by /u/samiam41297 [link] [comments]
14h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
KICT's solution for monitoring massive infrastructures
 
The Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology (KICT) has announced the development of an effective structural monitoring technique to monitor massive infrastructures, such as long-span bridge. The method provides accurate and precise responses over whole structural system densely by fusing advantages of multi-fidelity data.
14h
EurekAlert! – Breaking News
Kratom use rare, but more common among people with opioid use disorder
 
Less than one percent of people in the United States use kratom, a plant-based substance commonly used to manage pain and opioid withdrawal, according to a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. However, the use of kratom–which is legal but carries the risk of addiction and harmful side effects–is more prevalent among people who use other drugs, particularly those with o
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Science Weekly
Unearthing the secret social lives of trees – podcast
 
Over her career, first as a forester and then as a professor of forest ecology, Suzanne Simard has been uncovering the hidden fungal networks that connect trees and allow them to send signals and share resources. Speaking to Suzanne about her new book, Finding the Mother Tree, Linda Geddes discovers how these underground webs allow plants to cooperate and communicate with each other. Help support
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