Science news

• SpaceX Sticks a Rocket Landing at Sea in Historic First

  08-04-2016 23:38
  
  In a dramatic feat of engineering prowess, the private spaceflight company SpaceX successfully landed a reusable Falcon 9 rocket booster today — the second such landing for the company, and the first successful touchdown on a ship. The two-stage Falcon 9 rocket blasted off at 4:43 p.m. EDT (2043 GMT) today (April 8) from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. It carried SpaceX's robotic Dragon cargo spacecraft, which is now on its way to the International Space Station, carrying crew
  
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• Inflatable room bound for space station as booster lands on ocean platform

  08-04-2016 23:16
  
  SpaceX has resumed space station deliveries for Nasa, launching the first inflatable room ever built for astronauts.
  
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• Researchers edit genes in human embryos for second time

  08-04-2016 23:01
  Researchers in China deploy CRISPR to alter genes in human embryos again — this time to make cells HIV-resistant.
  
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• Pinpointing the effects of fertilizer

  08-04-2016 22:38
  Plant biologists have pinpointed the area of genomes within nitrogen-fixing bacteria in roots, called rhizobia, that's being altered when the plant they serve is exposed to nitrogen fertilizer.
  
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• Dressed to kill: Tailoring a suit for tumor-penetrating cancer medications

  08-04-2016 22:38
  Tiny capsules, called nanoparticles, are now being used to transport chemotherapy medicine to cancerous tumors. Researchers believe that the trick to gaining access to the pernicious cellular masses is to give these nanoparticles a new look.
  
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• Discovery of CTLA-4 in dendritic cells opens new possibilities to fight cancer

  08-04-2016 22:38
  T cells are the 'foot soldiers' that fight cancer inside the body. Cancer cells can fight the foot soldiers back by pushing a brake on the T cells that will turn them off. This 'brake' is a molecule on the surface of T cells called CTLA-4. Until now, most scientists agreed that CTLA-4 was only present on T cells and other cells of the same lineage. But new research suggests that CTLA-4 is also produced and secreted by dendritic cells, which are the 'generals' of the T cells in the battle against
  
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• Single ion impacts a million water molecules

  08-04-2016 22:37
  Water molecules are 10,000 times more sensitive to ions than previously thought, new research shows. Water molecules are made up of one negatively charged oxygen atom and two positively charged hydrogen atoms.
  
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• Pivotal inflammatory players revealed in diabetic kidney disease

  08-04-2016 22:37
  Key inflammatory mechanisms underlying type 1 diabetes and obesity-related kidney dysfunction have been identified by a team of researchers. In the study, the researchers analyzed the kidneys of experimental mice with type 1 diabetes and mice fed a high-fat diet. They found increased amounts of sphingomyelin, a type of fatty acid commonly found in cell membranes and nervous tissue, in both experimental groups.
  
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• New magnetism research brings high-temp superconductivity applications closer

  08-04-2016 22:37
  Scientists have discovered that only half the atoms in some iron-based superconductors are magnetic, providing the first conclusive demonstration of the wave-like properties of metallic magnetism.
  
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• Clathrate ices identified in comet 67P

  08-04-2016 22:37
  For decades, scientists have agreed that comets are mostly water ice, but what kind of ice -- amorphous or crystalline -- is still up for debate. Looking at data obtained by ESA's Rosetta spacecraft in the atmosphere, or coma, around comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, scientists are seeing evidence of a crystalline form of ice called clathrates.
  
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• Changing monsoon patterns, more rain contribute to lower tea yield in Chinese provinces

  08-04-2016 22:37
  Longer monsoon seasons with increased daily rainfall, aspects of climate change, are contributing to reduced tea yield in regions of China, with implications for crop management and harvesting strategies, according to new findings.
  
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• Hacking an Enzyme's Structure Could Lead to Drugs for Alzheimer's and Schizophrenia

  08-04-2016 22:30 via rss.sciam.com
  
  The finding gives researchers insight into dopamine beta-hydroxylase, an enzyme that balances the activity of two key brain-signaling molecules
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• No, Planet Nine Won't Kill Us All

  08-04-2016 22:26
  
  Don't believe the doomsday hype about the putative Planet Nine. Yesterday (April 7), the New York Post published a video claiming that Planet Nine — a hypothesized world in the solar system's far outer reaches — could send asteroids and comets hurtling into Earth soon, with potentially devastating consequences. "A newly discovered planet could destroy Earth as soon as this month," the New York Post said yesterday via its Twitter account, @nypost, by way of advertising the new vi
  
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• Heated boxes may help bats survive deadly white-nose fungus

  08-04-2016 22:09 via cbc.ca
  
  A biologist with the University of Winnipeg is installing 20 bat boxes across Ontario to try and save the animal from a deadly fungus that eats away at them while they hibernate.
  
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• Human sacrifice helped the ancient '1 per cent' maintain status quo

  08-04-2016 21:47 via cbc.ca
  
  Why did so many ancient societies around the world make human sacrifices to appease the gods? A new study supports the theory that the practice may have played a key role in keeping the poor downtrodden and the elites in power.
  
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• A sugar can melt away cholesterol

  08-04-2016 21:18
  
  A sugar called cyclodextrin removes cholesterol from hardened arteries in mouse studies.
  
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• Netflix to phase out $7.99 HD plan for long-term members starting in May

  08-04-2016 20:52 via cbc.ca
  
  The days of getting high-definition streaming via a Netflix account that you can share with a friend for less than $8 a month are coming to an end, the company says.
  
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• Turning water to steam, no boiling required

  08-04-2016 20:10
  
  A new material can convert water into steam with sunlight alone, and could be useful for making fresh water from salty.
  
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• Earth Is Tipping Over Because of Climate Change

  08-04-2016 20:00 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Melting ice and shifting rain patterns are causing the north and south poles to drift
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Earth Is Tipping Because of Climate Change

  08-04-2016 20:00 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Melting ice and shifting rain patterns are causing the north and south poles to drift
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Debate Erupts over Strange New Human Species

  08-04-2016 19:40 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Skeptic challenges notion that small-brained Homo naledi deliberately disposed of its dead
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• New microwave synthesis technique produces more-affordable hydrogen

  08-04-2016 19:26
  Scientists create a molybdenum-based material that could be a low-cost alternative to platinum for splitting water to make hydrogen fuel.
  
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• Blood-brain barrier breakthrough reported by researchers

  08-04-2016 19:26
  The blood-brain barrier has stymied direct treatment of brain disorders. In a recently published study, a researcher reports finding a way to pass therapeutics through the barrier, using readily-available agents.
  
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• How an ancient civilization conserved water

  08-04-2016 19:25
  High-resolution, aerial imagery bears significance for researchers on the ground investigating how remote, ancient Maya civilizations used and conserved water.
  
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• The future is here: Interactive screens on your packages

  08-04-2016 19:24
  Instead of reading a label, consumers could be interacting with an electronic screen on packaging in the future, thanks to a revolutionary new development that could revolutionize the packaging industry.
  
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• Six-step hand-washing technique found most effective for reducing bacteria

  08-04-2016 19:24
  The six-step hand-hygiene technique recommended by the World Health Organization is superior to a three-step method suggested by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in reducing bacteria on healthcare workers' hands, new evidence shows.
  
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• Many ICU patients trade critical illness for new illness, ICU-acquired weakness

  08-04-2016 19:24
  Some patients who suffer from muscle weakness six months after ICU discharge demonstrate persistent muscle wasting, even when the biologic functions that commonly cause muscles to atrophy have returned to normal, a new study has found.
  
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• Controlling 'bad cholesterol' production could prevent growth of tumors, study finds

  08-04-2016 19:24
  Several studies have recognized a link between obesity and cancer. Now new research further helps to understand how tumor cells grow through scavenging very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) and low-density lipoproteins (LDL), commonly known as the 'bad cholesterol', and what mechanisms can be used to reduce the malignant cells' growth.
  
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• Want to help scientists count penguins — or stars?

  08-04-2016 18:45 via cbc.ca
  
  Volunteer citizen scientists can help researchers collect and analyze tons of data on many topics.
  
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• U.S. to continue appeal of iPhone data case in N.Y.

  08-04-2016 18:40 via cbc.ca
  
  The U.S. Justice Department on Friday said it will move ahead with an appeal of a court ruling blocking the government from forcing Apple Inc to help unlock an iPhone in a drug case in New York.
  
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• SpaceX back in delivery business with futuristic pop-up room

  08-04-2016 18:32
  
  CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — SpaceX is poised to resume station deliveries for NASA and it couldn't have a more attention-grabbing payload: the first inflatable room ever built for astronauts.
  
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• How the Prophet of Peak Oil Explained Fracking in the 1950s [Excerpt]

  08-04-2016 18:00 via rss.sciam.com
  
  An excerpt from Mason Inman’s The Oracle of Oil
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• Science’s inconvenient (but interesting) uncertainties

  08-04-2016 17:56
  In the latest issue of Science News, Editor in Chief Eva Emerson talks climate change, mouth microbes, and synthetic life.
  
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• Clearing the Air, China Now Leads World in Clean Energy (Op-Ed)

  08-04-2016 17:55
  Lynn Scarlett, is a former deputy secretary and chief operating officer of the U.S. Department of the Interior and currently is global managing director of policy at The Nature Conservancy. Scarlett contributed this article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. China is embracing this change as it is poised to move from leading emitter of greenhouse gasses to leader in renewable energy investments.
  
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• From Shredded C-Notes to Corn: Weird Materials Make Their Way into Cars

  08-04-2016 17:54
  
  Nikhil Gupta is an associate professor, and Steven Zeltmann is a student researcher, in the Composite Materials and Mechanics Laboratory of the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department at New York University's Tandon School of Engineering. The 2016 New York International Auto Show opened to the public on March 25 with exciting displays of expensive and exotic cars that defy the imagination with high speed and high technology.
  
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• Changing climate: 10 years after 'An Inconvenient Truth'

  08-04-2016 17:52
  
  In the 10 years since "An Inconvenient Truth," climate researchers have made progress in predicting how rising temperatures will affect sea level, weather patterns and polar ice.
  
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• Tata windfall from carbon permits

  08-04-2016 17:51 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Tata Steel is refusing to comment on claims it has made £700m windfall profits from a policy designed to protect the climate.
  
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• When life returned after a volcanic mass extinction

  08-04-2016 17:24
  A new study used fossils and mercury isotopes from volcanic gas deposited in ancient proto-Pacific Ocean sediment deposits in Nevada to determine when life recovered following the end-Triassic mass extinction 201.5 million years ago.
  
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• Perk yourself up with some exercise

  08-04-2016 17:23
  We’re all aware of the physical advantages of exercising and the emotional advantages have also been well-documented. But how much do we know about the psychological impact of engaging in physical activity? This study demonstrates the positive impact of acute aerobic exercise on individuals experiencing emotion regulation difficulties.
  
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• New assay offers improved detection of deadly prion diseases

  08-04-2016 17:23
  Transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs), or prion diseases, are a family of rare progressive, neurodegenerative illnesses that affect both humans and animals. TSE surveillance is important for public health and food safety because TSEs have the potential of crossing from animals to humans, as seen with the spread of mad cow disease, or bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). A new study describes an advanced assay that offers better sensitivity than currently available tests for detecti
  
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• Transcranial direct current stimulation can boost language comprehension

  08-04-2016 17:22
  How the human brain processes the words we hear and constructs complex concepts is still somewhat of a mystery to the neuroscience community. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can alter our language processing, allowing for faster comprehension of meaningful word combinations, according to new research.
  
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• Cyclodextrin dissolves away cholesterol crystals

  08-04-2016 17:22
  Cyclodextrin has been shown in mice to dissolve cholesterol crystals and prevent plaque formation. The drug is already approved for use in humans and could be tested in patients to treat atherosclerosis.
  
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• Chemists develop new strategy to synthesize molecule that could help mitigate cancer tumor development

  08-04-2016 17:22
  Researchers have successfully achieved a formal total synthesis of cortistatin A, a molecule which could help mitigate the growth of cancer tumors.
  
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• Here's How Money Could Actually Buy Happiness

  08-04-2016 17:00
  Money really can buy happiness — if you buy things that "match" your personality, a new study from the United Kingdom suggests. Researchers analyzed more than 76,000 purchases that 625 people made over a six-month period, and grouped the purchases into categories based on how they might be tied to a personality trait. For example, purchases involving "eating out in pubs" were tied to the personality trait of extroversion (a person who is sociable and outgoing), while purchases involving "c
  
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• Even Babies Will 'Sell Out' for a Price

  08-04-2016 17:00
  
  "It's a study I like to call 'the deal with the devil,'" said study researcher Arber Tasimi, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at Yale University. Tasimi and Yale psychologist Karen Wynn were interested in finding out the age at which kids will avoid a wrongdoer, even if it comes at a cost to the kids themselves. So Tasimi and Wynn decided to look at this moral dilemma in children on both sides of that age cutoff.
  
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• Injection of Tiny Beads Could Curb Hunger, Promote Weight Loss

  08-04-2016 16:59
  A small injection could lead to decreased feelings of hunger as well as major weight loss, a small new study finds. The procedure, known as bariatric arterial embolization, has only been tested in seven patients, and much more research will be needed in order to confirm its safety and effectiveness. However, the doctors who completed the study are "excited about the possibility of adding [the procedure] as another tool for health care providers to offer patients in the effort to curb" the obesit
  
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• Weight-Loss Supplements May Contain Banned Drug

  08-04-2016 16:58
  A drug banned from competitive sports can be found at high doses in some weight-loss and workout supplements — a finding that researchers say is alarming and could potentially pose health risks. In a new study, researchers analyzed 27 weight-loss and workout supplements now available on the market that listed an ingredient called methylsynephrine on the label. Methylsynephrine, also known as oxilofrine, is a stimulant drug approved in some countries for treating people with low blood press
  
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• Woman's Weight-Loss Surgery Leads to Vision Loss

  08-04-2016 16:57
  A woman's vision loss and lesions on her eyes turned out to have an unexpected cause: a vitamin deficiency stemming from weight-loss surgery, according to a recent report of her case. These symptoms are the effects of a severe vitamin A deficiency, said Kyle Kirkland, a medical student at the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine and the lead author of the case report. Vitamin A plays an important role in eye health, and deficiency can lead to severe dryness of the eye, night blindness and lesio
  
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• Readers question ocean health

  08-04-2016 16:45
  Ocean plastics, ant behavior, pollution solutions and more in reader feedback.
  
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• Developing ways to study influenza D virus

  08-04-2016 16:33
  Researchers have found antibodies to the newly discovered influenza D virus in pigs, cattle, horses, goats and sheep, but not poultry. A researcher has proven that the guinea pig can be used as an animal model and is developing a way to study the virus in living cells—trachea and lung epithelial cells from swine and cattle.
  
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