Science news

• Seeing the upside in gene drives’ fatal flaw

  15-07-2016 22:28
  
  Gene drives’ fatal flaw could be a bonus.
  
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• How the world's first chatbot lawyer beat 160,000 parking tickets and counting

  15-07-2016 22:21 via cbc.ca
  
  Josh Browder, a 19-year-old second-year Stanford University student has built an artificially intelligent chatbot that has successfully contested 160,000 parking tickets in London, England and New York City. And he's letting people use it for free.
  
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• NASA Is Ready to Start Building Its Life-Hunting 2020 Mars Rover

  15-07-2016 21:39
  
  NASA's life-hunting 2020 Mars rover has cleared an extensive review process and is now ready to begin the final design and construction phase, agency officials announced today (July 15). If all goes according to plan, the six-wheeled robot will blast off in August 2020, touch down in February 2021 in a yet-to-be-determined spot, and then explore the Martian surface for at least two years, mission team members said. "While we're there, the major scientific objective of the mission is to seek the
  
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• "Knockout" Head Injuries Linked to Parkinson's, but Not Alzheimer's

  15-07-2016 21:00 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Massive new study turns up surprises on the long-term fallout of unconsciousness-causing brain injuries that occur early in life
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Battling toxoplasmosis: International team describes step-by-step progress

  15-07-2016 20:07
  Researchers from 14 leading institutions in the United States, United Kingdom and France suggest novel approaches that could hasten the development of better medications for people suffering from toxoplasmosis.
  
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• Countryside faces Brexit anxiety

  15-07-2016 19:56 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Farmers and environmentalists alike are facing anxiety as the shadow of Brexit looms over Britain’s countryside.
  
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• Sun Makes Nervous Face with Hole in Its Head (Video)

  15-07-2016 19:18
  
  The sun has been making some anxious faces lately — but you'd be worried, too, if a huge hole had just opened up on your head. The sun's "eyes" are actually active regions, which serve as launch pads for solar flares and the eruptions of superheated solar plasma known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Material zooms away from coronal holes as part of the high-speed solar wind, which can cause geomagnetic storms here on Earth.
  
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• First farmers had diverse origins, DNA shows

  15-07-2016 19:07 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Analysis of DNA from some of the world's first farmers shows that they had surprisingly diverse origins.
  
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• Biochemists feed 'poison pill' to deadly virus

  15-07-2016 19:02
  It has a funny name -- coxsackievirus -- but there's nothing funny about how this tiny germ and its close relatives sicken their hosts. Researchers have designed a genetic modification to one type of coxsackievirus that strips its ability to replicate, mutate and cause illness. They hope their work could lead to a vaccine for this and other viruses like it.
  
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• Adjuvant chemotherapy in early-stage colon cancer may improve survival

  15-07-2016 19:01
  Researchers and physicians have grappled with the role of 'adjuvant,' or post-surgery, chemotherapy for patients with early-stage colon cancer, even for cancers considered high risk. Now researchers have found an association between the use of adjuvant chemotherapy in stage 2 colon cancer and improved survival -- regardless of a patient's age or risk, or even of the specific chemotherapy administered.
  
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• Fish Venom Unveiled: Toxins Evolved Many Times, Study Shows

  15-07-2016 18:08
  
  More than 2,000 species of fish are venomous, and a new analysis of these animals shows that the most common way they deliver their venom is through spines on their backs. The research, which analyzed the evolution of venom and its delivery mechanisms among freshwater and saltwater fish, also found that venom glands arose 18 separate times among fish. "For the first time ever, we looked at the evolution of venom across all fishes," lead author William Leo Smith, assistant curator at the Universi
  
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• Zika Outbreak Could Be Over in 3 Years, Study Predicts

  15-07-2016 18:07
  The current Zika outbreak taking place in much of South and Central America will be largely over in three years' time, a new study predicts. "The current explosive epidemic will burn itself out due to a phenomenon called herd immunity," Neil Ferguson, a professor of mathematical biology at Imperial College London's School of Public Health, said in a statement. "Because the virus is unable to infect the same person twice — thanks to the immune system generating antibodies to kill it —
  
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• Paper in a Top Medical Journal Has Unexpected Author: Barack Obama

  15-07-2016 18:06
  In an unusual move for a sitting president, Barack Obama has published a scholarly paper in a scientific journal. The paper, which discusses the success and future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), was published Monday (July 11) in the prestigious medical journal JAMA. It may be the first time a sitting president has authored a complete academic article — with an abstract, findings and conclusions  — that's been published in a scientific journal, at least in recent history.
  
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• Dangerous Drugs: Why Synthetic-Cannabinoid Overdoses Are On the Rise

  15-07-2016 18:05
  Overdoses from synthetic cannabinoids are on the rise, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Synthetic cannabinoids, sometimes called K2 or spice, were first found in the U.S. by authorities in 2008, according to the CDC. The largest increase in overdoses over the study period was in New York City, according to the report.
  
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• 'Land' on Pluto's Icy Plains in This Amazing New NASA Video

  15-07-2016 17:56
  
  This may be the closest we ever get to landing on Pluto. A new video takes viewers on a ride nearly down to the dwarf planet's surface, stopping just above the rippled "shoreline" of the vast nitrogen-ice plain known as Sputnik Planum. The video is composed of more than 100 photos captured over the course of six weeks by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft as it approached Pluto, and then, on July 14, 2015, flew within 7,800 miles (12,550 kilometers) of the frigid world's surface.
  
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• Extra virgin olive oil is the best option for frying fish

  15-07-2016 17:47
  Researchers have studied the changes that take place in fish lipids and in the oil during frying processes, and have concluded that using extra virgin olive oil is the best choice.
  
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• Struggling families crave stability in uncertain times, study shows

  15-07-2016 17:41
  Over a third of families (more than 2 million households) in the United Kingdom are earning below the minimum income needed for an acceptable living standard. A new study has taken a new look at life on a low income, starting not from the perspective of poverty and hardship but from a more positive description of what it is to participate in society and meet needs.
  
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• New material for trackbeds incorporates rubber from used tires

  15-07-2016 17:41
  Researchers have developed a material for use in the subballast layer of train tracks that incorporates shredded rubber from used tires. Combined with crushed stone, this type of mixture has already been used to good effect in asphalt mixtures and roadside embankments, but its use in the rail sector is relatively unexplored.
  
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• Happy cows make more nutritious milk

  15-07-2016 17:41
  Daily infusions with a chemical commonly associated with feelings of happiness were shown to increase calcium levels in the blood of Holstein cows and the milk of Jersey cows that had just given birth. The results could lead to a better understanding of how to improve the health of dairy cows, and keep the milk flowing, say scientists.
  
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• Calcification: Does it pay off in the future ocean?

  15-07-2016 17:41
  An international research team has calculated the costs and benefits of calcification for phytoplankton and the impact of climate change on their important role in the world's oceans, a new report explains.
  
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• A peek into the 'birthing room' of ribosomes

  15-07-2016 17:41
  Scaffolding and specialized workers help with the delivery of ribosomes, say biochemists, who, through study, have gained new insights into biogenesis.
  
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• Discovery of the genes responsible for esophageal cancer common among Japanese

  15-07-2016 17:39
  A Japanese research group has now discovered the genetic mutations responsible for esophageal cancer frequently found among Japanese. They base their discovery on a genomic analysis of 144 Japanese esophageal cancer patients, the largest of its scale so far. The study findings are expected to contribute to the development of new medical treatments with fewer side effects and tailored drug therapies.
  
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• Automatically identifying brain regions

  15-07-2016 17:39
  Using the example of the fruit fly, a team of biologists has identified patterns in the genetic activity of brain cells and taken them as a basis for drawing conclusions about the structure of the brain.
  
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• Modifications to protein RUNX3 may promote cancer growth

  15-07-2016 17:37
  A modification called phosphorylation made to a protein called RUNX3 may promote cancer progression by allowing cell division, scientists have discovered. The phosphorylation, or the addition of a phosphate group to a molecule, is carried out by an enzyme called Aurora Kinase, which has been observed to be present in unusually high levels in some cancers.
  
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• Structure of cold virus linked to childhood asthma solved

  15-07-2016 17:36
  The atomic structure of an elusive cold virus linked to severe asthma and respiratory infections in children has been solved by a team of researchers. The findings provide the foundation for future antiviral drug and vaccine development against the virus, rhinovirus C.
  
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• Neuronal activity shows link between wakefulness, fight-or-flight response in mice

  15-07-2016 17:36
  Researchers have revealed a role for orexin neurons of the hypothalamus in regulating the response to harmful stimuli in mice. Painful stimuli activated orexin neurons, except in mice that were anesthetized. Mice bred to lack orexin neurons were hypersensitive to such stimuli, while those with artificially activated orexin neurons demonstrated reduced responses to pain. These findings suggest a link between response to stimuli and consciousness that is regulated by neurons producing orexin.
  
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• Molecular switch for controlling color, fluorescence

  15-07-2016 17:36
  Researchers have developed a molecular switching technique to control the visible color and fluorescent properties of a compound by using hydrogen and oxygen gas. This innovative work is environmentally friendly since it uses the energy from the two gases to switch the color and fluorescence of a compound and produces only water as a byproduct.
  
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• Genetic roots of insect's waterproof coating could lead to innovative pest control

  15-07-2016 17:36
  Scientists may have discovered a new and effective way to control insect pests that are a threat to agriculture and humans. Researchers have identified a gene in vinegar flies responsible for the insect's waterproof coating, which provides them protection from microbes and environmental stress. They nicknamed the gene spidey.
  
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• Soot may have killed off the dinosaurs and ammonites

  15-07-2016 17:35
  A new hypothesis on the extinction of dinosaurs and ammonites at the end of the Cretaceous Period has been proposed by a research team.
  
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• Global experts call on UN to mobilize a global action plan to widen access to antibiotics

  15-07-2016 17:35
  Today some of the world's experts on antibiotic resistance called on the UN to act to reduce the growing number of deaths due to limited access to effective antibiotics.
  
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• Ecologists propose new method to probe population growth questions

  15-07-2016 17:35
  To close the gap between contemporary reality and demographic theory, ecologists have developed a set of transient life table response experiments for decomposing realized population growth rates into contributions from specific vital rates and components of population structure.
  
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• City birds again prove to be angrier than rural birds

  15-07-2016 17:35
  New observations on urban versus rural birds shed light on the effects of human population expansion on wildlife, say authors of a new report. .
  
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• First case of woman-to-man spread of Zika via sex reported

  15-07-2016 17:33
  
  The first known case of female-to-male sexual transmission of Zika virus has been reported in New York City.
  
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• Rare fungus product reduces resistance to antibiotics

  15-07-2016 17:29
  Microorganisms, among them fungi, are a natural and rich source of antibiotic compounds. Scientists have succeeded for the first time in extracting the rare compound cPM from a filamentous fungus, applying a special method. Using this substance leads to increased susceptibility of a resistant pathogen against standard antibiotics.
  
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• Pushing a single-molecule switch

  15-07-2016 17:29
  Combined experimental and theoretical work opens a unique capability for studying mechanical activation and processing at the single-molecule level, elementary reactions that are involved in many important biological functions and are crucial in molecular devices.
  
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• New York reports first female-to-male Zika transmission via sex

  15-07-2016 17:29
  By Julie Steenhuysen CHICAGO (Reuters) - New York City's health department on Friday reported the first female-to-male transmission of the Zika virus, which is most typically spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the report is the first documented case of sexual transmission of Zika from a woman to her male sex partner. All previously reported cases of sexually transmitted Zika virus infection have been spread from men to their sex p
  
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• How new HIV drugs lock virus in immaturity

  15-07-2016 17:29
  A new type of HIV drug currently being tested works in an unusual way, scientists have found. They also discovered that when the virus became resistant to early versions of these drugs, it did not do so by blocking or preventing their effects, but rather by circumventing them. The study presents the most detailed view yet of part of the immature form of HIV.
  
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• Scientists move one step closer to creating an invisibility cloak

  15-07-2016 17:27
  Scientists have made an object disappear by using a material with nano-size particles that can enhance specific properties on the object's surface.
  
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• Garlic aroma found in breast milk

  15-07-2016 17:27
  Food chemists have found that garlic aroma is evident in the breast milk of women who have consumed garlic. This is caused by allyl methyl sulfide -- a metabolite which is first formed in a strong concentration during breastfeeding. Whether the aroma has an impact on which food preferences children develop and whether they like garlic in later life needs to be clarified by further research.
  
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• Comprehensive map of primate brain development

  15-07-2016 17:27
  Researchers have published an in-depth analysis of a comprehensive molecular atlas of brain development in the non-human primate. This analysis uncovers features of the genetic code underlying brain development in our close evolutionary relative, while revealing distinct features of human brain development by comparison.
  
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• Damien Hirst formaldehyde artworks 'posed no risk to public'

  15-07-2016 17:24 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A scientific paper that claimed a 2012 exhibition of Damien Hirst works led to the release of dangerous formaldehyde fumes is retracted by one of its authors after further tests.
  
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• 'Snowfox' GPS Phone Helps Parents Keep Tabs on Young Kids

  15-07-2016 17:10
  
  A new, screenless phone for young kids could help parents stay in touch with their children, without the adults having to worry that their kids are glued to smartphones. The new device, called Snowfox, also comes equipped with a GPS tracker, letting parents know where their kids are, while helping children learn independence by letting them roam to places where they are allowed. Snowfox's battery and low-power electronics let it operate for a week on a single charge, according to the company.
  
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• These Ducks Aren't Lame — They Can Think Abstractly

  15-07-2016 17:09
  
  Ducklings can wrap their tiny brains around ideas like "same" and "different" even when they're scarcely more than 24 hours old, a new study finds. In a new study, newly hatched ducklings were shown paired objects that either matched each other in shape or color, or differed from each other. The researchers found that the ducklings were able to recognize and respond to other objects that were similarly grouped, a mere 30 minutes later.
  
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• U.S Cities Are Getting Dangerously Hot [Graphic]

  15-07-2016 17:00 via rss.sciam.com
  
  A dramatic rise in “danger days” is underway
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• This start-up company hopes to produce chicken breasts without killing any animals

  15-07-2016 16:47
  
  SuperMeat hopes to revolutionise the meat industry with its cell-cultured meat.
  
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• First Ever? Discovery of Philistine Cemetery Draws Criticism

  15-07-2016 16:30
  
  A 3,000-year-old graveyard with the bones of about 200 individuals discovered in Ashkelon, Israel, is being hailed as the first (and only) Philistine cemetery ever found. If valid, the finding would reveal more about a mysterious people known as the Philistines. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Philistines came from the Aegean Sea region, along with other groups of people, during the 12th century B.C, at a time when cities and civilizations in Greece and the Middle East were collap
  
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• 'Extinct' Volcano Near Rome Rumbles to Life

  15-07-2016 16:24
  
  A volcano outside Rome, long thought extinct, is rumbling to life. Colli Albani is a volcanic complex of hills located 19 miles (30 kilometers) from the center of Rome. There are no historical records of eruptions from Colli Albani, so it was long thought to be extinct, according to the American Geophysical Union (AGU).
  
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• Trump's expected VP pick - coal advocate who defied Obama's climate agenda

  15-07-2016 16:22
  By Valerie Volcovici and Grant Smith WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Republican Donald Trump's expected selection of Indiana Governor Mike Pence as his running mate cheered the U.S. energy industry and dismayed green advocates, with both sides citing Pence's support for coal mining and defiance of President Barack Obama's climate-change agenda. Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, has called climate change a hoax and promised to gut U.S. environmental regulations in order to h
  
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• For jaguars, armored prey is no obstacle

  15-07-2016 15:00
  
  With big heads, thick teeth and strong muscles, jaguars have evolved to take on dangerous prey, often animals covered with thick armor.
  
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• Bee-lieve it or not, scientists want to find out if bees have regional accents

  15-07-2016 13:44
  
  Researchers at Cardiff University are investigating the possibility.
  
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