Science news

• Scientists stumped by disappearing seabirds off Nova Scotia despite protections

  25-11-2016 23:21 via cbc.ca
  
  The Canadian government has announced new protections for the roseate turn, but there were just 73 pairs this year in Nova Scotia and federal scientists still don’t know why numbers continue to decline.
  
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• 9 things we learned on Black (Hole) Friday

  25-11-2016 22:05
  
  Forget crazy discount shopping – Nasa is celebrating #BlackHoleFriday.
  
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• Cassini's grand finale: a death dive into Saturn

  25-11-2016 21:09 via cbc.ca
  
  The Cassini mission proves that robotic spacecraft are the true explorers of our solar system.
  
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• New stars discovery shed new light on Galaxy's formation

  25-11-2016 20:50
  An astronomer has discovered a new family of stars in the core of the Milky Way Galaxy which provides new insights into the early stages of the Galaxy's formation.
  
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• Why the weight won't stay off: Microbiome altered by dieting, researchers find

  25-11-2016 20:49 via cbc.ca
  
  Scientists studying yo-yo dieting in mice say the tendency for people to regain excess weight rapidly after successfully slimming may well be due to their microbiome — the trillions of microorganisms in the gut.
  
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• Destination Moon? Belgium joins the space race

  25-11-2016 20:03
  
  BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Belgian comic-strip hero Tintin helped popularize the 1950s Space Race with his iconic cartoon rocket; seven decades on from the boy reporter's "Destination Moon", his country is finally getting its own version of NASA.
  
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• This heretical theory about light could soon be tested

  25-11-2016 19:30
  
  It might change how we see the universe.
  
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• Science explains what made the Boston Molasses Flood of 1919 so deadly

  25-11-2016 19:13 via cbc.ca
  
  In January 1919, an enormous tank of molasses spilled onto the streets of Boston killing 21 people. In a new study, Nicole Sharp sought to understand how the sludge could move so fast in frigid temperatures.
  
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• 50 years ago, nuclear blasting for gas boomed. Today it’s a bust.

  25-11-2016 19:12
  
  50 years ago, scientists made plans to use nuclear explosions to extract natural gas from underground. In one such experiment, the gas was released but turned out to be radioactive.
  
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• Satellite data confirms San Francisco tower sinking

  25-11-2016 18:53 via cbc.ca
  
  The Millennium Tower — completed in 2008 — has been referred to as the "leaning tower of San Francisco." That's because soon after completion, residents began to notice that the building was tilted.
  
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• ExoMars space programme needs an extra 400mn euros

  25-11-2016 17:18
  
  A Russian Proton-M rocket carrying the ExoMars 2016 spacecraft blasts off from Baikonur cosmodrome in March
  
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• After the quake

  25-11-2016 17:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Cut off from the outside world, quake-hit Kaikoura's businesses face uncertainty but vow to hold on.
  
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• New target receptor discovered in the fight against obesity

  25-11-2016 16:47
  The essential role that the receptor FFAR2 plays in the success of fermentable carbohydrates -- found in foods such as vegetables, fruit, breads, cereals and pasta - in suppressing appetite and preventing obesity is now better understood, thanks to new research.
  
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• New territory analyzing DNA modifications in glioblastoma

  25-11-2016 16:46
  A new investigation describes the distribution of a DNA defect in the glioblastoma genome and its relationship with patient survival.
  
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• Adding clay to saline nanofluids creates useful materials

  25-11-2016 16:46
  By controlling a mix of clay, water and salt, researchers have created nanostructures that might help boost oil production, expand the lifespan of certain foods or that can be used in cosmetics or drugs.
  
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• Climate change causing dramatic Arctic shifts, scientists say

  25-11-2016 16:44 via cbc.ca
  
  Unless the world stops burning fossil fuels that are fuelling global warming, irreversible changes in the Arctic could have disastrous effects for the people that live there and for the rest of the planet, researchers warned on Friday.
  
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• Europe's science ministers to decide on ExoMars rover

  25-11-2016 16:03 via bbc.co.uk
  
  European research ministers will be asked for just over €400m (£345m) to put a rover on Mars in 2021 when they meet next week in Switzerland.
  
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• Ant Overlords? Supercolony in Ethiopian Forests Set to Invade Globe

  25-11-2016 15:52
  
  The forests of Ethiopia are teeming with a supercharged ant that is poised to invade the globe, new research suggests. The infamous ant species, Lepisiota canescens, is demonstrating the behavior needed for supercolony formation and for global invasion — (insect world domination, anyone?), the researchers say. "The species we found in Ethiopia may have a high potential of becoming a globally invasive species," study author D. Magdalena Sorger, a postdoctoral researcher at the North Carolin
  
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• 4,000-Year-Old 'Thinker' Sculpture Uncovered in Israel

  25-11-2016 15:50
  
  A ceramic vessel bearing the sculpture of a pensive-looking figure has been found in the Israeli city of Yehud. Archaeologists found the artifact during excavations in advance of a new housing development. "It seems that at first the jug, which is typical of the period, was prepared, and afterwards, the unique sculpture was added, the likes of which have never before been discovered in previous research," Gilad Itach, the IAA excavation director, said in a statement.
  
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• Weather vs. Climate: Why Trump's Global Warming Stance Is Flawed

  25-11-2016 15:49
  
  Is there reason to doubt climate change because some of the nation's hottest days happened in 1898, as President-elect Donald Trump told the New York Times in an interview yesterday? In an exchange with Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger Jr. and staff about climate changeon Tuesday (Nov. 22), Trump said, "I have an open mind to it," but later added, "You know the hottest day ever was in 1890-something, 98. However, it's misleading to single out a weather event — such as a particularly hot d
  
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• Connection found between memory mechanisms, resistance to epilepsy

  25-11-2016 14:43
  A genetic change in the protein eEF2K creates resistance to epileptic attacks, thereby creating the possibility of a new treatment for the disease, show the surprising results of a new study.
  
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• Three rings stop cell division in plants

  25-11-2016 14:42
  Arising from a collaboration between plant and animal biologists, and organic chemists, a research group has succeeded in developing a new compound, a triarylmethane that can rapidly inhibit cell division in plants. This compound was found to selectively inhibit cell division in plant cells with respect to animal cells. Having a reversible cell inhibiting property, this triarylmethane could be a potential candidate for developing new agrochemicals that can control plant growth.
  
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• Theory that challenges Einstein's physics could soon be put to the test

  25-11-2016 14:42
  Scientists behind a theory that the speed of light is variable -- and not constant as Einstein suggested -- have made a prediction that could be tested.
  
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• Scientists step closer to halting spread of lung cancer

  25-11-2016 14:42
  A component of cancer cells, which acts like a ‘cellular post office’, could be the key to preventing the spread of lung cancer to other parts of the body, scientists have discovered.
  
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• Promoting Parasites: Researchers' quest to identify freshwater fish parasites in Japan

  25-11-2016 14:42
  Scientists have identified a new species of parasite infecting an invasive freshwater fish on the subtropical island of Okinawa, Japan. The results are part of a project to find parasites that have arrived in Japan with their non-native hosts and understand the role of parasites in natural ecosystems.  Tracking parasites can be one scientific method to monitor ecosystem health and attempt to conserve biodiversity.
  
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• New method for predicting congenital congenital cytomegalovirus infection during the prenatal period

  25-11-2016 14:42
  Congenital cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection can cause serious complications such as hearing difficulties and mental delay in affected infants. A research team has discovered a new method for predicting congenital CMV infection during the prenatal period. This method is safe for both mothers and fetuses, and could potentially be adopted for general use, report researchers.
  
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• New drug limits and then repairs brain damage in stroke

  25-11-2016 14:42
  A potential new drug reduces the number of brain cells destroyed by stroke and then helps to repair the damage, researchers have discovered.
  
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• Mouth cancer rates soar over 20 years

  25-11-2016 14:42
  Rates of mouth (oral) cancer have jumped by 6 per cent in the United Kingdom over the last 20 years, a new analysis reveals.
  
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• Mechanism revealed for side effects of drug used in hematopoietic stem cell harvesting

  25-11-2016 14:42
  Scientists have revealed the mechanism for side effects such as fever and bone pain caused by G-CSF, which is widely used for peripheral blood hematopoietic stem cell harvesting (PBSCH). This is an important method for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) used to treat hematological malignancies such as leukemia.
  
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• Enough is enough: Stem cell factor Nanog knows when to slow down

  25-11-2016 14:42
  The transcription factor Nanog plays a crucial role in the self-renewal of embryonic stem cells. Previously unclear was how its protein abundance is regulated in the cells. Researchers now report that the more Nanog there is on hand, the less reproduction there is.
  
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• More than 100 million dead trees in California from drought

  25-11-2016 14:35
  The U.S. Forest Service has identified an additional 36 million dead trees across California since its last aerial survey in May 2016. This brings the total number of dead trees since 2010 to over 102 million on 7.7 million acres of California's drought stricken forests. In 2016 alone, 62 million trees have died, representing more than a 100 percent increase in dead trees across the state from 2015. Millions of additional trees are weakened and expected to die in the coming months and years.
  
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• Early America: Evidence of original 1620 Plymouth settlement discovered

  25-11-2016 14:30
  Three hundred and ninety-five years after Pilgrims celebrated the first Thanksgiving in Plymouth, Massachusetts, researchers from can say they have definitively discovered evidence of the original 1620 Plymouth settlement. Part of the proof involves a calf that UMass Boston students have affectionately named Constance.
  
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• B.C. man signs first-of-its-kind Canadian cryonic contract

  25-11-2016 14:00 via cbc.ca
  
  A B.C. man who is challenging the province's laws on the preservation of the body after death has signed a groundbreaking cryonic contract. Keegan Macintosh is believed to be the first person to sign a deal with a Canadian provider to keep his body in a state of permanent suspension.
  
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• Watch Out for the Winking Eye of the Demon Star

  25-11-2016 13:30
  
  There is an apocryphal story, dating back to the mid-18th century, about a famous Paris astronomer who would stand on one of the Seine bridges on nights when the variable star Algol was in eclipse, to point out this remarkable phenomenon to passersby. 
  
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• Notes from Mars 160: The Science Work We're Doing

  25-11-2016 13:30
  
  The Mars Society is conducting the ambitious two-phase Mars 160 Twin Desert-Arctic Analogue mission to study how seven crewmembers could live, work and perform science on a true mission to Mars. Mars 160 crewmember Annalea Beattie is chronicling the mission, which will spend 80 days at the Mars Desert Research Station in southern Utah desert before venturing far north to Flashline Mars Arctic Research Station on Devon Island, Canada in summer 2017.
  
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• Looking In: Skywatcher Captures Wide-Field View of Helix Nebula

  25-11-2016 13:30
  
  The Helix Nebula , also known as "The Eye of God," The Helix, or (officially) NGC 7293, is a large planetary nebula located about 650 light-years away from Earth in the constellation Aquarius. Astronomers consider NGC 7293 an excellent example of a planetary nebula, representing the final stages of a dying star. Chumack used a Baader Modified Canon Rebel Xsi camera and 5.5 inch Newtonian Reflector, at ISO 1600, for a 180-minute (3 hour) exposure, 45 x 4 minute subs.
  
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• Jupiter made an appearance right next to the moon in the morning sky

  25-11-2016 12:30
  
  But you have to get up before sunrise.
  
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• Astronauts enjoy a zero-gravity 'Spacegiving' dinner

  25-11-2016 09:31
  
  (Reuters) - An international crew of astronauts celebrated Thanksgiving on Thursday with a special 'spacegiving feast' of rehydrated foods on board the International Space Station.
  
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• Trump will pursue 'regional hegemony' in South China Sea - Chinese academics

  25-11-2016 08:21
  A Donald Trump presidency does not mean the United States will withdraw from the South China Sea, but rather will continue pursuing "regional hegemony", Chinese academics who drafted a report for an influential government think tank said on Friday. Ensuring "absolute control" over the South China Sea was the crux of U.S. military strategy in the Asia-Pacific, according to what the authors said was China’s first ever public report on the U.S. military presence in the region, released on Fri
  
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• The fusion reactor that employs a liquid metal shower

  25-11-2016 06:00
  (National Institutes of Natural Sciences) The National Institutes of Natural Sciences National Institute for Fusion Science, as a potentially appropriate heat-receiving device for the future fusion reactor, has conceived of a new system for installing a liquid metal (melted tin) shower to high-temperature plasma periphery at intervals. From this, we will be able to achieve a heat-receiving device that will bear high heat inputs from the fusion plasmas, have high evacuation functions, and require
  
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• The consumer of the future will use a mobile phone to monitor his environment

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland) VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland has created the world's first hyperspectral mobile device by converting an iPhone camera into a new kind of optical sensor.
  
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• Springer Nature provides Italian universities hit by earthquake free access to electronic content

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (Springer) Springer Nature will open its digital resources to two Italian universities affected by the earthquakes of this past August and October. In addition to the journal titles to which they already subscribe, Università degli Studi di Camerino and Università degli Studi di Macerata will gain access to all Springer and Nature journals until the end of June 2017. All researchers, teaching staff and students at the two universities will benefit from the offer.
  
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• Physicists spell 'AV' by manipulating Abrikosov vortices

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology) A nanophotonics group lead by Prof. Brahim Lounis of the University of Bordeaux and including scientists from MIPT has performed a unique experiment involving the optical manipulation of individual Abrikosov vortices in a superconductor. The manipulation technique proposed in the study could be used to develop optically controlled RSFQ logic elements. This technology is seen as the most promising in terms of the design of superfast memory for quantum
  
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• New method developed for analyzing photonic crystal structure

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) A new technique developed by MIT researchers reveals the inner details of photonic crystals, synthetic materials whose exotic optical properties are the subject of widespread research.
  
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• New approach needed in way Tourette's syndrome is portrayed, research shows

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (University of Kent) Media stereotypes of people with Tourette's syndrome are leading to the stigmatizing of adolescents with the condition by their peers.
  
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• Hyperuricemia is associated with musculoskeletal pain

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (Bentham Science Publishers) Episodes of diffuse musculoskeletal pain appearing in and around a joint region without a clear diagnosis, etiology and therapy are still a major problem in general medical practice. Our cross-sectional study addresses the question of whether slightly elevated urate levels are associated with musculoskeletal pain.
  
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• FOOD Professor Rasmus Bro receives the first Nils Foss Excellence Prize

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (Faculty of Science - University of Copenhagen) The first recipient of the Nils Foss Excellence Prize is Professor Rasmus Bro, who works with advanced data analysis at the Department of Food Science at the University of Copenhagen. Rasmus Bro has worked tirelessly to develop advanced methods of data analysis for complex measurements of biological material. Through the ODIN consortium, he has applied these methods to optimize processes and products in the food, feed and pharmaceutical industries.
  
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• 'Diamond-age' of power generation as nuclear batteries developed

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (University of Bristol) New technology has been developed that uses nuclear waste to generate electricity in a nuclear-powered battery.A team of physicists and chemists from the University of Bristol have grown a man-made diamond that, when placed in a radioactive field, is able to generate a small electrical current.The development could solve some of the problems of nuclear waste, clean electricity generation and battery life.
  
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• Bekzod Khakimov received the first Nils Foss Talent Prize

  25-11-2016 06:00
  
  (Faculty of Science - University of Copenhagen) Bekzod Khakimov, from the Department of Food Science at the University of Copenhagen, is the first recipient of the Nils Foss Talent Prize. He has a Ph.D. in Metabolomics from 2013 and is continuing building the Foodomics laboratory at the institute as a postdoc.
  
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• Women in science pledge to combat hate

  25-11-2016 02:33 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Women of science around the world sign a pledge to combat discrimination in the wake of the US election.
  
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