Science news

• SpaceX to fly 2 people around the moon by next year

  27-02-2017 23:05 via cbc.ca
  
  Elon Musk made a surprising announcement on Monday, saying that SpaceX plans to send two people to orbit the moon by 2018.
  
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• Scientists have found a way of growing human tissue on apples

  27-02-2017 22:47 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists at the University of Ottawa have developed a way of growing human cells and tissue on apples.
  
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• Statins do not benefit patients with lung cancer, new study shows

  27-02-2017 22:16
  Cholesterol-lowering drugs used alongside chemotherapy have no effect on treatment outcomes for lung cancer patients, according to a new study.
  
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• Pacemaker function may be impacted by electric appliances; tools

  27-02-2017 22:16
  Electric and magnetic fields generated from everyday household appliances, electrical tools and more, used in very close proximity to the body, can interfere with the ability of pacemakers to regulate patients' heartbeats. Dedicated device programming, e.g. sensitivity level, is an effective measure to reduce the individual risk of interference.
  
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• Inactivity, excess weight linked to hard-to-treat heart failures

  27-02-2017 22:16
  Lack of exercise and excessive weight are strongly associated with a type of heart failure that has a particularly poor prognosis, researchers determined in an analysis of data from three large studies.
  
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• Drug combination defeats dengue, Ebola in mice, study finds

  27-02-2017 22:16
  A combination of two cancer drugs inhibited both dengue and Ebola virus infections in mice in a study, despite the fact that these two viruses are vastly different from each other.
  
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• Solar eclipse darkens skies across Southern Hemisphere

  27-02-2017 21:28 via cbc.ca
  
  People in the Southern Hemisphere were treated to a solar eclipse on Sunday.
  
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• Preserving vision for astronauts

  27-02-2017 21:23
  As NASA prepares for its journey to Mars, one researcher is investigating why so many astronauts suffer from poorer vision after they return to Earth.
  
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• Limiting lung cancer's spread, growth in the brain

  27-02-2017 21:23
  Researchers analyzed RNA from patients with disease that was limited to the lungs as well as cancers that had spread.
  
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• Finer raw cotton best for oil spill remediation, collaborative research shows

  27-02-2017 21:23
  Cotton, a longtime staple crop on the South Plains and major part of the region’s economy, is growing into a new sector: environmental cleanup following oil spills. Now a new study concludes that finer raw cotton in loose form performs best for absorbing oil.
  
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• Stem cells fiercely abide by innate developmental timing, study shows

  27-02-2017 21:22
  A regenerative biology team is studying whether stem cell differentiation rates can be accelerated in the lab and made available to patients faster.
  
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• New study tests potential treatment to combat Gulf War Illness

  27-02-2017 21:22
  An estimated 25 percent of the 700,000 troops who engaged in the fierce battles of Operation Desert Storm and related Gulf War combat during 1990-91 are fighting a different, but relentless foe: Gulf War illness. A new study tests potential treatment to combat Gulf War illness.
  
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• Wires and supercapacitors constructed inside living plants

  27-02-2017 21:20
  A special structure for storing energy known as a supercapacitor has been constructed in a plant for the first time. The plant, a rose, can be charged and discharged hundreds of times.
  
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• Humans sparked 84 percent of US wildfires, increased fire season over two decades

  27-02-2017 21:20
  Humans have dramatically increased the spatial and seasonal extent of wildfires across the US in recent decades and ignited more than 840,000 blazes in the spring, fall and winter seasons over a 21-year period, according to new research.
  
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• Doctors should discuss herbal medication use with heart disease patients

  27-02-2017 21:20
  Physicians should be well-versed in the herbal medications heart disease patients may take to be able to effectively discuss their clinical implications, potential benefits and side effects—despite a lack of scientific evidence to support their use, according to a review paper.
  
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• Invasive, native marsh grasses may provide similar benefits to protected wetlands

  27-02-2017 21:03
  An invasive species of marsh grass that spreads, kudzu-like, throughout North American wetlands, may provide similar benefits to protected wetlands as native marsh grasses. According to new research, the invasive marsh grass's effects on carbon storage, erosion prevention and plant diversity in protected wetlands are neutral.
  
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• Humans Start Most Wildfires

  27-02-2017 21:00 via rss.sciam.com
  People are responsible for much of the rising cost and ecological damage that wildfires impose
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Recovering predators and prey

  27-02-2017 19:49
  Researchers show how simultaneously restoring predators and prey is much faster and more effective than doing so one at a time.
  
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• CSIS saw 'no high privacy risks' with metadata crunching: internal report

  27-02-2017 19:26 via cbc.ca
  
  The national spy service saw little risk to the personal privacy of Canadians in a evaluation of its secret data-crunching centre, which kept information about Canadians' communications, newly released documents show.
  
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• Bread's environmental costs are counted

  27-02-2017 18:26 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The environmental impact of producing a loaf of bread has been analysed in depth - from the farm to the supermarket shelf.
  
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• Nobel winner: Attack on experts 'undermines science'

  27-02-2017 18:19 via bbc.co.uk
  
  One of UK's top scientists, Sir Paul Nurse, says experts are being "derided and pushed back".
  
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• Bacteria genes offer new strategy for sterilizing mosquitoes

  27-02-2017 17:00
  
  Two genes in Wolbachia bacteria could be used to sterilize mosquitoes that transmit Zika.
  
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• WHO's 'priority pathogens' list highlights urgent need for new drugs

  27-02-2017 16:00 via cbc.ca
  
  The World Health Organization releases its first list of priority pathogens — superbugs that have developed resistance to existing antibiotics. It's a call to action for the world's scientists and drug companies. But those on the front lines say the challenges are daunting.
  
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• Black hole enjoys fantastically long stellar feast

  27-02-2017 15:00
  
  A supermassive black hole about 1.8 billion light-years away has been gorging on the same star for a record-breaking decade.
  
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• Most fish turned into fishmeal are species that we could be eating

  27-02-2017 13:00
  
  Millions of tons of food-grade fish are turned into fishmeal for aquaculture and agriculture.
  
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• Israel's Spacecom begins operating Amos-7 satellite

  27-02-2017 12:22
  
  JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's Space Communications has begun operating a new communications satellite, Amos-7, it said on Monday, a major milestone after it lost two satellites in the past two years.
  
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• WSU research advances energy savings for oil, gas industries

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Washington State University) A Washington State University research team has improved an important catalytic reaction commonly used in the oil and gas industries. The innovation could lead to dramatic energy savings and reduced pollution.
  
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• Woodstoves are good for the soul, bad for the heart

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (McGill University) The risk of acute myocardial infarction for the elderly living in and around small cities is increased by air pollution caused by biomass burning from woodstoves.
  
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• Will naming the Anthropocene lead to acceptance of our planet-level impact?

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Lehigh University) Does a name in itself have sufficient symbolic power to cause a paradigm shift in how humans perceive our role in the changing geological patterns of the planet?That is among the questions with which David Casagrande, associate professor of anthropology at Lehigh University and his colleagues grapple in their latest article in Anthropology Today: 'Ecomyopia in the Anthropocene.'
  
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• What's really in the water

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Pittsburgh) Through a five-year, $500,000 CAREEER Award from the National Science Foundation, a civil and environmental engineering research group at the University of Pittsburgh's Swanson School of Engineering will be developing new DNA sequencing methods to directly measure viral loads in water and better indicate potential threats to human health.
  
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• Volcanic hydrogen spurs chances of finding exoplanet life

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Cornell University) Hunting for habitable exoplanets now may be easier: Cornell University astronomers report that hydrogen pouring from volcanic sources on planets throughout the universe could improve the chances of locating life in the cosmos.
  
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• Universal public coverage of essential medicines would improve access, save billions

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of British Columbia) Publicly funding essential medicines could cover the cost of nearly half of all prescriptions in Canada, removing financial barriers for Canadians while saving $3 billion per year.
  
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• Trials in humans near for antibody to block cocaine's impact on the brain

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center) A University of Cincinnati (UC) researcher who has developed an immunotherapy to help reverse cocaine addiction that's been successful in animal models says he hopes to have it in clinical trials in human volunteers within a year.
  
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• Transforming the carbon economy

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Stanford University) A task force commissioned in 2016 by former U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz has proposed a framework for evaluating R&D on recycling carbon dioxide and removing large amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere. The goal is to produce a global emissions reduction of at least 1 billion tons of CO2 per year.
  
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• Tracking the movement of cyborg cockroaches

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (North Carolina State University) New research offers insights into how far and how fast cyborg cockroaches -- or biobots -- move when exploring new spaces. The work moves researchers closer to their goal of using biobots to explore collapsed buildings and other spaces in order to identify survivors.
  
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• Taking aim at a key malaria molecule

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) A team of MIT biological engineers has developed a method to measure levels of heme, a critical iron-containing molecule, inside the parasite that causes malaria. This could eventually help scientists develop better drugs to combat the disease.
  
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• Super resolution imaging helps determine a stem cell's future

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Rutgers University) Scientists at Rutgers and other universities have created a new way to identify the state and fate of stem cells earlier than previously possible. Understanding a stem cell's fate - the type of cell it will eventually become - and how far along it is in the process of development can help scientists better manipulate cells for stem cell therapy.
  
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• Study sheds light on B.C. youths' experiences with mental health services

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of British Columbia) Through interview excerpts with youth who have experienced first episode psychosis, the study highlights the impacts of mental health services on these young people, including their interactions with psychiatrists, case managers, social workers and supports for housing, recreation, and employment.
  
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• Study aims to see how children with cochlear implants learn words

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (MediaSource) A new study at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center is examining how children with cochlear implants learn new words differently than children with normal hearing. Though implants allow children to hear, many still struggle with language skills for years because learning words with the aid of cochlear implants isn't the same as learning naturally with normal hearing.
  
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• Stars regularly ripped apart by black holes in colliding galaxies

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Sheffield) Astronomers based at the University of Sheffield have found evidence that stars are ripped apart by supermassive black holes 100 times more often than previously thought.
  
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• Spontaneous 'dust traps': Astronomers discover a missing link in planet formation

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Royal Astronomical Society) Planets are thought to form in the disks of dust and gas found around young stars. But astronomers have struggled to assemble a complete theory of their origin that explains how the initial dust develops into planetary systems. A French-UK-Australian team now think they have the answer, with their simulations showing the formation of 'dust traps' where pebble-sized fragments collect and stick together, to grow into the building blocks of planets.
  
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• Sound-shaping super-material invented

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Sussex) A super-material that bends, shapes and focuses sound waves that pass through it has been invented by scientists.
  
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• Scientists reach back in time to discover some of the most power-packed galaxies

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Clemson University) When the universe was young, a supermassive black hole heaved out a jet of particle-infused energy that raced through space at nearly the speed of light. Billions of years later, a trio of Clemson University scientists has identified this black hole and four others similar to it that range in age from 1.4 billion to 1.9 billion years old.
  
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• Science builds bridges, not walls, diplomacy experts tell UA audience

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Arizona College of Engineering) From eradicating weapons of mass destruction to the scourge of malaria, the speakers at a recent University of Arizona conference -- including a Nobel laureate, ambassadors and advisers to secretaries of state -- know firsthand how science can build trust where politics cannot.
  
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• Puzzle of the Maya pendant

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of California - San Diego) A UC San Diego archaeologist found a jade pendant once belonging to an ancient Maya king in what we think of as the provinces of that world. Why was it buried? And might its inscriptions change our understanding of Maya migrations and political history?
  
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• Preventing and treating smoking in children and youth

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Canadian Medical Association Journal) A first-ever guideline from the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care on tobacco use by children and youth aged 5 to 18 years recommends that physicians should play a more active role in the prevention and treatment of cigarette smoking in this age group. The guidelines were published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).
  
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• Pregnancy-specific β1-glycoproteins

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Bentham Science Publishers) Development of new strategies and novel drug design to treat trophoblastic diseases and to provide pregnancy success are of crucial importance in maintenance the female reproductive health.
  
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• PolyU & CASIL signed collaborative research framework agreement to advance aerospace engineering

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University ) The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) and China Aerospace International Holdings Ltd. (CASIL), a public-listed subsidiary of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), reached a strategic collaborative research framework agreement to advance aerospace engineering.
  
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• OU study clarifies risky decision making during a heart attack

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Oklahoma) In a recent study to determine why some individuals who experience symptoms for acute coronary syndrome decide to seek medical attention more quickly than others, a University of Oklahoma researcher has identified numeracy -- the ability to understand and apply numerical concepts as the primary decision delay risk factor for individuals experiencing the medical condition. Cardiovascular disease, which includes conditions such as acute coronary syndrome, is the number one
  
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• Online security apps focus on parental control, not teen self-regulation

  27-02-2017 06:00
  
  (Penn State) Mobile apps designed to keep teens safe online are overwhelmingly focused on parental control, which may be only a short-term solution that hinders a teen's ability to learn coping strategies in the long run. In a study of 74 Android mobile apps designed to promote adolescent online safety, the researchers said that 89 percent of security features on the apps are focused on parental control, while about 11 percent supported teen self-regulation.
  
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