Science news

• Colorectal cancer is on the rise among younger adults

  01-03-2017 23:16
  
  Colorectal cancer rates in the United States have increased in people younger than 50.
  
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• Hundreds of North American bee species face extinction: study

  01-03-2017 22:20
  
  (Reuters) - More than 700 of the 4,000 native bee species in North America and Hawaii are believed to be inching toward extinction due to increased pesticide use leading to habitat loss, a scientific study showed on Wednesday.
  
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• Canadian bacteria-like fossils called oldest evidence of life

  01-03-2017 22:07
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Microfossils up to almost 4.3 billion years old found in Canada of microbes are similar to the bacteria that thrive today around sea floor hydrothermal vents and may represent the oldest-known evidence of life on Earth, scientists said on Wednesday.
  
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• Snooze news: elephants may sleep less than any other mammal

  01-03-2017 22:01
  
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - There's an old saying that elephants never forget. You also can say they almost never sleep.
  
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• Watch Live Today: The James Webb Space Telescope Will Spark a New Era in Astronomy [Video]

  01-03-2017 20:30 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Astronomer Amber Straughn will present a free live Webcast tonight at 7 P.M. Eastern time about NASA’s revolutionary space observatory
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Wild elephants clock shortest shut-eye recorded for mammals

  01-03-2017 20:01
  
  Among mammals, wild elephants may need the least amount of sleep, new measurements suggest.
  
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• We've created 208 new minerals: Time for a new, human-influenced Anthropocene epoch?

  01-03-2017 20:00 via cbc.ca
  
  Humans have created 208 new minerals, bolstering the argument that the planet has entered a new epoch in its geological history, a study being published today finds.
  
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• Found: Thousands of Man-Made Minerals--Another Argument for the Anthropocene

  01-03-2017 20:00 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Future geologists will find thousands of human-made minerals in the ruins of our civilization
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• Oldest traces of life on Earth found in Quebec, dating back roughly 3.8 billion years

  01-03-2017 19:56 via cbc.ca
  
  A team of international scientists has found the oldest record of life on Earth in Northern Quebec, dating back at least 3.8 billion years.
  
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• Earliest evidence of life on Earth 'found'

  01-03-2017 19:02 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Researchers discover fossils of what may be some of earliest living organisms.
  
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• Oldest microfossils suggest life thrived on Earth about 4 billion years ago

  01-03-2017 19:00
  
  A new claim for the oldest microfossils on Earth suggests that life may have originated in hydrothermal vents, but some scientists have doubts.
  
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• Big fashion brands join B.C. group's efforts to halt destruction of endangered forests

  01-03-2017 18:15 via cbc.ca
  
  Major clothing brands like Timberland, Vans and The North Face say they will no longer make products derived from ancient, endangered forests — and it's all thanks to the advocacy of a B.C. environmental group.
  
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• Records reveal Antarctica hit record temperature of 17.5 C

  01-03-2017 16:14 via cbc.ca
  
  An Argentine research base near the northern tip of the Antarctic peninsula has set a heat record at a balmy 17.5 C, the U.N. weather agency said on Wednesday.
  
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• How to monitor urine in pools, by testing sweetness

  01-03-2017 14:49
  Even though Olympic swimmers have admitted doing it, peeing in the pool is not a condoned practice. Urine contributes to the formation of compounds in pool water that can be harmful to people's health. Now scientists are tackling a new way to monitor water quality: by measuring how sweet it is.
  
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• Highest temperatures recorded for antarctic region

  01-03-2017 14:49
  The World Meteorological Organization announced today new verified record high- temperatures in Antarctica, ranging from the high 60s (in Fahrenheit) to the high teens, depending on the location they were recorded in Antarctica. Knowledge and verification of such extremes are important in the study of weather patterns, climate variability and human induced change, report scientists.
  
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• A galaxy on the edge

  01-03-2017 14:49
  This colorful stripe of stars, gas, and dust is actually a spiral galaxy named NGC 1055. Captured here by ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), this big galaxy is thought to be up to 15 percent larger in diameter than the Milky Way. NGC 1055 appears to lack the whirling arms characteristic of a spiral, as it is seen edge-on. However, it displays odd twists in its structure that were probably caused by an interaction with a large neighboring galaxy.
  
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• Does pre-eclampsia during pregnancy increase risk to mothers' eyes?

  01-03-2017 14:47
  Pre-eclampsia may be associated with retinal disease in the mother later in life, new research indicates. Pre-eclampsia is a pregnancy complication characterized by high blood pressure and large amounts of protein in the urine. According to this study, more severe and earlier-onset pre-eclampsia was associated with even higher risk.
  
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• New research shows gluten contributes to the development of a very rare, but deadly, blood cancer in a small group of celiac patients

  01-03-2017 14:38
  Scientists have revealed how gluten plays a role in the development of a rare form of cancer, for some people with celiac disease.
  
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• Wound healing: The stem cell dynamic

  01-03-2017 14:37
  One of the key questions in biology is to identify how tissues are repaired after trauma and understand how stem cells migrate, proliferate, and differentiate to repair tissue damage. Researchers define, for the first time, the changes in the stem cell dynamics that contribute to wound healing.
  
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• Stem cells derived neuronal networks grown on a chip as an alternative to animal testing

  01-03-2017 14:37
  Scientists have developed an in vitro stem cell-based bioassay grown on multi-electrode arrays capable of detecting the biological activity of Clostridium botulinum neurotoxins. Their assay could serve in minimizing animal experiments as well as provide a physiological relevant platform for drug-screening of neuroactive compounds.
  
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• Exercise helps prevent falls in Parkinson's patients

  01-03-2017 14:37
  Statistics show that 25 per cent of recently diagnosed patients suffered a fall in the first year. That came as a surprise to researchers. They had thought that falls tended to occur during later stages of the disease.
  
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• Transgender children are at greater risk of mental health problems

  01-03-2017 13:00
  
  The Trump administration has rescinded federal protections for transgender kids in public schools, a move that the American Academy of Pediatrics condemns.
  
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• 'Best ever' view of what a dinosaur really looked like

  01-03-2017 11:35 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Lasers reveal invisible details of the shape of a feathered dinosaur that lived 160 million years ago.
  
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• Scotland's non-biting midges

  01-03-2017 10:50 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A new species of midge has been discovered but there is no need to reach for the insect repellent.
  
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• Meet the Kelowna instructor on shortlist to be Canada's next astronaut

  01-03-2017 07:24 via cbc.ca
  
  After about 3,700 Canadians applied to go into space, the list has been whittled down to 72 candidates. Richard Federley, a chemistry instructor at UBC Okanagan, is one of them.
  
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• Yale-led team puts dark matter on the map

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Yale University) A Yale-led team has produced one of the highest-resolution maps of dark matter ever created, offering a detailed case for the existence of cold dark matter -- sluggish particles that comprise the bulk of matter in the universe.
  
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• White paper proposes democratized OA academic journal publishing to solve serials crisis

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Scholastica) White paper by Scholastica featuring insights from 5 expert open access advocates argues decentralizing the academic journal market by using services to insource publishing among nonprofit groups of scholars will pave the way for sustainable open access to research.
  
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• What happens when patients access their mental health providers' notes?

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Veterans Affairs Research Communications) Thanks to electronic health records and online portals, more and more patients have access to the notes their clinicians write about their health care visits. A study from one Veterans Affairs medical center offers insight into the potential for this feature, known as OpenNotes, to help -- or hurt -- patients' trust in their mental health clinicians.
  
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• Vickery Meadows requests strategic plan from UTA's Institute of Urban Studies

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Texas at Arlington) The University of Texas at Arlington's Institute of Urban Studies is formulating a strategic plan for Dallas' Vickery Meadow, a burgeoning, densely populated neighborhood in northeast Dallas.
  
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• UW security researchers show Google's anti-internet troll AI platform is easily deceived

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Washington) University of Washington researchers have shown that Google's new machine learning-based system to identify toxic comments in online discussion forums can be bypassed by simply misspelling or adding unnecessary punctuation to abusive words, such as 'idiot' or 'moron.'
  
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• UTA student senior design project yields patent on smart bandage

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Texas at Arlington) Two faculty advisers -- engineering professors Panos Shiakolas and Pranesh Aswath -- supervised a student team, led by Letia Blanco, about five years ago in designing and building a smart bandage, which allowed more efficient healing of wounds and delivery of multiple drugs on their own time schedules to the wound, she wasn't sure what would become of it.
  
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• US workers without paid sick leave more likely to forego preventive health care

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Florida Atlantic University) More than 20 million Americans have gained health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and do not have to pay for 15 preventive screenings recommended by the US Preventive Services Task Force. Yet, despite this advantage, many are not utilizing these lifesaving screenings and are contributing to this nation's soaring health care costs, which reached a whopping $3 trillion in 2014.
  
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• Understanding and predicting snow behavior

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Luxembourg) Engineers from the University of Luxembourg are developing a computer model that can help solving typical snow-related engineering problems. The model could, for example, be used to anticipate avalanches, to determine the load on buildings caused by snow or calculate the traction of vehicles on snow-covered surfaces by predicting the behavior of snow.
  
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• Tweaking electrolyte makes better lithium-metal batteries

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) New research shows adding a pinch of chemical additive to a lithium-metal battery's electrolyte helps make rechargeable batteries that are stable, charge quickly, and go longer in between charges than lithium-ion batteries.
  
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• Tree scars record 700 years of natural and cultural fire history in a northern forest

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Ecological Society of America) Distinguishing human from climatic influence on historical fire patterns is critical to forest management planning, which is guided by historical patterns of fire frequency, size, and intensity. In a report publishedin the Ecological Society of America's journal Ecological Monographs, a Norwegian forest tells a story of a surge in human-instigated fires during the 17th and 18th centuries, followed by fire suppression after AD 1800, as economic motivations changed.
  
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• Three Pitt chemical engineering faculty receive NSF CAREER awards totaling $1.5 million

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Pittsburgh) For the first time at Pitt's Swanson School of Engineering, three junior faculty in one department received NSF CAREER awards. Each award includes an educational component for K-12 STEM.
  
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• The ultimate power nap

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of the Witwatersrand) Behavioural studies of elephant sleep in zoos record that they sleep around four hours per day and can sleep standing up or lying down -- but how much do they sleep and how do they sleep in their natural environment? Wits researchers have made use of small activity data loggers, scientific versions of the well-known consumer fitness and wellness tracker, Fitbit, to study the sleeping patterns of elephants in the wild.
  
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• The shifting rationales for vaping

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (San Diego State University) A new study harnesses social media data to explore -- in their own words -- the reasons people use e-cigarettes and why they started vaping in the first place. Nearly half of people say they began vaping in an effort to quit smoking cigarettes, while other reasons included their taste, the ability to use them indoors and their 'cool factor.'
  
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• Telephone-based collaborative care program eases anxiety

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences) A study led by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh found that a telephone-delivered collaborative care program for treating panic and generalized anxiety disorders in primary care is significantly more effective than doctors' usual care at improving health-related quality of life, anxiety and mood symptoms.
  
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• Teens drive more safely in the months after a crash

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Association for Psychological Science) Teens' risky driving drops considerably in the two months following a serious collision, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The research, involving data on actual driving behavior from over 250 teens, suggests that involvement in a severe crash may prompt adolescents to engage in safer driving behavior.
  
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• Tailored preventive oral health intervention improves dental health among elderly

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Eastern Finland) A tailored preventive oral health intervention significantly improved the cleanliness of teeth and dentures among elderly home care clients. In addition, functional ability and cognitive function were strongly associated with better oral hygiene, according to a new study from the University of Eastern Finland. The study is part of a larger intervention study, NutOrMed, and the findings were published in the Age and Aging journal.
  
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• Synthetic tooth enamel may lead to more resilient structures

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Michigan) Unavoidable vibrations, such as those on airplanes, cause rigid structures to age and crack, but researchers at the University of Michigan may have an answer for that -- design them more like tooth enamel, which could lead to more resilient flight computers, for instance.
  
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• Study: Unequal distribution of power in young adult relationships more harmful to women

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University at Buffalo) Power imbalances in heterosexual relationships are common, but having less power takes a greater toll on young women than young men, according to a recently published University at Buffalo study.
  
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• Study shows role of depression in the ongoing tobacco epidemic

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health) The prevalence of smoking has remained fairly stable over the past decade after declining sharply for many years. To determine whether there was an increase in certain barriers to successful cessation, researchers analyzed changes in the prevalence of depression among current, former and never smokers in the US. The team found that depression appeared to have significantly increased in the U.S. from 2005 to 2013 among smokers, as well as am
  
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• Study: Physicians not prepared for male patients who perpetrate intimate partner violence

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Boston University Medical Center) Family medicine physicians feel underprepared to serve patients whom they know are perpetrators of intimate partner violence, particularly if they also provide care to the victim. These findings appear in the Journal of American Board of Family Medicine.
  
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• Study: More customer information can help Airbnb address discrimination

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Indiana University) New research by an Indiana University Kelley School of Business professor suggests that companies in the sharing economy can eliminate discrimination by encouraging clients to write reviews and by designing better ways to share information that signals guest quality.
  
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• Study finds participants feel moral outrage toward those who decide to not have children

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Indiana University) Data representing individuals from across the United States indicates that US adults are increasingly delaying the decision to have children or forgoing parenthood entirely. Yet evidence suggests that voluntarily child-free people are stigmatized for this decision, according to a study published in the March 2017 edition of Sex Roles: A Journal of Research.
  
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• Singing posters and talking shirts: UW engineers turn objects into FM stations

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Washington) A new technique pioneered by University of Washington engineers enables 'singing' posters and 'smart' clothing to send audio or data directly to your car's radio or your smartphone by piggybacking on ambient FM radio signals.
  
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• Scientists develop spectacles for X-ray lasers

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY) An international team of scientists has tailored special X-ray glasses to concentrate the beam of an X-ray laser stronger than ever before. The individually produced corrective lens eliminates the inevitable defects of an X-ray optics stack almost completely and concentrates three quarters of the X-ray beam to a spot with 250 nanometers diameter, closely approaching the theoretical limit. The team surrounding DESY lead scientist Christian Schroer presents
  
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• Researchers imitate molecular crowding in cells

  01-03-2017 06:00
  
  (University of Basel) Enzymes behave differently in a test tube compared with the molecular scrum of a living cell. Chemists from the University of Basel have now been able to simulate these confined natural conditions in artificial vesicles for the first time. As reported in the academic journal Small, the results are offering better insight into the development of nanoreactors and artificial organelles.
  
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