Science news

• Here’s what the Science News family did for the eclipse

  24-08-2017 23:16
  
  On August 21, 2017, the path of a total solar eclipse went coast to coast across the United States. Here are our dispatches.
  
  Read more

• U.S. First Nation declares state of emergency after Atlantic salmon spill near Victoria

  24-08-2017 22:33 via cbc.ca
  A First Nation near Bellingham, Wash., has declared a state of emergency after thousands of Atlantic salmon escaped a U.S. fish farm in the San Juan Islands near Victoria, B.C.
  
  Read more

• On social media, privacy is no longer a personal choice

  24-08-2017 21:30
  
  Data from the now-defunct social platform Friendster show that even people not on social media have predictable qualities.
  
  Read more

• Variation in the recovery of tetrapods after the Permian extinction opened the door for dinosaurs and mammals

  24-08-2017 21:10
  The end-Permian mass extinction (EPME) occurred about 250 million years ago and represents the Earth's most catastrophic extinction event.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Some plasma instabilities can extinguish themselves

  24-08-2017 21:10
  A physicist has for the first time used advanced models to accurately simulate key characteristics of the cyclic behavior of edge-localized modes, a particular type of plasma instability. The findings could help physicists more fully comprehend the behavior of plasma, the hot, charged gas that fuels fusion reactions in doughnut-shaped fusion facilities called tokamaks, and more reliably produce plasmas for fusion reactions.
  
  Read more

• New dinosaur discovery suggests new species roosted together like modern birds

  24-08-2017 21:10
  The Mongolian Desert has been known for decades for its amazing array of dinosaurs, immaculately preserved in incredible detail and in associations that give exceedingly rare glimpses at behavior in the fossil record.
  
  Read more

• Elucidating the biology of huge extinct cave bears

  24-08-2017 21:10
  One of the largest known species of bear, the cave bear (Ursus spelaeus), ranged widely through Eurasia all the way to the Mediterranean in the south and to the Caucasus Mountains and northern Iran in the east during Late Pleistocene times.
  
  Read more

• DNA sensor plays critical role in cancer immunotherapy via response to unexpected DNA form

  24-08-2017 21:09
  Researchers report for the first time that tumors stressed by cancer immunotherapy release their mitochondrial DNA into nearby immune cells, triggering a host alert system.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• DNA detectives crack the case on biothreat look-alikes

  24-08-2017 21:09
  Biological "detectives" are tracking down biothreats such as the bacteria that causes tularemia ("rabbit fever"), but they constantly face the challenge of avoiding false positives. Sounding the alarm over a bioattack, only to find it's a harmless relative in the same genus, reduces credibility and public trust. New work is narrowing down the confusion over Francisella bacteria, a few species of which include highly virulent human and animal pathogens, fish pathogens, opportunistic human pathoge
  
  Read more

• 3-D scanning methods allow an inside look into fossilized feces

  24-08-2017 21:09
  Coprolites are fossilized feces that give evidence of an organism's behavior and often contain food residues, parasite remains and other fossils that provide clues to ancient paleoecological relations.
  
  Read more

• Amazon finalizes Whole Foods takeover, promises lower prices starting Monday

  24-08-2017 20:33 via cbc.ca
  Amazon's $14 billion takeover of Whole Foods becomes official on Monday, and both companies say customers can expect lower prices 'on a selection of best-selling grocery staples across its stores' starting that day.
  
  Read more

• No batteries required: Energy-harvesting yarns generate electricity

  24-08-2017 20:12
  Scientists have developed high-tech yarns that generate electricity when they are stretched or twisted. 'Twistron' yarns have many possible applications, such as harvesting energy from the motion of ocean waves or from temperature fluctuations.
  
  Read more

• New virtual model reveals details of declining lung function in mice

  24-08-2017 20:12
  Scientists have developed a new virtual model of mouse lung function that illuminates the relative importance of different factors that contribute to lung changes accompanying chronic inflammation.
  
  Read more

• Mathematical mystery of ancient Babylonian clay tablet solved

  24-08-2017 20:12
  Scientists have discovered the purpose of a famous 3,700-year old Babylonian clay tablet, revealing it is the world's oldest and most accurate trigonometric table, possibly used by ancient mathematical scribes to calculate how to construct palaces and temples and build canals. The new research shows the Babylonians beat the Greeks to the invention of trigonometry -- the study of triangles -- by more than 1,000 years.
  
  Read more

• Nitty-gritty of Homo naledi’s diet revealed in its teeth

  24-08-2017 20:00
  
  Ancient humanlike species ate something that damaged its teeth.
  
  Read more

• The turbulent cascade in five dimensions

  24-08-2017 19:27
  To the naked eye, turbulent flows exhibit whirls of many different sizes. To each size, or scale, corresponds a fraction of the total energy resulting from a cascade in five dimensions: scale, time, and three-dimensional space. Understanding this process is critical to strategies for modeling geophysical and industrial flows. By tracking the flow regions containing energy in different scales, we have detected the statistical predominance of a cross-scale link whereby fluid lumps of energy at sca
  
  Read more

• Structure and assembly mechanism of plant C2S2M2-type PSII-LHCII supercomplex

  24-08-2017 19:27
  In plants, the photosynthetic machinery photosystem II (PSII) consists of a core complex associated with variable numbers of light-harvesting complexes II (LHCIIs). The supercomplex, comprising a dimeric core and two strongly bound and two moderately bound LHCIIs (C2S2M2), is the dominant form in plants acclimated to limited light. Here we report cryo–electron microscopy structures of two forms of C2S2M2 (termed stacked and unstacked) from Pisum sativum at 2.7- and 3.2-angstrom resolution,
  
  Read more

• Seasonal cycling in the gut microbiome of the Hadza hunter-gatherers of Tanzania

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Although humans have cospeciated with their gut-resident microbes, it is difficult to infer features of our ancestral microbiome. Here, we examine the microbiome profile of 350 stool samples collected longitudinally for more than a year from the Hadza hunter-gatherers of Tanzania. The data reveal annual cyclic reconfiguration of the microbiome, in which some taxa become undetectable only to reappear in a subsequent season. Comparison of the Hadza data set with data collected from 18 populations
  
  Read more

• Ruthenium-catalyzed insertion of adjacent diol carbon atoms into C-C bonds: Entry to type II polyketides

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Current catalytic processes involving carbon-carbon bond activation rely on -unsaturated coupling partners. Exploiting the concept of transfer hydrogenative coupling, we report a ruthenium(0)-catalyzed cycloaddition of benzocyclobutenones that functionalizes two adjacent saturated diol carbon-hydrogen bonds. These regio- and diastereoselective processes enable convergent construction of type II polyketide substructures.
  
  Read more

• Robust epitaxial growth of two-dimensional heterostructures, multiheterostructures, and superlattices

  24-08-2017 19:27
  We report a general synthetic strategy for highly robust growth of diverse lateral heterostructures, multiheterostructures, and superlattices from two-dimensional (2D) atomic crystals. A reverse flow during the temperature-swing stage in the sequential vapor deposition growth process allowed us to cool the existing 2D crystals to prevent undesired thermal degradation and uncontrolled homogeneous nucleation, thus enabling highly robust block-by-block epitaxial growth. Raman and photoluminescence
  
  Read more

• Response to Comment on "Observation of the Wigner-Huntington transition to metallic hydrogen"

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Goncharov and Struzhkin present comments on our observation of metallic hydrogen. We show that most of their comments are unfounded and that our observation of a transition to a shiny, high-reflectance phase remains as evidence that hydrogen has transformed to the metallic phase.
  
  Read more

• Organotypic vasculature: From descriptive heterogeneity to functional pathophysiology

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Blood vessels form one of the body’s largest surfaces, serving as a critical interface between the circulation and the different organ environments. They thereby exert gatekeeper functions on tissue homeostasis and adaptation to pathologic challenge. Vascular control of the tissue microenvironment is indispensable in development, hemostasis, inflammation, and metabolism, as well as in cancer and metastasis. This multitude of vascular functions is mediated by organ-specifically differentiat
  
  Read more

• Optical imaging of surface chemistry and dynamics in confinement

  24-08-2017 19:27
  We imaged the interfacial structure and dynamics of water in a microscopically confined geometry, in three dimensions and on millisecond time scales, with a structurally illuminated wide-field second harmonic microscope. The second harmonic images reported on the orientational order of interfacial water, induced by charge-dipole interactions between water molecules and surface charges. The images were converted into surface potential maps. Spatially resolved surface acid dissociation constant (p
  
  Read more

• Lactobacillus reuteri induces gut intraepithelial CD4+CD8{alpha}{alpha}+ T cells

  24-08-2017 19:27
  The small intestine contains CD4+CD8αα+ double-positive intraepithelial lymphocytes (DP IELs), which originate from intestinal CD4+ T cells through down-regulation of the transcription factor Thpok and have regulatory functions. DP IELs are absent in germ-free mice, which suggests that their differentiation depends on microbial factors. We found that DP IEL numbers in mice varied in different vivaria, correlating with the presence of Lactobacillus reuteri. This species induced DP IEL
  
  Read more

• Intonational speech prosody encoding in the human auditory cortex

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Speakers of all human languages regularly use intonational pitch to convey linguistic meaning, such as to emphasize a particular word. Listeners extract pitch movements from speech and evaluate the shape of intonation contours independent of each speaker’s pitch range. We used high-density electrocorticography to record neural population activity directly from the brain surface while participants listened to sentences that varied in intonational pitch contour, phonetic content, and speaker
  
  Read more

• Harvesting electrical energy from carbon nanotube yarn twist

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Mechanical energy harvesters are needed for diverse applications, including self-powered wireless sensors, structural and human health monitoring systems, and the extraction of energy from ocean waves. We report carbon nanotube yarn harvesters that electrochemically convert tensile or torsional mechanical energy into electrical energy without requiring an external bias voltage. Stretching coiled yarns generated 250 watts per kilogram of peak electrical power when cycled up to 30 hertz, as well a
  
  Read more

• Enhanced water permeability and tunable ion selectivity in subnanometer carbon nanotube porins

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Fast water transport through carbon nanotube pores has raised the possibility to use them in the next generation of water treatment technologies. We report that water permeability in 0.8-nanometer-diameter carbon nanotube porins (CNTPs), which confine water down to a single-file chain, exceeds that of biological water transporters and of wider CNT pores by an order of magnitude. Intermolecular hydrogen-bond rearrangement, required for entry into the nanotube, dominates the energy barrier and can
  
  Read more

• Emergent cellular self-organization and mechanosensation initiate follicle pattern in the avian skin

  24-08-2017 19:27
  The spacing of hair in mammals and feathers in birds is one of the most apparent morphological features of the skin. This pattern arises when uniform fields of progenitor cells diversify their molecular fate while adopting higher-order structure. Using the nascent skin of the developing chicken embryo as a model system, we find that morphological and molecular symmetries are simultaneously broken by an emergent process of cellular self-organization. The key initiators of heterogeneity are dermal
  
  Read more

• Comment on "Observation of the Wigner-Huntington transition to metallic hydrogen"

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Dias and Silvera (Research Article, 17 February 2017, p. 715) claim the observation of the Wigner-Huntington transition to metallic hydrogen at 495 gigapascals. We show that neither the claims of the record pressure nor the phase transition to a metallic state are supported by data and that the data contradict the authors’ own unconfirmed previous results.
  
  Read more

• Actin protects mammalian eggs against chromosome segregation errors

  24-08-2017 19:27
  Chromosome segregation is driven by a spindle that is made of microtubules but is generally thought to be independent of actin. Here, we report an unexpected actin-dependent mechanism that drives the accurate alignment and segregation of chromosomes in mammalian eggs. Prominent actin filaments permeated the microtubule spindle in eggs of several mammalian species, including humans. Disrupting actin in mouse eggs led to significantly increased numbers of misaligned chromosomes as well as lagging
  
  Read more

• SpaceX launches Taiwanese satellite, lands rocket stage

  24-08-2017 19:08 via cbc.ca
  SpaceX made its 12th rocket launch of the year today, carrying a Taiwanese satellite into space, then successfully landing the first stage of the rocket on a barge.
  
  Read more

• Secret life of the dodo revealed

  24-08-2017 17:53 via bbc.co.uk
  Hundreds of years after the dodo died out, new facts are emerging about the life history of the bird.
  
  Read more

• State Department Science Envoy Explains Why Trump Drove Him to Resign

  24-08-2017 16:30 via rss.sciam.com
  Daniel Kammen decries Trump’s attitude and policies on human rights and sustainability 
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
  Read more

• Elon Musk reveals new SpaceX spacesuit

  24-08-2017 16:23 via cbc.ca
  SpaceX has unveiled a sleek white spacesuit for astronauts on its crewed flights coming up next year.
  
  Read more

• ‘Darwin’s Backyard’ chronicles naturalist’s homespun experiments

  24-08-2017 16:00
  
  In the new book Darwin’s Backyard, a biologist explores Charles Darwin’s family life, as well as four decades’ worth of his at-home experiments.
  
  Read more

• First tanker crosses northern sea route without ice breaker

  24-08-2017 15:04 via bbc.co.uk
  Rising Arctic temperatures are boosting commercial shipping in the region, worrying environmentalists.
  
  Read more

• Eagle raids blamed for sharp drop in Stanley Park heron survival

  24-08-2017 15:00 via cbc.ca
  Vancouver's rising population of urban eagles could be responsible for a sharp drop in the survival of heron chicks at the Stanley Park heron colony, park biologists say.
  
  Read more

• 50 years ago, NASA whipped up astronaut waste into rocket fuel

  24-08-2017 15:00
  
  In 1967, scientists found a way to turn human waste into rocket fuel.
  
  Read more

• 'It's alarming': Wildfire emissions grow to triple B.C.'s annual carbon footprint

  24-08-2017 14:00 via cbc.ca
  190 million tonnes of greenhouse gases have been released into the atmosphere from wildfires that have raged across the province, tripling B.C.'s combined annual emissions from the energy, transportation, waste, and resource sectors.
  
  Read more

• Wanted: Illegal Fish Dumpers

  24-08-2017 12:45 via rss.sciam.com
  The Department of Wildlife is offering a bounty for purveyors of invasive fish 
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
  Read more

• Scientists split over snow leopard status

  24-08-2017 11:26 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists are divided on whether snow leopards are still endangered species, a BBC investigation finds.
  
  Read more

• Will escaped farmed salmon endanger B.C.'s wild fish?

  24-08-2017 11:00 via cbc.ca
  The question isn’t why did the salmon leave the net, but what happens now that thousands of fish have escaped a Washington state salmon farm and swum off into the Pacific Ocean. Here's what experts think about the risk to B.C.'s native salmon and local ecosystems.
  
  Read more

• Telescope captures most detailed image of any star beyond the sun

  24-08-2017 11:00 via cbc.ca
  For the first time, astronomers have gotten a glimpse of the surface and atmosphere of a star outside our solar system.
  
  Read more

• Scientists release record number of endangered soft shell turtles

  24-08-2017 11:00 via cbc.ca
  Scientists in London, Ont. are trying to bring the eastern spiny soft shell turtle back from the brink of extinction by releasing a record number of lab-produced hatchings into the wild.
  
  Read more

• Brazil opens vast Amazon reserve to mining

  24-08-2017 06:07 via bbc.co.uk
  The previously-protected area is bigger than Denmark and is thought to be rich in gold.
  
  Read more

• World's oldest Italian wine just discovered

  24-08-2017 06:00
  (University of South Florida (USF Health)) Researchers discover Italian wine residue from the Copper Age, debunking current belief wine growing and wine production in Italy developed during the Middle Bronze Age.
  
  Read more

• Viewers who tweet during presidential debates learn more about political issues

  24-08-2017 06:00
  (University of Missouri-Columbia) A team of researchers at the University of Missouri's Political Communication Institute have found evidence that social media engagement -- or social watching -- during last year's presidential debates produced beneficial effects for those engaged on Twitter while watching the debates on TV. In a pair of studies, communication experts have found that issue-based tweeting was directly related to greater knowledge acquisition, and social watching actually helps vi
  
  Read more

• UTA researchers are refining their automated fact-checking system

  24-08-2017 06:00
  (University of Texas at Arlington) A team of UTA researchers and their collaborators at Duke University, led by Chengkai Li, computer science and engineering associate professor, recently earned a three-year, $500,000 National Science Foundation grant to expand ClaimBuster, a tool they developed to verify facts reported in the media, to include new forms of media and publications and to automate the process as much as possible.
  
  Read more

• Upon prolonged irradiation, human stem cells' defenses are activated

  24-08-2017 06:00
  (Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology) Researchers discovered that ionizing radiation causes a cell cycle delay, which leads to faster repairs of radiation-induced DNA double-strand breaks, with fewer errors. It is unclear what the health implications are, particularly how this affects the risk of developing cancer, but this results could become the basis of further research into double breaks in stem cells and their effect on tumor formation.
  
  Read more

• UNIST launches multicultural internship program with Harvard

  24-08-2017 06:00
  (Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology(UNIST)) South Korea's Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology has signed MoU with Harvard SEAS for academic cooperation.
  
  Read more

Follow @ScienceUKnews on Twitter!