Science news

• Big and brilliant: complex whale behavior tied to brain size

  16-10-2017 23:53
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Cetaceans -- whales and dolphins -- are among the brainiest of beings. In terms of sheer brain size, the sperm whale is tops on Earth, with a brain six times larger than that of a person.
  
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• Farmers frustrated with elk turn to Indigenous hunters who can legally shoot them

  16-10-2017 23:45 via cbc.ca
  Northern Ontario farmers frustrated with elk eating their crops have turned to Indigenous hunters for help. They are within their traditional rights to shoot the protected animals, while the non-Native farmers are not.
  
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• 'Big, bad wolf' image flawed - scientists

  16-10-2017 22:35 via bbc.co.uk
  New research casts doubt on the idea that dogs are naturally more tolerant and friendly than wolves.
  
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• Thunder and lightning: scientists pair gravitational waves, light

  16-10-2017 21:18
  CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Reuters) - Scientists in the United States and Europe have for the first time paired the detection of gravitational waves, the ripples in space and time predicted by Albert Einstein, with light from the same cosmic event, according to research published on Monday.
  
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• New physics books don’t censor the math behind reality

  16-10-2017 21:00
  
  Special Relativity and Classical Theory and The Physical World offer deep dives into physical reality’s mathematical foundations.
  
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• Physically active white men at high risk for plaque buildup in arteries

  16-10-2017 20:48
  White men who exercise at high levels are 86 percent more likely than people who exercise at low levels to experience a buildup of plaque in the heart arteries by middle age, a new study suggests.
  
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• Clues to the Innate Drug Resistance of a Cocoa-Fermenting Pathogen

  16-10-2017 20:48
  At first glance, the yeast Candida krusei seems as innocuous as microbes come: it’s used for fermenting cocoa beans and gives chocolate its pleasant aroma. But it’s increasingly being found as a pathogen in immunocompromised patients — and C. krusei infections aren’t always easy to cure.
  
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• Mechanism explains how seizures may lead to memory loss

  16-10-2017 20:47
  A team of researchers reveals a mechanism that can explain how even relatively infrequent seizures can lead to long-lasting cognitive deficits in animal models.
  
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• Stress might be just as unhealthy as junk food to digestive system

  16-10-2017 20:24
  We all know that a poor diet is unhealthy, but a new study finds that stress may just as harmful to our bodies as a really bad diet.
  
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• Gut fungi might be linked to obesity and inflammatory bowel disorders

  16-10-2017 20:00
  
  Fungi are overlooked contributors to health and disease.
  
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• Break the attachment before selling your stuff

  16-10-2017 19:26
  Ever tried to sell something you've owned for a while on Craigslist and found that no one is willing to pony up what you're asking? It's because you're asking too much.
  
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• To understand the origins of pain, ask a flatworm

  16-10-2017 18:46
  
  A danger-sensing protein responds to hydrogen peroxide in planarians, results that hint at the evolutionary origins of people’s pain sensing.
  
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• How many opioid painkillers do surgery patients need? New prescribing recommendations unveiled

  16-10-2017 18:45
  Surgeons performing 11 common operations can turn to a free new prescribing tool based on data about how many opioid painkillers patients across Michigan actually took after their operations.
  
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• Whales and dolphins have rich 'human-like' cultures and societies

  16-10-2017 18:22
  Whales and dolphins (cetaceans) live in tightly-knit social groups, have complex relationships, talk to each other and even have regional dialects -- much like human societies. A major new study has linked the complexity of Cetacean culture and behavior to the size of their brains.
  
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• Nidoviruses redundantly express genes and encode more proteins than previously believed, study finds

  16-10-2017 18:21
  Arteriviruses, a family of single-stranded RNA viruses that belongs to the order Nidovirales, produce more proteins and messenger RNAs than previously reported, a finding that provides important insights about a virus that could potentially evolve to infect humans in the future, according to a new research study.
  
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• How cells induce inflammation upon detection of cytoplasmic DNA

  16-10-2017 18:21
  A research team has elucidated the mechanism by which human cells induce inflammation upon detection of cytoplasmic DNA. Notably, the signal network involved differs from that used in the same context in mice.
  
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• Gestational diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk

  16-10-2017 18:21
  A history of gestational diabetes was associated with a modest higher long-term risk of cardiovascular disease in women in a new study, although the absolute rate of cardiovascular disease was low in the study's younger group of predominantly white women and adhering to a healthy lifestyle over time appeared to help mitigate the risk, according to a new article.
  
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• Bolstering fat cells offers potential new leukemia treatment

  16-10-2017 18:21
  Killing cancer cells indirectly by powering up fat cells in the bone marrow could help acute myeloid leukemia patients, says a new study. Researchers found that boosting adipocytes, or fat cells, located in the bone morrow suppressed cancerous leukemia cells but -- in a surprise to the research team -- also induced the regeneration of healthy blood cells.
  
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• Bite on this: Alligators caught eating sharks

  16-10-2017 18:21
  Jaws, beware! Alligators may be coming for you. A new study documents American alligators on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts are eating small sharks and stingrays. This is the first scientific documentation of a widespread interaction between the two predators.
  
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• Auto-fix tool gets more programmers to upgrade code, study finds

  16-10-2017 18:21
  Failure to make necessary upgrades to software code can have dire consequences, such as the major data breach at Equifax. A recent study finds that auto-fix tools are effective ways to get programmers to make the relevant upgrades -- if programmers opt to use them.
  
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• Neutron stars: 'Hear' the mighty cosmic collision

  16-10-2017 17:44 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists convert the gravitational wave signal from merging neutron stars into sound.
  
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• A dog called Odin survives California wildfires after refusing to abandon his goats

  16-10-2017 17:28 via cbc.ca
  Roland Hendel fought back tears as he described leaving behind his beloved family dog Odin as raging wildfires approached his home.
  
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• Hydrothermal vents found on Mars raise hope in search for life

  16-10-2017 17:00 via cbc.ca
  ​Evidence of ancient hydrothermal vents, similar to those found in the depths of the Earth's oceans have been spotted on the surface of Mars. Quirks & Quarks host Bob McDonald explores what that means for the search for life.
  
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• Scientists identify biomarker for progression, drug response in brain cancer

  16-10-2017 16:28
  Scientists have reported results from a glioblastoma study in which they validated a biomarker indicative of a patient's prognosis and likely response to specific therapies.
  
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• Scientists demonstrate path to linking the genome to healthy tissues, disease

  16-10-2017 16:28
  A study has reached a major milestone in establishing a baseline understanding of gene expression across healthy human tissues, and linking genes to disease.
  
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• Radio 'eyes' unlocking secrets of neutron-star collision

  16-10-2017 16:28
  When a pair of superdense neutron stars collided and potentially formed a black hole in a galaxy 130 million light-years from Earth, they unleashed not only a train of gravitational waves but also an ongoing torrent of radio waves that are answering some of the biggest questions about the nature of such a cataclysmic event.
  
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• Harvey runoff menaces Texas' coral reefs

  16-10-2017 16:28
  The more than 13 trillion gallons of floodwater from Hurricane Harvey have created a massive plume of freshwater in the Gulf of Mexico that is threatening the coral reefs of the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary about 100 miles offshore of Galveston.
  
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• Gravitational waves plus new clues from space reveal new way to make a black hole

  16-10-2017 16:28
  For the first time, scientists have detected both gravitational waves and light shooting toward our planet from the birthplace of a new black hole created by the merger of two neutron stars. The discovery marks the beginning of a new era of
  
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• Gamma-ray burst detection just what researchers exclusively predicted

  16-10-2017 16:28
  More than a month before a game-changing detection of a short gamma-ray burst, scientists predicted such a discovery would occur.
  
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• Astronomers strike cosmic gold, confirm origin of precious metals in neutron star mergers

  16-10-2017 16:28
  What many thought would be a long way off, the detection of gravitational waves from the merger of binary neutron stars, actually happened on Aug. 17. The observation of a blue and then red glow from the radioactive debris cloud left behind matched simulations of what the merger should look like, proving that such mergers are the source of most of the very heavy elements in the universe, including gold.
  
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• In first, scientists detect gravitational waves and light from star collision

  16-10-2017 16:17
  CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Reuters) - Scientists in the United States and Europe have for the first time detected gravitational waves, the ripples in space and time predicted by Albert Einstein, at the same time as light from the same cosmic event, according to research published on Monday.
  
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• Flaw lets hackers read data over secure Wi-Fi

  16-10-2017 16:01 via cbc.ca
  The U.S. Department of Homeland Security warns of cyber risks associated with a widely used system for securing Wi-Fi communications after Belgian researchers discovered a flaw that could allow hackers to read information thought to be encrypted, or infect websites with malware.
  
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• Neutron star collision showers the universe with a wealth of discoveries

  16-10-2017 16:00
  
  A collision of neutron stars was spotted with gravitational waves for the first time. Telescopes captured gamma rays, visible light and more from the smashup.
  
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• Gravitational Wave Astronomers Hit Mother Lode

  16-10-2017 16:00 via rss.sciam.com
  Spacetime ripples from a stellar cataclysm in a distant galaxy help explain the cosmic origins of gold, and chart the course for a new age of “multimessenger” astronomy
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Astronomers see source of gravitational waves for 1st time

  16-10-2017 16:00 via cbc.ca
  A never-before-seen explosion from the merger of two dense astral bodies known as neutron stars has been viewed with telescopes for the first time.
  
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• Mass die-off of Antarctic penguin chicks alarms researchers

  16-10-2017 14:44 via cbc.ca
  Thousands of chicks from a large Adelie penguin colony in the eastern Antarctic died of starvation last summer.
  
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• How this camel ended up in Norway

  16-10-2017 13:57 via bbc.co.uk
  The Saetereng family are trying to live a sustainable lifestyle in Akkarfjord, northern Norway.
  
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• Could AI Be the Future of Fake News and Product Reviews?

  16-10-2017 12:45 via rss.sciam.com
  An experiment using a computer algorithm to create deceptive Yelp reviews was disturbingly successful, and could point to bigger problems as artificial intelligence matures
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• UBC researchers pull paper linking vaccine component to autism after data alleged to be manipulated

  16-10-2017 11:00 via cbc.ca
  Researchers from the University of British Columbia are retracting their scientific paper linking aluminum in vaccines to autism in mice, because one of the co-authors claims figures published in the study were deliberately altered before publication — an issue he says he realized after allegations of data manipulation surfaced online.
  
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• 1,000mph 'Bloodhound' rocket car fires up

  16-10-2017 10:36 via bbc.co.uk
  World Land Speed record holder Andy Green describes the sensation of starting up the Bloodhound supersonic car for the first time.
  
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• Women in science ask fewer questions than men, according to new research

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Oxford) Stereotypes suggest that women love to talk, with some studies even finding that women say three times as much as men. But, new research from a team from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, shows there is an exception to this rule: professional STEM events, which could be indicative of the wider problem of gender inequality in the field.
  
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• Winners of 2017 D.C. Public Health Case Challenge announced at NAM Annual Meeting

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine) The winners of the fifth annual D.C. Public Health Case Challenge were announced at this year's National Academy of Medicine Annual Meeting.The challenge aims to promote interdisciplinary, problem-based learning around a public health issue of importance to the local Washington, D.C. community.
  
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• West Virginians say Opioid epidemic most important health issue in the state

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (Research!America) The opioid epidemic is the most important health issue in West Virginia, above obesity, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and dental disease, according to a state-based public opinion survey commissioned by Research!America. A strong majority of West Virginians (84%) say prescription pain medication abuse and addiction is a major problem in their community, and more than two-thirds (71%) say they know someone who experienced pain so severe they sought prescr
  
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• UTA researchers earn grant to help Texas city prioritize post-Harvey debris cleanup

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Texas at Arlington) Researchers at The University of Texas at Arlington have been awarded a $34,000 National Science Foundation RAPID grant to use unmanned aerial vehicles to create highly accurate 3-D and profile maps of the storm debris so the city knows the full extent of what it needs to remove.
  
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• UTA aerospace engineer receives Army grant to advance limitations of computed tomography

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Texas at Arlington) Andrew Makeev, professor in the University of Texas at Arlington's Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, received a $900,000 grant from the Army Research Lab to address the Army's need for better structural diagnostics and life assessment in composite aircraft parts.
  
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• University of Houston honored for commitment to diversity

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Houston) The University of Houston and two of its divisions have been honored with the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award for the second year in a row. The HEED awards, presented by INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, are the only national honor recognizing US colleges and universities that demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion across their campus.
  
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• Tweeting rage: How immigration policies can polarize public discourse

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Washington) In a University of Washington study of tweets in the months before and after the 2010 passage of Arizona's 'show me your papers' law, findings show that the average tweet about Mexican immigrants and Hispanics, in general, became more negative. Assistant Professor of Sociology Rene Flores said the social media data was useful in determining whether people had changed their attitudes about immigrants as a result of the law or whether they had begun behaving differently.
  
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• TSRI's Benjamin Cravatt elected to National Academy of Medicine

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (Scripps Research Institute) A prominent and inventive chemical biologist, Cravatt's research focuses on the role proteins play in cellular processes.
  
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• Toward efficient high-pressure desalination

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) One of the biggest operational challenges for desalination plants is the fouling of membranes by microbes. New research from MIT suggests a novel approach to reducing the rate of fouling, and thus improving desalination plant efficiency.
  
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• Tandon researcher engineering antidotes to chemical weapons

  16-10-2017 06:00
  (NYU Tandon School of Engineering) Jin Montclare, a professor at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering is participating in a US government program to thwart chemical weapons by improving upon compounds known to neutralize them. Montclare was awarded a $349,040 grant by the US government's CounterACT (Countermeasures Against Chemical Threats) program furthering her work on phosphotriesterase (PTE), which can deactivate the active compound in agents like VX.
  
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