Science news

• Inbreeding hurts the next generation’s reproductive success

  23-10-2017 23:46
  
  Inbreeding has evolutionary consequences for humans.
  
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• EPA keeps agency scientists from speaking on climate change at conference

  23-10-2017 22:19 via cbc.ca
  The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency kept three scientists from speaking at a Monday event in a move condemned by researchers and Democratic members of Congress as an attempt by the agency to silence a discussion of climate change.
  
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• Mating with Neandertals reintroduced ‘lost’ DNA into modern humans

  23-10-2017 20:43
  
  Neandertal DNA brought back some old genetic heirlooms to modern humans.
  
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• 12 big cities sign 'fossil-fuel-free streets' declaration

  23-10-2017 20:30 via cbc.ca
  Twelve major cities including Vancouver, London and Paris, promised on Monday to buy only zero-emissions buses from 2025 and to make major areas free of fossil fuel emissions by 2030 to protect the environment.
  
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• Small-Minded Strategy: The Common Shrew Shrinks Its Head to Survive Winter

  23-10-2017 18:00 via rss.sciam.com
  The startling change may help conserve energy
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Apple sees its mobile devices as platform for artificial intelligence

  23-10-2017 16:05
  TAIPEI (Reuters) - Apple Incsees its mobile devices as a major platform for artificial intelligence in the future, Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams said on Monday.
  
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• New U.S. ambassador to Canada Kelly Craft says she believes 'both sides' of climate science

  23-10-2017 15:52 via cbc.ca
  Kelly Craft begins her job as U.S. ambassador to Canada today at a time of delicate diplomatic talks on the North American Free Trade Agreement.
  
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• 'No threat': Civil liberties groups support Chelsea Manning's bid to cross Canadian border

  23-10-2017 15:00 via cbc.ca
  A Canadian lawyer representing Chelsea Manning has formally requested the Canadian government rethink its decision to block the whistleblower from entering the country.
  
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• Environment Canada scales back climate measurements at Alert due to staff shortage

  23-10-2017 13:45 via cbc.ca
  Canada’s northernmost federal weather and research station is scaling back some environmental measurements and may suspend others for six months due to a staff shortage, CBC News has learned. Scientists say that will leave a permanent gap in records needed to understand global climate change.
  
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• How bird feeders may be changing great tits’ beaks

  23-10-2017 13:00
  
  Longer beaks may be evolving in U.K. great tits because of the widespread use of bird feeders in the country.
  
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• Amazon backs German artificial intelligence research hub

  23-10-2017 12:59
  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Amazon.com will open an artificial intelligence research center in the German university city of Tuebingen, creating 100 jobs over the next five years.
  
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• Astrophysicist Leads a Tour of the 'Zoomable' Universe"

  23-10-2017 12:45 via rss.sciam.com
  A conversation with scientist and author Caleb Scharf about the relative scales of the universe, the limits of knowledge and finding significance in life
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Right whales could be 20 years away from certain extinction, scientists say

  23-10-2017 12:00 via cbc.ca
  Scientists at an annual meeting for North Atlantic right whales estimate the species has a little over two decades left to survive unless changes are made immediately.
  
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• Right whales could be 20 years away from certain extinction, say scientists

  23-10-2017 12:00 via cbc.ca
  Scientists at an annual meeting for North Atlantic right whales estimate the species has a little over two decades left to survive unless changes are made immediately.
  
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• Wealth-associated disparities in death, disability in older adults in US, England

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (The JAMA Network Journals) Low wealth was associated with death and disability among older adults in both the United States and England, two countries with very different health care and safety-net systems, according to a new article published by JAMA Internal Medicine.
  
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• UTSA receives $5 million to support new cybersecurity education pipeline

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Texas at San Antonio) The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) has received a five-year, $5 million grant from the National Science Foundation to create a multidisciplinary center fostering education and research at the intersection of cybersecurity and cloud computing.
  
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• UTA study points to inefficiencies in Dallas mass transit

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Texas at Arlington) Lack of access to good-paying jobs is one of the primary products of a largely inefficient Dallas transit system, according to a city of Dallas-commissioned study conducted by Shima Hamidi, director of The University of Texas at Arlington's Institute of Urban Studies, and her research team.
  
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• USDA grants to spur innovations to slash pesticide use

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (ISCA Technologies Inc.) Federal grants fund environmentally-friendly pheromone pest-controls and strategy to increases fruit blossom bee pollination rates.
  
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• University of Miami launches Cuba and the Caribbean special report

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Miami) In its newly published Cuba and the Caribbean Special Report, the University of Miami (UM) brings front-and-center it's long history with Cuba, Haiti and other nations and communities in the Caribbean.
  
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• UCI neurobiologists aim to identify biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of California - Irvine) With $3.8 million in support from the National Institute on Aging, University of California, Irvine, neurobiologists are working to identify the early indicators of dementia in older adults as disease-related brain plaques accumulate but before symptoms can be observed.
  
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• Trial shows drug can dramatically reduce weight of people with obesity

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Leeds) A drug that targets the appetite control system in the brain could bring about significant weight loss in people with clinical obesity, according to new research.
  
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• Transparent solar technology represents 'wave of the future'

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Michigan State University) See-through solar materials that can be applied to windows represent a massive source of untapped energy and could harvest as much power as bigger, bulkier rooftop solar units, scientists report today in Nature Energy.
  
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• Transformative donation of $16 million establishes new autism research centre at the Montreal Neurol

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (McGill University) A new research center in Montreal will help lift the shroud of mystery surrounding autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and lead to the development of better diagnostic tools and more effective therapies for people with autism.
  
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• The opioid crisis: 'What have we learned and where do we go from here'?

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Wolters Kluwer Health) Anesthesiology and pain medicine should play a leading role in developing effective alternatives and solutions to the US opioid crisis, according to the November issue of Anesthesia & Analgesia -- a special thematic issue presenting information on the "background, problems, and possible solutions to the opioid epidemic."
  
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• TGen is one of 25 research groups sharing $9 million to combat drug-resistant bacteria

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (The Translational Genomics Research Institute) The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) is one of 25 research groups selected by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to share $9 million in grants to explore innovative solutions to the worsening problem of drug-resistant bacteria. The CDC awarded TGen funding for a pilot investigation of how to best use human genomic technology to help track person-to-person transmission of pathogens.
  
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• Teens who vape higher doses of nicotine are more likely to become regular smokers, vapers

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Southern California) Even if it tastes like Gummi Bears and is inhaled as smoke-free aerosol, vaping higher concentrations of nicotine may increase how often teenagers use electronic cigarettes or smoke traditional cigarettes. This is the first study to evaluate the association of e-cigarette nicotine concentration with future smoking and vaping behavior in youth. In comparison to teens who vaped nicotine-free e-cigarettes, those who vaped high-nicotine e-cigarettes smoked multipl
  
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• Teams work better with a little help from your friends

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Ohio State University) Here's something both you and your boss can agree on: Workplace teams are better when they include your friends. Researchers analyzed the results of 26 different studies (called a meta-analysis) and found that teams composed of friends performed better on some tasks than groups of acquaintances or strangers.
  
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• Taming 'wild' electrons in graphene

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Rutgers University) Graphene -- a one-atom-thick layer of the stuff in pencils -- is a better conductor than copper and is very promising for electronic devices, but with one catch: Electrons that move through it can't be stopped. Until now, that is. Scientists at Rutgers University-New Brunswick have learned how to tame the unruly electrons in graphene, paving the way for the ultra-fast transport of electrons with low loss of energy in novel systems. Their study was published online in Nature
  
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• Support for populist ideologies linked to feelings of disadvantage and national narcissism

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Kent) New research shows that people who perceive they are part of a disadvantaged group are more likely to have an unrealistic belief in the greatness of their nation and support populist ideologies.
  
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• Study shows mindfulness meditation app works -- but acceptance training component is crucial

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Carnegie Mellon University) A Carnegie Mellon University-led study found that one component of mindfulness interventions is particularly important for impacting stress biology. Acceptance, or learning how to be open and accepting of the way things are in each moment, is critical for the training's stress reduction effects. Published in Psychoneuroendocrinology, the researchers offer the first scientific evidence that a brief mindfulness meditation mobile app that incorporates acceptance trainin
  
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• Stephen Hawking's Ph.D. thesis goes online for the first time

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Cambridge) Stephen Hawking's Ph.D. thesis, 'Properties of expanding universes', has been made freely available to anyone, anywhere in the world, after being made accessible via the University of Cambridge's Open Access repository, Apollo.
  
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• Standardised data reporting of energy efficient mortgage assets

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Università Ca' Foscari Venezia) the Energy efficiency Data Portal & Protocol (EeDaPP) Initiative, will seek to address the current lack of standardisation in terms of technical and financial datasets which hinders market transparency and risk assessment of energy efficiency investments.
  
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• Space station crew takes a breather with lung tissue investigation

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (NASA/Johnson Space Center) The microgravity environment of the International Space Station impacts nearly every system within the human body. Researchers are studying the effects to the eyes, heart, muscles, and bones, but an area that hasn't received as much focus is one that is vital to human survival: the lungs.
  
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• So my brain amyloid level is 'elevated' -- What does that mean?

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine) Testing drugs to prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's dementia and using them in the clinic will mean identifying and informing adults who have a higher risk of Alzheimer's but are still cognitively normal. A new study from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania has shed light on how seniors cope with such information.
  
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• Selective memory

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) A memory management scheme developed t MIT and elsewhere would increase by 33 to 50 percent the efficiency of data caches that use the massive new memory banks known as 'in-package DRAM.'
  
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• Scientists write 'traps' for light with tiny ink droplets

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Cambridge) A microscopic 'pen' that is able to write structures small enough to trap and harness light using a commercially available printing technique could be used for sensing, biotechnology, lasers, and studying the interaction between light and matter.
  
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• Rhythm of memory

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of Freiburg) Inhibited neurons set the tempo for memory processes.
  
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• Review study finds limited data on medical cannabis use in children

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Massachusetts General Hospital) A systematic review of published studies on the use of medical cannabis in children and adolescents finds a notable lack of studies and a minimal number of the randomized, controlled trials needed to confirm the effectiveness of a treatment.
  
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• Rethinking well-being and sustainability measurements from local to global scales

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (American Museum of Natural History) A new study suggests that standard ways of measuring well-being and sustainability in communities used by global organizations may be missing critical information and could lead to missteps in management actions. The paper, published today in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution by a team of 40 scientists, policy-makers and on-the-ground practitioners, suggests alternative and complementary approaches that use indicators grounded in the values of a part
  
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• Researchers demonstrate 'mind-reading' brain-decoding tech

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Purdue University) Researchers have demonstrated how to decode what the human brain is seeing by using artificial intelligence to interpret fMRI scans from people watching videos, representing a sort of mind-reading technology.
  
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• Researchers at VA'S PTSD Brain Bank seek answers to complicated mental health condition

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Veterans Affairs Research Communications) VA's National PTSD Brain Bank, the only one of its kind in the world, is currently storing tissue from 168 brains. The bank aims to help with one of VA's most pressing challenges: understanding the complex nature of PTSD, and pointing the way toward new and better treatments.
  
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• Research revises our knowledge of how the brain learns to fear

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) What happens in the brain when we learn that fire is very hot and can hurt us?It's the kind of learning that results from the association of a sensory stimulus and the perception of threat. New research in mice appearing today in Nature Neuroscience suggests that the accepted understanding of that critical operation is incorrect in important respects.
  
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• Photocatalytic reduction of aqueous mercury (II) using hybrid WO3-TiO2 nanotubes film

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Bentham Science Publishers) Hybrid WO3-TiO2 nanotube films were successfully formed via electrochemical anodization at applied potential of 40 V in ethylene glycol organic electrolyte containing 1 vol percent of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and 0.3 wtpercent ammonium fluoride (NH4F) by varying the anodization time from 15 up to 120 minutes.
  
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• Personalizing human-robot interaction may increase patient use - Ben-Gurion U.

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev) 'Determining the elements in the interaction that make users more motivated to continue is important in designing future robots that will interact with humans on a daily basis.'
  
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• Older Neandertal survived with a little help from his friends

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Washington University in St. Louis) An older Neandertal from about 50,000 years ago, who had suffered multiple injuries and other degenerations, became deaf and must have relied on the help of others to avoid prey and survive well into his 40s, indicates a new analysis published Oct. 20 in the online journal PLoS ONE.
  
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• NIH BRAIN Initiative builds on early advances

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (NIH/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) The National Institutes of Health has announced funding for 110 new awards totaling $169 million for the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative, bringing the total 2017 funding investment for the program to $260 million.
  
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• New study suggests psychedelic drugs may reduce criminal behavior

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (University of British Columbia Okanagan campus) Newly published research suggests that common psychedelic drugs -- such as magic mushrooms, LSD and mescaline (a substance derived from the peyote cactus) -- may reduce criminal offenses.The new study, co-authored by UBC Okanagan's Associate Professor of Psychology Zach Walsh, found that psychedelic drugs are associated with a decreased likelihood of antisocial criminal behavior.
  
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• NASA sees Tropical Depression 27W still struggling

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) Tropical Depression 27W continues to struggle to organize south of the island of Guam in the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. NASA's Aqua satellite captured a visible image of the depression that revealed most of the storms associated with it were south of the center as a result of vertical wind shear.
  
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• NASA follows extra-Tropical Cyclone Lan speeding through northern Japan

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) Now an extra-tropical cyclone over northern Japan, Lan was a typhoon when it made landfall just south of Tokyo over the weekend of Oct. 21 and 22. NASA's Aqua satellite and NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite provided imagery of the extra-tropical cyclone.
  
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• Nanotube fiber antennas as capable as copper

  23-10-2017 06:00
  (Rice University) Thin fibers made of carbon nanotubes can be formed into antennas that are just as capable as copper antennas, according to researchers at Rice University and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
  
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