Science news

• Stop using antibiotics in healthy farm animals, WHO warns

  07-11-2017 23:44 via cbc.ca
  The World Health Organization is urging farmers to stop using antibiotics to promote growth and prevent disease in healthy animals because the practice fuels dangerous drug-resistant superbug infections in people.
  
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• Waymo rolls out autonomous Pacificas without human drivers

  07-11-2017 22:48 via cbc.ca
  A self-driving car company created by Google is pulling the human backup driver from behind the steering wheel and will test vehicles on public roads with only an employee in the back seat.
  
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• Paris climate accord: Syria to sign up, isolating US

  07-11-2017 22:08 via bbc.co.uk
  The move will leave the US as the only country now outside or opposed to the climate deal.
  
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• Hundreds of dead sea turtles found off El Salvador

  07-11-2017 22:05 via cbc.ca
  A team of investigators headed out to waters off the coast of El Salvador after hundreds of endangered sea turtles were found dead under mysterious circumstances.
  
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• Exploring Egypt's Great Pyramid from the inside, virtually

  07-11-2017 21:07
  PARIS (Reuters) - A team of scientists who last week announced the discovery of a large void inside the Great Pyramid of Giza have created a virtual-reality tour that allows users to 'teleport' themselves inside the structure and explore its architecture.
  
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• Are you not entertained? Canadian sports tech companies want to change that

  07-11-2017 20:09 via cbc.ca
  As sports media companies deal with declining viewership, several Canadian tech startups have joined the race to change the way people consume sports.
  
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• NASA wants your help naming New Horizons’ next destination

  07-11-2017 20:00
  
  NASA’s New Horizons mission team is asking the public to vote on a nickname for the spacecraft’s next destination.
  
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• Special issue: Fragile X syndrome

  07-11-2017 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  In this issue of Science Signaling, three papers uncover molecular mechanisms of neurological dysfunction in animal models of fragile X syndrome.
  
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• Reducing eIF4E-eIF4G interactions restores the balance between protein synthesis and actin dynamics in fragile X syndrome model mice

  07-11-2017 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common form of inherited intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder. FXS is caused by silencing of the FMR1 gene, which encodes fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP), an mRNA-binding protein that represses the translation of its target mRNAs. One mechanism by which FMRP represses translation is through its association with cytoplasmic FMRP-interacting protein 1 (CYFIP1), which subsequently sequesters and inhibits eukaryotic initiation factor 4
  
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• Papers of note in Science Translational Medicine 9 (414)

  07-11-2017 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  This week’s articles describe new ways to treat some types of GI cancer and various childhood solid tumors.
  
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• Papers of note in Science 358 (6363)

  07-11-2017 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  This week’s articles describe the identification of a mammalian protein that is required for endoplasmic reticulum–mitochondria tethering and regulates intracellular calcium dynamics in neurons.
  
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• Papers of note in Nature 551 (7678)

  07-11-2017 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  This week’s papers address the involvement of TGF-β signaling in the differentiation of TH17 cells, a checkpoint that restrains the antitumor and antivirus activities of natural killer cells, and a mechanism for erasing a parental epigenetic memory in plant embryos.
  
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• Neuronal activity drives FMRP- and HSPG-dependent matrix metalloproteinase function required for rapid synaptogenesis

  07-11-2017 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) functions modulate synapse formation and activity-dependent plasticity. Aberrant MMP activity is implicated in fragile X syndrome (FXS), a disease caused by the loss of the RNA-binding protein FMRP and characterized by neurological dysfunction and intellectual disability. Gene expression studies in Drosophila suggest that Mmps cooperate with the heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG) glypican co-receptor Dally-like protein (Dlp) to restrict trans-synaptic Wnt signalin
  
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• Aberrant Rac1-cofilin signaling mediates defects in dendritic spines, synaptic function, and sensory perception in fragile X syndrome

  07-11-2017 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common inherited cause of intellectual disabilities and a leading cause of autism. FXS is caused by a trinucleotide expansion in the gene FMR1 on the X chromosome. The neuroanatomical hallmark of FXS is an overabundance of immature dendritic spines, a factor thought to underlie synaptic dysfunction and impaired cognition. We showed that aberrantly increased activity of the Rho GTPase Rac1 inhibited the actin-depolymerizing factor cofilin, a major determinant
  
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• Pick a name for this icy world at the edge of the solar system

  07-11-2017 19:12 via cbc.ca
  Want to name a mysterious object on the edge of the solar system? NASA wants suggestions for a new nickname for 2014 MU69, the next destination of the New Horizons spacecraft.
  
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• Let most babies eat food containing peanuts. Really.

  07-11-2017 18:00
  
  Pediatricians are not yet peanut-savvy when it comes to convincing parents to feed babies food containing peanuts, a new survey suggests.
  
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• Syria plans to join Paris climate accord, leaving U.S. as only country opposed

  07-11-2017 17:50 via cbc.ca
  Syria plans to join the 2015 Paris agreement for slowing global warming, isolating the United States as the only country opposed to the pact, delegates said on Tuesday at U.N. climate negotiations in Germany.
  
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• WHO Moves to Contain Superbugs on the Farm

  07-11-2017 16:00 via rss.sciam.com
  The global health agency wants a massive change in livestock practices. But will it work?
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• BCE offers $16 a share to buy AlarmForce

  07-11-2017 15:22 via cbc.ca
  Telecom conglomerate BCE Inc. is offering to buy home security firm AlarmForce Industries Inc. for $166 million.
  
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• Toenails, saliva and urine could answer questions about Giant Mine's toxic legacy

  07-11-2017 13:00 via cbc.ca
  About 200 people in Yellowknife, Dettah and Ndilo have given toenail clippings, urine and saliva samples to researchers for a new study, which will measure how much arsenic is in their body.
  
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• "Slightly Crazy" 19th-Century Weathermen Who Braved Formidable Conditions Could Aid Climate Predictions

  07-11-2017 12:45 via rss.sciam.com
  A new effort aims to recover meteorology data collected by a group of hardy Victorian Scottish scientists
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Bad news: Eating local, organic won't shrink your carbon footprint

  07-11-2017 11:00 via cbc.ca
  If you're paying more for local and organic groceries because you care about the environment, here's some bad news: science shows your efforts won't have much impact on your carbon emissions. The good news is that scientists have calculated which dietary changes can actually make a difference.
  
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• UTSA professor to harvest clean energy from hot pavements

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Texas at San Antonio) Samer Dessouky, professor of civil and environmental engineering at The University of Texas at San Antonio, has received $298,000 through the Strategic Alliance between the Texas Sustainable Energy Research Institute and CPS Energy, established in 2010, to generate power from hot pavements. Dessouky will use the funding to improve a technology he developed with his team that converts heat from paved surfaces into electricity.
  
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• UC3M releases new research report

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (Universidad Carlos III de Madrid) Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) has released its 2015-2016 Research Report, which includes the main parameters of the R&D&I that the institution carries out. In addition to the data on these two years, the report compiles information about research activity in the last five years.
  
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• U of I-led team reports connections that will fuel future brain trauma research

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Idaho) A team led by University of Idaho scientists has found a way to stimulate formation of new neural connections in the adult brain in a study that could eventually help humans fend off memory loss, brain trauma and other ailments in the central nervous system.
  
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• Tiny worms may offer new clues about why it's so hard to quit smoking

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Michigan) Researchers at the University of Michigan Life Sciences Institute found that a previously dismissed genetic mechanism may contribute to nicotine dependence, and to the withdrawal effects that can make quitting smoking so difficult.
  
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• Tech increases microfluidic research data output 100-fold

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (North Carolina State University) Researchers have developed a technique that allows users to collect 100 times more spectrographic information per day from microfluidic devices, as compared to the previous industry standard. The novel technology has already led to a new discovery: the speed of mixing ingredients for quantum dots used in LEDs changes the color of light they emit -- even when all other variables are identical.
  
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• Take charge, wine lovers, and trust your palate

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (Michigan State University) The traditional pairing of wine and food too often misses the mark - leaving people confused and intimated - and should be scrapped in favor of a more consumer-focused approach, a new study indicates.
  
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• TACC key partner in Dell Medical School's data science initiative for women's health

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Texas at Austin, Texas Advanced Computing Center) The Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC) at The University of Texas at Austin today announced a new partnership with the Dell Medical School's Women's Health research team to be spearheaded by Kelly Gaither, who joins DMS as an associate professor. Gaither will remain in her position as director of Visualization and a senior research scientist at TACC and split her time between the two appointments.
  
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• SMART: Facial recognition for molecular structures

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of California - San Diego) A team of researchers at the University of California San Diego developed a method to identify the molecular structures of natural products that is significantly faster and more accurate than existing methods. The method works like facial recognition for molecular structures--it uses a piece of spectral data unique to each molecule and then runs it through a deep learning neural network to place the unknown molecule in a cluster of molecules with similar st
  
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• Shocking results of galaxy-cluster collisions

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (National Radio Astronomy Observatory) Combining new images from the Very Large Array with X-Ray and visible-light images reveals the spectacular, energetic outcome when clusters of hundreds of galaxies each collide with each other.
  
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• Sheep are able to recognize human faces from photographs

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Cambridge) Sheep can be trained to recognise human faces from photographic portraits -- and can even identify the picture of their handler without prior training -- according to new research from scientists at the University of Cambridge.
  
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• Severely bleeding patients must receive lifesaving drug within minutes, not hours

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine) Major bleeds must be treated with tranexamic acid (TXA) as fast as possible since deaths occur quickly and the drug's life-saving benefits diminish with each passing minute, according to a new study published in The Lancet.
  
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• Selective PDE4D inhibitor shows potential to treat Fragile X autism spectrum disorder

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (Kureczka/Martin Associates) New research suggests the potential utility of BPN14770, a selective PDE4D inhibitor, in the treatment of Fragile X syndrome (FXS) and possibly other autism spectrum disorders. Daily BPN14770 dosing in a mouse Fragile X model showed reduce hyperarousal, improved social interactions and natural behaviors, as well as changes in neuronal dendrite structure. BPM14770 is currently in clinical testing by Tetra Discovery Partners as a prospective treatment for memory and co
  
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• Science meets archaeology with discovery that dental X-rays reveal Vitamin D deficiency

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (McMaster University) Human teeth hold vital information about Vitamin D deficiency, a serious but often hidden condition that can now be identified by a simple dental X-ray, McMaster anthropologists Lori D'Ortenzio and Megan Brickley have found.
  
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• Researchers model coulomb crystals to understand star evolution

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (American Institute of Physics) Matter in the cores of old white dwarfs and the crusts of neutron stars is compressed to unimaginable densities by intense gravitational forces. The scientific community believes this matter is composed of Coulomb crystals that form at temperatures potentially as high as 100 million Kelvin. Researchers in Russia clarify the physics of these crystals this week in the journal Physics of Plasmas.
  
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• Researcher seeks to tame 'ghost' of uncertainty in complex dynamic systems

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Kansas) A major cooperative research agreement with the US Army Research Laboratory is supporting work at the University of Kansas School of Engineering to develop a foundational mathematical framework and effective approaches for state estimation for complex dynamic systems with uncertainties.
  
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• Researcher, educator receives top UMass Lowell honor

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Massachusetts Lowell) Prof. Joey Mead, a highly regarded researcher in cutting-edge fields including nanomanufacturing and flexible electronics and professor of plastics engineering, has been named Distinguished University Professor, the top accolade bestowed on a UMass Lowell faculty member.
  
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• RAND study: Introducing autonomous vehicles sooner could save hundreds of thousands of lives

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (RAND Corporation) Autonomous vehicles should only have to be moderately better than human drivers before being widely used in the United States, an approach that could save thousands of lives annually even before the technology is perfected, according to a new RAND Corporation report.
  
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• Position statement opposing sex/porn addiction model

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (Center for Positive Sexuality) Following AASECT's position statement on sex addiction, CPS, NCSF, and TASHRA publish their collective position opposing the sex/porn addiction model. This is based on current and reliable scientific data.
  
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• PMRA launches new journal: Perspectives on Public Management and Governance

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (Oxford University Press USA) Oxford University Press is pleased to announce the launch of a new journal, Perspectives on Public Management and Governance, published on behalf of the Public Management Research Association (PMRA). The journal will be led by incoming editor Kirk Emerson.
  
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• Penn Medicine launches first clinical trial for uterine transplant in the northeast

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine) Penn Medicine will conduct the Northeast's first clinical trial of uterine transplants, to provide women with Uterine Factor Infertility (UFI) -- an irreversible form of female infertility that affects as many as 5 percent of women worldwide and 50,000 women in the United States -- with a new path to parenthood.
  
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• Optimizing workplace design for Health: UA Institute on Place and Wellbeing at Greenbuild

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Arizona Health Sciences) On Nov. 9 at the world's largest conference and expo for design-related industry professionals, UAIPW Director Esther Sternberg, MD, and the US General Services Administration will discuss findings of their Wellbuilt for Wellbeing study, which have the potential to positively impact the health of millions of office workers and the cost of lost time due to workplace-related illnesses.
  
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• Old human cells rejuvenated in breakthrough discovery on ageing

  07-11-2017 06:00
  (University of Exeter) A new way to rejuvenate old cellsin the laboratory, making them not only look younger, but start to behave more like young cells, has been discovered by researchers at the Universities of Exeter and Brighton.
  
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