Science news

• What Is This "Bomb Cyclone" Threatening the U.S.?

  03-01-2018 23:00 via rss.sciam.com
  A sharp kink in the jet stream is driving the storm's strong winds and precipitation-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Sorry, sci-fi fans: star's oddness not due to alien mega-structure

  03-01-2018 22:10
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - It was too good to be true. Scientists have ruled out the most exotic explanation -- an orbiting alien mega-structure -- for the behavior of a celestial oddity dubbed Tabby's Star that has been puzzling scientists with its sporadic dimming and brightening.
  
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• Aliens ruled out for why Tabby’s star flickers

  03-01-2018 21:58
  
  The first real-time observations of Tabby’s star flickering put the final nail in the “alien megastructure” coffin.
  
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• Alaskan 'sunrise' girl sheds light on how humans populated Americas

  03-01-2018 20:38
  WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ancient DNA extracted from the skull of a six-week-old baby girl whose 11,500-year-old remains were unearthed in a burial pit in central Alaska is helping scientists resolve long-standing controversies about how humans first populated the Americas.
  
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• Alaskan infant's DNA tells story of 'first Americans'

  03-01-2018 20:34 via bbc.co.uk
  The 11,500-year-old bones of a child unearthed in Alaska shed light on the peopling of the Americas.
  
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• What a woman with a bionic hand can feel

  03-01-2018 19:33 via bbc.co.uk
  Scientists have unveiled the first bionic hand with a sense of touch that can be worn outside the laboratory.
  
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• These disease-fighting bacteria produce echoes detectable by ultrasound

  03-01-2018 19:00
  
  Ultrasound can help keep tabs on genetically modified bacteria to better fight disease inside the body.
  
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• Report of flaw in Intel microprocessors sends AMD shares higher

  03-01-2018 17:24 via cbc.ca
  A design flaw has been found in microprocessors made by Intel Corp. that requires updates to computer operating systems, a tech publication reported, adding that the fix causes the chips to operate more slowly.
  
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• BlackBerry selected to work with Baidu's Apollo program for driverless vehicles

  03-01-2018 16:43 via cbc.ca
  Chinese search-engine giant Baidu Inc. has selected BlackBerry Ltd. to provide the safety operating system for the Apollo autonomous driving system, which is being developed in co-operation with several vehicle makers.
  
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• The science behind the 'weather bomb' heading our way

  03-01-2018 16:22 via cbc.ca
  CBC meteorologist Kalin Mitchell says some forecasts are comparing the storm to a "winter hurricane," but there are some important differences.
  
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• Why has it been so cold? Here's what science says

  03-01-2018 16:17 via cbc.ca
  Why has it been so cold? Is this unusual? Is the polar vortex to blame? And how can it be this cold if there's global warming? Here are the answers to your questions.
  
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• Dimming star not caused by aliens, but still a mystery

  03-01-2018 16:00 via cbc.ca
  Astronomers are still investigating the mystery of a star that dims in a way never seen before. But it looks like they can cross off an alien-built "megastructure" as the cause.
  
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• Ask AI: How not to kill online conversations

  03-01-2018 15:00
  
  Tips on not being a conversation-killer, courtesy of an AI that studied over 60,000 Reddit threads.
  
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• Fire reductions 'make methane numbers add up'

  03-01-2018 13:34 via bbc.co.uk
  Fewer fires globally may help explain the recent change in atmospheric methane, a study says.
  
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• Taking your eyes off the motorway with VR

  03-01-2018 13:10 via bbc.co.uk
  Fed up with motorway driving? Now you can switch to virtual reality thanks to a new driverless car from Renault.
  
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• Robot fish shows how the deepest vertebrate in the sea takes the pressure

  03-01-2018 13:00
  
  Tests with a robot snailfish reveal why the deep-sea fish has mysterious goo in its body.
  
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• Satellites Predict a Cholera Outbreak Weeks in Advance

  03-01-2018 12:45 via rss.sciam.com
  A test in Yemen showed satellite data could foresee an outbreak four weeks before it exploded-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• WPI and Stanford researchers develop sperm-sorting device that could improve IVF success

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Worcester Polytechnic Institute) Women undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) may become pregnant with fewer treatment cycles, thanks to a new device developed by a team of researchers from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) and Stanford University that uses an 'obstacle course' to sort and select faster and healthier sperm cells for use in IVF treatment. The work, funded by two separate but collaborative grants from the National Science Foundation, was published in the most recent issue of
  
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• UK scientists to prevent the global spread of new diseases

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council) A ground-breaking new research hub has been set up to help halt future outbreaks of killer diseases like Ebola and Zika. The landmark project will help to increase vaccine coverage across the globe and improve the response to deadly outbreaks through the rapid deployment of life-saving vaccines.
  
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• Tailoring cancer treatments to individual patients

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Texas at Austin, Texas Advanced Computing Center) The Center for Computational Oncology developed computer models to predict how cancer will progress in a specific individual, based on tissue, cellular and subcellular protein signaling responses. The models can predict how brain tumors (gliomas) will grow with much greater accuracy than previous models. Recently, the group began a clinical study to predict how an individual's cancer will progress after one cycle of therapy, and to
  
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• Study uncovers key to preventing back pain in runners

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (MediaSource) Low back pain is a common complaint among both elite and recreational runners, but the true cause of it remains a mystery. So researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center used motion capture technology to observe how a runner's muscles work while they're in motion.
  
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• Study provides new insights on bone loss in women

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Wiley) A new study in Journal of Bone and Mineral Research looked at the relative contributions of the two types of bone -- cortical, or compact bone, and trabecular, or spongy bone -- to total bone loss.
  
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• Story tips from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, January 2018

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory) ORNL story tips, Jan. 2018: study identifies microbes to diagnose endometriosis without surgery; brain-inspired device can quickly classify data; neutrons 'see' how water flows through fractured rock; new method could help with demand for electric vehicle charging stations; bio-based, shape-memory material could replace today's conductors; novel approach for studying material's magnetic behavior could boost quantum computing.
  
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• Story tips from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Jan. 2018

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory) ORNL story tips, Jan. 2018: Study identifies microbes to diagnose endometriosis without surgery; brain-inspired device can quickly classify data; neutrons 'see' how water flows through fractured rock; new method could help with demand for electric vehicle charging stations; bio-based, shape-memory material could replace today's conductors; novel approach for studying material's magnetic behavior could boost quantum computing.
  
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• Specially timed signals ease tinnitus symptoms in first test aimed at condition's root cause

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan) Millions of Americans hear ringing in their ears -- a condition called tinnitus -- but a new study shows an experimental device could help quiet the phantom sounds by targeting unruly nerve activity in the brain. Results of the first animal tests and clinical trial of the approach, which uses precisely timed sounds and weak electrical pulses that activate touch-sensitive nerves, resulted in a decrease in tinnitus loudness and improvement in tinnitus-r
  
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• Scientists design bacteria to reflect 'sonar' signals for ultrasound imaging

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (California Institute of Technology) Scientists have designed bacteria to reflect sound waves like submarines. The technology could eventually allow doctors to image therapeutic bacteria in the body using ultrasound.
  
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• Researchers offer new evidence on 4-year-old children's knowledge about ecology

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Northwestern University) What do young children from diverse cultural communities think about the natural world? How does a child's existing knowledge and beliefs influence their subsequent learning? Questions like these have remained unanswered, largely because research in this area has focused almost exclusively on urban and suburban children living in majority-culture communities. The study reveals ecological knowledge in 4-year-old children from urban Native American, rural Native American
  
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• Research reveals evidence of new population of ancient Native Americans

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Alaska Fairbanks) Genetic analysis of ancient DNA from a 6-week-old infant found at an Interior Alaska archaeological site has revealed a previously unknown population of ancient people in North America. The findings, published in the Jan. 3 edition of the journal Nature, represent a major shift in scientists' theories about how humans populated North America. The researchers have named the new group 'Ancient Beringians.'
  
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• Redefining knowledge of elderly people throughout history

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Australian National University) An archaeologist from The Australian National University is set to redefine what we know about elderly people in cultures throughout history, and dispel the myth that most people didn't live much past 40 prior to modern medicine.
  
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• Predicting the effect of climate change on crop yields

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences) Scientists now have a new tool to predict the future effects of climate change on crop yields. Researchers from University of Illinois are attempting to bridge two types of computational crop models to become more reliable predictors of crop production in the U.S. Corn Belt.
  
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• Pong paddles and perception: Our actions influence what we see

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Colorado State University) Most people think of vision as simply a function of information the eye gathers. For cognitive psychologist Jessica Witt, vision is a little more complicated than that. She has a new paper that faces head-on the notion that her experimental subjects have been victims of a psychological phenomenon called response bias. She employed a classic, action-specific experiment involving a video game familiar to children of the 80s: Pong.
  
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• Pioneering smart grid technology solves decades old problematic power grid phenomenon

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (DOE/Sandia National Laboratories) Sandia National Laboratories and Montana Tech University have demonstrated an R&D 100 award-winning control system that smooths out inter-area oscillations using new smart grid technology in the western power grid. The new system allows utilities to push more electricity through transmission lines, leading to lower costs for utilities and consumers and greater stability for the grid.
  
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• Physicists build muscle for shape-changing, cell-sized robots

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Cornell University) A Cornell University team has made a robot exoskeleton that can rapidly change its shape upon sensing chemical or thermal changes in its environment. And, they claim, these microscale machines -- equipped with electronic, photonic and chemical payloads -- could become a powerful platform for robotics at the size scale of biological microorganisms.
  
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• Pediatricians screen more kids for mental health issues if they receive hands-on support

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Children's National Health System) The study, led by Children's National, is called an important first step toward earlier identification of children who live with serious mental health concerns. Currently, few providers conduct the screenings, citing a lack of time, resources and other factors. Mental health screenings at the annual well visit could go a long way toward treating mental health issues earlier in a child's life.
  
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• Past falls can help predict an individual's risk of bone fracture independent of other factors

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Wiley) Results from a new study in Journal of Bone and Mineral Research indicate that an individual's history of past falls can help predict their risk of bone fractures, independent of bone mineral density and other clinical factors.
  
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• Nursing homes should require flu shots for all staff and patients, most older adults say

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Michigan Medicine - University of Michigan) As flu season swings into high gear, a new poll suggests nursing homes and other long-term care facilities should be doing more to get their staff and patients vaccinated before it's too late.Nearly three-quarters of people over age 50 surveyed in a new poll say all staff in such facilities should definitely be required to get the flu vaccine. More than 60 percent say that patients in such facilities should definitely get vaccinated too.
  
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• Novel methodology increases resolution in oligodendrocyte proteomics

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo) Brazilian researchers combine mass spectrometry, 2D liquid chromatography and ion mobility to identify over 10,000 proteins in brain cells possibly involved in schizophrenia. The innovation even enabled the identification, in samples, of proteins some 10 million times smaller in quantity than those of the most highly expressed molecules.
  
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• New study demonstrates increased risk of heart disease after hysterectomy

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (The North American Menopause Society (NAMS)) In an effort to reduce the associated increased risk of heart disease after hysterectomy, more surgeons are opting to leave a woman's ovaries intact. However, a new study shows that women (especially those aged younger than 35 years) having a hysterectomy with ovarian conservation are still at increased risk. Study results are published online today in Menopause, the journal of The North American Menopause Society (NAMS).
  
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• New lithium-rich battery could last much longer

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Northwestern University) By using iron and oxygen to simultaneously drive the electrochemical reaction, a novel battery is less expensive and has a higher capacity.
  
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• New data debunks alien megastructure theory on the 'most mysterious star in the universe'

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Louisiana State University) A team of more than 100 researchers, led by LSU Department of Physics & Astronomy Assistant Professor Tabetha Boyajian, is one step closer to solving the mystery behind the'most mysterious star in the universe.' KIC 8462852, or 'Tabby's Star,' nicknamed after Boyajian, is otherwise an average star. It is about 50 percent bigger and 1,000 degrees hotter than the Sun. It is more than 1,000 light years away. However, it has been inexplicably dimming and brightening
  
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• New behavioral science approach combines experiments, models

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (North Carolina State University) Researchers are outlining a new approach to behavioral research that draws on experimental studies and computer models to offer new insights into organizational and group behavior.
  
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• NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission locates elusive electron act

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) New NASA research helps improve our understanding of how electrons move through the complex region around Earth -- information that will help untangle how such particle acrobatics affect the planet.
  
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• NASA's Aqua satellite sees Tropical Depression Bolaven battling wind shear

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) NASA's Aqua satellite passed over the South China Sea and obtained a visible light image of the first depression of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean basin's 2018 tropical cyclone season. Vertical wind shear can be deadly to tropical cyclones and satellite data showed Tropical Depression Bolaven, formerly known as 01W, was being adversely affected by it.
  
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• NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP Satellite sees Tropical Storm Ava near Madagascar

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP passed over newly formed Tropical Storm Ava and analyzed the storm in infrared light. Ava, the third tropical cyclone of the Southern Indian Ocean season formed off the coast of northeastern Madagascar on Jan. 3.
  
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• Morris Animal Foundation-funded study shows importance of wildlife in controlling ticks

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Morris Animal Foundation) Morris Animal Foundation-funded researchers from the University of California, Santa Barbara, have found that a decrease in wildlife populations causes an upsurge in local tick populations, potentially increasing the threat of infectious diseases globally. The research team published their results in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
  
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• Malcolm Gladwell published in the Journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (American Academy of Ophthalmology) In his best sellers 'The Tipping Point,' 'Blink' and 'Outliers,' Malcolm Gladwell writes about the unexpected implications of scientific research, urging readers to think different. In an editorial published this month in Ophthalmology, the journal of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, Gladwell offers another example of his stock in trade: to make medical students better doctors, send them to art school.
  
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• Making solar energy more efficient

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Kansas) Two researchers in the University of Kansas School of Architecture & Design have demonstrated methods of optimizing the capture of sunlight in experiments at the Center for Design Research.
  
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• Laser evaporation technology to create new solar materials

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Duke University) Researchers use lasers to blast solutions containing delicate organic compounds to grow new types of crystals for solar cells, light-emitting diodes and photodetectors.
  
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• Ford Motor Company honors UTA associate vice provost

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Texas at Arlington) Maria Martinez-Cosio, associate vice provost for faculty development at The University of Texas at Arlington, was one of just four North Texas women honored by Ford Motor Company with a Mujeres Legendarias Award.
  
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• Facial exercises help middle-aged women appear more youthful

  03-01-2018 06:00
  (Northwestern University) A 30-minute daily or alternate-day facial exercise program sustained over 20 weeks improved the facial appearance of middle-aged women, resulting in a younger appearance with fuller and firmer upper and lower cheeks, reports a new study. This is the first scientific study to test the premise of facial exercise improving appearance. The exercises enlarged facial muscles so face had more volume. Women looked an average of three years younger after 20 weeks of exercises, a
  
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