Science news

• Spaceships could use blinking dead stars to chart their way

  12-01-2018 23:15
  
  Timing signals from five pulsars allowed scientists to pinpoint an experiment’s place in space.
  
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• Looming Landslide Stokes Fears, May Help Disaster Predictions

  12-01-2018 22:20 via rss.sciam.com
  Rattlesnake Ridge is collapsing in Washington State. As residents hurry to safety, scientists try to figure out which way rocks will fall-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Trio of dead stars upholds a key part of Einstein’s theory of gravity

  12-01-2018 22:19
  
  A cosmic test fails to topple the strong equivalence principle.
  
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• Surprising discovery could lead to better batteries

  12-01-2018 21:12
  Scientists have observed the concentration of lithium inside individual nanoparticles reverse at a certain point, instead of constantly increasing. This discovery is a major step toward improving the battery life of consumer electronics.
  
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• Past exposures shape immune response in pediatric acute respiratory infections

  12-01-2018 21:12
  By analyzing immune cells of children who came to the emergency department with flu symptoms, researchers found that the suite of genes these early-response cells expressed was shaped by factors such as age and previous exposures to viruses. Better understanding how early infections influence long-term immune response has implications for the diagnosis and treatment of young patients who suffer from acute respiratory tract infections.
  
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• New model for uncovering true HIV mortality rates in Zambia

  12-01-2018 21:12
  A new study that seeks to better ascertain HIV mortality rates in Zambia could provide a model for improved national and regional surveillance approaches, and ultimately, more effective HIV treatment strategies.
  
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• Nanostructure boosts stability of organic thin-film transistors

  12-01-2018 21:12
  A nanostructured gate dielectric may have addressed the most significant obstacle to expanding the use of organic semiconductors for thin-film transistors. The structure, composed of a fluoropolymer layer followed by a nanolaminate made from two metal oxide materials, serves as gate dielectric and protects the organic semiconductor - which had previously been vulnerable to damage from the ambient environment.
  
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• Supermassive black hole caught 'burping' twice after colliding with nearby galaxy

  12-01-2018 20:06 via cbc.ca
  Using two telescopes, astronomers have found a black hole at the centre of a galaxy 800 million light years away that has spewed material into space not once, but twice.
  
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• The combination of two proteins exerts a regenerating effect in Parkinson's disease

  12-01-2018 19:29
  Current therapies for Parkinson's disease are mainly of a replacement type and pose problems in the long term, so the challenge is to establish an early diagnosis and develop neuroprotective and neurorestorative therapies that will allow the symptoms of the disease to be slowed down or even reversed. Researcher have now documented the regenerative, neuroprotective effect of two neurotrophic factors when they are applied in a combined way.
  
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• Quantum leap: Computational approach launches new paradigm in electronic structure theory

  12-01-2018 19:29
  A group of researchers specializing in quantum calculations has proposed a radically new computational approach to solving the complex many-particle Schrödinger equation, which holds the key to explaining the motion of electrons in atoms and molecules.
  
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• New warning system discovered in the immune defense

  12-01-2018 19:29
  Researchers have discovered a previously unknown warning system that contributes to the body's immune system. Mitochondria in the white blood cells secrete a web of DNA fibers that raises the alarm. The results may lead to increased knowledge about autoinflammatory diseases and cancer.
  
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• New method to map miniature brain circuits

  12-01-2018 19:29
  In a feat of nanoengineering, scientists have developed a new technique to map electrical circuits in the brain far more comprehensively than ever before. Scientists worldwide could use the technique to uncover the architecture of different parts of the brain.
  
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• New antifungal provides hope in fight against superbugs

  12-01-2018 19:29
  Microscopic yeast have been wreaking havoc in hospitals around the world -- creeping into catheters, ventilator tubes, and IV lines -- and causing deadly invasive infection. One culprit species, Candida auris, is resistant to many antifungals, meaning once a person is infected, there are limited treatment options. But researchers have now confirmed a new drug compound kills drug-resistant C. auris, both in the laboratory and in a mouse model that mimics human infection.
  
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• Localized cooling of the heart limits damage caused by a heart attack

  12-01-2018 19:29
  Researchers have succeeded in the localized cooling of the heart during a heart attack, a world first. By cooling part of the heart prior to and following angioplasty, the cardiologists believe that the damage from a heart attack can be limited.
  
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• Does an exploding brain network cause chronic pain?

  12-01-2018 19:29
  New research reports that hyperreactive brain networks could play a part in the hypersensitivity of fibromyalgia.
  
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• Print a 200-million-year-old dinosaur 'fossil' in your own home

  12-01-2018 19:28
  The digital reconstruction of the skull of a 200-million-year-old South African dinosaur, Massospondylus, has made it possible for researchers to make 3-D prints and in this way facilitate research on other dinosaurs all over the world.
  
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• Pollution is endangering the future of astronomy

  12-01-2018 19:27
  
  Astronomers discuss multiple threats from pollution that will make it harder to observe the night sky.
  
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• Can Muesli help against arthritis?

  12-01-2018 19:27
  It is well known that healthy eating increases our general sense of wellbeing. Researchers have now discovered that a fiber-rich diet can have a positive influence on chronic inflammatory joint diseases, leading to stronger bones.
  
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• The hottest thing in technology is your voice

  12-01-2018 17:30 via cbc.ca
  The hottest thing in technology this year is your voice. If even a fraction of the new gadgets on display at the CES convention in Las Vegas make it to market, you will soon be able to tell an almost infinite number of things what to do.
  
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• B.C. scientists develop new tool to detect viruses in salmon

  12-01-2018 17:28 via cbc.ca
  Researchers in British Columbia have developed a faster way of testing salmon for diseases, revealing infection before the fish appears visibly sick.
  
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• Thinking outside the box on climate mitigation

  12-01-2018 16:51
  A new article lays the groundwork for alternative climate mitigation scenarios that place less reliance on unproven negative emissions technologies in the future.
  
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• Species identification in the water bottle

  12-01-2018 16:51
  Environmental DNA analysis makes it possible to detect water organisms without having to capture them first. For the first time, researchers systematically investigated the effect of various environmental factors on environmental DNA analyses. By doing so, the researchers have made an important step towards the standardized application of this method for the monitoring of water bodies.
  
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• Transport Canada lifts speed restriction in Gulf of St. Lawrence

  12-01-2018 15:24 via cbc.ca
  Transport Canada has lifted the speed limit in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, five months after the restriction was put in place to prevent further right whale deaths.
  
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• Transport Canada lifts speed limit in Gulf of St. Lawrence

  12-01-2018 15:24 via cbc.ca
  Transport Canada has lifted the speed limit in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, five months after the restriction was put in place to prevent further right whale deaths.
  
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• Few Canadian cities cold enough to host future Winter Olympics

  12-01-2018 15:24 via cbc.ca
  A research study led by geography professor Daniel Scott at the University of Waterloo says the number of places that will be cold enough to host a Winter Olympics is dropping. In Canada, just Calgary and Edmonton are realistic for future winter games.
  
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• Glucose-induced nerve damage: Research identifies underlying mechanisms

  12-01-2018 15:12
  New research has demonstrated that an enzyme she had previously identified as playing a role in peripheral neuropathy induced by cancer chemotherapy also plays a role in peripheral neuropathy caused by diabetes. The significance of the identification of a common molecular mechanism is that the drug candidates she identified to treat chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy could potentially be used to treat peripheral neuropathy caused by diabetes as well.
  
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• Asthma costs the US economy more than $80 billion per year

  12-01-2018 15:12
  Asthma costs the US economy more than $80 billion annually in medical expenses, missed work and school days and deaths, according to new research.
  
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• Citizen science bags five-planet haul

  12-01-2018 14:51 via bbc.co.uk
  Astronomy enthusiasts help to confirm the existence of a five-planet system orbiting a far-off star.
  
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• Resistance to Common Germs Poses a Hurdle to New Gene Therapies

  12-01-2018 12:45 via rss.sciam.com
  Exposure to everyday pathogens generates an immune response that could interfere with CRISPR-based gene-editing treatment -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Seventh right whale necropsied died from fishing gear

  12-01-2018 12:15 via cbc.ca
  Of the seven whales necropsied this summer, four died from blunt force trauma and three died from entanglement in fishing gear.
  
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• See a 360-degree visualization of the center of the Milky Way

  12-01-2018 12:00
  
  A 360-degree simulation, made with data from several telescopes, shows the center of the Milky Way as seen from the galaxy’s supermassive black hole.
  
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• Chinese bitcoin miners eye sites in Quebec, Manitoba

  12-01-2018 08:46 via cbc.ca
  China's Bitmain Technologies is eyeing bitcoin mining sites in Quebec, a company spokesperson told Reuters, as expectations of a potential Chinese crackdown on cryptocurrency mining make the energy-rich province an attractive alternative.
  
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• UK satellite to make movies from space

  12-01-2018 08:21 via bbc.co.uk
  The spacecraft paves the way to a constellation collecting full-colour, hi-def video of Earth.
  
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• India sends its 100th satellite into space to watch borders

  12-01-2018 07:15
  NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India launched its 100th satellite on Friday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks to project the country as a global low-cost provider of services in space.
  
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• Veterans who learn Transcendental Meditation find relief from PTSD, new study shows

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (Maharishi University of Management) A study published in Military Medicine showed that after 30 days of practicing the Transcendental Meditation technique, 80 percent of the 46 veterans and active-duty personnel no longer had PTSD. All participants had been clinically diagnosed with PTSD using a standard assessment. By comparison, standard treatments for PTSD--prolonged exposure therapy, cognitive processing therapy, and medication--are only partially successful: approximately two-thirds of pat
  
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• Tropical Cyclone Joyce makes landfall on Australia's Pilbara Coast

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) NOAA's JPSS-1 satellite provided a visible image of the tropical storm after it made landfall along the Pilbara Coast in the northwestern part of Western Australia.
  
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• Stingray soft robot could lead to bio-inspired robotics

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering of Applied Science) UCLA bioengineering professor Ali Khademhosseini has led the development of a tissue-based soft robot that mimics the biomechanics of a stingray. The new technology could lead to advances in bio-inspired robotics, regenerative medicine and medical diagnostics.
  
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• Sheldon Cohen named American Psychosomatic Society's 2018 Distinguished Scientist

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (Carnegie Mellon University) Today, we take it for granted that stress and disease are linked and that psychological stress, social networks and socioeconomic status impacts infections, cardiovascular disease and asthma. Much of what we know about these connections between biology and psychology is because of Carnegie Mellon University's Sheldon Cohen.
  
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• Scleroderma study: Hope for a longer life for patients with rare autoimmune disorder

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Virginia Health System) The approach could represent the first new treatment to improve survival in patients with severe scleroderma in more than four decades.
  
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• Scarring molecule in fat tissue links obesity with distressed fat

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Exeter) The fat of obese people becomes distressed, scarred and inflamed, which can make weight loss more difficult, research at the University of Exeter has found.
  
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• Russian scientists found excitons in nickel oxide for the first time

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (Ural Federal University) 'We first found excitons with charge transfer at the boundary of fundamental adsorption in nickel oxide and at the impurity adsorption edge in magnesium oxide. These results may be of interest to specialists in theoretical physics who study the band structure of oxides with strong correlations. NiO has been considered as prototype of such oxides for a long time, and many calculation schemes have been tested using this object' concludes Anatoly Zatsepin.
  
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• Research suggests Trump's 'Muslim ban' produced rare shift in public opinion

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (University of California - Riverside) Visible resistance to Executive Order 13769, commonly referred to the 'Muslim ban,' may have produced a rare shift in public opinion caused by 'an influx of information portraying the ban as being at odds with egalitarian principles of American identity and religious liberty,' said researchers Loren Collingwood of the University of California, Riverside; Nazita Lajevardi of Michigan State University; and Kassra A. R. Oskooii of the University of Delaware.
  
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• PETA International Science Consortium, Chemical Watch to offer free toxicology webinars

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) The PETA International Science Consortium Ltd., an organisation that promotes reliable and relevant regulatory testing approaches that protect human health and the environment while eliminating the use of animals, and Chemical Watch, the leading global regulatory news and information service for the chemical industry, have teamed up again to present a free webinar series focusing on non-animal methods and testing strategies that can be used to meet R
  
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• Newborn Immune Activation May Have Long-Term Negative Impact on Brain FunctionNewborn immune activation may have long-term negative impact on brain function

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (McLean Hospital) McLean neuroscientists have found that even a brief episode of immune system activation within days of birth can cause persistent changes in sleep patterns concurrent with increases in epilepsy-like brain activity -- a combination of symptoms common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental conditions.
  
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• Newborn immune activation may have long-term negative impact on brain function

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (McLean Hospital) McLean neuroscientists have found that even a brief episode of immune system activation within days of birth can cause persistent changes in sleep patterns concurrent with increases in epilepsy-like brain activity -- a combination of symptoms common in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and other developmental conditions.
  
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• Map of ionospheric disturbances to help improve radio network systems

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (Kazan Federal University) The paper, titled "Collocated ionosonde and dense GPS/GLONASS network measurements of midlatitude MSTIDs", covers the first ever complex analysis of MSTIDs obtained by two methods of radio sounding. MSTIDs, which are huge wave perturbations somewhat resembling aurora borealis, are invisible in midlatitude areas.
  
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• Jet stream changes since 1960s linked to more extreme weather

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (University of Arizona) Increased fluctuations in the path of the North Atlantic jet stream since the 1960s coincide with more extreme weather events in Europe such as heat waves, wildfires and flooding. The new research published in Nature Communications is the first reconstruction of historical changes in the North Atlantic jet stream prior to the 20th century. By using tree rings, the researchers developed a historical look at the position of the North Atlantic jet back to 1725.
  
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• IFEMA takes the first step towards the 'AUGMENTED TRADE FAIR' at FITUR 2018

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (IMDEA Networks Institute) FITUR 2018 will be the presentation platform for a series of technological solutions aimed at the tourism industry and fair management, ready to spring into action with 5G technology -- still in the standardization process -- in the near future. This is a line of prototypes developed by a multi-disciplinary team of researchers who have been working since last September at the IFEMA LAB 5G laboratory, set up by IFEMA and 5TONIC, a company founded by Telefónica, I
  
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• How far to the nearest city? Global map of travel time to cities published

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (European Commission Joint Research Centre) The Joint Research Centre, the European Commission's science and knowledge service, provided expert input on the mapping of urban accessibility worldwide to support global and local decision-making on development and environmental policies.
  
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• Genetic analysis can improve depression therapy

  12-01-2018 06:00
  (Karolinska Institutet) The failure of SSRI antidepressants can be a result of genetic variations in patients. Variations within the gene that encodes the CYP2C19 enzyme results in extreme differences in the levels of escitalopram achieved in patients, according to a new study from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and Diakonhjemmet Hospital in Norway published in The American Journal of Psychiatry. Prescribing the dose of escitalopram based on a patient's specific genetic constitution would great
  
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