Science news

• CBC meteorologists make spring forecasts and answer your summer weather questions

  27-03-2018 22:46 via cbc.ca
  CBC meteorologists Johanna Wagstaffe, Christy Climenhaga and Jay Scotland were asked during a YouTube live about the weather, forecasting and the season ahead across Canada.
  
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• Cryptocurrency exchange Arbitrade buys golden hands of Mandela for $10M in bitcoin

  27-03-2018 22:26 via cbc.ca
  A Canadian cryptocurrency exchange has bought four golden casts of the hands of former South African president Nelson Mandela for $10 million worth of bitcoin.
  
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• Uber may have switched off safety system before fatal crash, Bloomberg reports

  27-03-2018 22:11 via cbc.ca
  Ride-hailing app Uber may have turned off a standard safety system in a Volvo SUV before the self-driving vehicle fatally struck a woman in Arizona last week, according to a report.
  
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• Kid-friendly e-cigarette ads appear to work

  27-03-2018 20:26
  
  Teens who hadn’t used tobacco products but were receptive to e-cigarettes ads were more likely to try vaping or smoking.
  
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• NASA delays next-generation space telescope until 2020

  27-03-2018 20:15 via cbc.ca
  The James Webb Space Telescope — first proposed to launch for 2007 — is once again facing a delay.
  
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• The p85 isoform of the kinase S6K1 functions as a secreted oncoprotein to facilitate cell migration and tumor growth

  27-03-2018 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Cancer cells can remodel surrounding microenvironments to facilitate cell growth, invasion, and migration by secreting proteins that educate surrounding stromal cells. We report that p85S6K1, the longest isoform of S6K (ribosomal protein S6 kinase), but not the shorter isoform p70S6K1 or p56S6K2, was secreted from cancer cells through its HIV TAT-like, N-terminal six-arginine motif. The exogenously produced p85S6K1 protein entered cultured transformed and nontransformed cells to promote or confe
  
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• Palmitoylation of {delta}-catenin promotes kinesin-mediated membrane trafficking of Nav1.6 in sensory neurons to promote neuropathic pain

  27-03-2018 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  Palmitoylation of -catenin is critical to synapse plasticity and memory formation. We found that -catenin palmitoylation is also instrumental in the development of neuropathic pain. The abundances of palmitoylated -catenin and the palmitoyl acyltransferase DHHC3 were increased in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) sensory neurons in rat models of neuropathic pain. Inhibiting palmitoyl acyltransferases or decreasing -catenin abundance in the DRG by intrathecal injection of 2-bromopalmitate or shRNA, resp
  
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• New connections: Healed by ROS

  27-03-2018 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  ROS generated by Nox2 or mitochondria play critical roles in mammalian tissue repair pathways.
  
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• Hydrophobic patches on SMAD2 and SMAD3 determine selective binding to cofactors

  27-03-2018 19:55 via stke.sciencemag.org
  The transforming growth factor–β (TGF-β) superfamily of cytokines regulates various biological processes, including cell proliferation, immune responses, autophagy, and senescence. Dysregulation of TGF-β signaling causes various diseases, such as cancer and fibrosis. SMAD2 and SMAD3 are core transcription factors involved in TGF-β signaling, and they form heterotrimeric complexes with SMAD4 (SMAD2-SMAD2-SMAD4, SMAD3-SMAD3-SMAD4, and SMAD2-SMAD3-SMAD4) in response to TGF
  
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• Powerful New England quake recorded in pond mud

  27-03-2018 18:48
  
  The newfound sediment signature of the 1755 Cape Ann earthquake could be used to trace other prehistoric temblors.
  
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• Chinese space station Tiangong-1 to fall to Earth within next few days

  27-03-2018 18:05 via cbc.ca
  In a few days, the Chinese space station Tiangong-1 will fall out of orbit, landing somewhere on Earth, but it's still unknown exactly where.
  
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• Canada, provinces lack clear plan to adapt to climate change, auditors say

  27-03-2018 17:57 via cbc.ca
  Neither Ottawa nor the provinces have really assessed the risks a changing climate poses to the country and have no real idea what might be needed to adapt to it, said a new audit released Tuesday.
  
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• JWST: Hubble 'successor' faces new delay

  27-03-2018 17:40 via bbc.co.uk
  The James Webb Space Telescope will not now be launched until "approximately May 2020".
  
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• ‘Nanobot’ viruses tag and round up bacteria in food and water

  27-03-2018 17:36
  
  Viruses called phages evolved to hunt bacteria. With magnetic nanoparticles and genetic engineering, they become nanobots that work for us.
  
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• NASA's James Webb Space Telescope Slips to 2020, and Astronomy Suffers

  27-03-2018 17:35 via rss.sciam.com
  Damaged thrusters and a torn sunshield are keeping the telescope grounded perhaps until May of 2020—and throwing astronomy and astrophysics into turmoil-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• China's Tiangong-1 space lab to fall to Earth this weekend: ESA

  27-03-2018 17:07
  FRANKFURT (Reuters) - China's Tiangong-1 space lab is likely to fall to Earth sometime between Friday and Monday and shower debris over an area covering thousands of square kilometers (miles), though the risk to people will be very small, the European Space Agency aid.
  
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• Bear cubs spending longer with mothers

  27-03-2018 17:00 via bbc.co.uk
  Hunting pressures mean brown bear cubs now spend an extra year with their mothers, say scientists.
  
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• Once overlooked, 2,500-year old coffin may offer clues into ancient Egypt

  27-03-2018 16:54
  SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian academics could help unlock mysteries around ancient Egypt after discovering that a 2,500-year old coffin might contain the remains of a prestigious mummy.
  
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• Facebook siphoned phone call and text data by exploiting Android

  27-03-2018 16:49 via cbc.ca
  The social network acknowledged on Sunday that it began uploading call and text logs from phones running Google's Android system in 2015 — first via its Messenger app and later through an option in a stripped-down version of its main app.
  
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• Plogging: an eco-friendly fitness mashup of jogging and picking up trash

  27-03-2018 15:14 via cbc.ca
  As the spring thaw lays bare the discarded waste of winter, many Canadian fitness enthusiasts are trying to spread the word about plogging, an eco-friendly exercise mashup that combines the endorphin rush of jogging with the environmental benefits of picking up trash.
  
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• Yuri Gagarin: 1st man in space

  27-03-2018 14:20 via bbc.co.uk
  It's 50 years since the death of Yuri Gagarin, the Russian cosmonaut who was the first man to travel into space.
  
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• How Twitter Bots Help Fuel Political Feuds

  27-03-2018 13:30 via rss.sciam.com
  Automated social media accounts can create “misinformation networks” that spread falsehoods and fan the flames of partisan disagreement-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Water may have killed Mars’ magnetic field

  27-03-2018 13:00
  
  Extra hydrogen near the Red Planet’s iron core could have shut down convection.
  
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• Wristband Lets the Brain Control a Computer with a Thought and a Twitch

  27-03-2018 12:45 via rss.sciam.com
  An electronic bracelet is being readied for mental control of computers, prosthetics and other devices—all without the need to drill a hole in your head-- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Whistleblower says 'cheating' may have changed Brexit vote outcome

  27-03-2018 12:13 via cbc.ca
  Canadian whistleblower Chris Wylie is testifying at a U.K. parliamentary committee about his allegations that his former employer Cambridge Analytica improperly harvested details of 50 million Facebook users.
  
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• Canadian whistleblower Chris Wylie testifying in U.K. about Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal

  27-03-2018 12:13 via cbc.ca
  Chris Wylie has alleged that Cambridge Analytica harvested details of 50 million Facebook users and used the material in U.S. President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.
  
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• Your lifestyle is making blue box recycling unsustainable

  27-03-2018 10:00 via cbc.ca
  Do you read your news online? Enjoy takeout? Live in an apartment building? Canadians’ changing lifestyles have transformed what we put in the blue bin. And that’s led to big challenges — and ballooning costs — for municipal recycling programs.
  
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• What the first American astronauts taught us about living in space

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (Baylor College of Medicine) Project Mercury proved that humans could live and work in space, paving the way for all future human exploration.
  
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• Unresolved puzzles in exotic nuclei

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (Springer) In a new review published in EPJ A, Terry Fortune from the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia, USA, discusses the structure of unstable and unbound forms of Helium, Lithium, and Beryllium nuclei that have unusually large neutron to proton ratios -- dubbed 'exotic' light nuclei. Many unstable atomic nuclei live long enough to be able serve as targets for further nuclear reactions -- especially in hot environments like the interior of stars.
  
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• University of Cincinnati researcher receives US patent for potential COPD treatment

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center) A researcher in the University of Cincinnati (UC) College of Medicine has been granted a US patent for a potential treatment for a pulmonary infection in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).The treatment, known as AB569, was developed in the lab of Daniel Hassett, PhD, a professor in the UC Department of Molecular Genetics, Biochemistry and Microbiology.
  
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• UCLA-designed program helps former HIV-positive inmates maintain health after release from jail

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of California - Los Angeles Health Sciences) Researchers have developed an experimental program to help HIV-positive people maintain their health care regimens after their release from jail. They found that the program was more effective in helping inmates stay on their medications, and in keeping the virus controlled, than the approach that is most commonly used today for former inmates.
  
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• The future of photonics using quantum dots

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (American Institute of Physics) Fiber-optic cables package everything from financial data to cat videos into light, but when the signal arrives at your local data center, it runs into a silicon bottleneck. Instead of light, computers run on electrons moving through silicon-based chips, which are less efficient than photonics. To break through, scientists have been developing lasers that work on silicon. In this week's APL Photonics, researchers write that the future of silicon-based lasers may b
  
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• Tattoo electrodes from an ink-jet printer

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (Graz University of Technology) Electrodes for longterm monitoring of electrical impulses of heart or muscles in the form of temporary tattoos produced using an ink-jet printer. An international research group involving TU Graz presents this novel method in Advanced Science.
  
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• Tackling adherence to treatment on several fronts

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (McGill University Health Centre) Learning to become self-sufficient and responsible is part of life's journey through the teen and young adult years. However, for young kidney-graft patients, any mistake or failure in keeping to their strict immunosuppressive therapy can lead to tragic results on the viability of the graft. Transplant specialists and researchers from eight leading pediatric medical centres across Canada and the United States have united to help make a difference.
  
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• Survey finds reducing stigma attributed to Alzheimer's is vital to prevention research

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (Alzheimer's Association) Stigma associated with Alzheimer's disease may be an obstacle for individuals to seek information about their risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and to participate in clinical studies that discover potential therapies. That's according to the results of a national survey about what beliefs, attitudes and expectations are most often associated with Alzheimer's disease. The survey results are published in Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Asso
  
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• Successful testing of Cohere Technologies' 5G turboConnect fixed wireless access at 5TONIC

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (IMDEA Networks Institute) 5TONIC Labs, Telefónica, and Cohere Technologies today announced that the companies have cooperated in successful trials to test Cohere Technologies' new 5G turboConnect™ Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) solution.
  
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• Strategic expression

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of California - Santa Barbara) Psychology professor's new research reveals facial expressions as tools for social influence.
  
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• Satellite finds southerly wind shear affecting Tropical Depression Jelawat

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center) Satellite imagery showed that Tropical Depression Jelawat was still dealing with southerly vertical wind shear that was pushing the bulk of its clouds north of its center.
  
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• Saarbrücken engineers develop sensor-free smart wheel technology

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (Saarland University) At this year's Hannover Messe, Matthias Nienhaus and his research group from Saarland University will be exhibiting a technology that not only allows wheels to 'know' when and how to rotate, but also enables them to work together in interactive teams. The new technology can be used wherever there is a need for additional support when pulling, pushing or driving a system that uses wheels.
  
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• Researchers charge ahead to develop better batteries

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of Texas at Dallas) They die at the most inconvenient times. Cellphones go dark during important conversations because a battery hasn't been recharged. Or the automotive industry revs up with excitement for a new battery-powered vehicle, but it needs frequent recharging. Researchers at The University of Texas at Dallas have developed a high-powered, environmentally safe lithium-sulfur substitute that could drastically lengthen battery life. Their work has been published in the journa
  
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• Research underway at RIT to improve technology for autonomous materials handling

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (Rochester Institute of Technology) Technology development for 'smart' forklifts and trucks that communicate with each other is underway at Rochester Institute of Technology where a team of engineers is building a next-generation intelligent materials handling system.
  
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• Research shows why we struggle to get good night's sleep as we get older

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of Kent) New research has identified the way age impairs the ability of the circadian clock in mammals to re-set itself when exposed to light, resulting in disruption to sleeping patterns and consequent threats to wellbeing.
  
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• Research hints at double the driving range for electric vehicles

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) When it comes to the special sauce of batteries, researchers at PNNL have discovered it's all about the salt concentration. By getting the right amount of salt, right where they want it, they've demonstrated a small lithium-metal battery can recharge about seven times more than batteries with conventional electrolytes.
  
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• Putting quantum scientists in the driver's seat

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory) An interdisciplinary, interdepartmental group of scientists at ORNL conducted fundamental physics studies at the nanoscale to support development of experimental platforms that will control dissipation in quantum systems and materials.
  
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• PolyU and Australian partners jointly launch impactful research on blockchain technologies

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (The Hong Kong Polytechnic University ) The Hong Kong Polytechnic University joins forces with Monash University and CollinStar Capital -- a leading Melbourne-based institution and a FinTech expert in Australia -- to establish the first university-industry joint research laboratory on blockchain and cryptocurrency technologies in Hong Kong. Research under the three-year multi-million-dollar collaboration is expected to significantly enhance the efficiency, privacy protection and security of bloc
  
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• Paper-folding art inspires better bandages

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Cutting kirigami-style slits in stretchy films could make for stickier bandages, heat pads, wearable electronics, according to a new study by MIT engineers.
  
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• On cryptocurrency exchanges, it's better to be a miner than a speculator, study finds

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of California - San Diego) Someone who starts mining a crypto-currency shortly after it is listed on exchanges can potentially earn higher returns than average. But a speculator who enters the market shortly after the currency is listed might potentially earn lower returns.These are some of the findings from a study where computer scientists estimated the potential profitability of mining versus speculating for 18 crypto-currencies that are not Bitcoin and Litecoin--known under the g
  
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• NREL discovers enzyme domains that dramatically improve performance

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (DOE/National Renewable Energy Laboratory) It was more than 10 years in the making, but when it came to uncovering the secrets of the molecular structure of enzymes, perseverance paid off. By studying and comparing the workhorse cellulose-degrading enzymes of two fungi, researchers from the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory have pinpointed regions on these enzymes that can be targeted via genetic engineering to help break down cellulose faster.
  
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• Newly discovered planet is hot, metallic and dense as Mercury

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of Warwick) A hot, metallic, Earth-sized planet with a density similar to Mercury -- situated 260 million light years away -- has been detected and characterized by a global team of astronomers, including the University of Warwick.
  
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• Newly-discovered planet is hot, metallic and dense as Mercury

  27-03-2018 06:00
  (University of Warwick) A hot, metallic, Earth-sized planet with a density similar to Mercury -- situated 260 million light years away -- has been detected and characterized by a global team of astronomers, including the University of Warwick.
  
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