Sci-Tech news

• NASA’s Hubble Telescope Captures Close-up Portrait of Jupiter

  06-04-2017 23:48 via scitechdaily.com
  
  As Jupiter made its nearest approach to Earth in a year, a distance of 415 million miles (668 million kilometers) away, Hubble took advantage and...
  The post NASA’s Hubble Telescope Captures Close-up Portrait of Jupiter appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
  Read more

• YouTube channels must win audiences before winning ads

  06-04-2017 23:20
  
  YouTube on Thursday stopped placing ads on channels with fewer than 10,000 views in a move aimed at preventing people from making money off offensive or pirated videos.
  
  Read more

• Record amount of renewables capacity added in 2016: UN

  06-04-2017 23:10
  
  The world added a record 138.5 gigawatts of renewable power capacity in 2016 despite a 23 percent drop in investment, reflecting the falling cost of clean energy, the UN announced Thursday.
  
  Read more

• Next Generation TimeTree: An expanded history of life on Earth at your fingertips

  06-04-2017 23:00
  
  Temple University's scientists Sudhir Kumar and S. Blair Hedges, of the Institute for Genomics and Evolutionary Medicine (iGEM) and Center for Biodiversity, have had a longstanding goal to develop easy-to-use tools to make evolution more accessible for everyone—-from leading scientists to students in elementary school.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Twitter rejects US effort to unmask anti-Trump users

  06-04-2017 22:55
  
  Twitter filed suit Thursday against the US government, asking a court to back its refusal to hand over the identities of users claiming to be dissenting federal employees.
  
  Read more

• 'BioBlitz' scientists to survey California desert valley

  06-04-2017 22:29
  
  Scientists will fan out across a California desert valley this weekend to take an inventory of everything there that flies, hops, runs, swims or grows in the dirt.
  
  Read more

• Bezos sells $1 bn in Amazon stock yearly to pay for rocket firm

  06-04-2017 22:28
  
  Billionaire entrepreneur Jeff Bezos said he is selling $1 billion in stock of his retail giant Amazon each year to finance his rocket company, Blue Origin, which aims to carry tourists to space by 2018.
  
  Read more

• Facebook launches digital assistant 'M' in US

  06-04-2017 22:27
  
  Facebook on Thursday launched its digital assistant named "M" for US users of its Messenger application, ramping up the social network's efforts in artificial intelligence.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• A NASA infrared look at the Southern Indian Ocean's 15th tropical cyclone

  06-04-2017 22:18
  
  NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Tropical Cyclone 15S in the Southern Indian Ocean and obtained temperature data on the cloud tops, enabling scientists to see where the strongest part of the storm was located.
  
  Read more

• Scientists expand ability of stem cells to regrow any tissue type

  06-04-2017 22:11
  
  When scientists talk about laboratory stem cells being totipotent or pluripotent, they mean that the cells have the potential, like an embryo, to develop into any type of tissue in the body. What totipotent stem cells can do that pluripotent ones can't do, however, is develop into tissues that support the embryo, like the placenta. These are called extra-embryonic tissues, and are vital in development and healthy growth.
  
  Read more

• Scientists Reveal Important Characteristics of the Motion Detector in the Fruit Fly Brain

  06-04-2017 20:10 via scitechdaily.com
  
  New research from scientists at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology shows how the brain extracts this essential motion information, revealing the cells that enable...
  The post Scientists Reveal Important Characteristics of the Motion Detector in the Fruit Fly Brain appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
  Read more

• Germany gets criticized by web giants over encryption plans

  06-04-2017 20:09
  
  Germany faces criticism from some of the web's biggest names over plans to weaken encrypted communication and fine social media sites for hate speech.
  
  Read more

• Twitter's 'Lite' Version Saves On Data

  06-04-2017 20:00 via nbcnews.com
  
  Twitter is making a play for more users with a new slimmed down browsing experience called Twitter Lite.
  
  Read more

• Study finds ancient Earth's fingerprints in young volcanic rocks

  06-04-2017 20:00
  
  Earth's mantle is made of solid rock that nonetheless circulates slowly over millions of years. Some geologists assume that this slow circulation would have wiped away any geochemical traces of Earth's early history long ago. But a new study led by University of Maryland geologists has found new evidence that could date back more than 4.5 billion years.
  
  Read more

• Researchers make major breakthrough in smart printed electronics

  06-04-2017 20:00
  
  Researchers in AMBER, the Science Foundation Ireland-funded materials science research centre hosted in Trinity College Dublin, have fabricated printed transistors consisting entirely of 2-dimensional nanomaterials for the first time. These 2D materials combine exciting electronic properties with the potential for low-cost production. This breakthrough could unlock the potential for applications such as food packaging that displays a digital countdown to warn you of spoiling, wine labels that al
  
  Read more

• Novel group of giant viruses discovered

  06-04-2017 20:00
  
  Viruses have a ubiquitous presence in the world. Their population is estimated to be 1031, 10 times greater than the nonillion (1030) of microbes on the planet—a figure that surpasses the number of stars in the Milky Way. Giant viruses are characterized by disproportionately large genomes and virions that house the viruses' genetic material. They can encode several genes potentially involved in protein biosynthesis, a unique feature which has led to diverging hypotheses about the origins o
  
  Read more

• Coming to a lab bench near you: Femtosecond X-ray spectroscopy

  06-04-2017 20:00
  
  The ephemeral electron movements in a transient state of a reaction important in biochemical and optoelectronic processes have been captured and, for the first time, directly characterized using ultrafast X-ray spectroscopy at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).
  
  Read more

• Biologists discover timesharing strategy in bacteria

  06-04-2017 20:00
  
  Timesharing, researchers have found, isn't only for vacation properties.
  
  Read more

• Crystalline material could replace silicon to double efficiency of solar cells

  06-04-2017 19:50
  
  A new material has been shown to have the capability to double the efficiency of solar cells by researchers at Purdue University and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
  
  Read more

• Hubble takes close-up portrait of Jupiter

  06-04-2017 19:21
  
  During April 2017 Jupiter is in opposition: it is at its closest to Earth and the hemisphere facing Earth is fully illuminated by the Sun. The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope used this special configuration to capture an image of what is by far the largest planet in the Solar System. This image adds to many others made in the past, and together they allow astronomers to study changes in the atmosphere of the gas giant.
  
  Read more

• Ceres' temporary atmosphere linked to solar activity

  06-04-2017 19:19
  
  Scientists have long thought that Ceres may have a very weak, transient atmosphere, but mysteries lingered about its origin and why it's not always present. Now, researchers suggest that this temporary atmosphere appears to be related to the behavior of the sun, rather than Ceres' proximity to the sun. The study was conducted by scientists from NASA's Dawn mission and others who previously identified water vapor at Ceres using other observatories.
  
  Read more

• NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft Links Temporary Atmosphere of Ceres to Solar Activity

  06-04-2017 18:59 via scitechdaily.com
  
  New observations from NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft reveal the hydrogen content of Ceres’ surface and link the temporary atmosphere to solar activity. Astronomers have long thought...
  The post NASA’s Dawn Spacecraft Links Temporary Atmosphere of Ceres to Solar Activity appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
  Read more

• Taser renames itself as it promotes body cameras

  06-04-2017 18:54
  
  Taser International was officially re-branded as Axon Thursday as the company broadens its focus from its controversial stun guns to police body cameras.
  
  Read more

• Famed astronaut John Glenn laid to rest at Arlington

  06-04-2017 18:54
  
  The flag-draped casket of John Glenn, the first American to orbit the earth, was covered in plastic to protect it from a steady rain as it was carried on a horse-drawn caisson to his final resting place at Arlington National Cemetery. Later, his widow, Annie, gave a kiss on the cheek to the Marine who presented her with the folded-up flag.
  
  Read more

• Keeping the code: How cultural beliefs affect police, court decisions

  06-04-2017 18:51
  
  LL Cool J's 1991 rap lyrics in his song "Mama Said Knock You Out" are about defending yourself and making sure you are not messed with. Florida State University researchers have found that when individuals adopt this outlook—referred to as a "code of the street"—it can increase their probability of arrest or conviction.
  
  Read more

• Facebook launches resource to help spot misleading news

  06-04-2017 18:51
  
  Facebook is launching a resource to help you spot false news and misleading information that spreads on its service.
  
  Read more

• Nuclear architecture emerges at the awakening of the genome

  06-04-2017 18:00
  
  The DNA molecules in each one of the cells in a person's body, if laid end to end, would measure approximately two metres in length. Remarkably, however, cells are able to fold and compact their genetic material in the confined space of the nucleus, which spans only a few micrometres. Importantly, the compaction and arrangement of the genome inside the nucleus needs to be achieved in an ordered fashion that still allows cells to access the genetic information appropriately, for example to produc
  
  Read more

• New tool illuminates cell signaling pathways key to disease

  06-04-2017 18:00
  
  In a major advance for fundamental biological research, UC San Francisco scientists have developed a tool capable of illuminating previously inscrutable cellular signaling networks that play a wide variety of roles in human biology and disease. In particular, the technique opens up exciting new avenues for understanding and treating psychiatric disease, the researchers say.
  
  Read more

• In four related papers, researchers describe new and improved tools for stem cell research

  06-04-2017 18:00
  
  Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), derived from human adult cells and capable of being differentiated to become a variety of cell types, are a powerful tool for studying everything from molecular processes underlying human diseases to elusive genetic variants associated with human phenotypes.
  
  Read more

• How octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish defy genetics' 'central dogma'

  06-04-2017 18:00
  
  Octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish often do not follow the genetic instructions in their DNA to the letter. Instead, they use enzymes to pluck out specific adenosine RNA bases (some of As, out of the As, Ts, Gs, and Us of RNA) that codes for proteins and replace them with a different base, called Inosine. This process—called "RNA editing"—is rarely used to recode proteins in most animals, but octopuses and their kin edit RNA base pairs in over half of their transcribed genes. When rese
  
  Read more

• How a beneficial gut microbe adapted to breast milk

  06-04-2017 18:00
  
  Breast milk provides vital nutrients not only to infants, but also to beneficial microbes that inhabit the gastrointestinal tract. A study published April 6 in Cell Chemical Biology shows that a bacterial species called Bifidobacterium longum has successfully adapted to the unique niche of the infant gut by producing an enzyme called LnbX, which enables this microbe to grow on a sugar that is abundant only in human milk.
  
  Read more

• Under challenge: Girls' confidence level, not math ability hinders path to science degrees

  06-04-2017 17:54
  
  When it comes to mathematics, girls rate their abilities markedly lower than boys, even when there is no observable difference between the two, according to Florida State University researchers.
  
  Read more

• Gold-plated crystals set new standard for natural gas detectors

  06-04-2017 17:53
  
  Materials scientists and engineers have developed a sensor that is fast, sensitive and efficient enough to detect specific wavelengths of electromagnetic energy while on the move. The technology could actively scan areas for methane or natural gas leaks, monitor the health of vast fields of crops or quickly sort plastics for recycling.
  
  Read more

• Leaf vein structure could hold key to extending battery life

  06-04-2017 17:52
  
  The natural structure found within leaves could improve the performance of everything from rechargeable batteries to high-performance gas sensors, according to an international team of scientists. The researchers have designed a porous, such as the veins of a leaf, and could make energy transfers more efficient. The material could improve the performance of rechargeable batteries, optimizing the charge and discharge process and relieving stresses within the battery electrodes, which, at the mome
  
  Read more

• Physicists develop ultrathin superconducting film

  06-04-2017 17:49
  
  Experimental physicists in the research group led by Professor Uwe Hartmann at Saarland University have developed a thin nanomaterial with superconducting properties. Below about -200 °C these materials conduct electricity without loss, levitate magnets and can screen magnetic fields. The particularly interesting aspect of this work is that the research team has succeeded in creating superconducting nanowires that can be woven into an ultra-thin film that is as flexible as cling film. As a r
  
  Read more

• Feeding fat to fungi: Evidence for lipid transfer in arbuscular mycorrhiza

  06-04-2017 17:48
  
  Nearly all organisms live in symbiosis with a vast, diverse array of microbes. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis is the interaction between plants and a group of fungi called Glomeromycota. Most land plants, including several crop species, are able to interact with these fungi, which have been long known to positively affect plant growth and nutrition. The fungi live in plant roots where they elongate their tendrils (called hypha) into the surrounding soil, like an extension of the root syst
  
  Read more

• NASA infrared imagery shows wind shear blowing Cyclone 14P apart

  06-04-2017 17:47
  
  NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Tropical Cyclone 14P gathering data in infrared light and observed that westerly wind shear pushed the strongest storms east of the center. The strong winds were shearing the storm apart.
  
  Read more

• Tibet sediments reveal climate patterns from late Miocene, six million years ago

  06-04-2017 17:09
  
  The Tibetan Plateau in China experiences the strongest monsoon system on Earth, with powerful winds—and accompanying intense rains in the summer months—caused by a complex system of global air circulation patterns and differences in surface temperatures between land and oceans.
  
  Read more

• To save honey bees, human behavior must change

  06-04-2017 17:06
  
  In the search for answers to the complex health problems and colony losses experienced by honey bees in recent years, it may be time for professionals and hobbyists in the beekeeping industry to look in the mirror.
  
  Read more

• More than half of the racial college completion gap explained by pre-college factors

  06-04-2017 17:06
  
  In an analysis of Texas students, more than 60 percent of the racial gap in college completion rates can be attributed to factors that occur before college - factors that are beyond the control of many colleges and universities, finds a new study led by NYU Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development.
  
  Read more

• When old growth beats old school: New forestry technique imitates old growth to capture more carbon and profit

  06-04-2017 17:05
  
  As the planet warms, carbon markets are getting hot too. Forest landowners have been looking for ways to enter these markets, making money from their commercial timberland not just by selling logs—but also by demonstrating that their land is absorbing climate-warming carbon dioxide from the air. The more carbon an acre of trees holds, the more valuable it will be in these new carbon markets—whether in the California "cap and trade" market, international voluntary markets, or others t
  
  Read more

• Scientists link California droughts and floods to distinctive atmospheric waves

  06-04-2017 17:02
  
  The crippling wintertime droughts that struck California from 2013 to 2015, as well as this year's unusually wet California winter, appear to be associated with the same phenomenon: a distinctive wave pattern that emerges in the upper atmosphere and circles the globe.
  
  Read more

• Teacher resignation letters paint bleak picture of US education

  06-04-2017 17:01
  
  As teacher resignation letters increasingly go public—and viral—new research indicates teachers are not leaving solely due to low pay and retirement, but also because of what they see as a broken education system.
  
  Read more

• Unraveling the mystery of snowflakes, from the Alps to Antarctica

  06-04-2017 16:59
  
  Imagine taking pictures of thousands of snowflakes from three different angles with a specialized instrument installed at an altitude of 2,500 meters. Then imagine using 3,500 of these pictures to manually train an algorithm to recognize six different classes of snowflakes. And, finally, imagine using this algorithm to classify the snowflakes in the millions of remaining pictures into those six classes at breakneck speed. That's exactly what researchers at EPFL's Environmental Remote Sensing Lab
  
  Read more

• Scientists further understanding of a process that causes heat loss in fusion devices

  06-04-2017 16:57
  
  Everyone knows that the game of billiards involves balls careening off the sides of a pool table—but few people may know that the same principle applies to fusion reactions. How charged particles like electrons and atomic nuclei that make up plasma interact with the walls of doughnut-shaped devices known as tokamaks helps determine how efficiently fusion reactions occur. Specifically, in a phenomenon known as secondary electron emission (SEE), electrons strike the surface of the wall, caus
  
  Read more

• For early humans, cannibalism more than just a meal (Update)

  06-04-2017 16:53
  
  When early humans, including our species, ate their own kind it was more likely for ritual purposes than for a nourishing meal, according to an unusual study released Thursday.
  
  Read more

• Cable giant Comcast offers cellular plans on Verizon network

  06-04-2017 16:53
  
  The cable giant Comcast will start selling cellphone plans called Xfinity Mobile in the coming months, using a network it's leasing from Verizon.
  
  Read more

• Bangladesh closes one of world's most polluted places

  06-04-2017 16:40
  
  A historic leatherworking quarter in Bangladesh once labelled among the most polluted places on earth was shut Thursday as police enforced a court ruling to protect a vital waterway.
  
  Read more

• 'Twitter Lite' aims at emerging markets

  06-04-2017 16:33
  
  Twitter on Thursday unveiled a low-data usage version of the social network, which aims to bring in users in emerging markets and areas with slow or expensive mobile networks.
  
  Read more

• Report: Record new renewable power capacity added worldwide at lower cost

  06-04-2017 16:33
  
  As the cost of clean technology continues to fall, the world added record levels of renewable energy capacity in 2016, at an investment level 23 per cent lower than the previous year, according to new research published today by UN Environment, the Frankfurt School—UNEP Collaborating Centre and Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF).
  
  Read more

Follow @NewslockSciTech on Twitter!