Science Live News Content

Digital Realty ditches diesel for salad dressing in US to cut datacenter emissions

Clashes as protesters try to force entry into German Tesla plant

Grunheide, Germany (AFP) May 10, 2024 German police on Friday drove back several groups of environmental activists who tried to enter Tesla's factory outside of Berlin, a spokesman said. The spokesman said there were injuries among protesters and police but could not provide figures. ...

US to raise tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles: report

Washington (AFP) May 10, 2024 The United States is planning to increase tariffs on Chinese clean energy goods, news reports said Friday, with levies on electric vehicles expected to roughly quadruple. The move, reported by the Wall Street Journal, comes at the end of a long-awaited review ...

Early infant vision shaped by high-contrast visual inputs

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 11, 2024 Visual experiences in early infancy play a critical role in the development of human vision, offering a unique visual 'diet' that differs significantly from that of older children and adults. This was demonstrated in a recent study titled "An edge-simplicity ...

Sam Altman-backed nuclear start-up crashes after Wall Street debut

New York (AFP) May 10, 2024 The share price of nuclear energy start-up Oklo, chaired by OpenAI boss Sam Altman, fell sharply Friday on its first day of trading on Wall Street. At around 3:40 pm (1940GMT), the stock was down 53.9 percent to $8.40. Founded in 2013 by graduates of the ...

BMW says EU probe into China EV subsidies against free trade

Frankfurt, Germany (AFP) May 8, 2024 The chief executive of German luxury carmaker BMW on Wednesday warned the European Union's investigation into Chinese electric car subsidies runs counter to free trade. The EU launched the inquiry last year, fearing that Chinese subsidies are a threat ...

Rescue operations continue in flooded southern Brazil despite new rain

Porto Alegre, Brazil (AFP) May 12, 2024 Rain continued to soak waterlogged southern Brazil on Saturday, bringing fresh misery to victims of flooding that has killed 136 people so far. "Many people see the rain and are traumatized. We've seen how scared people are," said Enio Posti, ...

Today at the CPUC: Legislative Lifeline for Ratepayers as AB 1999 Amends Utility Tax

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 11, 2024 In a rapid response to public outcry and mounting pressure, California lawmakers have taken decisive action to amend Assembly Bill 1999 (AB 1999), aiming to cap the controversial Big Utility Tax. This legislative effort follows closely on the heels of the ...

Envious shamans and pollution: Diverse threats to Ecuadoran Amazon

Cuyabeno, Ecuador (AFP) May 10, 2024 When fish numbers diminished in the Ecuadoran Amazon, the Siona Indigenous people blamed envious, rival shamans for blocking the animals' passage through the rivers of Cuyabeno, a biodiverse wetland. Experts, however, point the finger at pollution, ...

How the brain is flexible enough for a complex world without going crazy

Boston MA (SPX) May 11, 2024 Every day our brains strive to optimize a trade-off: With lots of things happening around us even as we also harbor many internal drives and memories, somehow our thoughts must be flexible yet focused enough to guide everything we have to do. In a new paper ...

The man who took on the coal industry to save a forest - and won

Alok Shukla has spent years fighting to protect a key Indian forest from mining companies.

Urgent call to democratize knowledge for global food system overhaul

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 11, 2024 A newly published article in Nature Food discusses the crucial need to democratize knowledge for the transformation of global food systems. The paper, titled "Knowledge Democratization Approaches for Food Systems Transformation," highlights the importance ...

More than 200 dead in Afghanistan flash floods: UN

Laqayi,Afghanistan, Afghanistan (AFP) May 11, 2024 More than 200 people were killed in flash floods that ripped through multiple Afghan provinces, the United Nations said on Saturday, as authorities declared a state of emergency and rushed to rescue the injured. Heavy rains on Friday sent ...

Nasa team led by Indian-origin scientist unravels what is behind superheating of Sun's mossy region

The enigmatic mossy region of the Sun has long puzzled scientists with its intricate connection to the lower atmospheric layers and its extraordinary heating process, elevating temperatures from 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit to almost 1 million degrees Fahrenheit—100 times hotter than the ...

Chicken fat transformed into supercapacitor components

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 11, 2024 Amid growing demands for sustainable energy solutions, scientists have developed a novel method to repurpose chicken fat, an abundant waste product, into valuable components for energy storage devices. This new approach, documented in ACS Applied Materials ...

Manta Ray UUV moves closer to operational readiness after successful tests

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 02, 2024 In February and March 2024, the Manta Ray uncrewed underwater vehicle (UUV) prototype, developed by Northrop Grumman, underwent comprehensive in-water testing off Southern California's coast. The tests assessed the UUV's hydrodynamic performance, including ...

Polish farmers protest 'harmful' EU environmental rules

Warsaw (AFP) May 10, 2024 Polish farmers on Friday rallied against EU environmental regulations they said were hurting the economy and called for a referendum on the issue. The "Down with the Green Deal" protest drew several thousands of farmers in yellow vests to downtown Warsaw, where they ...

Fuel rods from GE Vernova's Nuclear Fuels are under evaluation at Oak Ridge

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 11, 2024 GE Vernova's Nuclear Fuel business, Global Nuclear Fuel (GNF), has delivered high burnup fuel rods to the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) for post-commercial operation analysis. The rods have completed three full cycles at a ...

Estimating cultivable land at photovoltaic sites for dual-purpose use

Madrid, Spain (SPX) May 02, 2024 Researchers at the University of Cordoba have developed a new model to calculate the cultivable space within solar farms equipped with two-axis photovoltaic modules, aiming to facilitate the transition to agrivoltaic systems where agriculture and solar energy ...

Deep magma study enhances volcanic eruption predictions

London, UK (SPX) May 11, 2024 Exploring magma from deep within the Earth may enhance how scientists predict volcanic eruptions, potentially saving lives by refining current forecasting methods. Volcanic eruptions are major hazards that have a profound impact on both the local populations and ...

Hope for rare mountain chicken frog thanks to London-born froglets

Frantic efforts are being made to save the endangered mountain chicken frog, native to just two Caribbean islands.

Can Parrots Converse? Polly Says That’s the Wrong Question.

In a cautious new paper, scientists tried to determine whether an interactive speech board might enrich the life of a parrot named Ellie.

Family Members at One Another’s Throats? Call In the Mediator.

Trained negotiators can help families struggling with vexing elder-care issues.

Team studies factors related to a sense of economic insecurity in older adults

Researchers undertook a study of older adults to examine the connection between a sense of economic insecurity and a person's participation in social activities.

Birth by C-section more than doubles odds of measles vaccine failure

Birth by C-section more than doubles odds of measles vaccine failure. Researchers say it is vital that children born by caesarean section receive two doses of the measles vaccine for robust protection against the disease.

What makes a memory? It may be related to how hard your brain had to work

The human brain filters through a flood of experiences to create specific memories. Why do some of the experiences in this deluge of sensory information become 'memorable,' while most are discarded by the brain? A computational model and behavioral study developed by Yale scientists suggests ...

Hilary Cass Says U.S. Doctors Are ‘Out of Date’ on Youth Gender Medicine

Dr. Hilary Cass published a landmark report that led to restrictions on youth gender care in Britain. U.S. health groups said it did not change their support of the care.

No more missed alarms: How to crank up your iPhone’s alarm volume

Before adjusting the alarm volume on your iPhone, make sure your phone's software is updated. Change the alarm volume by entering settings.

The price tag of phasing-out coal

Coal phase-out is necessary to solve climate change, but can have negative impacts on workers and local communities dependent on coal for their livelihoods. Researchers have studied government plans for coal phase-out around the world and discovered that more than half of such plans include ...

Boffins suggest astronauts should build a Wall of Death on the Moon

In US national parks, a historical wound begins to heal

Saguaro National Park, Etats-Unis (AFP) May 13, 2024 When Raeshaun Ramon first donned the distinctive green and gray uniform of a US National Park Service ranger, he feared his Native American tribe would judge him for his choice. As a member of the Tohono O'odham nation, he didn't want ...

Third time could prove lucky for aurora viewers around the world

Washington (AFP) May 13, 2024 Anyone who missed the dazzling auroras dancing across night skies earlier this weekend will get another chance Sunday evening, as the powerful geomagnetic storm hitting the Earth is expected to intensify yet again. "Several intense Coronal Mass Ejections are ...

Where is the Best Place to Buy Used Books?

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 13, 2024 An average student's battle to acquire a textbook at a reasonable price is the hardship he/she has to go through every day. Baffling if it is possible to get the textbooks for the semester without any fortune to waste. There is no doubt in my mind that the ...

GMV Spearheads ESA's Mission to Revolutionize Satellite Navigation with LEO Technology

Madrid, Spain (SPX) Mar 27, 2024 In a significant advancement for satellite navigation technology, the European Space Agency (ESA) has selected GMV, a global technology firm, for a pioneering mission. This 78.4 million euro project aims to demonstrate the potential of Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) ...

Rescuers struggle to reach Afghanistan flood-hit areas

Sheikh Jalal, Afghanistan (AFP) May 12, 2024 Emergency aid and rescue teams struggled on Sunday to reach areas of northern Afghanistan hardest hit by flash floods that killed hundreds, AFP journalists saw. Heavy rains caused flash flooding in several provinces in Afghanistan on Friday. ...

Microsoft, Amazon to invest billions in French tech

Paris (AFP) May 12, 2024 Microsoft on Sunday announced four billion euros in investment for developing data centres in France, joining fellow US giant Amazon in committing to the country's tech infrastructure. The announcements came on the eve of the seventh Choose France Summit, the aim ...

Brazil authorities warn of more floods, landslides as new rains hit south

Porto Alegre, Brazil (AFP) May 13, 2024 River levels rose again Sunday as strong rains lashed waterlogged southern Brazil, where flooding has killed 145 people and forced hundreds of thousands from their homes. Residents of the state of Rio Grande do Sul were bracing for more misery from the ...

Concern about Russia dominates as Lithuanians vote

Vilnius (AFP) May 12, 2024 Lithuania voted Sunday in a presidential election dominated by security concerns with the main candidates all agreed the NATO and EU member should boost defence spending to counter the perceived threat from neighbouring Russia. The Baltic state of 2.8 million ...

27 new wild swimming sites for England - but are they clean?

Twenty-seven new sites have been designated for summer pollution monitoring.

Brazil floods strike blow to powerful agriculture sector

Rio De Janeiro (AFP) May 10, 2024 Floodwaters in Brazil have swallowed up soybean fields and farming equipment, cutting off roads, livestock farms and warehouses in the latest extreme weather event to hit the agricultural giant. The inundated state of Rio Grande do Sul is one of the biggest ...

Solar Storm Disrupts Some Farmers’ GPS Systems

The storm interfered with navigational systems used in tractors and other farming equipment, leaving some farmers temporarily unable to plant their crops.

Indonesia flood death toll rises to 41 with 17 missing

Tanah Datar, Indonesia (AFP) May 13, 2024 The number of people killed by flash floods and cold lava flow from a volcano in western Indonesia over the weekend has risen to 41 with 17 more missing, a local disaster agency official told AFP Monday. Hours of heavy rain caused large volcanic ...

Loss and hope: US park rangers' climate crisis fight

Indiana Dunes National Park And Glacier National Park, United States (AFP) May 13, 2024 (AFP) - American biologist Laura Brennan describes the coin-sized Karner blue butterfly as "very delicate and graceful" with a "lovely blue" coloring and "just a little speckling of orange." The species, ...

Texan construction workers put a rocket up Team SpaceX over 'unpaid bills'

New work extends the thermodynamic theory of computation

Physicists and computer scientists have recently expanded the modern theory of the thermodynamics of computation. By combining approaches from statistical physics and computer science, the researchers introduce mathematical equations that reveal the minimum and maximum predicted energy cost ...

Alameda Officials Stop Cloud Brightening Study Aimed at Cooling Planet

Researchers had been testing a sprayer that could one day be used to push a salty mist skyward, cooling the Earth. Officials stopped the work, citing health questions.

Tech Today: A NASA-Inspired Bike Helmet with Aerodynamics of a Jet  

Before the U.S. Cycling Federation adopted a requirement for all bike racers to wear helmets in 1986, most people rode without one. The only helmet options at the time drew rider complaints for being too hot and heavy. But, with a bit inspiration from a NASA aircraft wing design used during ...

World's largest hummingbird is actually two species

The Giant Hummingbird of western South America is not one species but two, according to an international group of researchers. The northern population stays in the high Andes year-round while the southern population migrates from sea level up to 14,000 feet for the nonbreeding months.

Distinct population of 'troublemaker' platelet cells appear with aging, lead to blood clotting, disease

Researchers have discovered a distinct, secondary population of platelets that appears with aging and have hyperreactive behavior and unique molecular properties, which could make them easier to target with medication.

New Method Unravels Slow Electron Behavior

Berlin, Germany (SPX) May 14, 2024 Electrons can exhibit different behaviors based on their energy levels. High-energy or low-energy electron interactions with solid materials trigger various effects. For instance, low-energy electrons can cause cancer but can also be used to treat tumors. ...

Summer 2023 Was the Northern Hemisphere’s Hottest in 2,000 Years, Study Finds

Scientists used tree rings to compare last year’s extreme heat with temperatures over the past two millenniums.

WorldView Legion satellite imaging launched by RTX and Maxar

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 06, 2024 Yesterday marked the launch of the first two of six WorldView Legion satellites, featuring advanced imaging instruments from Raytheon, an RTX (NYSE: RTX) business. These satellites, which are part of Maxar's initiative, aim to enhance Earth observation ...

Elon Musk blasts OpenAI's new demo, says it made him feel 'cringe'

In March, the tech billionaire sued OpenAI and its CEO Altman, alleging that they breached their original contractual agreements around AI.

Today at the CPUC: SCE Proposes Modifications to Compliance Standards

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 13, 2024 Southern California Edison (SCE) has submitted a significant advice letter to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), seeking to adjust its Schedule FC-NEM to align with current California Air Resource Board standards. This move is pursuant to the ...

New molecule mimics the anti-clotting action of blood-sucking organisms

Nature gave ticks, mosquitoes and leaches a quick-acting way to keep blood from clotting while they extract their meal from a host. Now the key to that method has been harnessed by a team of researchers as a potential anti-clotting agent that could be used as an alternative to heparin during ...

Like dad and like mum...all in one plant

Scientists have established a system to generate clonal sex cells in tomato plants and used them to design the genomes of offspring. The fertilization of a clonal egg from one parent by a clonal sperm from another parent led to plants containing the complete genetic information of both parents.

Venus's water mystery: Could a simple molecule be the culprit?

NASA to Discuss New Polar Climate Mission During Media Teleconference

NASA is hosting a media call at 3 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, May 15, to discuss the agency’s PREFIRE (Polar Radiant Energy in the Far-InfraRed Experiment) mission, which aims to improve life on Earth by studying heat loss from Earth’s polar regions and provide information on our changing climate. ...

US calls for Hong Kong assurances on internet freedom

Washington (AFP) May 9, 2024 Hong Kong should provide assurances that it will preserve internet freedom if it wants to remain a major economic hub, the top US diplomat in the city said Thursday. The Chinese city, which was promised autonomy when Britain handed it back in 1997, on Wednesday ...

New drug makes exercise, everyday tasks easier for people with common heart condition

People with the heart condition obstructive cardiomyopathy were able to use significantly more oxygen while exercising after taking the investigational drug aficamten, according to a new study.

Dazzling auroras fade from skies as sunspot turns away

Washington (AFP) May 13, 2024 The spectacular auroras that danced across the sky in many parts of the world over the weekend are fading, scientists said Monday, as the massive sunspot that caused them turns its ferocious gaze away from Earth. Since Friday, the most powerful solar storm ...

New gel breaks down alcohol in the body

Researchers have developed a protein-based gel that breaks down alcohol in the gastrointestinal tract without harming the body. In the future, people who take the gel could reduce the harmful and intoxicating effects of alcohol.

Researchers discover the universe's oldest stars in our own galactic backyard

Astronomers discovered three of the oldest stars in the universe, and they live in our own galactic neighborhood. The stars are in the Milky Way's 'halo' -- the cloud of stars that envelopes the entire main galactic disk -- and they appear to have formed between 12 and 13 billion years ago, ...

China tech giant Baidu VP apologises after backlash over tough style

Beijing (AFP) May 9, 2024 A top PR executive at Chinese internet giant Baidu apologised Thursday after videos she posted online sparked accusations of toxic and abusive management and sent the firm's shares sliding. Qu Jing, the vice president in charge of public relations, posted a series ...

AI is permeating American culture, but radiologists hesitant to place patients' health in an algorithm's hands

Some doctors are hesitant to employ AI programs in their practices, even as the FDA approves more algorithms to assist them in detecting tumors or completing less important tasks.

Today at the CPUC: Approval of the California Energy Commission's Gas R and D Program for FY 2023-2024

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 14, 2024 The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has officially adopted Resolution G-3603, approving the California Energy Commission's Gas Research and Development Program for the fiscal year 2023-2024. This approval facilitates continued research and ...

NASA’s Juno Mission Spots Jupiter’s Tiny Moon Amalthea

NASA’s Juno mission captured these views of Jupiter during its 59th close flyby of the giant planet on March 7, 2024. They provide a good look at Jupiter’s colorful belts and swirling storms, including the Great Red Spot. Close examination reveals something more: two glimpses of the tiny ...

NASA Names First Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson on Monday named David Salvagnini as the agency’s new chief artificial intelligence (AI) officer, effective immediately. The role is an expansion of Salvagnini’s current role as chief data officer. A wide variety of AI tools are used by NASA to benefit humanity ...

Manganese and iridium catalyst marks significant advance in sustainable hydrogen production

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) May 10, 2024 The quest for a sustainable, large-scale production of green hydrogen may soon reach a critical milestone, thanks to a new method developed by researchers at RIKEN. The study, led by Ryuhei Nakamura and published in Science on May 10, details a technique that ...

Optimizing Grid Integration for California's Energy Future

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 06, 2024 On May 1, 2024, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) hosted the third workshop of the High DER Future Grid Study, which assembled stakeholders and experts virtually to develop solutions for enhancing grid operations with a high volume ...

Push for new US lithium mine leaves some Americans wary

Lincolnton, United States (AFP) May 15, 2024 When Kristal Lee and her husband bought a house in Gaston County, North Carolina two years ago, they envisioned a "forever home". But a planned lithium mine is bringing Lee sleepless nights. Nearby is an area earmarked for a $1.2 billion project ...

Persistent strain of cholera defends itself against forces of change, scientists find

A longstanding mystery about the strain of Vibrio cholerae (V. cholerae) responsible for the seventh global cholera pandemic is how this lineage has managed to out-compete other pathogenic variants. The team identified a unique quirk of the immune system that protects the bacteria from a key ...

Untreated sewage illegally pumped into Windermere

Millions of litres of raw sewage was pumped into one of the UK's most famous lakes after a fault.

ISS National Lab offers up to $750,000 for technology development in space

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 15, 2024 The International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory is calling for flight concepts for technology development that use the space environment of the orbiting laboratory. This solicitation, "Technology Development and Applied Research Leveraging the ISS ...

Researchers identify fastest rate of natural carbon dioxide rise over the last 50,000 years

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 14, 2024 Researchers at Oregon State University have determined that today's atmospheric carbon dioxide increase is occurring 10 times faster than at any point in the last 50,000 years. This finding comes from a detailed chemical analysis of ancient Antarctic ice and ...

People without an inner voice have poorer verbal memory

The vast majority of people have an ongoing conversation with themselves, an inner voice, that plays an important role in their daily lives. But between 5-10 per cent of the population do not have the same experience of an inner voice, and they find it more difficult to perform certain verbal ...

NASA Tests Moonwalk Technology in Arizona Desert

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 15, 2024 NASA is conducting a week-long field test in the San Francisco Volcanic Field near Flagstaff, Arizona to practice moonwalk scenarios for the Artemis campaign. NASA astronauts Kate Rubins and Andre Douglas are participating as crewmembers, wearing mockup ...

Speedy, secure, sustainable -- that's the future of telecom

A new device that can process information using a small amount of light could enable energy-efficient and secure communications.

Brazil announces aid to families as Lula visits flooded south

Rio De Janeiro (AFP) May 15, 2024 Nearly a quarter-of-a-million families impacted by devastating floods in Brazil's south will receive about $1,000 each towards replacing what they lost, the government said Wednesday. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva visited the stricken Rio Grande do Sul ...

Warring parties must end Sudan communications blackout: NGOs

Port Sudan, Sudan (AFP) May 15, 2024 Sudan's armed forces and rival paramilitaries must "end collective punishment" and restore life-saving telecommunications, Sudanese and international non-governmental organisations said Wednesday. For over a year, Sudan's army and paramilitary Rapid ...

Daily ice loss in Greenland tracked by new GPS method

Paris, France (SPX) May 16, 2024 When the ice sheet in Greenland melts, the bedrock beneath moves slightly. This occurs because the pressure from the ice above decreases, causing the land beneath to rise. This elevation change can be measured and translated into how much ice disappears from ...

NASA needs new ideas and tech to get Mars Sample Return mission off the ground

New Analysis Reveals Historical Temperature Trends at Beijing Observatory

Sydney, Australia (SPX) May 16, 2024 A recent study published in the International Journal of Climatology has analyzed over a century's worth of daily temperature data from the Beijing Observatory, covering the years 1915 to 2021. Researchers from the Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the ...

New Canadian firefighters train for brutal fire season

Saint-Gabriel (AFP) May 16, 2024 Being a forest firefighter in Canada means knowing how to handle a water mist lance but also pumps and axes: in Quebec as in the other provinces, hundreds of new recruits are training to beat down blazes ahead of another possibly harsh wildfire season. Amid ...

A new process for the synthesis of rare nuclei in the universe

Berlin, Germany (SPX) May 14, 2024 A new nucleosynthesis process, called the r-Process, has been proposed by scientists from GSI, and the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics. This r-Process occurs when neutron-rich material is exposed to a high flux of neutrinos. The theoretical proposal, ...

US delegation discusses troop withdrawal in Niger

Niamey, Niger (AFP) May 15, 2024 A high-level US delegation held talks in Niger Wednesday to discuss the withdrawal of US troops demanded by the West African country's military leaders, the defence ministry said. The Pentagon delegation, headed by Christopher Maier, assistant secretary ...

Eco-friendly battery developed for low-income countries

London, UK (SPX) May 16, 2024 Researchers at Linkoping University, Sweden, have developed a zinc and lignin battery that can be used over 8000 times. This innovation aims to provide an affordable and sustainable battery solution for countries with limited access to electricity. The study was ...

Electrification Goals Hampered by Copper Shortage, Study Finds

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 16, 2024 Copper cannot be mined quickly enough to meet U.S. policy guidelines for transitioning to renewable energy, according to a University of Michigan study. The Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law in 2022, requires 100% of cars manufactured to be electric ...

What will be the repercussions of Biden's new China tariffs?

Washington (AFP) May 16, 2024 US President Joe Biden unveiled steep tariff hikes on Chinese green tech this week, hitting imports like electric vehicles, chips and solar cells - and adding stress to US-China ties. But despite targeting $18 billion in imports across new and already targeted ...

AWS to build EU 'sovereign cloud' in Germany

Washington (AFP) May 15, 2024 Amazon's cloud computing division will invest 7.8 billion euros ($8.5 billion) towards building a "sovereign cloud" center in Germany, the company announced Wednesday, as the EU seeks to harbor the European data on domestic servers. The company said that the ...

Heatwave deaths tallied in new study

Sydney, Australia (SPX) May 16, 2024 A new study published in PLOS Medicine on May 14th by Yuming Guo of Monash University and colleagues found that between 1990 and 2019, over 150,000 deaths each year were associated with heatwaves globally. Heatwaves, defined as periods of high ...

Turkey's 'mad honey' aphrodisiac that can knock you flat

Camlihemsin, Turkey (AFP) May 16, 2024 Its fans swear it can cure heart palpitations, dodgy stomachs and even impotence. Yet every year hundreds of people end up in hospital after gorging themselves on Turkey's "mad honey". But beekeeper Bayram Demirciler is adamant the honey his bees make ...

What fire ants can teach us about making better, self-healing materials

Fire ants form rafts to survive flooding, but how do those bonds work? And what can we learn from them? A professor is researching those questions to expand our knowledge of materials science.

Huge Survey vs. Tiny Space Junk

Washington DC (SPX) May 16, 2024 As construction continues on the Vera Rubin Observatory, the skies above its mountaintop home grow more and more crowded following every rocket launch. Astronomers, conscious of the plans for mega-constellations of new satellites in the next few years, are ...

Infertility treatment doubles the risk of postpartum heart disease

Researchers tie infertility treatment to a particular risk for hypertensive diseases.

Industrial robots make people feel worse about jobs and themselves

Shedding light on perovskite hydrides using a new deposition technique

Perovskite hydrides are promising materials for various emerging energy technologies, but measuring their intrinsic hydride-ion conductivity is difficult. In a recent study, researchers address this issue using a novel laser deposition technique in an H-radical atmosphere. Using this approach, ...

EarthCARE mission kit

Explore this mission kit to learn more about EarthCARE – ESA’s new mission that will shed new light on the role that clouds and aerosols play in regulating Earth’s climate.

Healthcare privatisation linked with worse outcomes, higher profits: Lancet Study

Gene therapy relieves back pain, repairs damaged disc in mice

Disc-related back pain may one day meet its therapeutic match: gene therapy delivered by naturally derived nanocarriers that, a new study shows, repairs damaged discs in the spine and lowers pain symptoms in mice.

New sensor gives unprecedented look at changes in cell's energy 'currency'

A new sensor is giving researchers the best look yet at ATP levels inside living cells, enabling scientists to study in greater detail than ever before how fluctuations in this cellular currency affect the cell and contribute to disease.

Some mice may owe their monogamy to a newly evolved type of cell

What makes the oldfield mouse steadfastly monogamous throughout its life while its closest rodent relatives are promiscuous? The answer may be a previously unknown hormone-generating cell. Scientists discover the cells and hormones that inspire mice to nurture their young; the same hormones are ...

Microbial Enzyme Could Make Plastics Biodegradable

Berlin, Germany (SPX) May 16, 2024 "Several million tons of styrene are produced and transported every year," says Dirk Tischler. "In the process, some of it also gets released unintentionally into the environment." This is not the only source of styrene in the environment, however: ...

NASA confirms nuclear-powered Dragonfly drone is going to Titan

Electromagnetic Levitator turns ten

This summer marks the ten-year anniversary of the electromagnetic levitation facility on the International Space Station.

Pre- and post-surgical immunotherapy improves outcomes for patients with operable lung cancer

Compared with pre-surgical (neoadjuvant) chemotherapy alone, adding perioperative immunotherapy -- given before and after surgery -- significantly improved event-free survival (EFS) in patients with resectable early-stage non-small cell lung cancer(NSCLC), according to researchers.

Wind farms can offset their emissions within two years

After spinning for under two years, a wind farm can offset the carbon emissions generated across its entire 30-year lifespan, when compared to thermal power plants.

Elon Musk's Neuralink accepting applications for chip implant

Earlier this month, Neuralink achieved 100 successful days with the first human - Noland Arbaugh - implanted with a brain chip.

Keyless car theft is on the rise. This is how to protect yourself.

Car thieves have learned to exploit keyless vehicles' more advanced systems to unlock and start them without having the wireless key fob nearby, but there are ways to protect your car.

A powerful tool speeds success in achieving highly efficient thermoelectric materials

Thermoelectric materials could play an important role in the clean energy transition, as they can produce electricity from sources of heat that would otherwise go to waste. Researchers report a new approach to efficiently predict when thermoelectric materials will have improved performance ...

Airborne technology brings new hope to map shallow aquifers in Earth's most arid deserts

The new technique will map the top of the aquifer, called the 'water table,' spanning areas as large as hundreds of kilometers using a radar mounted on a high-altitude aircraft. According to the researchers, Desert-SEA will measure the variabilities in the depth of the water table on a large ...

Researchers wrestle with accuracy of AI technology used to create new drug candidates

Researchers have determined that a protein prediction technology can yield accurate results in the hunt to efficiently find the best possible drug candidates for many conditions.

Study Suggests Waiting Longer Before Withdrawing Life Support

A review of a limited number of cases of unresponsive patients with severe traumatic brain injuries raised questions about a custom of making a decision within 72 hours.

Very early blood pressure control confers both benefits and harms in acute stroke

Early identification of stroke type could be key to harnessing the benefits of very early in-ambulance blood pressure lowering treatment in patients with suspected acute stroke, according to new research.

Reddit gives OpenAI access to its wealth of posts

San Francisco (AFP) May 17, 2024 OpenAI will have access to Reddit data for training its artificial intelligence models and will put its technology to work on the popular discussion platform, the companies said Thursday. Reddit, which debuted on the New York Stock Exchange earlier this year, ...

Even with glitches, planning your next trip with AI is making me rethink travel

Powerful artificial intelligence tools offer a glimpse into a future in which planning for your next vacation is as simple as sending a text.

When an Eel Takes a Bite, Then an Octopus Might Lose an Arm but Take an Eye

Videos filmed by divers show that choking, blinding and sacrificing limbs are all in the cephalopods’ repertoire.

Is this autonomous security guard robot the protection you need?

A robotic security guard stands 5 feet tall and can move at 3 mph while patrolling the workplace and reporting to a call center staffed by humans.

The vicious cycle of protein clumping in Alzheimer's disease and normal aging

To date, approaches to treatments for Alzheimer's disease have not addressed the contribution of protein insolubility as a general phenomenon, instead focusing on one or two insoluble proteins. Researchers have recently completed a systematic study in worms that paints an intricate picture ...

Singing repairs the language network of the brain after a cerebrovascular accident

Singing rehabilitates speech production in post-stroke aphasia. Researchers investigated the rehabilitative effect of singing on the brain.

Automated news video production is better with a human touch

AI-generated videos for short messages are only as well received as manually created ones if they are edited by humans.

Your guide to the reveal of five new Euclid images

ESA is releasing a new set of full-colour images captured by the space telescope Euclid. Follow a broadcast of the reveal on Thursday 23 May at 11:00 BST / 12:00 CEST. Five new portraits of our cosmos were captured during Euclid’s early observations phase, each revealing amazing new ...

Aviary: A New NASA Software Platform for Aircraft Modelling

NASA has created a new digital modelling tool for aeronautical engineers to innovate new aircraft designs, building on decades of experience using highly advanced computer code for aviation. Using this tool, researchers can create simulations of conceptual aircraft featuring never-flown ...

Pankaj Tripathi returns as lawyer Madhav Mishra in season 4 of Criminal Justice, says 'court jaari hai aur...'

Pankaj Tripathi is set to return with another case as Madhav Mishra in the new season of Criminal Justice.

NASA, ESA will search for 'signs of life' on Mars

Washington DC (UPI) May 16, 2024 NASA and the European Space Agency will search together for signs of life on Mars, the U.S. space administration announced Thursday. They will collaborate on the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover, an ESA-led mission that will launch in 2028 to explore Mars. ...

Researchers discover new pathway to cancer cell suicide

Chemotherapy kills cancer cells. But the way these cells die appears to be different than previously understood. Researchers have now uncovered a completely new way in which cancer cells die: due to the Schlafen11 gene. 'This is a very unexpected finding. Cancer patients have been treated with ...

The Northern Lights Forecast in the U.K.

Sightings of the aurora borealis are unlikely in the U.K. this weekend, but the northern lights could return on Monday, forecasters said.

Be it language or maths, AI is touching human-level capability

B cells drive responses of other immune cells, and can be modified to prevent Multiple Sclerosis symptoms

B cells can control responses of myeloid cells through the release of particular cytokines (small proteins that control the growth and activity of cells in the immune system), challenging the prevailing view that T cells are the principle orchestrators of immune responses. In individuals with ...

Week in images: 13-17 May 2024

Week in images: 13-17 May 2024 Discover our week through the lens

Anti-diabetic treatment associated with reduced risk of developing blood cancer

People who use metformin are less likely to develop a myeloproliferative neoplasm (MPN) over time, indicating that the treatment may help prevent the development of certain types of cancers, according to a new study.

For sale: unique piece of land in strategic Arctic archipelago

Oslo (AFP) May 17, 2024 The last piece of privately owned land in the strategic Svalbard archipelago in the Arctic is up for grabs, a property likely to entice China but which Norway does not intend to let go without a fight. The archipelago is located halfway between mainland Norway and the ...

Diamond glitter: A play of colors with artificial DNA crystals

Using DNA origami, researchers have built a diamond lattice with a periodicity of hundreds of nanometers -- a new approach for manufacturing semiconductors for visible light.

Indonesia evacuates hundreds near erupting volcano

Jakarta (AFP) May 17, 2024 Hundreds of people living near an erupting volcano in eastern Indonesia have been evacuated after authorities raised its alert status to the highest level, an official said Friday. Authorities raised the alert status for Mount Ibu, located on remote Halmahera ...

Boston Dynamics' creepy robotic canine dances in sparkly blue costume

Robotic dogs performed a dance routine and kissed, igniting discussion about the potential applications of this technology at entertainment venues like theme parks.

A new 'rule of biology' may have come to light, expanding insight into evolution and aging

A molecular biologist may have found a new 'rule of biology.' The rule challenges long-held notions that most living organisms prefer stability over instability because stability requires less energy and fewer resources.

DeepMind spinoff Isomorphic claims AlphaFold 3 predicts bio-matter down to the DNA

Spider silk sound system

Researchers have investigated how spiders listen to their environments through webs and found that the webs match the acoustic particle velocity for a wide range of sound frequencies. Playing sound ranging from 1 Hz to 50 kHz for the spiders and measuring the spider silk motion with a laser ...

Botanists are scouring the US-Mexico border to document a forgotten ecosystem split by a giant wall

Building a better sarcasm detector

Sarcasm is notoriously tricky to convey through text, and the subtle changes in tone that convey sarcasm often confuse computer algorithms as well, limiting virtual assistants and content analysis tools. So researchers have now developed a multimodal algorithm for improved sarcasm detection ...

Brain-sensing threads slip from gray matter in first human Neuralink trial

Ancient arachnid from coal forests of America stands out for its spiny legs

The spiny legged 308-million-year-old arachnid Douglassarachne acanthopoda was discovered the famous Mazon Creek locality.

Florida slammed for bill striking climate change from state law

Miami (AFP) May 16, 2024 Democrats on Thursday slammed a new law introduced by Florida that makes climate change a lesser priority and largely removes the phrase from statutes in the hottest state in the mainland United States. The legislation, which was signed Wednesday by Republican ...

More efficient bioethanol production might be possible using persimmon tannin to help yeast thrive

Researchers have found that persimmon tannin, known for its antioxidant properties, improves the growth of yeast in the presence of ethanol.

Glitch hampers bepicolombo mission to mercury

Paris, France (SPX) May 20, 2024 BepiColombo, the joint ESA/JAXA mission to Mercury, has experienced an issue that is preventing the spacecraft's thrusters from operating at full power. BepiColombo consists of two scientific probes and the Mercury Transfer Module, designed to separate during ...

Clinicians report success with first test of drug in a patient with life-threatening blood clotting disorder

A recombinant form of human ADAMTS13 approved for a different condition helped to save the life of a young mother with immune thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura.

Weather bureau warns India faces another election heatwave

New Delhi (AFP) May 17, 2024 India's weather bureau has warned the country was facing its second heatwave in three weeks, including in areas where millions of people are set to vote in the six-week election. Analysts have blamed a dip in turnout compared to the last national poll in 2019 ...

How putting mini backpacks on birds help researcher solve 200-year mystery

Einstein proved right! Study gives first proof of 'plunging regions' around black holes

A new study by an international team led by researchers at Oxford University Physics has provided the first observational proof of a key prediction from Einstein’s theory of gravity regarding the existence of “plunging regions” around black holes. In the upcoming months, another team from ...

Nasa's Hubble reveals birth of a Sun-like star in stunning detail

Nasa's Hubble Space Telescope captures vibrant trio of stars, including HP Tau, in a reflection nebula. These T Tauri stars offer insights into star birth and evolution, enhancing our understanding of stellar origins and evolution processes.

WHO approves Japan-made dengue vaccine

WHO approves TAK-003 (Qdenga) as 2nd dengue vaccine for children aged 6-16 in high-burden areas. Takeda in talks to launch in India. Panacea Biotec & Serum Institute collaborate on indigenous vaccine trials.

Zombie cells in the sea: Viruses keep the most common marine bacteria in check

Marine microbes control the flux of matter and energy essential for life in the oceans. Among them, the bacterial group SAR11 accounts for about a third of all the bacteria found in surface ocean waters. A study now reveals that at times nearly 20% of SAR11 cells are infected by viruses, ...

A trial HIV vaccine triggered elusive and essential antibodies in humans

An HIV vaccine candidate triggered low levels of an elusive type of broadly neutralizing HIV antibodies among a small group of people enrolled in a 2019 clinical trial.

Sols 4186-4188: Almost there…

Earth planning day: Wednesday, May 15, 2024 The rover planning engineers yet again did a great job navigating through the large bedrock blocks that litter the terrain in front of us. We are getting ever closer to being able to cross the Gediz Vallis channel and associated deposits, a feature ...

Can we rid artificial intelligence of bias?

San Francisco (AFP) May 19, 2024 Artificial intelligence built on mountains of potentially biased information has created a real risk of automating discrimination, but is there any way to re-educate the machines? The question for some is extremely urgent. In this ChatGPT era, AI will ...

Endangered Iberian lynx population doubles in three years

Madrid (AFP) May 17, 2024 The number of endangered Iberian lynx in the wild in Spain and Portugal has nearly doubled since 2020 to surpass 2,000 last year, the Spanish government said Friday. A total of 722 lynx were born in 2023 bringing their total number in the two countries to 2,021, ...

Unveiling a New Quantum Frontier: Frequency-Domain Entanglement

Sydney, Australia (SPX) May 16, 2024 Scientists have introduced a new form of quantum entanglement known as frequency-domain photon number-path entanglement. This advancement in quantum physics involves a tool called a frequency beam splitter, which can alter the frequency of individual ...

'Grand Theft Auto VI' release set for late 2025

San Francisco (AFP) May 16, 2024 Rockstar Games parent Take-Two Interactive on Thursday said the eagerly awaited video game "Grand Theft Auto VI" will be released in fall of 2025. Rockstar had previously said the next installment to the blockbuster franchise would be available next year, ...

New images show a black hole collision

NPR's Danielle Kurtzleben speaks with astrophysicist Priyamvada Natarajan about the James Webb Space Telescope's recent discovery of two distant black holes colliding.

Solar power heats materials over 1,000 degrees Celsius

Berlin, Germany (SPX) May 16, 2024 Researchers at ETH Zurich have developed a method to generate heat exceeding 1,000 degrees Celsius using solar power. This innovation could replace fossil fuels in energy-intensive industries like steel and cement production. The study, published in the ...

Robotic "SuperLimbs" could help moonwalkers recover from falls

Boston MA (SPX) May 16, 2024 Need a moment of levity? Try watching videos of astronauts falling on the moon. NASA's outtakes of Apollo astronauts tripping and stumbling as they bounce in slow motion are delightfully relatable. For MIT engineers, the lunar bloopers also highlight ...

Trade barriers on Chinese EVs a 'big trap', says Stellantis CEO

Paris (AFP) May 16, 2024 Placing 100 percent tariffs on Chinese cars, as the United States has just done, is a "huge trap", the head of the Stellantis automobile group said Thursday. "When you put a bubble around a market, whether it is the American market or the European market, the first ...

A knotty problem: Boffins working on fuel-efficient trajectories for space travel

Hera tests CubeSat communication for asteroid mission

Paris, France (SPX) May 20, 2024 The Juventas CubeSat, equipped with radar, is partially deployed from its Hera mission mothership inside ESA's Maxwell chamber for electromagnetic compatibility testing. The foam pyramids around Hera absorb radio signals, while the Maxwell chamber's 9-m high ...

Death toll from Texas storm rises to 7

Houston (AFP) May 18, 2024 The death toll from severe weather that lashed the Texas city of Houston has risen to seven, authorities said Friday. The three additional deaths came after Houston, the fourth-largest US city, was hit Thursday by heavy rain and winds up to 100 miles (160 ...

How NASA Tracked the Most Intense Solar Storm in Decades

Greenbelt MD (SPX) May 20, 2024 May 2024 has already proven to be a particularly stormy month for our Sun. During the first full week of May, a barrage of large solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) launched clouds of charged particles and magnetic fields toward Earth, creating the ...

Gov. Ron DeSantis signs law erasing climate change from Florida policy

Washington DC (UPI) May 16, 2024 With summer's extreme heat and this year's hurricane season rolling into Florida next month, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation Wednesday that will erase climate change from state policy effective July 1. The new law will erase the words "climate change" ...

Solar Storm's Impact Detected in Deep Sea Observatories

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 20, 2024 The solar storm that recently drove the aurora borealis was also affecting compasses deep in the ocean, according to new findings by Ocean Networks Canada (ONC), a University of Victoria initiative. ONC's subsea observatories on Canada's coasts recorded ...

China 'can't have it both ways' with Russia and West: US

Washington (AFP) May 16, 2024 The United States on Thursday said Chinese President Xi Jinping cannot both improve ties with the West and support Russia after he vowed to boost relations with his counterpart Vladimir Putin. "The People's Republic of China can't have its cake and eat it too," ...

Ariane 6 will launch 3D Printing technology into space

Paris, France (SPX) May 20, 2024 Europe's newest rocket, Ariane 6, is set to launch, carrying multiple space missions. One notable mission is Replicator, a project by Orbital Matter, which will demonstrate new 3D printing technology in space. The Replicator mission, a collaboration between ...

Oil tanker hit by missile off Yemen

Dubai (AFP) May 18, 2024 A missile fired by Iran-backed rebels hit a Greek oil tanker off Yemen early Thursday, causing some damage but no casualties, US Central Command said. "At approximately 1 am (Sanaa time) May 18, Iranian-backed Huthis launched one anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) ...

Comet Fragment Explodes in Dark Skies Over Spain and Portugal

A brilliant flash of blue, green and white on Saturday night came from a shard of an as yet unidentified comet that was moving around 100,000 miles per hour, experts said.

China offers to buy up commercial housing to boost property market

Beijing (AFP) May 17, 2024 China cut the minimum down payment rate for first-time homebuyers on Friday and suggested the government could buy up commercial real estate, in some of Beijing's most ambitious moves yet to lift the ailing housing market out of an unprecedented debt crisis. ...

Quantum navigation system successfully trialed in UK flights

London, UK (SPX) May 13, 2024 The UK has successfully completed commercial flight trials of a new quantum-based navigation system, designed to be immune to jamming or spoofing by external threats. These trials mark a significant advancement in navigation technology that could enhance global ...

French marines patrol New Caledonia after deadly riots

Noumea (AFP) May 17, 2024 French marines on Friday patrolled the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia, which local authorities said was "calmer" after days of riots over voting reform that have left five dead and hundreds injured. Military and police "reinforcements will control areas ...

Astronomers detect rare neutral atomic-carbon absorbers with a deep neural network

Sydney, Australia (SPX) May 20, 2024 Recently, an international team led by Prof. GE Jian from the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences used deep learning neural networks to search for rare weak signals in quasar spectral data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey ...

Flash floods kill 50 in western Afghanistan

Kabul (AFP) May 18, 2024 Flash flooding has killed at least 50 people in western Afghanistan, provincial police said Saturday, with some residents reaching safety on higher ground mere minutes before the water hit. The floods on Friday also destroyed about 2,000 houses, and damaged thousands ...