ScienceDaily: Latest Science News |
| Rocks on floor of Jezero Crater, Mars, show signs of sustained interactions with water Posted: 08 Oct 2021 01:05 PM PDT Since the Perseverance rover landed in Jezero crater on Mars in February, the rover and its team of scientists back on Earth have been hard at work exploring the floor of the crater that once held an ancient lake. Perseverance and the Mars 2020 mission are looking for signs of ancient life on Mars and preparing a returnable cache of samples for later analyses on Earth. |
| Roman noblewoman’s tomb reveals secrets of ancient concrete resilience Posted: 08 Oct 2021 10:41 AM PDT Over time, concrete cracks and crumbles. Well, most concrete cracks and crumbles. Structures built in ancient Rome are still standing, exhibiting remarkable durability despite conditions that would devastate modern concrete. One of these structures is the large cylindrical tomb of first-century noblewoman Caecilia Metella. New research shows that the quality of the concrete of her tomb may exceed that of her male contemporaries' monuments because of the volcanic aggregate the builders chose and the unusual chemical interactions with rain and groundwater with that aggregate over two millennia. |
| Microbiology research furthers understanding of ocean’s role in carbon cycling Posted: 07 Oct 2021 02:06 PM PDT Microbiology researchers have shed new light on the mechanisms of carbon cycling in the ocean, using a novel approach to track which microbes are consuming different types of organic carbon produced by common phytoplankton species. |
| Elastic polymer that is both stiff and tough, resolves long-standing quandary Posted: 07 Oct 2021 01:35 PM PDT A conundrum has long stumped polymer scientists: Elastic polymers can be stiff, or they can be tough, but they can't be both. This stiffness-toughness conflict is a challenge for scientists developing polymers that could be used in applications including tissue regeneration, bioadhesives, bioprinting, wearable electronics, and soft robots. Researchers have resolved that long-standing conflict and developed an elastomer that is both stiff and tough. |
| ‘Gut bugs’ can drive prostate cancer growth and treatment resistance Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:59 AM PDT Common gut bacteria can become 'hormone factories' - fuelling prostate cancer and making it resistant to treatment, a new study shows. Scientists revealed how gut bacteria contribute to the progression of advanced prostate cancers and their resistance to hormone therapy -- by providing an alternative source of growth-promoting androgens, or male hormones. The findings, once further validated in the clinic, could provide new opportunities for the treatment of prostate cancer through manipulation of the microbiome. |
| Climate change literacy lessons from Africa Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:58 AM PDT Addressing the climate crisis will require cooperation on a massive scale, but to accomplish this, people need to know what specific challenges lie ahead and how to best move forward. Across the globe, people are facing the effects of the climate crisis, yet many are still unsure how, and even if, they can address it. |
| The climate-driven mass extinction no one had seen Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:58 AM PDT Two thirds of all mammals vanished from Africa and the Arabian Peninsula around 30 million years ago, when the climate on Earth changed from swampy to icy. But we are only finding out about this mass extinction now. Researchers examined hundreds of fossils from multiple sites in Africa, built evolutionary trees, and pinpointed each species' first and last known appearances. The climate shift 'was a real reset button.' |
| Climate change tipping points: back to the drawing board Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:58 AM PDT We regularly hear warnings that climate change may lead to 'tipping points': irreversible situations where savanna can quickly change into desert, or the warm gulf stream current can simply stop flowing. But the earth is much more resilient than previously thought. Researchers now show that the concept of tipping points is too simple. |
| Ten millennia of hepatitis B virus evolution described Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:58 AM PDT Researchers uncover the evolution of the hepatitis B virus since the Early Holocene by analyzing the largest dataset of ancient viral genomes produced to date. |
| Scientists assemble a biological clock in a test tube to study how it works Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:58 AM PDT Daily cycles in virtually every aspect of our physiology are driven by biological clocks (also called circadian clocks) in our cells. The cyclical interactions of clock proteins keep the biological rhythms of life in tune with the daily cycle of night and day, and this happens not only in humans and other complex animals but even in simple, single-celled organisms such as cyanobacteria. A team of scientists has now reconstituted the circadian clock of cyanobacteria in a test tube, enabling them to study rhythmic interactions of the clock proteins in real time and understand how these interactions enable the clock to exert control over gene expression. |
| Promising results for Parkinson's disease treatment Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:58 AM PDT Researchers have found a way to make deep brain stimulation (DBS) more precise, resulting in therapeutic effects that outlast what is currently available. The work will significantly advance the study of Parkinson's disease. |
| How mussels make a powerful underwater glue Posted: 07 Oct 2021 11:57 AM PDT Blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) spend their days being buffeted by crashing waves. They manage to stay tethered to the rocks or their fellow mussels thanks to a highly effective underwater glue they produce. Because achieving adhesion in the presence of water is so challenging, scientists who are interested in producing effective adhesives for use in wet environments (e.g., for surgical or dental treatments) have turned to mussels for inspiration. After a decade of work in the area, a team has succeeded in uncovering the cellular mechanisms by which mussels fabricate underwater adhesives. |
| A 'cousin' of Viagra reduces obesity by stimulating cells to burn fat Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:22 AM PDT Researchers have found that a drug first developed to treat Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and sickle cell disease reduces obesity and fatty liver in mice and improves their heart function -- without changes in food intake or daily activity. |
| ALMA animation of circling twin young stars Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:22 AM PDT Researchers analyzed the accumulated data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and depicted the motion of a young twin star system XZ Tauri over three years. This 'ALMA Animation' of twin stars sheds new light on the origins of the binary stars and the planets to be formed around them. |
| Something fishy going on? Recent discovery hints at northward shift in fish distribution Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:22 AM PDT Researchers have discovered an individual Eleotris oxycephala in Akita Prefecture, Japan, which is the northernmost record of this species. The juvenile was discovered in the Yoneshiro River system and likely reached the river from the south via larval dispersal in the Tsushima Current. This possible range expansion of Eleotris oxycephala may be linked to increasing water temperatures. |
| Unprecedented rise of heat and rainfall extremes in observational data Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:22 AM PDT Observation data analysis reveals a 90-fold increase in the frequency of monthly heat extremes, so-called 3-sigma-events that deviate strongly from what is normal in a given region, in the past ten years compared to 1951-1980. Record daily rainfall events also increased in a non-linear way -- on average, 1 in 4 rainfall records in the last decade can be attributed to climate change. Seemingly small amounts of additional warming push up extreme events substantially. |
| Small molecules with a dual function Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:22 AM PDT Researchers have deciphered a molecular mechanism with which a small RNA and a small protein regulate the metabolism of cholera bacteria and the production of the cholera toxin. |
| Higher levels of education and higher income mean better health for older adults Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:22 AM PDT A new cross-national study comparing multimorbidity disease cluster patterns, prevalence and health risk factors across Ireland, England, The United States and Canada, reveal important findings that could have health implications for public health policy.The study investigates lifetime prevalence of 10 common chronic, cardiovascular and mental health conditions among 62,111 older adults aged 52-85 years of age across the four countries, and uncovers how differences in demographics, socio-economic status and health behaviours affect the combination of diseases within and across four countries. |
| New images lead to better prediction of shear thickening Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:21 AM PDT For the first time, researchers have been able capture images providing unprecedented details of how particles behave in a liquid suspension when the phenomenon known as shear thickening takes place. The work allows us to directly understand the processes behind shear thickening, which had previously only been understood based on inference and computational modeling. |
| Colorblind fish show experts how vision evolved Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:21 AM PDT After decades of studying color vision in mice, new research in zebrafish has allowed experts to uncover how some animals regulate their ability to see blue light. The results allow researchers to better understand the evolutionary history and current control mechanisms of color vision. |
| Screen time linked to risk of myopia in young people Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:21 AM PDT A new study has revealed a link between screen time and higher risk and severity of myopia, or short-sightedness, in children and young adults. |
| Flying high-speed drones into the unknown with AI Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:21 AM PDT Researchers have developed a new approach to autonomously fly quadrotors through unknown, complex environments at high speeds using only on-board sensing and computation. The new approach could be useful in emergencies, on construction sites or for security applications. |
| Corals once thought to be a single species are really two Posted: 07 Oct 2021 09:21 AM PDT It seems like an esoteric question: What, exactly, is a species? Two corals were described as different species, then merged together, and then separated once again. A new study explores the question further. |
| Beyond childhood: Picky eating in college students Posted: 07 Oct 2021 07:10 AM PDT Looking beyond the picky eating of childhood, researchers looked at this behavior in college students. Self-identified picky eaters ate significantly less fiber and vegetables and reported greater levels of social phobia than non-picky eaters, according to a new study. Social phobia is the fear of being evaluated during everyday activities by others. |
| Gel enhances CAR-T immunotherapy benefits in brains surgically treated for glioblastoma Posted: 06 Oct 2021 11:34 AM PDT Researchers report that pairing a newly developed fibrin gel with CAR-T immunotherapy that was delivered to post-surgical mouse brains with glioblastoma improved the immunotherapy's effectiveness. The gel aided CAR-T cell distribution in the brain by acclimating the T cells to the post-surgical wound environment while also stopping the tumor from recurring. |
| Feather phenomenon: Radar indicates stronger hurricanes trap, transport more birds Posted: 06 Oct 2021 11:34 AM PDT Whether birds get caged in the eye of a hurricane may depend on the intensity and totality of the chaos beyond the calm, says a novel study. |
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