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Protective protein discovery paves way for healthier aging
A protein discovery could lead to healthier aging. Depositphotos – By Paul McClure 2024 Oct 21 – New research has revealed that a class of proteins possesses a previously unknown cell-protecting function that could be harnessed for healthier aging and as a treatment for …
The ride of our lives: why the horse is crucial to human history
Family gathering: A herd grazing on the Mongolian Steppe. Photograph: Perou – The Observer – Horses – Interview Mike Power – Humans and horses have been entwined throughout history, one could not have thrived without the other, according to a new book that …
Curving science center takes low-tech approach to keeping cool
Zaha Hadid Architects’ upcoming Alisher Navoi International Scientific Research Center features a curving form inspired by traditional Central Asian and Middle Eastern architecture. ZHA – By Adam Williams 2024 Oct 18 – With its upcoming scientific research center in Uzbekistan, Zaha Hadid Architects has …
Kentucky man declared brain dead wakes up during organ harvesting
Officials in the US’s organ-procurement system insist there are safeguards in place to prevent such episodes. Photograph: Kinga Krzeminska/Getty Images – Case of Anthony Thomas ‘TJ’ Hoover II is under investigation by state and federal government officials – Ramón Antonio Vargas 2024 Oct …
Explosive flower blasts beaks to dislodge rival pollen
A Hypenea macrantha flower catapults its pollen onto a hummingbird’s peak. Bruce Anderson and Vinicius Brito – By Ben Coxworth 2024 Oct 17 – If you were a flowering plant, wouldn’t you want your pollen to be received by a plant of your own …
At-home heart attack detector gives results in minutes, not hours
This tiny chip can diagnose a heart attack in minutes. Will Kirk/Johns Hopkins University – By Paul McClure 2024 Oct 16 – A tiny chip with a unique surface can accurately detect the blood biomarkers of a heart attack within minutes, a fraction of …
Rain may have helped form the first cells, kick-starting life as we know it
How did early cells keep themselves distinct while allowing for some amount of exchange? UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering/Peter Allen, Second Bay Studios, CC BY-ND – By Aman Agrawal, Postdoctoral Scholar in Chemical Engineering, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering Published: …
Nanoparticle infusion therapy breaks down plaques in arteries
Infusions of nanoparticles that selectively target certain immune cells show promise in animal tests for clearing out arterial plaques. Depositphotos – By Michael Irving 2024 Oct 14 – Sticky plaques building up on the walls of your blood vessels can lead to heart attacks …
Magnets used to turn specific brain circuits off and on at will
A new gene therapy uses magnetic fields to switch brain circuits on and off. Depositphotos – By Paul McClure 2024 Oct 13 – Researchers have developed a gene therapy technology that uses magnetic fields to switch groups of neurons on and off, controlling brain …
Spanish steppes: an epic hike across the wild plains of Extremadura
The rearing granite bulk of the fortress village of Galisteo appears on the horizon at the end of the author’s walk. Photograph: Hemis/Alamy – Spain holidays The Via de la Plata is one of Spain’s toughest pilgrim routes, weaving through a landscape of …
Accept our king, our god − or else: The senseless ‘requirement’ Spanish colonizers used to justify their bloodshed in the Americas
Part of ‘The Baptism of Ixtlilxóchitl of Texcoco,’ painted by José Vivar y Valderrama in the 18th century. Museo Nacional de Historia via Wikimedia Commons – By Diego Javier Luís, Assistant Professor of History, Johns Hopkins University Published: 2024 Oct 02 – Across the …
Wildlife Photographer of the Year winners go full-on animalistic
Entitled “The Demolition Squad,” this striking image by Germany’s Ingo Arndt shows a red wood ant doing its part to help dismember a blue ground beetle. Ingo Arndt Photography View 13 Images – By Michael Franco 2024 Oct 10 – For the 60th year …
Portable device spots drought-stressed crops before it’s too late
The handheld gadget spots drought stress before crops become visibly wilted, like these parched pumpkin plants. Depositphotos – By Ben Coxworth 2024 Oct 09 – It’s always best if farmers can detect drought stress before crop plants become wilted, weakened and lower-yielding. An experimental …
Curiosity rover sheds new light on how Mars became uninhabitable
Rendering of what a watery Mars may have looked like. NASA – By David Szondy 2024 Oct 08 – Data from NASA’s Curiosity rover collected on Mars is shedding new light on how the Red Planet became uninhabitable in the distant past due to …
Pangolin-inspired robot poops tree seeds into holes it digs
The hole-digging, seed-bomb-depositing, Plantolin pangolin-inspired robot. University of Surrey – By Ben Coxworth 2024 Oct 05 – Foraging pangolins already dig in the dirt, so why not get them planting trees while they’re at it? Well, training them would be pretty hard, which is …
Red, white or yellow? What your tongue says about your health
The shape, color and texture of your tongue can offer valuable insights into your wellbeing, experts say. Generally speaking, a tongue’s color will fall somewhere between a pale pink and dark red, with a thin, white-ish layer of keratin on top. Photograph: 4FR/Getty …
Gallery: Stunning Sun shot headlines Astrophotography Prize winners
Astro Landscape Runner-Up: Troy Casswell – “Bald Rock Panorama.” Casswell’s innovative use of UV light brought out the rock formations and Milky Way in an impressive blend of technique and creativity. Troy Casswell View 12 Images – By Michael Irving 2024 Oct 05 – …
Storm clouds generate strange gamma radiation
An artist’s impression of the NASA research plane flying over thunderstorm systems to detect gamma ray emissions. NASA/ALOFT team – By Michael Irving 2024 Oct 03 – Thor and the Hulk may be more closely related than we thought. Thunderstorms are known to produce …
Centuries ago, the Maya storm god Huracán taught that when we damage nature, we damage ourselves
An illustration of K’awiil, the Maya god of storm, on pottery. K2970 from the Justin Kerr Maya archive, Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University, Washington, D.C., CC BY-SA – By James L. Fitzsimmons, Professor of Anthropology, Middlebury Published: 2024 Oct 03 – The ancient …
Data breach incarnate: Meta glasses extract personal info in real time
This shows how the I-Xray software works, from capturing the image to aggregating the data. AnhPhu Nguyen – By Joe Salas 2024 Oct 02 – In what might be described as a real-life Black Mirror episode, a Harvard student uses facial recognition with $379 …
Rising electricity demand could bring Three Mile Island and other prematurely shuttered nuclear plants back to life
Steam billows from two cooling towers serving Unit 1 of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant in 2005. AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster – By Todd Allen, Professor of Nuclear Engineering & Radiological Sciences, University of Michigan Published: 2024 Sep 27 – Constellation, an energy …
“Functional cure” for diabetes restores insulin production with stem cells
A patient has been functionally cured of type 1 diabetes with a new stem cell therapy. Depositphotos – By Michael Irving 2024 Sep 30 – A patient with type 1 diabetes has been functionally cured of the disease, requiring no insulin doses for over …
AI begins its ominous split away from human thinking
Today’s AI models, pictured here using generative tools, are infants – and their understanding of truth is being held back by the human thinking and language they’re trained on. – By Loz Blain 2024 Sep 29 – AIs have a big problem with truth and …
Prenatal supplements fall woefully short in providing crucial nutrition during pregnancy – and most women don’t even know it
Prenatal supplements are not the insurance plan that many doctors believe them to be. SDI Productions/E+ via Getty Images – By Mary Scourboutakos, Family Medicine Resident and Nutrition Expert, Eastern Virginia Medical School Published: 2024 Jun 03, Updated: 2024 Jun 04 – If …
Diet-related diseases are the No. 1 cause of death in the US – yet many doctors receive little to no nutrition education in med school
Nearly 60% of respondents to one medical school survey said they received no nutritional education at all. Peter Dazeley/The Image Bank via Getty Images – By Nathaniel Johnson, Assistant Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics, University of North Dakota and by Madeline Comeau, Medical …
The shocking science behind petting cats – or how static electricity works
Scientists have finally discovered just how static electricity works – and cats are particularly good at creating it. Depositphotos – By Bronwyn Thompson 2024 Sep 26 – Incredibly, for the first time, scientists have unraveled the mechanisms at play when rubbing a surface creates …
Drug-free nasal spray prevents infection by trapping viruses in the nose
Once squirted into the nose, the spray forms a gel (blue) that traps and neutralizes microbes. Randal McKenzie, McKenzie Illustrations – By Ben Coxworth 2024 Sep 25 – Nobody wants to get a respiratory infection such as COVID-19 or the flu, but vaccines aren’t …
New defib placement increases chance of surviving heart attack by 264%
Changing the position of defibrillator pads could improve survival rates after a cardiac arrest. Depositphotos – By Paul McClure 2024 Sep 24 – Placing defibrillator pads on the chest and back, rather than the usual method of putting two on the chest, increases the …
Gut microbiome disruptions in infancy increase aggression later in life
Researchers have found a link between the gut microbiome and aggression. Depositphotos – By Paul McClure 2024 Sep 23 – Gut bacteria that have been disrupted in infancy can lead to greater aggression later in life, including causing changes to aggression-related genes, according to …
Colossal cosmic jets unleash trillion-Sun energy across 140 Milky Ways
An artist’s impression of the gigantic black hole jets, nicknamed Porphyrion E. Wernquist / D. Nelson (IllustrisTNG Collaboration) / M. Oei – By Michael Irving 2024 Sep 19 – Astronomers have spotted an absolutely colossal cosmic chimney that stretches as far as 140 Milky …
A water bear riding a worm: Micro video winners deliver the dazzle
This view of water droplets evaporating from a butterfly’s wing won second place in the competition. Jay McClellan – By Michael Franco 2024 Sep 21 – From a baby tardigrade riding a nematode, to water droplets evaporating from the wing scales of a peacock …
Cat makes surprise return home four days after being ‘cremated’
Heavenly Pets Crematorium in Thornaby said Ted’s return was ‘bittersweet’. Photograph: Peter Barron/Newsquest – Beloved pet Ted reunited with grieving North Yorkshire family after drowning mixup – Jamie Grierson 2024 Sep 06 – The myth of cats having nine lives was tested to …
‘They want total control’: how Russia is forcing Sami people to hide their identity
The ministry of justice has added 55 Indigenous organizations to a list of terrorists and extremists, leading many to leave for Nordic countries. Andrei Danilov, a representative of the Sami People from the Kola peninsula, 53, lives in a refugee camp in northern …
Red wine, berries, dark chocolate and tea: A recipe to reduce dementia risk
Red wine and berries are rich in flavonoids, which researchers say should be increased in the diets of people particularly at risk of age-related chronic diseases. Depositphotos – By Bronwyn Thompson 2024 Sep 18 – Consuming foods and drinks particularly high in flavonoids – such …
Biobots arise from the cells of dead organisms − pushing the boundaries of life, death and medicine
Biobots could one day be engineered to deliver drugs and clear up arterial plaque. Kriegman et al. 2020/PNAS, CC BY-SA– By Peter A Noble, Adjunct Associate Professor of Microbiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham and by Alex Pozhitkov, Senior Technical Lead of Bioinformatics, Irell …
Butt-breathing mammals and dead fish swimming: The 2024 Ig Nobel Prize
Big ideas lead to … some genuinely absurd science research, celebrated by the Ig Nobel Prize. Depositphotos – By Bronwyn Thompson 2024 Sep 16 – From 350,757 coin flips to prove probability to assessing the swimming abilities of dead trout, the winners of the …
World’s first hydrogen race car passes FIA crash tests
The pioneer has a top speed of 200 kmph. Matt Ben Stone – By Utkarsh Sood 2024 Sep 15 – The Pioneer 25 marks a momentous step in the world of motorsports as it passed the mandatory FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) crash tests. …
Fracking explained: the controversial extraction process that Harris and Trump sparred over
A hydraulic fracturing drill rig near Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania, in 2012. Photograph: Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA – Fracking – Explainer – Thanks to hydraulic fracturing, record amounts of oil and gas have been produced in the US in the past six years – Dharna Noor …
Drinking alcohol before conceiving a child could accelerate their aging – new research in mice
When the mom, dad or both parents drink, the health risks of alcohol extends to their future offspring. Robert Daly/OJO Images via Getty Images – By Michael Golding, Professor of Physiology, Texas A&M University Published: 2024 Aug 28 – The conditions within a person’s …
Watch: World’s first private spacewalk
Leaving the Dragon capsule. SpaceX – By David Szondy 2024 Sep 12 – The world’s first private spacewalk has been completed. On 2024 Sep 12 at 7:58 am EDT, two of the four-person crew of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft Resilience returned after a 106-minute …
Protective protein discovery paves way for healthier aging
A protein discovery could lead to healthier aging. Depositphotos – By Paul McClure 2024 Oct 21 – New research has revealed that a class of proteins possesses a previously unknown cell-protecting function that could be harnessed for healthier aging and as a treatment for …
The ride of our lives: why the horse is crucial to human history
Family gathering: A herd grazing on the Mongolian Steppe. Photograph: Perou – The Observer – Horses – Interview Mike Power – Humans and horses have been entwined throughout history, one could not have thrived without the other, according to a new book that …
Curving science center takes low-tech approach to keeping cool
Zaha Hadid Architects’ upcoming Alisher Navoi International Scientific Research Center features a curving form inspired by traditional Central Asian and Middle Eastern architecture. ZHA – By Adam Williams 2024 Oct 18 – With its upcoming scientific research center in Uzbekistan, Zaha Hadid Architects has …
Kentucky man declared brain dead wakes up during organ harvesting
Officials in the US’s organ-procurement system insist there are safeguards in place to prevent such episodes. Photograph: Kinga Krzeminska/Getty Images – Case of Anthony Thomas ‘TJ’ Hoover II is under investigation by state and federal government officials – Ramón Antonio Vargas 2024 Oct …
Explosive flower blasts beaks to dislodge rival pollen
A Hypenea macrantha flower catapults its pollen onto a hummingbird’s peak. Bruce Anderson and Vinicius Brito – By Ben Coxworth 2024 Oct 17 – If you were a flowering plant, wouldn’t you want your pollen to be received by a plant of your own …
At-home heart attack detector gives results in minutes, not hours
This tiny chip can diagnose a heart attack in minutes. Will Kirk/Johns Hopkins University – By Paul McClure 2024 Oct 16 – A tiny chip with a unique surface can accurately detect the blood biomarkers of a heart attack within minutes, a fraction of …
Rain may have helped form the first cells, kick-starting life as we know it
How did early cells keep themselves distinct while allowing for some amount of exchange? UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering/Peter Allen, Second Bay Studios, CC BY-ND – By Aman Agrawal, Postdoctoral Scholar in Chemical Engineering, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering Published: …
Nanoparticle infusion therapy breaks down plaques in arteries
Infusions of nanoparticles that selectively target certain immune cells show promise in animal tests for clearing out arterial plaques. Depositphotos – By Michael Irving 2024 Oct 14 – Sticky plaques building up on the walls of your blood vessels can lead to heart attacks …
Magnets used to turn specific brain circuits off and on at will
A new gene therapy uses magnetic fields to switch brain circuits on and off. Depositphotos – By Paul McClure 2024 Oct 13 – Researchers have developed a gene therapy technology that uses magnetic fields to switch groups of neurons on and off, controlling brain …
Spanish steppes: an epic hike across the wild plains of Extremadura
The rearing granite bulk of the fortress village of Galisteo appears on the horizon at the end of the author’s walk. Photograph: Hemis/Alamy – Spain holidays The Via de la Plata is one of Spain’s toughest pilgrim routes, weaving through a landscape of …