Study from University of Leicester describes a new species of fossil that is 444 million years-old with soft insides perfectly preserved A new species of fossil from 444 million years ago that has perfectly preserved insides has been affectionately named ‘Sue’ after its discoverer’s mum. The result of 25 years of work by a University of Leicester palaeontologist and published in the journal Palaeontology, the study details a new species of multisegmented fossil and is now officially named as Keurbos…
In the fight against malaria, controlling the mosquito population is crucial. Several methods are currently used to reduce mosquito numbers and malaria risk. One of these includes the antiparasitic medication ivermectin. When mosquitoes ingest blood containing ivermectin, it shortens the insect’s lifespan and helps decrease the spread of malaria. However, ivermectin has its own issues. Not only is it environmentally toxic, but also, when it is overused to treat people and animals with worm and parasite infections, resistance to ivermectin…
Life’s essential functions are powered by a set of compounds called metabolites, which are involved in every natural process including producing energy, regulating cell activity and keeping the body’s systems in balance. Tracking these molecules offers a window into the onset and status of many diseases, overall health, response to treatment and the intricate workings of biological systems. However, today’s metabolite sensing methods fall short. Most rely on resource-intensive lab tests that give only brief snapshots from isolated samples. The…
An extinct lineage of parasitic wasps dating from the mid-Cretaceous period and preserved in amber may have used their Venus flytrap-like abdomen to capture and immobilise their prey. Research, published in BMC Biology, finds that the specimens of Sirenobethylus charybdis — named for the sea monster in Greek mythology which swallowed and disgorged water three times a day — date from almost 99 million years ago and may represent a new family of insects. The morphology of S. charybdis indicates the wasps were parasitoids — insects whose larvae…
Study reveals new information about how to prevent chronic inflammation from zombie-like cells that accumulate with age In humans and other multicellular organisms, cells multiply. This defining feature allows embryos to grow into adulthood, and enables the healing of the many bumps, bruises and scrapes along the way. Certain factors can cause cells to abandon this characteristic and enter a zombie-like state known as senescence where they persist but no longer divide to make new cells. Our bodies can remove…
University of Arizona neuroscientists studying the brains of songbirds have found that aging alters the gene expressions that control the birds’ song. The finding could lead to earlier diagnoses and better treatments for human neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease, which are known to hinder vocal production in their early stages. The study, published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging, found that networks of interacting genes, in a region of the bird’s brain involved with singing, dramatically…
A new type of antibody which stimulates the immune system to target cancer cells slows tumor growth, according to new research Antibody treatment which activates the patient’s own immune system against cancer, known as immunotherapy, is increasingly being investigated as an alternative for chemotherapy and radiotherapy. This is because it specifically targets the cancer cells, which reduces the side effects seen with more conventional therapies. Tumours, such as some breast and ovarian cancers, can express the marker HER2. HER2 is…
Gemini North’s MAROON-X instrument finds evidence for four mini-Earth exoplanets around our famous cosmic neighbor Barnard’s Star For a century, astronomers have been studying Barnard’s Star in the hope of finding planets around it. First discovered by E. E. Barnard at Yerkes Observatory in 1916, it is the nearest single star system to Earth [1]. Barnard’s Star is classified as a red dwarf — low-mass stars that often host closely-packed planetary systems, often with multiple rocky planets. Red dwarfs are extremely numerous in the Universe, so scientists…
Study links genetics, vision and neural processing to mating behavior in Heliconius butterflies A simple neural change alters mating preferences in male butterflies, aiding rapid behavioral evolution, Nicholas VanKuren and Nathan Buerkle at the University of Chicago, US, and colleagues, report March 11th in the open-access journal PLOS Biology. Heliconius are a group of tropical butterflies known for their wide variety of wing patterns and colors, which act as a warning to predators. Because wing coloration is crucial for their…
Understanding children’s subjective experiences through color As a child, did it ever occur to you that your perception of color differed from that of others? It’s quite common to have this thought, but it turns out that the human color experience may be more universal than we previously believed. In psychology and neuroscience, the relationship between subjective experience, such as how we perceive color, and physical brain activity has remained an unresolved problem. Furthermore, due to their limited language abilities,…
University of Arizona astronomers have learned more about a surprisingly mature galaxy that existed when the universe was just less than 300 million years old – just 2% of its current age. Observed by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, the galaxy – designated JADES-GS-z14-0 – is unexpectedly bright and chemically complex for an object from this primordial era, the researchers said. This provides a rare glimpse into the universe’s earliest chapter. The findings, published in the journal Nature Astronomy, build…
Physics professor J. Ping Liu helps boost nation’s energy security and advance toward a world-class magnet research hub University of Texas at Arlington physics Professor J. Ping Liu has won the 2025 Hill Prize in Physical Sciences for pioneering new ways to design magnets that power high-tech devices. Awarded by the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology (TAMEST) and Lyda Hill Philanthropies, the prize recognizes groundbreaking innovations with the potential for real-world impact. Dr. Liu shares the award as co-principal…
A metamaterial with potential applications in sensor technology A flower-shaped structure only a few micrometres in size made of a nickel-iron alloy can concentrate and locally enhance magnetic fields. The size of the effect can be controlled by varying the geometry and number of ‘petals’. This magnetic metamaterial developed by Dr Anna Palau’s group at the Institut de Ciencia de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB) in collaboration with her partners of the CHIST-ERA MetaMagIC project, has now been studied at BESSY…
AI-enhanced IV nutrition for preemies Artificial intelligence can improve intravenous nutrition for premature babies, a Stanford Medicine study has shown. The study, which will publish March 25 in Nature Medicine, is among the first to demonstrate how an AI algorithm can enable doctors to make better clinical decisions for sick newborns. The algorithm uses information in preemies’ electronic medical records to predict which nutrients they need and in what quantities. The AI tool was trained on data from almost 80,000…
Research led by University of Toronto Professor Yu Zou aims to produce higher quality and more reliable metal parts for aerospace, automotive, energy and health-care applications Researchers at University of Toronto Engineering, led by Professor Yu Zou, are leveraging machine learning to improve additive manufacturing, also commonly known as 3D printing. In a new paper, published in the journal of Additive Manufacturing, the team introduces a new framework they’ve dubbed the Accurate Inverse process optimization framework in laser Directed Energy Deposition…
Technion researchers develop a technology for encoding, retrieving, and rapidly reading data stored in DNA Researchers from the Henry and Marilyn Taub Faculty of Computer Science have developed an AI-based method that accelerates DNA-based data retrieval by three orders of magnitude while significantly improving accuracy. The research team included Ph.D. student Omer Sabary, Dr. Daniella Bar-Lev, Dr. Itai Orr, Prof. Eitan Yaakobi, and Prof. Tuvi Etzion. DNA data storage is an emerging field that leverages DNA as a platform for…
American Gastroenterological Association guideline concludes that it is not clear whether computer-aided detection systems (CADe) for colonoscopy should be recommended for routine widespread use The American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) released a new clinical guideline making no recommendation — for or against — the use of computer-aided detection systems (CADe) in colonoscopy. A rigorous review of evidence showed that artificial intelligence-assisted technology helps identify colorectal polyps. However, its impact on preventing colorectal cancer — the third most common cancer worldwide —…
As discussed in the paper, the fear of public speaking is widely cited as being the most common fear. Furthermore, there is evidence to suggest that the prevalence of social anxiety and a fear of public speaking are both on the rise. This is concerning when one considers the range of known subsequent negative impacts on mental health, physical health, academic attainment, and career progression. To address this, Dr Chris Macdonald created an online platform where users transform into skilled…
The innovative team of engineers and scientists from NASA, the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, and more than 40 other partner organizations across the country that created the Parker Solar Probe mission has been awarded the 2024 Robert J. Collier Trophy by the National Aeronautic Association (NAA). This annual award recognizes the most exceptional achievement in aeronautics and astronautics in America with respect to improving the performance, efficiency, and safety of air or space vehicles in the previous year….
The standard model of particle physics is our best theory of the elementary particles and forces that make up our world: particles and antiparticles, such as electrons and positrons, are described as quantum fields. They interact through other force-fields, such as the electromagnetic force that binds charged particles. To understand the behaviour of these quantum fields and with that our universe, researchers perform complex computer simulations of quantum field theories. Unfortunately, many of these calculations are too complicated for even…
A new study co-led by Dartmouth researchers shows how radiation from black holes could have a nurturing effect on life. At the center of most large galaxies, including our own Milky Way, sits a supermassive black hole. Interstellar gas periodically falls into the orbit of these bottomless pits, switching the black hole into active galactic nucleus (AGN)-mode, blasting high-energy radiation across the galaxy. It’s not an environment you’d expect a plant or animal to thrive in. But in a surprising…
A new analysis of data collected over three years by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) collaboration provides even stronger evidence than the group’s previous datasets that dark energy, long thought to be a “cosmological constant,” might be evolving over time in unexpected ways. Dr. Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki, professor of physics at The University of Texas at Dallas, is co-chair of the DESI working group that interprets cosmological survey data gathered by the international collaboration, which includes more than 900 researchers…
Research hints at calcium’s potential role in enforcing a specific molecular handedness among primitive polyesters and early biomolecules A new study led by researchers at the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at Institute of Science Tokyo has uncovered a surprising role for calcium in shaping life’s earliest molecular structures. Their findings suggest that calcium ions can selectively influence how primitive polymers form, shedding light on a long-standing mystery: how life’s molecules came to prefer a single “handedness” (chirality). Like our left…
Scientists have for the first time filmed the real-time growth and contraction of Palladium nanoparticles, opening new avenues for utilising and recycling precious metal catalysts. Researchers at the University of Nottingham’s School of Chemistry used transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to observe the complete lifecycle of palladium nanoparticles in a liquid environment, from nucleation through growth to dissolution, with the entire cycle repeating multiple times. This study has been published today in Nanoscale. One of the most important applications of metal nanoparticles is…
Sugar coatings aren’t only for candies; they also help viruses, like the ones that cause COVID-19, hide from their hosts’ immune system. Now, researchers have developed a universal vaccine that targets coronaviruses and the sugars that they use as cover. As demonstrated in animal studies, the vaccine removed sugar molecules from an area of a coronavirus spike protein that rarely mutates and created effective and plentiful antibodies to inactivate the virus. Chi-Huey Wong, a chemistry professor at Scripps Research, will…
Traditionally, chemists have relied on well-established but limiting methods to synthesize these molecules. This new research presents a fundamentally different approach. Researchers at Indiana University and Wuhan University in China have unveiled a groundbreaking chemical process that could streamline the development of pharmaceutical compounds, chemical building blocks that influence how drugs interact with the body. Their study, published in Chem, describes a novel light-driven reaction that efficiently produces tetrahydroisoquinolines, a group of chemicals that play a crucial role in medicinal chemistry. Tetrahydroisoquinolines serve…
A metamaterial with potential applications in sensor technology A flower-shaped structure only a few micrometres in size made of a nickel-iron alloy can concentrate and locally enhance magnetic fields. The size of the effect can be controlled by varying the geometry and number of ‘petals’. This magnetic metamaterial developed by Dr Anna Palau’s group at the Institut de Ciencia de Materials de Barcelona (ICMAB) in collaboration with her partners of the CHIST-ERA MetaMagIC project, has now been studied at BESSY…
Using machine learning workflows developed in-house, the researchers were able to establish that heat conduction is much more intricate than previously thought. Findings offer potential for developing specific materials. Complex materials such as organic semiconductors or the microporous metal-organic frameworks known as MOFs are already being used for numerous applications such as OLED displays, solar cells, gas storage and water extraction. Nevertheless, they still harbour a few secrets. One of these has so far been a detailed understanding of how…
Researchers have advanced a decades-old challenge in the field of organic semiconductors, opening new possibilities for the future of electronics. The researchers, led by the University of Cambridge and the Eindhoven University of Technology, have created an organic semiconductor that forces electrons to move in a spiral pattern, which could improve the efficiency of OLED displays in television and smartphone screens, or power next-generation computing technologies such as spintronics and quantum computing. The semiconductor they developed emits circularly polarised light—meaning…
UChicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering research created inorganic and polymer battery electrolytes simultaneously, with potential applications across chemistry Creating battery electrolytes – the component that carries the charged particles back and forth between a battery’s two terminals – has always been a tradeoff. Solid-state inorganic electrolytes move the particles extremely efficiently, but being solid and inorganic means they’re also brittle, hard to work with and difficult to connect seamlessly with the terminals. Polymer electrolytes are a dream to work…
Deep below Earth’s surface, rock and mineral formations lay hidden with a secret brilliance. Under a black light, the chemicals fossilized within shine in brilliant hues of pink, blue and green. Scientists are using these fluorescent features to understand how the caves formed and how life is supported in extreme environments, which may reveal how life could persist in faraway places, like Jupiter’s icy moon Europa. The researchers will present their results at the spring meeting of the American Chemical…
Recent studies have shown that carbon stocks in terrestrial ecosystems are increasing, mitigating around 30% of the CO2 emissions linked to human activities. The overall value of carbon sinks on the earth’s surface is fairly well known—as it can be deduced from the planet’s total carbon balance anthropogenic emissions, the accumulation of carbon in the atmosphere and the ocean sinks—yet, researchers know very little about carbon distribution between the various terrestrial pools: living vegetation—mainly forests—and nonliving carbon pools—soil organic matter,…
An analysis of a 30,000-year-old fossil vulture from Central Italy has revealed for the first time that volcanic rock can preserve microscopic details in feathers – the first ever record of such a preservation. An international team, led by Dr Valentina Rossi (University College Cork, Ireland), discovered a new mode of preservation of soft tissues that can occur when animals are buried in ash-rich volcanic sediments. The new research, published in the scientific journal Geology, reveals that the feathers are…
By David Chandler WOODS HOLE, Mass. – The impact of hurricanes when they travel over land, or when they affect ships or oil-drilling platforms, are quite well understood. But these huge cyclones also stir up the ocean itself, with consequences that are relatively unknown and hard to study. But a unique, subsurface experimental platform moored to the floor of the Sargasso Sea, about 47 miles southeast of Bermuda, is changing that. With collection points at increasing depths along the mooring…
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