Latest News

Life & Chemistry
2 mins read

World’s Tiniest Building Blocks: Nano-Cubes Unveiled

Chemists make the world’s smallest building blocks.

US researchers have made the world’s smallest building blocks. The nanocubes are just a millionth of a millimetre (a nanometre) across 1 . Stacked like bricks, they could make up a range of materials with useful properties such as light emission or electrical conduction.

Many chemists are currently trying to develop molecular-scale construction kits in which the individual components are single molecules to

2 mins read
Northern elephant seal at Año Nuevo Natural Reserve near Pescadero, Calif. Image Credit: Dan Costa; photo taken under research permit NMFS 23188
Environmental Conservation

Foraging Seals Help Measure Fish Abundance in the Pacific

Feeding success and demography of a marine mammal provide a multi-decadal ecological baseline to assess impacts of a new fishery and environmental change  Over the past 60 years, marine biologists at UC Santa Cruz have monitored the behavior of northern elephant seals that journey to nearby Año Nuevo Natural Reserve. With the seals gathering on the beach by the thousands to breed and molt, generations of researchers have been able to amass more than 350,000 observations on over 50,000 seals….

6 mins
Nighttime long exposure of the open Samuel Oschin Telescope dome at Palomar Observatory in California. Image Credit: Palomar/Caltech
Physics & Astronomy

New Type Ia Supernovae Data Offers Insights Into Universe’s History

A unique dataset of Type Ia Supernovae being released today could change how cosmologists measure the expansion history of the Universe. Dr Mathew Smith  and Dr Georgios Dimitriadis from Lancaster University are both members of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF),  a wide-field sky astronomical survey using a new camera attached to the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory in California. Type Ia Supernovae are the dramatic explosions of white dwarf stars at the ends of their lives. Cosmologists use them to probe…

4 mins
Hand trajectories linearly decoded from MARBLE representations show much stronger spatial correspondence to ground-truth kinematics (top row) than other deep learning methods (LFADS, bottom row) © LTS2 EPFL. Image Credit: © LTS2 EPFL
Studies and Analyses

Decoding Brain Dynamics with Geometric Deep Learning

EPFL scientists have developed a geometric deep learning method that can create a coherent picture of neuronal population activity during cognitive and motor tasks across experimental subjects and conditions  In the parable of the blind men and the elephant, several blind men each describe a different part of an elephant they are touching – a sharp tusk, a flexible trunk, or a broad leg – and disagree about the animal’s true nature. The story illustrates the problem of understanding an…

3 mins

Weekly Highlights

Examples of how E and B modes deform imeges of distant galaxies. Image Credit: SISSA Medialab
Physics & Astronomy

Exploring Gravitational Lenses: Are Cosmic Laws Universal?

A JCAP study proposes a test for the Cosmological Principle using weak gravitational lensing  “The cosmological principle is like an ultimate kind of statement of humility,” explains James Adam, astrophysicist at the University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa, and lead author of the new paper. According to the Cosmological Principle, not only are we not at the center of the Universe, but a true center does not exist. A further assumption, similar to but distinct and independent…

Studies and Analyses

High-Tech Video Optimization: Enhancing Brain Functionality

ISTA scientists uncover how the brain unblurs vision during movement  Why do our mental images stay sharp even when we are moving fast? A team of neuroscientists led by Professor Maximilian Jösch at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) has identified a mechanism that corrects visual distortions caused by movement in animals. The study, conducted in mice, identifies a core function that can be generalized across the vertebrate visual system, including primates such as humans. The findings are…

Assorted pills and tablets top border over colored background. Many different pills and space text by snegok1967
Business and Finance

High BTMPS Levels Found in Fentanyl: What It Means for Safety

A UCLA research team has found that drugs being sold as fentanyl contain high amounts of the industrial chemical bis(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-4-piperidyl) sebacate, or BTMPS. This new substance of concern emerged in the illicit drug supply nearly simultaneously in multiple U.S. locations from coast-to-coast. From June through October 2024, the team quantitatively tested samples of drugs sold as fentanyl that had high levels of the chemical, which belongs to a class of compounds called hindered amine light stabilizers and has a variety…

The BioSCape team is poctured with NASA and South African aircraft. Image Credit: Jeremey Shelton/Fishwater Films
Physics & Astronomy

Measuring Life on Earth from Space: A Global Research Project

Measurements and data collected from space can be used to better understand life on Earth. An ambitious, multinational research project funded by NASA and co-led by UC Merced civil and environmental engineering Professor Erin Hestir demonstrated that Earth’s biodiversity can be monitored and measured from space, leading to a better understanding of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Hestir led the team alongside University of Buffalo geography Professor Adam Wilson and Professor Jasper Slingsby from the University of Cape Town on BioSCape, which collected data over six…

Life & Chemistry

UC Davis Researchers Complete Total Synthesis of Ibogaine

Discovery creates opportunities to study therapeutic properties of ibogaine and related compounds  Ibogaine — a psychoactive plant derivative — has attracted attention for its anti-addictive and anti-depressant properties. But ibogaine is a finite resource, extracted from plants native to Africa like the iboga shrub (Tabernanthe iboga) and the small-fruited voacanga tree (Voacanga africana). Further, its use can lead to irregular heartbeats, introducing safety risks and an overall need to better understand how its molecular structure leads to its biological effects….

A scuba diver encounters a school of sardines off the coast of Mexico.
Environmental Conservation

Marine Prosperity Areas: A New Hope for Conservation

Improved approach to marine conservation aligns ecological restoration with human well-being  Could 2025 be the year marine protection efforts get a “glow up”? According to a team of conservation-minded researchers, including Octavio Aburto of UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, the moment has arrived. In a new study published Feb. 6 in the journal Frontiers in Marine Science, Aburto and a multinational team of marine scientists and economists unveil a comprehensive framework for Marine Prosperity Areas, or MPpAs. With…

Studying_Sikkim_Floods Insights for Disaster Preparedness
Earth Sciences

Studying Sikkim Floods: Insights for Disaster Preparedness

UCalgary scientist says it’s important to determine what happened and what can be learned  Experts from the global Earth science community – including a scientist from the University of Calgary – have pieced together what happened during the massive Sikkim flood to try to help others prepare for similar disasters. On Oct. 3, 2023, a multi-hazard cascade in the Sikkim Himalaya, India, was triggered by a permanently frozen (permafrost) lateral moraine – debris from erosion along a glacier – collapsing…

New Study Sheds Light on Pelvic Tissue Tears in Childbirth
Awards Funding

New Study Sheds Light on Pelvic Tissue Tears in Childbirth

Grant enables study into mechanical properties of episiotomy cuts  Millions of women undergo episiotomies during childbirth every year, yet the mechanics behind these surgical cuts remain largely unstudied. A new research project is poised to change that, addressing this significant gap in women’s health. An episiotomy involves cutting the pelvic-floor muscles to aid delivery, a technique currently guided largely by a surgeon’s personal judgment and experience. While intended to prevent severe vaginal tears or other complications during delivery, the procedure…

Innovations in
Material Sciences

Materials Sciences
2 mins read

Enhancing Display Manufacturing with Sustainable Simulations

How simulations help manufacturing of modern displays. Modern materials must be recyclable and sustainable. Consumer electronics is no exception, with organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) taking over modern televisions and portable device displays. However, the development of suitable materials – from the synthesis of molecules to the production of display components – is very time-consuming. Scientists led by Denis Andrienko of the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and Falk May from Display Solutions at Merck have now developed a simulation…

Read more
Ruishan Liu, WiSE Gabilan Assistant Professor of Computer Science, USC. Image Credit: Alexis Situ
Information Technology

AI Unlocks Genetic Insights for Personalized Cancer Care

New study uncovers how specific genetic mutations influence cancer treatment outcomes  A groundbreaking study led by USC Assistant Professor of Computer Science Ruishan Liu has uncovered how specific genetic mutations influence cancer treatment outcomes—insights that could help doctors tailor treatments more effectively. The largest study of its kind, the research analyzed data for more than 78,000 cancer patients across 20 cancer types. Patients received immunotherapies, chemotherapies and targeted therapies. Using advanced computational analysis, the researchers identified nearly 800 genetic changes that directly…

Information Technology

D2-GCN: Dynamic Disentanglement for Node Classification

Classic Graph Convolutional Networks (GCNs) often learn node representation holistically, which would ignore the distinct impacts from different neighbors when aggregating their features to update a node’s representation. Disentangled GCNs have been proposed to divide each node’s representation into several feature channels. However, current disentangling methods do not try to figure out how many inherent factors the model should assign to help extract the best representation of each node. To solve the problems, a research team led by Chuliang WENG published…

Automotive Engineering

TU Graz AI System Boosts E-Mobility Powertrain Development

The new method optimises the technical design with regard to classic objectives such as costs, efficiency and package space requirements and also takes greenhouse gas emissions along the entire supply chain into account  The development of vehicle components is a lengthy and therefore very costly process. Researchers at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz) have developed a method that can shorten the development phase of the powertrain of battery electric vehicles by several months. A team led by Martin Hofstetter…

Parsimonious models may be the norm in science, but complex models can be more flexible and accurate.
Information Technology

Exploring Ockham’s Razor: Simplifying Complex Innovations

Medieval friar William of Ockham posited a famous idea: always pick the simplest explanation. Often referred to as the parsimony principle, “Ockham’s razor” has shaped scientific decisions for centuries. But lately, incredibly complex AI models have begun outperforming their simpler counterparts. Consider AlphaFold for predicting protein structures, or ChatGPT and its competitors for generating humanlike text. A new paper in PNAS argues that by relying too much on parsimony in modeling, scientists make mistakes and miss opportunities. First author and…

New Discoveries
in Social Sciences

Social Sciences
4 mins read

Optimize Performance with Dynamic Left-Hand Squeeze Technique

A dynamic left-hand squeeze helps to optimize performance. The images are legendary: Tennis stars who hit the deciding match ball just outside the line, golfers who putt the ball past the cup from only inches away, and speakers who suddenly can’t say a word. These individuals all have one thing in common: They are unable to access their performance abilities in a crucial situation. A research team at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) investigated the phenomenon and has come…

Read more
Nighttime long exposure of the open Samuel Oschin Telescope dome at Palomar Observatory in California. Image Credit: Palomar/Caltech
Physics & Astronomy

New Type Ia Supernovae Data Offers Insights Into Universe’s History

A unique dataset of Type Ia Supernovae being released today could change how cosmologists measure the expansion history of the Universe. Dr Mathew Smith  and Dr Georgios Dimitriadis from Lancaster University are both members of the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF),  a wide-field sky astronomical survey using a new camera attached to the Samuel Oschin Telescope at Palomar Observatory in California. Type Ia Supernovae are the dramatic explosions of white dwarf stars at the ends of their lives. Cosmologists use them to probe…

Cone snail toxin (Conkunitzin-S1, shown in orange) interacting with a fish potassium channel (shown in blue). Image Credit: Courtesy of Eitan Reuveny and Izhar Karbat.
Physics & Astronomy

Cone Snail Toxin: A New Approach to Molecular Interactions

In the hunt for the target of a cone snail toxin, researchers established a new pipeline that can help identify molecular interactions and may assist with drug discovery  When scientists develop new molecules—whether for the purposes of agriculture, species control, or life-savings drugs—it’s important to know exactly what its targets are. Thoroughly understanding a molecule’s interactions, both intended and unintended, is crucial for ensuring its safety and efficacy. A cone snail toxin known to affect both insects and fish inspired…

The core of the Phoenix cluster is shown across the whole electromagnetic spectrum. The bright purples represent X-rays produced by the hot gas, and the dashed purple outlines show regions where this hot gas has been pushed away by the radio jets from the supermassive black hole. The radio jets themselves are shown in red colors. The blues and yellows represent visible light emitted by cool gas and stars. The green contours show the “warm” gas that is in the process of cooling, newly measured in the MIT study with JWST. Image Credit: NASA
Physics & Astronomy

Phoenix Galaxy Cluster: A Study on Extreme Cooling Events

Observations from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope help to explain the cluster’s mysterious starburst, usually only seen in younger galaxies.  The core of a massive cluster of galaxies appears to be pumping out far more stars than it should. Now researchers at MIT and elsewhere have discovered a key ingredient within the cluster that explains the core’s prolific starburst. In a new study published in Nature, the scientists report using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to observe the Phoenix cluster —…

Examples of how E and B modes deform imeges of distant galaxies. Image Credit: SISSA Medialab
Physics & Astronomy

Exploring Gravitational Lenses: Are Cosmic Laws Universal?

A JCAP study proposes a test for the Cosmological Principle using weak gravitational lensing  “The cosmological principle is like an ultimate kind of statement of humility,” explains James Adam, astrophysicist at the University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa, and lead author of the new paper. According to the Cosmological Principle, not only are we not at the center of the Universe, but a true center does not exist. A further assumption, similar to but distinct and independent…

Ba3SiO5−xNyHzoffers a sustainable, energy-efficient alternative to traditional ammonia synthesis methods. Image Credit: Science Tokyo
Life & Chemistry

Novel Catalyst Improves Sustainable Ammonia Synthesis

This study unveils Ba-Si orthosilicate oxynitride-hydride as a transition metal-free catalyst, paving the way for sustainable chemical innovation  As the world moves toward sustainability, the demand for efficient alternatives across industries continues to grow. Ammonia, a key chemical used in fertilizers, explosives, and various other products, is primarily synthesized through the energy-intensive Haber-Bosch process. This process requires extremely high temperatures and pressures, contributing to global carbon dioxide emissions. Conventional catalysts, such as iron and ruthenium, rely on these harsh conditions…

A Dungeness crab (Metacarcinus magister) rests in the shadows near a rocky reef. Image Credit: Pat Webster @underwaterpat
Life & Chemistry

Marine Species Vulnerable to Climate Change, New Study Reveals

New paper clearly classifies most at-risk species to help California fisheries managers prioritize efforts  Dungeness crab, Pacific herring, and red abalone are among the marine species most vulnerable to the changing climate’s effect on California’s coastal waters, a new study led by UC Santa Cruz researchers finds. In a paper published on February 12 in the journal PLOS Climate, the team seeks to help the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) in its efforts to develop and implement climate-ready…

Thomas Karikari, Ph.D. Image Credit: UPMC
Life & Chemistry

New Biomarker Test Detects Alzheimer’s Earlier, Pitt Study Finds

Years before tau tangles show up in brain scans of patients with Alzheimer’s disease, a biomarker test developed at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine can detect small amounts of the clumping-prone tau protein and its misfolded pathological forms that litter the brain, cerebrospinal fluid and potentially blood, new research published today in Nature Medicine suggests. The cerebrospinal fluid biomarker test correlates with the severity of cognitive decline, independent of other factors, including brain amyloid deposition, thereby opening doors…

Gas transport through a metal cluster-containing crystalline solid.Hydrogen and carbon monoxide travel at different speeds due to their molecular size relative to the size of nanoscale tunnels in the structure. While hydrogen binds reversibly, carbon monoxide binds irreversibly and distorts the original crown-motif of the platinum and gold atoms into a chalice-motif. Image Credit: Tokyo Metropolitan University
Life & Chemistry

Gas Adsorption Insights on Platinum and Gold Nanotunnels

Understanding gas diffusion in nanoscale voids key to new gas technologies  Tokyo, Japan – Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have elucidated how hydrogen and carbon monoxide is adsorbed into solids containing a crown-motif structure of platinum and gold. Using quick-scan X-ray absorption measurements and theoretical calculations, they studied a solid of [PtAu8(PPh3)8]-H[PMo12O40] called PtAu8-PMo12 and found that gas adsorption is affected strongly by the dimension of nanoscale voids in the structure. This highlights the importance of engineering voids in materials…

Materials Sciences

Spintronics memory innovation: A new perpendicular magnetized film

Long gone are the days where all our data could fit on a two-megabyte floppy disk. In today’s information-based society, the increasing volume of information being handled demands that we switch to memory options with the lowest power consumption and highest capacity possible. Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory (MRAM) is part of the next generation of storage devices expected to meet these needs. Researchers at the Advanced Institute for Materials Research (WPI-AIMR) have investigated a cobalt-manganese-iron alloy thin film that demonstrates…

Materials Sciences

Materials with a ‘twist’ show unexpected electronic behaviour

In the search for new materials that can enable more efficient electronics, scientists are exploring so-called 2-D materials. These are sheets of just one atom thick, that may have all kinds of interesting electronic properties. If two sheets are placed on top of each other at specific angles, this may lead to new properties such as superconductivity. University of Groningen materials scientist Antonija Grubišić-Čabo and her colleagues studied such a ‘twisted’ material and discovered that it defied theoretical predictions. Together…

Materials Sciences

Enhancing Display Manufacturing with Sustainable Simulations

How simulations help manufacturing of modern displays. Modern materials must be recyclable and sustainable. Consumer electronics is no exception, with organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) taking over modern televisions and portable device displays. However, the development of suitable materials – from the synthesis of molecules to the production of display components – is very time-consuming. Scientists led by Denis Andrienko of the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research and Falk May from Display Solutions at Merck have now developed a simulation…

Materials Sciences

Discovering Neural Plasticity in Cultured Neurons

“Neurons that fire together, wire together” describes the neural plasticity seen in human brains, but neurons grown in a dish don’t seem to follow these rules. Neurons that are cultured in-vitro form random and meaningless networks that all fire together. They don’t accurately represent how a real brain would learn, so we can only draw limited conclusions from studying it. But what if we could develop in-vitro neurons that actually behaved more naturally? A research team at Tohoku University has…

Mounds created by yellow meadow ants, Hertfordshire, UK. Image Credit: Gemma Harvey, Queen Mary University of London
Earth Sciences

Animals as Architects: Global Study Reveals Their Impact

From beaver dams to termite mounds, research uncovers the extraordinary role of animals in shaping our planet  Animals are not just inhabitants of the natural world—they are its architects. A new study led by Professor Gemma Harvey from Queen Mary University of London has revealed how hundreds of species shape the landscapes we depend on, from vast termite mounds visible from space to hippos carving drainage systems and beavers creating entire wetlands. Published in Proceedings of the National Academy of…

This new tool measures how individual phytoplankton cells are using energy. Credit: Image courtesy of Paul Harris.
Earth Sciences

New System Unveils Secrets of Vital Phytoplankton Species

Phytoplankton use sunlight to make energy and nearly half the oxygen we breathe, a new tool improves our ability to measure how individual phytoplankton cells are using energy  Phytoplankton, tiny plant-like organisms in the ocean, are incredibly important for life on Earth. They’re a major food source for many sea creatures and produce almost half the oxygen we breathe.  They also help control the climate by soaking up a lot of carbon dioxide, a gas that contributes to global warming….

The digging activity of earthworms helps plant roots in arid ecosystems to absorb the limited nutrients available in deeper soil layers. (Image: V. Gutekunst)
Earth Sciences

Why Earthworms, Ants, and Termites Matter for Climate Health

A new Nature publication shows how soil invertebrates influence the world beneath our feet and thus also ecosystem services worldwide. Based on a press release from Sun Yat-senUniversity Since the Industrial Revolution, global changes have led to a decline in biodiversity. To address these changes, it is crucial to understand what constitutes healthy ecosystems – and how to protect and build them. A new meta-analysis by an international research team, including Prof. Nico Eisenhauer from the German Centre for Integrative…

The Salar de Uyuni stretches 2.5 million acres across a high plateau in Bolivia. Credit: Image courtesy of Avner Vengosh/Duke University
Earth Sciences

Environmental Impact of Mining the World’s Largest Lithium Deposit

DURHAM, N.C. — The world’s largest known lithium deposit exists within a vast salt pan called the Salar de Uyuni, which stretches for thousands of square miles atop a high, dry Andean plateau in Bolivia. For most of the year, salt crystals encrust the terrain, white as confectioner’s sugar. During the wet season, pooling rainwater mirrors surrounding mountains and sky. “The Salar is a magical place for travelers from all over the world who come to see the colors, the…

Feedback