Science X Newsletter Week 05

Dear Reader ,

Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for week 05:

	Physicists investigate the structure of time, with implications for quantum mechanics and philosophy (Phys.org)—Although in theory it may seem possible to divide time up into infinitely tiny intervals, the smallest physically meaningful interval of time is widely considered to be the Planck time, which is approximately 10-43 seconds. This ultimate limit means that it is not possible for two events to be separated by a time smaller than this.
	Record Missouri flooding was manmade calamity, scientist says At the end of December 2015, a huge storm named "Goliath" dumped 9-10 inches of rain in a belt across the central United States, centered just southwest of St. Louis, most of it in a three-day downpour.
	Physicists discover new properties of superconductivity New findings from an international collaboration led by Canadian scientists may eventually lead to a theory of how superconductivity initiates at the atomic level, a key step in understanding how to harness the potential of materials that could provide lossless energy storage, levitating trains and ultra-fast supercomputers.
	Film coating transforms contact lenses into computer screens A polymer film coating with the ability to turn contact lenses into computer screens is set to transform the wearable visual aids into the next generation of consumer electronics.
	Scientists in Germany switch on nuclear fusion experiment (Update) Scientists in Germany flipped the switch Wednesday on an experiment they hope will advance the quest for nuclear fusion, considered a clean and safe form of nuclear power.
	Exploring gambles reveals foundational difficulty behind economic theory (and a solution) In the wake of the financial crisis, many started questioning different aspects of the economic formalism.
	Scientists discover butterfly-like fossil insect in the deep Mesozoic Large butterfly-like insects known as Kalligrammatid lacewings, which fluttered through Eurasian fern- and cycad-filled woodland during the Mesozoic Era, have been extinct for more than 120 million years. But with new fossil analyses, scientists at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History have discovered that these ancient lacewings were surprisingly similar to modern butterflies, which did not appear on Earth for another 50 million years.
	World's first 'robot run' farm to open in Japan A Japanese firm said Monday it would open the world's first fully automated farm with robots handling almost every step of the process, from watering seedlings to harvesting crops.
	Model suggests Neanderthal extinction occurred due to human cultural superiority (Phys.org)—A trio of researchers, two with Stanford University in the U.S. and the third with Meiji University in Japan has created a model that showed that it might be possible that the Neanderthal extinction that occurred in the years after early humans arrived in Europe, was due to the cultural superiority of humans. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, William Gilpin, Marcus Feldman and Kenichi Aoki describe the factors they used to create their model and why they believe it was possible that cultural differences might have been enough to drive the Neanderthal to extinction.
	DNA evidence uncovers major upheaval in Europe near end of last Ice Age DNA evidence lifted from the ancient bones and teeth of people who lived in Europe from the Late Pleistocene to the early Holocene—spanning almost 30,000 years of European prehistory—has offered some surprises, according to researchers who report their findings in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on Feb. 4, 2016. Perhaps most notably, the evidence shows a major shift in the population around 14,500 years ago, during a period of severe climatic instability.
	Researchers find birds can theorize about the minds of others, even those they cannot see The question of what sets humans apart from other animals is one of the oldest philosophical puzzles. A popular answer is that only humans can understand that others also have minds like their own.
	'BPA-free' plastic accelerates embryonic development, disrupts reproductive system Companies advertise "BPA-free" as a safer version of plastic products ranging from water bottles to sippy cups to toys. Many manufacturers stopped used Bisphenol A to strengthen plastic after animal studies linked it to early puberty and a rise in breast and prostate cancers.
	Pluto's mysterious, floating hills The nitrogen ice glaciers on Pluto appear to carry an intriguing cargo: numerous, isolated hills that may be fragments of water ice from Pluto's surrounding uplands. These hills individually measure one to several miles or kilometers across, according to images and data from NASA's New Horizons mission.
	Many white-tailed deer have malaria: Researchers discover first-ever native malaria in the Americas Two years ago, Ellen Martinsen, was collecting mosquitoes at the Smithsonian's National Zoo, looking for malaria that might infect birds—when she discovered something strange: a DNA profile, from parasites in the mosquitoes, that she couldn't identify.
	New technique leads to creation of elastic high-strength carbon nanotube film (Phys.org)—A new technique developed by researchers at East China University of Science and Technology and Shanghai Jiao Tong University has led to the development of a high-strength carbon nanotube film that retains much of the elasticity of native carbon nanotubes. In their paper published in the journal Nano Letters, the team describes their technique and the characteristics of the materials they made.
	The growing menace of HPV‑related throat and mouth cancers There's a new cancer epidemic on the rise. It's an aggressive throat and mouth cancer caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV)—the same sexually transmitted virus that leads to cervical cancer—but it's affecting mostly men in the prime of their lives. Public health officials estimate that nearly 90 per cent of the adult population has been infected with HPV. Most people spontaneously clear the virus within 18 months of exposure; it's not known why or how it stays around and develops into cancer in some.
	Australian parrots need more protection Australia has the world's highest diversity of parrots, but a new analysis by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) has found the nation's record in conserving these beautiful birds leaves much to be desired.
	Scientists to inject fuel in experimental fusion device Scientists in northeast Germany were poised to flip the switch Wednesday on an experiment they hope will advance the quest for nuclear fusion, considered a clean and safe form of nuclear power.
	Did Henry VIII suffer same brain injury as some NFL players? Henry VIII may have suffered repeated traumatic brain injuries similar to those experienced by football players and others who receive repeated blows to the head, according to research by a Yale University expert in cognitive neurology.
	'Cannibalism' between stars: New research shows the turbulent past of our sun Stars are born inside a rotating cloud of interstellar gas and dust, which contracts to stellar densities thanks to its own gravity. Before finding itself on the star, however, most of the cloud lands onto a circumstellar disk forming around the star owing to conservation of angular momentum.The manner in which the material is transported through the disk onto the star, causing the star to grow in mass, has recently become a major research topic in astrophysics.

---

This email is a free service of Phys.org
You received this email because you subscribed to our list.
If you no longer want to receive this email use the link below to unsubscribe.
https://sciencex.com/profile/nwletter/
You are subscribed as jmabs1@gmail.com