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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for August 17, 2018:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
Astronomy & Space news
 | Water-worlds are common: Exoplanets may contain vast amounts of waterScientists have shown that water is likely to be a major component of those exoplanets (planets orbiting other stars) which are between two to four times the size of Earth. It will have implications for the search of life in our Galaxy. The work is presented at the Goldschmidt Conference in Boston. |
 | Another way for stellar-mass black holes to grow largerA trio of researchers with The University of Hong Kong, Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics in Taiwan and Northwestern University in the U.S., has come up with an alternative theory to explain how some stellar-mass black holes can grow bigger than others. In their paper published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, Shu-Xu Yi, K.S. Cheng and Ronald Taam describe their theory and how it might work. |
 | Magnetized inflow accreting to center of Milky Way galaxyAre magnetic fields an important guiding force for gas accreting to a supermassive black hole (SMBH) like the one that our Milky Way galaxy hosts? The role of magnetic fields in gas accretion is little understood, and trying to observe it has been challenging to astronomers. Researchers at the Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics (ASIAA), Taiwan, led by Dr. Pei-Ying Hsieh, have obtained a good measurement by using the instruments on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT). Their result provides clear evidence that the orientation of the magnetic field is in alignment with the molecular torus and ionized streamers rotating with respect to Sagittarius A*—the black hole at the center of the Milky Way. The findings are published in Astrophysical Journal in 2018 August. |
 | Six things about Opportunity's recovery effortsNASA's Opportunity rover has been silent since June 10, when a planet-encircling dust storm cut off solar power for the nearly-15-year-old rover. Now that scientists think the global dust storm is "decaying"—meaning more dust is falling out of the atmosphere than is being raised back into it—skies might soon clear enough for the solar-powered rover to recharge and attempt to "phone home." |
 | Lockheed Martin gives first look into where astronauts may live on missions to deep spaceA massive cylindrical habitat may one day house up to four astronauts as they make the trek to deep space. |
 | First science with ALMA's highest-frequency capabilitiesThe ALMA telescope in Chile has transformed how we see the universe, showing us otherwise invisible parts of the cosmos. This array of incredibly precise antennas studies a comparatively high-frequency sliver of radio light: waves that range from a few tenths of a millimeter to several millimeters in length. Recently, scientists pushed ALMA to its limits, harnessing the array's highest-frequency (shortest wavelength) capabilities, which peer into a part of the electromagnetic spectrum that straddles the line between infrared light and radio waves. |
 | What is NASA's Heat Melt Compactor?Dealing with trash is a challenge wherever people work and live, and space is no exception. Astronauts produce a couple of pounds of trash per crew member per day. To better manage this, NASA is developing a new trash processing system to demonstrate on the International Space Station. This work is critical for potential future missions traveling farther from Earth, to the moon and Mars, and for longer periods of time. Current modes of trash disposal and waste management will not be available at the extreme durations and distances these missions will require – while the space station is only 250 miles above us in low-Earth orbit, the moon is about 240,000 miles away, and Mars is on average about 140,000,000 miles away! In addition, the new system will give astronauts the ability to recover valuable resources from their trash, an important thing when you have to take everything with you. |
 | New telescope chases the mysteries of radio flashes and dark energySouth Africa is becoming one of the world's most important radio astronomy hubs, thanks in large part to its role as co-host of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA). Now a new telescope is being unveiled that will be built at the SKA South Africa site in the Karoo. The Hydrogen Intensity and Real-time Analysis eXperiment (HIRAX) project is an international collaboration being led by scientists from the University of KwaZulu-Natal. The Conversation Africa chatted to project leader Professor Kavilan Moodley about HIRAX's scientific goals. |
 | Image: Sun's magnetic field modeledNASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) scientists used their computer models to generate a view of the Sun's magnetic field on August 10, 2018. |
Technology news
 | A light-weight and accurate deep learning model for audiovisual emotion recognitionResearchers at Orange Labs and Normandie University have developed a novel deep neural model for audiovisual emotion recognition that performs well with small training sets. Their study, which was pre-published on arXiv, follows a philosophy of simplicity, substantially limiting the parameters that the model acquires from datasets and using simple learning techniques. |
When ok is not ok: Security presenter talks about synthetic clicksA warnings bypass in macOS High Sierra made news this week in security land. Think on lines such as security check-ins, where the user is asked to confirm that an app should be granted permission to do things like access contacts or location data, as noted in 9to5Mac. | |
 | 'Hacky hack hack': Australia teen breaches Apple's secure networkA schoolboy who "dreamed" of working for Apple hacked the firm's computer systems, Australian media has reported, although the tech giant said Friday no customer data was compromised. |
 | Research team develops the world's first-ever 4-D printing for ceramicsA research team at City University of Hong Kong (CityU) has achieved a groundbreaking advancement in materials research by successfully developing the world's first 4-D printing for ceramics, which are mechanically robust and can have complex shapes. This could turn a new page in the structural application of ceramics. |
 | More efficient security for cloud-based machine learningA novel encryption method devised by MIT researchers secures data used in online neural networks, without dramatically slowing their runtimes. This approach holds promise for using cloud-based neural networks for medical-image analysis and other applications that use sensitive data. |
 | New AI camera could revolutionize autonomous vehiclesThe image recognition technology that underlies today's autonomous cars and aerial drones depends on artificial intelligence: the computers essentially teach themselves to recognize objects like a dog, a pedestrian crossing the street or a stopped car. The problem is that the computers running the artificial intelligence algorithms are currently too large and slow for future applications like handheld medical devices. |
 | AI could make dodgy lip sync dubbing a thing of the pastResearchers have developed a system using artificial intelligence that can edit the facial expressions of actors to accurately match dubbed voices, saving time and reducing costs for the film industry. It can also be used to correct gaze and head pose in video conferencing, and enables new possibilities for video postproduction and visual effects. |
 | Robots as tools and partners in rehabilitationIn future decades, the need for effective strategies for medical rehabilitation will increase significantly, because patients' rate of survival after diseases with severe functional deficits, such as a stroke, will increase. Socially assistive robots (SARs) are already being used in rehabilitation for this reason. In the journal Science Robotics, a research team led by neuroscientist Dr. Philipp Kellmeyer of the Freiburg University Medical Center and Prof. Dr. Oliver Müller from the Department of Philosophy of the University of Freiburg, analyzes the improvements necessary to make SARs valuable and trustworthy assistants for medical therapies. |
 | Google employees sign protest letter over China search engine: NYTHundreds of Google employees have signed a protest letter over the company's reported work on a censor-friendly search engine to get back into China, The New York Times said Thursday. |
 | These Android phones have security defects out of the box, researchers sayAt least 25 Android smartphone models—11 of which are sold by major U.S. carriers—carry vulnerabilities out of the box, making them easy prey for hackers, according to a new study from security researchers. |
 | Interactive software tool makes complex mold design simpleMost of the plastic objects we see are created using injection molding, but designing such molds is a difficult task, usually requiring experts. Now, computer scientists from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST Austria), the University of Tokyo, and CONICET have created an interactive design tool that allows non-experts to create molds for an object of their choice. The software will be presented at this year's prestigious SIGGRAPH conference, one of IST Austria's five successful submissions. |
 | Scientists improve deep learning method for neural networksResearchers from the Institute of Cyber Intelligence Systems at the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Russia) have recently developed a new learning model for the restricted Boltzmann machine (a neural network), which optimizes the processes of semantic encoding, visualization and data recognition. The results of this research are published in the journal Optical Memory and Neural Networks. |
 | From pine cones to an adaptive shading systemAn adjustable shading system that adapts itself independently over the course of the day, without sensors or motors and largely maintenance-free? It really is possible: an ETH doctoral student at the Institute for Building Materials has developed an alternative to motor-driven sunshades. |
 | Virtual reality providing real-world literacy and numeracy learning toolVirtual reality is moving beyond purely entertainment to become a potential tool in improving literacy, and the University of Otago is behind one ground-breaking approach. |
 | Color effects from transparent 3-D printed nanostructuresMost of the objects we see are colored by pigments, but using pigments has disadvantages: such colors can fade, industrial pigments are often toxic, and certain color effects are impossible to achieve. The natural world, however, also exhibits structural coloration, where the microstructure of an object causes various colors to appear. Peacock feathers, for instance, are pigmented brown, but—because of long hollows within the feathers—reflect the gorgeous, iridescent blues and greens we see and admire. Recent advances in technology have made it practical to fabricate the kind of nanostructures that result in structural coloration, and computer scientists from the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST Austria) and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have now created a computational tool that automatically creates 3-D-print templates for nanostructures that correspond to user-defined colors. Their work demonstrates the great potential for structural coloring in industry, and opens up possibilities for non-experts to create their own designs. This project will be presented at this year's top computer graphics conference, SIGGRAPH 2018, by first author and IST Austria postdoc Thomas Auzinger. |
 | Alexa, Cortana finally get the conversation goingAmazon's Alexa and Microsoft's Cortana are coming soon to a smart device near you – together, with new integrated features that allow the digital assistants to talk to each other. |
This Silicon Valley car tech firm is bringing secret weapon to the streets of SacramentoA Silicon Valley tech company recently posted a video front and center on its website that may startle some Sacramentans. | |
 | Engineering team designs technology for smart materialsUniversity of Virginia mechanical engineers and materials scientists, in collaboration with materials scientists at Penn State, the University of Maryland and the National Institute of Standards and Technology, have invented a "switching effect" for thermal conductivity and mechanical properties that can be incorporated into the fabrication of materials including textiles and garments. |
 | Musk tells newspaper he's cracking under stress of Tesla jobWhat do you do when your CEO confesses that he's cracking under the stress of his job? |
 | Rovio shares lifted as 'Angry Birds 2' sales fly higherFinnish game maker Rovio Entertainment on Friday said sales of the sequel to its flagship Angry Birds game hit a new record as the group's profit and revenue in the second quarter beat analyst's expectations. |
Is Walmart's tech investment in San Diego a sign of bigger things to come?A technology company moving from a dated 9,000 square-foot office to a modern 30,000 square-foot space usually doesn't portend a major shift in San Diego's corporate dynamics. But when that company is the nation's largest retailer and its motivation is rooted in out-recruiting its biggest rival, both of which previously ignored the region, then a sea change seems in the works. | |
Amazon's Fire TV Edition is a cord-cutter's dream—when it worksAmazon's Fire TV Edition, a $299 smart TV made by Toshiba, sounds like a cord-cutter's dream. Which it is. If you have an antenna. Cable and satellite subscribers will have to endure some hurdles. | |
 | Magic Leap One is finally here! And it costs $2,295Magic Leap One has finally launched. |
T-Mobile gets rid of robot system for customer service callsT-Mobile is getting rid of that robotic voice on its customer service lines, the company announced Wednesday. | |
 | Lack of funding leaves world's roads in disrepairIn an age of austerity and budget cutbacks, the deadly bridge collapse in Genoa, Italy, has put the spotlight clearly on the lack of public funding for road networks across the globe, from France and Germany, to the United States and beyond. |
How Amazon could change your evening at the moviesGoing to the movies now consists of buying a ticket and sitting through some trailers. What if the entire evening was brought to you by Amazon? | |
H-1B use skyrocketed among Bay Area tech giantsEven as the White House began cracking down on U.S. work visas, major Silicon Valley technology firms last year dramatically ramped up hiring of workers under the controversial H-1B visa program, according to newly released data. | |
Medicine & Health news
 | Moderate carbohydrate intake may be best for healthEating carbohydrates in moderation seems to be optimal for health and longevity, suggests new research published in The Lancet Public Health journal. |
 | As body mass index increases, blood pressure may as wellBody mass index is positively associated with blood pressure, according to the ongoing study of 1.7 million Chinese men and women being conducted by researchers at the Yale Center for Outcomes Research and Evaluation (CORE) and in China. These findings appear in the Aug. 17 issue of JAMA Network Open. |
 | Scientists discover new method of diagnosing cancer with malaria proteinIn a spectacular new study, researchers from the University of Copenhagen have discovered a method of diagnosing a broad range of cancers at their early stages by utilising a particular malaria protein that sticks to cancer cells in blood samples. The researchers hope that this method can be used in cancer screenings in the near future. |
 | Critical role of DHA on foetal brain development revealedDuke-NUS researchers have found evidence that a natural form of Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA) made by the liver called Lyso-Phosphatidyl-Choline (LPC-DHA), is critical for normal foetal and infant brain development, and that primarily only one form of DHA can reach the brain through a specific "transporter." |
 | CRISPR technology targets mood-boosting receptors in brainAn estimated 13 percent of Americans take antidepressant drugs for depression, anxiety, chronic pain or sleep problems. For the 14 million Americans who have clinical depression, roughly one third don't find relief with antidepressants. |
 | People are more honest when using a foreign tongue, research findsNew UChicago-led research suggests that someone who speaks in a foreign language is probably more credible than the average native speaker. |
 | Coal miners at growing risk of developing debilitating, deadly lung fibrosisThe number of cases of progressive massive fibrosis (PMF) among U.S. coal miners has risen during the past two decades, even as the number of coal miners has declined, according to new research published online in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. |
New York University makes tuition free for all medical studentsNew York University said Thursday it would offer all its current and future medical school students free tuition in an effort to tackle soaring debt levels and encourage more applicants. | |
Better access to quality cancer care may reduce rural and urban disparitiesWhen enrolled in a cancer clinical trial, the differences in survival rates between rural and urban patients are significantly reduced, SWOG study results show. | |
 | What does it feel like to have Alzheimer's? Virtual reality programs may help you find outAfter experiencing the world as a woman with Alzheimer's disease, Ana Lebron took off her virtual reality headset and began to cry. |
Painful sex? New treatment for menopausal women on its way to pharmaciesFor menopausal women who experience painful sex, a new treatment is on its way to pharmacies. | |
 | Muscle doesn't weigh more than fat—a pound is a poundThe reassuring phrase 'muscle weighs more than fat' can be heard reverberating in gyms across the country, but how much truth is there to it? A registered dietitian at Baylor College of Medicine says not much. |
 | Making MRI scans safer for kidsWhen it comes to medical imaging, pediatric radiologist and biomedical engineer Shreyas Vasanawala knows that kids aren't the same as adults. |
 | Patients, doctors dissatisfied by Electronic Health RecordsElectronic Health Records are intended to streamline and improve access to information—and have been shown to improve quality of care—but a new study shows they also leave both doctors and patients unsatisfied, even after full implementation. |
 | New algorithm could improve diagnosis of rare diseasesToday, diagnosing rare genetic diseases requires a slow process of educated guesswork. Gill Bejerano, Ph.D., associate professor of developmental biology and of computer science at Stanford, is working to speed it up. |
 | Are fasting diets effective and safe for losing weight?Although traditional reduced-calorie diets are a science-based way to lose weight, intermittent fasting is a good alternative that studies suggest is just as beneficial. |
 | Research eyes role of stress in mental illnessesWe all face stress in our lives. Even researchers seeking to understand why some people shrug it off while others face battles against disorders like depression or PTSD. |
 | Aching back? Give yourself a massage (yes, it's possible)We've all been there: Your back is aching from sitting in front of a computer all day or perhaps you pulled a muscle during a workout, but you don't have the time or money to get a professional massage. |
 | New treatment for iron overload on trialA world-first trial of a treatment for Australia's most common genetic disorder is being led by a University of Queensland researcher. |
 | Nanomedicine could revolutionise tuberculosis treatmentTuberculosis is one of the world's deadliest infectious disease. Worldwide, there are still about 10.4 million cases of TB and 1.7 million deaths every year. |
 | Gene silencing critical for normal breast developmentResearchers have discovered that normal breast development relies on a genetic 'brake', a protein complex that keeps swathes of genes silenced. |
 | An intelligent knife can tell ovarian cancer and healthy tissue apart. Could it make surgery smarter?Surgery is a major part of ovarian cancer treatment, but it can be a blunt tool. |
 | Developing an on-off switch for breast cancer treatmentT-cells play an important role in the body's immune system, and one of their tasks is to find and destroy infection. However, T-cells struggle to identify solid, cancerous tumors in the body. A current cancer therapy is using these T-cells and genetically engineering them to kill cancer, but these cells, known as CAR-T cells, have been known to attack off-target sites while completing their job. In order to counteract this negative effect, University of Notre Dame researchers are working to create nanoparticles that act as an "on and off" switch to improve the safety and effectiveness of this cancer therapy. |
 | Exaggerated portions alongside real nutrition claims on cereal boxes may mislead consumers – new studyEating healthy cereals in moderation can contribute to a balanced diet. However, many breakfast cereals on offer in the UK contain very high levels of sugar. In fact, based on total product weight, some are made up of more than a third of the sweet stuff. |
 | Could different cultures teach us something about dementia?Picture two different families, each dealing with a diagnosis of dementia in one of its members. In one case, the patient is a retired executive, whose family tries as long as possible to keep the diagnosis secret, relying primarily on professional caregivers and eventually a nursing home. In another case, the patient is a grandmother. As soon as the diagnosis is suspected, her family pulls together, bringing her into their home and surrounding her with affection. |
 | Why banning drive-throughs could make communities healthierNoise and litter are two big reasons communities have banned drive-through windows in restaurants, but one University of Alberta researcher hopes it also helps put the brakes on unhealthy eating. |
 | Co-infection with vaginitis and sexually transmitted infection may be more common than previously acknowledgedNew data suggest that women testing positive for vaginitis or bacterial vaginosis may be at higher risk than normal for a sexually transmitted infection. A study published in the most recent issue of Clinical Infectious Disease by Barbara Van Der Pol, Ph.D., associate professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham Division of Infectious Diseases, found that women who test positive for bacterial vaginosis or candidiasis had a greater likelihood of testing positive for chlamydia or trichomonas. |
 | A little 'horseplay' eases veterans' mind, body and soul(HealthDay)—U.S. Navy veteran Lisa Conway was having trouble coping with mobility issues related to two newly diagnosed autoimmune diseases when her therapist suggested equine-assisted therapy. |
 | Maybe it's time to get in the game(HealthDay)—Team sports aren't just for kids. They offer adults a wealth of benefits, including a greater feeling of well-being, reduced stress and a strong sense of community. |
 | Practice names, logos should be carefully designed(HealthDay)—Practice names and logos should be carefully designed to emphasize what is unique about a practice, according to a blog post published in Physicians Practice. |
 | Birth control app highlights emerging health tech marketThe condom, the pill and now, the smartphone? |
 | CDC: brucellosis in dogs remains a public health risk(HealthDay)—Brucella canis is an under-recognized infection in dogs that poses a threat to human health, according to a report published in the August issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Emerging Infectious Diseases. |
 | 16 going on 66: Will you be the same person 50 years from now?How much do you change between high school and retirement? The answer depends on whether you're comparing yourself to others or to your younger self. |
 | Doctors remove contact lens embedded in eyelid for years(HealthDay)—Doctors recently removed a contact lens that was embedded in a woman's eyelid for nearly three decades after she was hit in the eye while playing badminton. The case was highlighted in the Aug. 10 online edition of BMJ Case Reports. |
For children with complex medical situations, a new roadmap for improving healthChildren with severe disabilities, serious cognitive impairments and medically complex situations require more specialized health care during their lifetimes. But establishing a consistent way to identify their overall health needs and measure progress in meeting those needs has been an elusive goal. | |
 | Three factors could explain physician burnoutIn just three years, physician burnout increased from 45.5 percent to 54.4 percent, according to a paper authored by doctors at the University of California, Riverside School of Medicine. |
 | Like shark attack and the lottery, unconscious bias influences cancer screeningWhat do shark attack, the lottery and ovarian cancer screening having in common? It turns out our judgments about these things are all influenced by unconscious bias. |
 | Stroke patients treated at a teaching hospital are less likely to be readmittedStroke patients appear to receive better care at teaching hospitals with less of a chance of landing back in a hospital during the early stages of recovery, according to new research from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth). |
 | Fake weed seen as a public health dangerA decade after first appearing in the United States, fake weed is seen as a growing health danger. |
 | More opioid users getting treatment since Medicaid expansion(HealthDay)—The expansion of Medicaid that came along with the Affordable Care Act has made it easier for some opioid users to get treatment, new research suggests. |
 | FDA approves brain stimulation device for OCD(HealthDay)—A brain stimulation device to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) has received approval for marketing Friday by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. |
 | Gout could increase heart disease riskHaving a type of inflammatory arthritis called gout may worsen heart-related outcomes for people being treated for coronary artery disease, according to new research. |
 | Residents' sleep deteriorates during training(HealthDay)—First-year residents experience worsening sleep duration and quality as well as daytime sleepiness, according to a study published in the June issue of the Journal of General Internal Medicine. |
 | CDC: increase in tianeptine exposures from 2014 to 2017(HealthDay)—From 2014 to 2017 there was an increase in tianeptine exposure calls reported by poison control centers to the National Poison Data System, and they mainly occurred among those aged 21 to 40 years, according to research published in the Aug. 3 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. |
 | QI program can up outcomes for neonatal abstinence syndrome(HealthDay)—Significant improvements in neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) outcomes can result from a comprehensive quality improvement (QI) program, according to a study published in the August issue of the Journal of Perinatology. |
 | Cerebral blood flow changes in pediatric patients with CKD(HealthDay)—Pediatric patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have higher global cerebral blood flow (CBF) and regional differences in CBF, according to a study published recently in Radiology. |
 | VAT score improves predictive value of MMSE for dementia(HealthDay)—Administering the Visual Association Test (VAT) improves the predictive value of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score for dementia, according to a study published in a recent issue of the Annals of Family Medicine. |
 | Honey may protect children who swallow button batteries(HealthDay)—Ingesting honey after swallowing a button battery may reduce injuries and improve outcomes in children, according to research published recently in Laryngoscope. |
 | E-cigarette vapor condensate toxic to alveolar macrophages(HealthDay)—Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) vapor condensate (ECVC) is significantly more toxic to alveolar macrophages than e-cigarette liquid (ECL), according to a study published online Aug. 13 in Thorax. |
 | New hepatitis C drugs mean diseased organs can be used for transplantsUnthinkable until a few years ago, the practice of putting hepatitis C-infected organs into uninfected patients has been embraced by the transplant world as a way to whittle long waiting lists for life-saving kidneys, livers, hearts and lungs. |
 | Exploring the relationship between fever and cancer incidenceRecurring patterns in patient accounts suggest the existence of an inverse relationship between personal history of infectious fever and cancer risk, and these patterns are documented throughout decades of medical literature. However, evidence supporting this correlation continues to be primarily anecdotal. |
 | Team develops new way to grow blood vesselsFormation of new blood vessels, a process also known as angiogenesis, is one of the major clinical challenges in wound healing and tissue implants. To address this issue, researchers from Texas A&M University have developed a clay-based platform to deliver therapeutic proteins to the body to assist with the formation of blood vessels. |
 | Automated detection of focal epileptic seizures in a sentinel area of the human brainPatients with focal epilepsy that does not respond to medications badly need alternative treatments. |
 | HIV and a tale of a few citiesWhile global incidence rates of HIV have declined notably in recent years, the virus that causes AIDS remains a major and, in some ways largely unmitigated, public health threat in some countries and regions. |
 | Researchers find pathways that uncover insight into development of lung cancerLung cancer is the leading cause of preventable cancer death. A disease of complex origin, lung cancer is usually considered to result from effects of smoking and from multiple genetic variants. One of these genetic components, a chromosome named 15q25.1, has been previously identified as a leading influencer of susceptibility to lung cancer, smoking behavior, and nicotine addiction. However, no previous study has investigated the mechanisms of this lead agent, or documented the susceptibility pathways that allow this chromosome to modify development of disease. |
 | UK lawmakers urge government to relax rules on e-cigarettesA committee of British lawmakers is urging the government to loosen restrictions on e-cigarettes as a way of cutting the smoking rate. |
 | Denmark's Novo Nordisk buys UK insulin technology pioneerDenmark's Novo Nordisk, the world's top insulin maker, said Friday it has acquired a British firm that is pioneering a new technology which could help people with diabetes inject themselves more safely with insulin. |
Ebola cases in DR Congo rise to 78, 44 deadSeventy-eight cases of Ebola have been recorded in an outbreak in northeast Democratic Republic of Congo, claiming 44 lives, DRC officials and the World Health Organization (WHO) said Friday. | |
Despite low demand, medical marijuana companies in Illinois are growingIn a well-lit room in a nondescript building in Joliet, Ill., racks of marijuana plants are stacked, row after row. | |
Biology news
 | Study confirms truth behind 'Darwin's moth'Scientists have revisited—and confirmed—one of the most famous textbook examples of evolution in action. |
 | Bioengineers borrow from electronics industry to get stem cells to shape upTo understand how cells in the body behave, bioengineers create miniature models of the cells' environment in their lab. But recreating this niche environment is incredibly complex in a controlled setting, because researchers are still learning all the factors that influence cell behavior and growth. By observing and then modifying their engineered mini-models, scientists are better able to identify those factors. |
 | Newly discovered class of molecules may boost cancer vaccine developmentCancer vaccines are designed to heighten the immune system's awareness of a tumor's unique features, boosting its ability to recognize, attack, and destroy the cancer. To date, effective cancer vaccines have focused on what are called "neoantigens," tumor-specific peptides that result from acquired mutations. But not every tumor produces distinct antigens that the immune system can recognize. As a result, current cancer vaccines don't work for all patients. |
 | Are our wild animals growing old gracefully?For most of us, the body's deterioration is an unavoidable part of getting older. This age-related decline, known as "senescence", can occur subtly and slowly for some individuals, while for others it happens much faster. A researcher from The Australian National University is trying to find out why. |
 | Pigs form a visual concept of human facesContrary to previous studies, pigs appear to have better visual discrimination abilities than had previously been assumed. Cognition researchers from the Messerli Research Institute showed in a new study that pigs not only discriminate between front and back views of human heads but also that the animals apparently use certain facial features such as our eyes or mouth as cues. The results shed a new, more positive light on the previously rather pessimistic opinion of the visuo-cognitive abilities of these clever animals. |
 | Biologists study swift evolutionary changes in acorn-dwelling insectsThe relatively swift adaptability of tiny, acorn-dwelling ants to warmer environments could help scientists predict how other species might evolve in the crucible of global climate change. |
Rare 'bamboo rat' photographed at Machu PicchuA rare rodent species known as a "bamboo rat" that lives around the Inca ruins at Machu Picchu in Peru has resurfaced after a decade of absence and been photographed for the first time. | |
 | Researchers unravel the age of fine tree rootsThe researchers at the Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL used thin sections of roots less than two millimetres thick to identify the tree rings of several hundred spruce (Picea abies), pine (Pinus sylvestris), beech (Fagus sylvatica) and dwarf birch (Betula nana) roots. This approach enabled them to determine the age of the fine roots taken from trees in Switzerland, Germany, Sweden and Russia. |
 | Approval of first RNA interference drug – why the excitement?Small interfering RNA sounds like something from a science fiction novel rather than a revolutionary type of medicine. But this odd-sounding new drug offers a novel strategy for treating disease by targeting the root cause rather than just the symptoms. This is an exciting approach because it enhances the effectiveness of the treatment and reduces side effects. |
 | Warning colours are getting warmerAs temperatures in Australia and around the world increase, for hibiscus harlequin bugs, the future is orange. |
 | A bee economist explains honey bees' vital role in growing tasty almondsIt's sometimes reported that one in every three bites of food depends on bees. As is often the case when an easy to grasp notion spreads, there's a dose of truth and a dollop of exaggeration. |
 | Why mosquitoes bite some people more than othersSurprisingly few of the more than 3,000 mosquito species actually specialise in biting humans. Instead, most are opportunistic feeders – feeding when they are able and from lots of different sources. But Aedes aegypti and Anopheles gambiae are well known for their preference for human blood and their role as vectors which transmit disease in humans. Ae. aegypti has been linked to zika and dengue, while An. gambiae carries the parasite which causes malaria. |
 | Researchers use bacteria to cure fungal infectionsResearchers in the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology's Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering have cured fungal infections using a soil-dwelling bacteria. The findings of the research led by Assistant Professor Boaz Mizrahi and conducted by his student Maayan Lupton and Dr. Ayelet Orbach were published recently in Advanced Functional Materials. |
 | Scientists examine the relative impact of proximity to seed sourcesA new research study published in the journal Invasive Plant Science and Management tackles an important, unresolved question in the biology of invasive plants. Which is most important to the establishment of new invasive communities—proximity to seed sources, canopy disturbance, or soil disturbance? |
 | A novel synthetic antibody enables conditional 'protein knockdown' in vertebratesThe research groups led by Dr. Jörg Mansfeld of the Biotechnology Center of the TU Dresden (BIOTEC) and Dr. Caren Norden of the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (MPI-CBG) have developed a novel synthetic antibody that paves the way for an improved functional analysis of proteins. They combined auxin-inducible "protein knockdown" with a synthetic antibody to not only observe fluorescent proteins in living cells but also to rapidly remove them in a temporally controlled manner. |
 | Vietnam's caged bears dying off as bile prices plummetTwo moon bears are gently removed from the cramped cages where they have been held for 13 years, rescuers carefully checking their rotten teeth and matted paws before sending them to their new home in a grassy sanctuary in northern Vietnam. |
 | How do plants rest photosynthetic activity at night?Photosynthesis, the process by which plants generate food, is a powerful piece of molecular machinery that needs sunlight to run. The proteins involved in photosynthesis need to be 'on' when they have the sunlight they need to function, but in the dark, when photosynthesis is not possible, they need to idle, like the engine of a car at a traffic light. They do this by a process called 'redox regulation'—the activation and deactivation of proteins via changes in their redox (reduction/oxidation) states. It's well understood that under sunlight, the ferredoxin-thioredoxin reductase (FTR)/thioredoxin (Trx) pathway is responsible for the reduction process, which activates the photosynthetic pathway. However, scientists have long been in the dark about what happens when light is not available, and how plants reset photosynthetic proteins to be ready to function when light is resumed. |
Judge told to consider protections for Montana grayling fishAn appeals court on Friday told a judge to take another look at whether a Montana fish should be protected, saying that U.S. wildlife officials did not consider all environmental factors when it decided against designating the Arctic grayling as a threatened or endangered species. | |
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