Science X Newsletter Week 30

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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for week 30:

	Testing shows using microwaves to propel a craft into space might work A team of researchers at Colorado based Escape Dynamics is reporting that initial tests indicate that it might really be possible to launch space-planes into space using microwaves sent from the ground, to allow for a single stage spacecraft. If the idea pans out, the cost savings for sending satellites (or perhaps humans) into orbit could be considerable.
	The 'mini ice age' hoopla is a giant failure of science communication This month there's been a hoopla about a mini ice age, and unfortunately it tells us more about failures of science communication than the climate. Such failures can maintain the illusion of doubt and uncertainty, even when there's a scientific consensus that the world is warming.
	Young scientist discovers magnetic material unnecessary to create spin current It doesn't happen often that a young scientist makes a significant and unexpected discovery, but postdoctoral researcher Stephen Wu of the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory just did exactly that. What he found—that you don't need a magnetic material to create spin current from insulators—has important implications for the field of spintronics and the development of high-speed, low-power electronics that use electron spin rather than charge to carry information.
	One night of sleep loss can alter clock genes in your tissues Swedish researchers at Uppsala University and the Karolinska Institute have found that genes that control the biological clocks in cells throughout the body are altered after losing a single night of sleep, in a study that is to be published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
	Macroscopic quantum phenomena discovered in ice (Phys.org)—Scientists have discovered an anomaly in the properties of ice at very cold temperatures near 20 K, which they believe can be explained by the quantum tunneling of multiple protons simultaneously. The finding is a rare instance of quantum phenomena emerging on the macroscopic scale, and is even more unusual because it is only the second time—the first being superconductivity—that macroscopic quantum phenomena have been observed in a system that is based on fermions, which include protons, electrons, and all other matter particles. Other systems exhibiting macroscopic quantum phenomena have been based on photons, a type of boson, which mediate the forces between matter.
	Déjà-vu, new theory says dark matter acts like well-known particle A new theory says dark matter acts remarkably similar to subatomic particles known to science since the 1930s.
	Simulations lead to design of near-frictionless material Argonne scientists used Mira to identify and improve a new mechanism for eliminating friction, which fed into the development of a hybrid material that exhibited superlubricity at the macroscale for the first time. Argonne Leadership Computing Facility (ALCF) researchers helped enable the groundbreaking simulations by overcoming a performance bottleneck that doubled the speed of the team's code.
	Why do mitochondria retain their own genome? It sounds like science fiction to suggest that every cell in the human body is occupied by a tiny genome-equipped organelle, with which we exist in symbiosis. But in actuality, eukaryotic life is dependent on mitochondria, which provide energy to the cell in the form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Over millennia, the genomes of mitochondria evolved under selection for minimal gene content, but researchers have been unable to determine why some but not all mitochondrial genes have been transferred to the nuclear genome.
	Researchers feed white blood cells micro-lasers causing them to produce light A team of researchers working at the University of St Andrews in Scotland has found a way to place a laser inside a living human cell. In their paper published in the journal Nano Letters, the team describes their technique and the ways in which the new procedure may be used for future medical applications.
	Genome analysis pins down arrival and spread of first Americans The original Americans came from Siberia in a single wave no more than 23,000 years ago, at the height of the last Ice Age, and apparently hung out in the north - perhaps for thousands of years - before spreading in two distinct populations throughout North and South America, according to a new genomic analysis.
	Perovskite solar technology shows quick energy returns Solar panels are an investment—not only in terms of money, but also energy. It takes energy to mine, process and purify raw materials, and then to manufacture and install the final product.
Drawing a line between quantum and classical world Quantum theory is one of the great achievements of 20th century science, yet physicists have struggled to find a clear boundary between our everyday world and what Albert Einstein called the "spooky" features of the quantum world, including cats that could be both alive and dead, and photons that can communicate with each other across space instantaneously.
Study finds autism, ADHD run high in children of chemically intolerant mothers A new study from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio found that mothers with chemical intolerances are two to three times more likely than other women to have a child with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
	NASA discovers Earth-like planet orbiting 'cousin' of Sun Astronomers hunting for another Earth have found what may be the closest match yet, a potentially rocky planet circling its star at the same distance as the Earth orbits the Sun, NASA said Thursday.
	Scientists propose 3D graphene-like 'hyper-honeycomb' structures (Phys.org)—Scientists have proposed a new family of structures that are three-dimensional (3D) variations of graphene, the simplest example of which is called a "hyper-honeycomb." If the proposed structures can be experimentally realized, the new ways to arrange carbon atoms would add to the ever-growing number of new carbon allotropes. The scientists also predict that, among its interesting properties, the hyper-honeycomb could potentially be even more stable than diamond.
	21st century technology deciphers ancient Hebrew scroll Cutting-edge technology has for the first time allowed scholars to read the most ancient Hebrew scroll found since the Dead Sea Scrolls, Israeli and US experts said on Monday.
	Scientists track monster waves below the ocean surface A scientific research team spent seven years tracking the movements of skyscraper-high waves in the South China Sea. University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science scientists were part of the collaborative international field study trying to understand how these waves, which rarely break the ocean surface, develop, move and dissipate underwater.
	Tic toc: Why pendulums swing in harmony Almost 350 years ago, Dutch inventor and scientist Christiaan Huygens observed that two pendulum clocks hanging from a wall would synchronise their swing over time.
	Astronauts' skin changes before and after missions are studied As NASA once put, space is no trip to the spa. Changes in skin occur during spaceflight. According to recent reports, scientists have found that skin of astronauts who spend a lot of time in space gets thinner.
	NASA's New Horizons team finds haze, flowing ice on Pluto Flowing ice and a surprising extended haze are among the newest discoveries from NASA's New Horizons mission, which reveal distant Pluto to be an icy world of wonders.

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