Science X Newsletter Week 41

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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for week 41:

	Five in a row—the planets align in the night sky For the second time this year, the five brightest planets can be seen at the same time. You can catch them by looking towards the western sky after sunset. The planets will form a line rising up from the horizon.
	World's fastest camera freezes time at 10 trillion frames per second What happens when a new technology is so precise that it operates on a scale beyond our characterization capabilities? For example, the lasers used at INRS produce ultrashort pulses in the femtosecond range (10-15 s), which is far too short to visualize. Although some measurements are possible, nothing beats a clear image, says INRS professor and ultrafast imaging specialist Jinyang Liang. He and his colleagues, led by Caltech's Lihong Wang, have developed what they call T-CUP: the world's fastest camera, capable of capturing 10 trillion (1013) frames per second (Fig. 1). This new camera literally makes it possible to freeze time to see phenomena—and even light—in extremely slow motion.
	Researchers say ritual for orthodox Jewish men may offer heart benefits A pilot study led by researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) College of Medicine suggests Jewish men who practice wearing tefillin, which involves the tight wrapping of an arm with leather banding as part of daily prayer, may receive cardiovascular health benefits.
	Study: Ketogenic diet appears to prevent cognitive decline in mice We've all experienced a "gut feeling"—when we know deep down inside that something is true. That phenomenon and others (like "butterflies in the stomach") aptly describe what scientists have now demonstrated: that the gut and the brain are more closely connected than we once thought, and in fact the health of one can affect the other.
	New discovery restores insulin cell function in type 2 diabetes By blocking a protein, VDAC1, in the insulin-producing beta cells, it is possible to restore their normal function in case of type 2 diabetes. In preclinical experiments, the researchers behind a new study have also shown that it is possible to prevent the development of the disease. The findings are published in the scientific journal Cell Metabolism.
	Engineers develop process to 3-D print cells to produce human tissue such as ligaments and tendons With today's technology, we can 3-D-print sculptures, mechanical parts, prosthetics, even guns and food. But a team of University of Utah biomedical engineers have developed a method to 3-D-print cells to produce human tissue such as ligaments and tendons, a process that will greatly improve a patient's recovery. A person with a badly damaged ligament, tendon, or ruptured disc could simply have new replacement tissue printed and ultimately implanted in the damaged area, according to a new paper published in the Journal of Tissue Engineering, Part C: Methods.
	Mathematicians confirm the possibility of data transfer via gravitational waves RUDN mathematicians analyzed the properties of gravitational waves in a generalized affine-metrical space (an algebraic construction operating on the notions of a vector and a point) similarly to the properties of electromagnetic waves in Minkowski space-time. They report the possibility of transmitting information with the help of nonmetricity waves and transferring it spatially without distortions. The discovery could lead to a new means of data transfer in space, e.g., between space stations. Their results are published in Classical and Quantum Gravity.
	Study firms up diet and depression link Does fast food contribute to depression? Can a healthy diet combat mental illness?
	Study finds orgasm face and pain face are not the same A team of researchers from the UK and Spain has found evidence showing that contrary to popular belief, the orgasm face is not the same as the pain face. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers describe their research and what they found.
	Another NASA space telescope shuts down in orbit Another NASA space telescope has shut down and halted science observations.
	New half-light half-matter particles may hold the key to a computing revolution Scientists have discovered new particles that could lie at the heart of a future technological revolution based on photonic circuitry, leading to superfast, light-based computing.
	New study links common herbicides and antibiotic resistance A new study finds that bacteria develop antibiotic resistance up to 100,000 times faster when exposed to the world's most widely used herbicides, Roundup (glyphosate) and Kamba (dicamba) and antibiotics compared to without the herbicide.
	THC amounts identical in most cannabis strains, study finds A rose by any other name is still a rose. The same, it turns out, can be said for cannabis.
	Giant, jagged 'ice spikes' cover Jupiter's moon Europa, new study suggests If you're planning a trip to Jupiter's moon Europa, be prepared for a rough landing.
	Scientists show change in beliefs associated with dopamine in brain For the first time, scientists have been able to image brain activity when people change their short-term beliefs, and to relate this brain activity to dopamine function in humans. UK scientists monitored brain activity when people changed simple beliefs about the causes of their perceptions, but the results may have important implications for understanding how the brain supports the formation of more general beliefs. This work is presented at ECNP Congress in Barcelona, and at the same time is published in the peer-reviewed journal, PNAS.
	One-third of 'gluten-free' restaurant foods in U.S. are not, study finds (HealthDay)—If you're gluten-sensitive, watch out: One-third of the "gluten-free" foods sold in U.S. restaurants actually contain trace levels of the substance, new research suggests.
	Too much sleep bad for brain, study says Preliminary results from the world's largest sleep study have shown that people who sleep on average between seven to eight hours per night performed better cognitively than those who slept less – or more – than this amount. Western neuroscientists at the Brain and Mind Institute released their findings today in Sleep.
	Copper ions flow like liquid through crystalline structures Materials scientists have sussed out the physical phenomenon underlying the promising electrical properties of a class of materials called superionic crystals. A better understanding of such materials could lead to safer and more efficient rechargeable batteries than the current standard-bearer of lithium ion.
	Novel design could help shed excess heat in next-generation fusion power plants A class exercise at MIT, aided by industry researchers, has led to an innovative solution to one of the longstanding challenges facing the development of practical fusion power plants: how to get rid of excess heat that would cause structural damage to the plant.
	Scoliosis linked to essential mineral Nobody knows why some children's backs start to curve to one side just as they hit puberty. Most children diagnosed with scoliosis, or curvature of the spine, have no known risk factors.

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