Astronomy
Infrared eyes on Enceladus: Hints of fresh ice in northern hemisphere
Scientists used data gathered by NASA's Cassini spacecraft during 13 years of exploring the Saturn system to make detailed images of the icy moon—and to reveal geologic activity.
Sep 19, 2020
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Environment
Storms Alpha and Beta named for Greek alphabet, second time ever
Meteorologists were forced to break out the Greek alphabet Friday to name Atlantic storms for only the second time ever after the 2020 hurricane season blew through their usual list, ending on Tropical Storm Wilfred.
Sep 19, 2020
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192
The four most promising worlds for alien life in the solar system
The Earth's biosphere contains all the known ingredients necessary for life as we know it. Broadly speaking these are: liquid water, at least one source of energy, and an inventory of biologically useful elements and molecules.
Space Exploration
Sep 18, 2020
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302
A better informed society can prevent lead poisoning disasters
Six years after it began, the Flint, Michigan, water crisis remains among the highest-profile emergencies in the United States.
Environment
Sep 18, 2020
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179
The observation of Bloch ferromagnetism in composite fermions
Composite fermions are exotic quasi-particles found in interacting 2-D fermion systems at relatively large perpendicular magnetic fields. These quasi-particles, which are composed of an electron and two magnetic flux quanta, ...
Anti-resonant hollow-core optical fiber reduces 'noise'
A new hollow optical fiber greatly reduces the "noise" interfering with the signals it transmits compared to the single-mode fibers now widely used, researchers at the University of Rochester report.
Optics & Photonics
Sep 18, 2020
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231
Microsoft offers Windows 10 October update
They say big things come in small packages. But when Microsoft releases its second semiannual Windows 10 update next month, it'll be mainly small things in a big package.
Google testing automatic tab-grouping feature
There are people in this world who are perfectly content to work on their computers with only one or two open browser tabs at a time. But then there are folks who collect a dozen, two dozen or more tabs each session, frantically ...
Oceanbird cargo ship relies on wind to transport autos
The latest trend in cargo shipping has roots in a concept that's been around a while. Say, 7,000 years or so.
Artificial intelligence expert originates new theory for decision-making
How should people make decisions when the outcomes of their choices are uncertain, and the uncertainty is described by probability theory?
Computer Sciences
Sep 18, 2020
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Medical Xpress
Breast cancer drug set to transform prostate cancer treatment
No benefit for post-operative radiotherapy in non-small-cell lung cancer
$13,000 fine for breaking virus rules in England
Madrid braces for partial lockdown as virus surges
Study sheds light on cancer treatment, COVID-19
Polio vaccine in the crossfire of misinformation
WHO endorses protocol for virus herbal medicine trials
Eastern EU members log record new virus count
New first-line treatment option for metastatic kidney cancer
Iran virus deaths top 24,000: ministry
Trump touts swift vaccine as Europe battles virus second wave
Immune system may have another job—combatting depression
Study links rising stress, depression in US to pandemic-related losses, media consumption
Mosquito-borne viruses linked to stroke
Singing unmasked, indoors spreads COVID-19 through aerosols, new study confirms
Most homemade masks are doing a great job, even when we sneeze, study finds
Thicker nerve fibers enable faster reactions in mice
Researchers discover a mechanism allowing immune cells to regulate obesity
How fear persists in the mouse brain
How We Feel app pilots COVID prediction model
Most COVID-19 infections are spread through respiratory droplets or aerosols and not surfaces: study
Bile acids boost gut regeneration
Study shows SARS-CoV-2 jumped between people and mink, providing strong evidence of zoonotic transmission
A pregnancy ended by COVID-19 informs new understanding and protocols
Lancet boosts review process after COVID study retraction
Tech Xplore
Oceanbird cargo ship relies on wind to transport autos
Artificial intelligence expert originates new theory for decision-making
Helping robots avoid collisions
Could PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X be swan song for consoles?
Don't write off government algorithms: Responsible AI can produce real benefits
New design principles for spin-based quantum materials
As our lives become increasingly intertwined with technology—whether supporting communication while working remotely or streaming our favorite show—so too does our reliance on the data these devices create. Data centers ...
Condensed Matter
Sep 18, 2020
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218
Primary role of sleep changes from learning support to brain maintenance in early childhood: study
Prolonged sleep deprivation can lead to severe health problems in humans and other animals. But why is sleep so vital to our health? A UCLA-led team of scientists has answered this question and shown for the first time that ...
Neuroscience
Sep 18, 2020
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Poop knives, arachnophobic entomologists win 2020 Ig Nobels
Maybe this year's Ig Nobels, the spoof prizes for dubious but humorous scientific achievement, should have been renamed the Ick Nobels.
Other
Sep 18, 2020
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435
Immune system may have another job—combatting depression
An inflammatory autoimmune response within the central nervous system similar to one linked to neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) has also been found in the spinal fluid of healthy people, according ...
Medical research
Sep 18, 2020
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Indian monsoon can be predicted better after volcanic eruptions
Large volcanic eruptions can help to forecast monsoons over India. This seasonal rainfall is key for the country's agriculture and thus for feeding 1 billion people. As erratic as they are, volcanic eruptions improve the ...
Earth Sciences
Sep 18, 2020
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136
Biologists create new genetic systems to neutralize gene drives
In the past decade, researchers have engineered an array of new tools that control the balance of genetic inheritance. Based on CRISPR technology, such gene drives are poised to move from the laboratory into the wild where ...
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 18, 2020
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190
Removal of a gene could render lethal poxviruses harmless
The removal of one gene renders poxviruses—a lethal family of viral infections that are known to spread from animals to humans—harmless, a new study in the journal Science Advances reports.
Cell & Microbiology
Sep 18, 2020
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206
Study links rising stress, depression in US to pandemic-related losses, media consumption
Experiencing multiple stressors triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic—such as unemployment—and COVID-19-related media consumption are directly linked to rising acute stress and depressive symptoms across the U.S., according ...
Psychology & Psychiatry
Sep 18, 2020
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330
Like humans, chimpanzees can suffer for life if orphaned before adulthood
Researchers observed three chimpanzee communities of the Tai National Park. They kept full demographic records and collected fecal samples to conduct paternity tests on all new community members, for up to 30 years. Catherine ...
Plants & Animals
Sep 18, 2020
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326
Engineers produce a fisheye lens that's completely flat
To capture panoramic views in a single shot, photographers typically use fisheye lenses—ultra-wide-angle lenses made from multiple pieces of curved glass, which distort incoming light to produce wide, bubble-like images. ...
Optics & Photonics
Sep 18, 2020
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221
Two endangered Javan rhino calves spotted in Indonesian park
Two extremely rare Javan rhinoceros calves have been spotted in an Indonesian national park, boosting hopes for the future of one of the world's most endangered mammals.
Efforts afoot to save South's disappearing grasslands
In the early 2000s, a harvest of pine trees on Tennessee's Cumberland Plateau led to a remarkable discovery. Once sunlight hit the ground, the seeds and rootstock of native grasses and wildflowers that had lain dormant for ...
Pulling the plug on the coronavirus copy machine
Key proteins used by coronavirus for its reproduction being modeled on NSF-funded Frontera supercomputer by Andres Cisneros research group of the University of North Texas. Research goals include finding ways to improve on ...
Two killed in hurricane-like storm in Greece
Two people were found dead and another person was missing on Saturday after central Greece was lashed by a rare hurricane-like storm known as a "medicane".
California wildfire smoke blankets parts of Canada
Smoke from California and Oregon wildfires has cloaked Canada's third-largest city of Vancouver—known for its majestic mountain views and fresh ocean breezes—in the dirtiest air in the world this week.
Massive damage of rare plants probed at Nevada mine site
State and federal authorities are investigating the mysterious loss of a significant swath of a rare desert wildflower that's being considered for federal protection at a contentious mine site in Nevada with some of the largest ...
NASA confirms development of record-breaking tropical storm Wilfred, ending hurricane list
The list of hurricane names is officially used up with the development of the 23rd tropical cyclone of the year. Tropical Storm Wilfred just formed in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean today, Sept. 18. Using a NASA satellite rainfall ...
NASA estimates powerful hurricane Teddy's extreme rainfall
Using a NASA satellite rainfall product that incorporates data from satellites and observations, NASA estimated Hurricane Teddy's rainfall rates. Teddy is a major hurricane in the Central North Atlantic Ocean.
NASA-NOAA satellite sees tropical depression 22 strengthening in gulf of Mexico
NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite provided an infrared image of Tropical Depression 22 in the Gulf of Mexico during the early morning hours of Sept. 18. TD22 is expected to become a tropical storm, according to the National ...
NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite finds tropical storm Noul fading over Laos
Tropical Storm Noul made landfall in central Vietnam on Sept. 17 and NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite captured an image of the storm over Laos. Noul was weakening as it moves toward Thailand where it is forecast to dissipate.
Aqua satellite helps confirm Subtropical Storm Alpha
Subtropical Storm Alpha has formed near the coast of Portugal, becoming the first named storm using the Greek Alphabet list, now that the annual list of names is exhausted. NASA's Aqua satellite obtained visible imagery of ...
Flooding affects more than 1 million across East Africa
Flooding has affected well over a million people across East Africa, another calamity threatening food security on top of a historic locust outbreak and the coronavirus pandemic.
Melting glacier floods Arctic coal mine, highlighting climate change irony
On July 26, Svalbard's only active coal mine, Gruve 7, was reported to be flooded by its operators, Store Norske Spitsbergen Kulkompani. It had been shut down earlier this year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic; now plans ...
Arctic sea ice is being increasingly melted from below by warming Atlantic water
Each September, scientists like me look out for the point when the Arctic's meager summer fizzles out and sea ice begins to grow once more. This point is known as the annual sea ice minimum extent. It has declined consistently ...
Chimpanzees in volatile habitats evolved to behave more flexibly
One of the reasons humans are so resilient is our ability to mold our behavior to ever changing situations. It wasn't so long ago that many of us hugged when we met. In the middle of a pandemic, in which close contact between ...
Human genetics: A look in the mirror
Who are we? Where did we come from? How did we get here? Throughout the ages, humans have sought answers to these questions, pursuing wisdom through religion, philosophy, and eventually science. Evolutionary analyses published ...
Survey explores impact of technology-facilitated abuse
A team from The University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology and University College London is examining how domestic and sexual violence survivors are being impacted by Internet of Things (IoT) technology, ...
Potential for fisheries co-management shaped by interplay between formal, informal fisheries institutions
Integrating local norms and fishermen's knowledge into fisheries regulations helps increase trust in fisheries management institutions and can make it easier for co-management to work.
Measuring air pollution in a post-COVID-19 world
Air pollution is one of the biggest environmental problems of our time. According to a new report from the European Environment Agency (EEA), air pollution now contributes to one in eight deaths in Europe. Observations from ...
Q&A: Bailout of financial sector during Great Recession was a bad deal for taxpayers
U.S. taxpayers did not earn a fair return on the 2008 government bailout of financial institutions, according to new research from the University of Michigan's Ross School of Business.
