ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• To push or to pull? How many-limbed marine organisms swim
• Can we harness a plant's ability to synthesize medicinal compounds?
• Pesticide deadly to bees now easily detected in honey
• Machine learning: A breakthrough in the study of stellar nurseries
• Commonly used antibiotic shows promise for combating Zika infections
• Clean Air Act saved 1.5 billion birds
• Memories of past events retain remarkable fidelity even as we age
• CRISPRi screens reveal sources of metabolic robustness in E. coli
• Stronger memories can help us make sense of future changes
• Taking a shine to polymers: Fluorescent molecule betrays the breakdown of polymer materials
• Why experiences are better gifts for older children
• Stable catalysts for new energy
• Blast from the past
• Quantum magic squares
• Lung-on-chip provides new insight on body's response to early tuberculosis infection
• Hormone found to switch off hunger could help tackle obesity
• New light on polar explorer's last hours
• Stress in pregnancy may influence baby brain development
• Enzymatic photocaging for the study of gene regulation through DNA methylation
• Antimicrobial soap additive worsens fatty liver disease in mice
• World's first: Drug guides stem cells to desired location, improving their ability to heal
• Sound waves power new advances in drug delivery and smart materials
• Researchers reveal switch used in plant defense against animal attack
• More skin-like, electronic skin that can feel
• AI helps scientists understand brain activity behind thoughts
• Mother's touch lingers in her child's genes
• Cascading events led to 2018 Ki?lauea volcanic eruption, providing clues for forecasting
• Cocoa flavanols boost brain oxygenation, cognition in healthy adults
• AI system discovers useful new material
• Experimental evolution reveals how bacteria gain drug resistance
• Which speaker are you listening to? Hearing aid of the future uses brainwaves to find out
• Potential treatment against antibiotic-resistant bacteria causing gonorrhea and meningitis
• Brain waves guide us in spotlighting surprises
• One in three who are aware of deepfakes say they have inadvertently shared them on social media
• Nature is widely adapted to current climate -- making it harder to adjust to a new one
• A rich source of nutrients under the Earth's ice sheets
• Measuring risk-taking - by watching people move computer mouses

To push or to pull? How many-limbed marine organisms swim Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:28 PM PST Couinter-intuitively, small marine animals don't use their limbs or propulsors to push themselves through the water while swimming. Instead, their appendages create negative pressure behind them that pulls the animal through the water, scientists report.

Can we harness a plant's ability to synthesize medicinal compounds? Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:28 PM PST Anthraquinones are a class of naturally occurring compounds prized for their medicinal properties, as well as for other applications, including ecologically friendly dyes. Despite wide interest, the mechanism by which plants produce them has remained shrouded in mystery until now. New work reveals a gene responsible for anthraquinone synthesis in plants. Their findings could help scientists cultivate a plant-based mechanism for harvesting these useful compounds in bulk quantities.

Pesticide deadly to bees now easily detected in honey Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:28 PM PST A common insecticide that is a major hazard for honeybees is now effectively detected in honey thanks to a simple new method.

Machine learning: A breakthrough in the study of stellar nurseries Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:08 PM PST Artificial intelligence can make it possible to see astrophysical phenomena that were previously beyond reach. Astronomers present the most comprehensive observations yet carried out of one of the star-forming regions closest to the Earth.

Commonly used antibiotic shows promise for combating Zika infections Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:08 PM PST Researchers used a variety of advanced drug screening techniques to test out more than 10,000 compounds in search of a cure. To their surprise, they found that the widely used antibiotic methacycline was effective at preventing brain infections and reducing neurological problems associated with the virus in mice.

Clean Air Act saved 1.5 billion birds Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:08 PM PST US pollution regulations meant to protect humans from dirty air are also saving birds. So concludes a new continent-wide study. Study authors found that improved air quality under a federal program to reduce ozone pollution may have averted the loss of 1.5 billion birds during the past 40 years.

Memories of past events retain remarkable fidelity even as we age Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:08 PM PST Even though people tend to remember fewer details about past events as time goes by, the details they do remember are retained with remarkable fidelity, according to a new study. This finding holds true regardless of the age of the person or the amount of time that elapsed since the event took place.

CRISPRi screens reveal sources of metabolic robustness in E. coli Posted: 24 Nov 2020 12:08 PM PST Metabolic robustness, the ability of a metabolic system to buffer changes in its environment, is not always a welcome feature for microbiologists: it interferes with metabolic engineering or prevents that antibiotics kill bacteria. Therefore it is important to understand the mechanisms that enable metabolic robustness. A massively parallel CRISPRi screen demonstrated that E. colimetabolism is very robust against knockdowns of enzymes, and multi-omics data revealed the mechanisms behind it. In the future, the researchers want to apply this knowledge to build better models of metabolism, which enable rational-design of industrial microbes.

Stronger memories can help us make sense of future changes Posted: 24 Nov 2020 10:46 AM PST Research finds a new relationship between memory and the ability to incorporate changes into one's understanding of the world.

Taking a shine to polymers: Fluorescent molecule betrays the breakdown of polymer materials Posted: 24 Nov 2020 10:11 AM PST Scientists have come up with a simple method to evaluate the strength and performance of polymer materials. They hope that their work will enable scientists and engineers to better evaluate the polymers they work with, and eventually synthesize better ones.

Why experiences are better gifts for older children Posted: 24 Nov 2020 09:36 AM PST What should we get for our kids this holiday? As children get older, giving them something they can experience (live through) instead of material things makes them happier, according to new research.

Stable catalysts for new energy Posted: 24 Nov 2020 09:36 AM PST Looking for the perfect catalyst is not only about finding the right material, but also about its orientation. Depending on the direction in which a crystal is cut and which of its atoms it thus presents to the outside world on its surface, its behavior can change dramatically.

Blast from the past Posted: 24 Nov 2020 09:29 AM PST Astronomers have discovered that CK Vulpeculae, first seen as a bright new star in 1670, is approximately five times farther away than previously thought. This makes the 1670 explosion of CK Vulpeculae much more energetic than previously estimated and puts it into a mysterious class of objects that are too bright to be members of the well-understood type of explosions known as novae, but too faint to be supernovae.

Quantum magic squares Posted: 24 Nov 2020 09:29 AM PST The magic of mathematics is particularly reflected in magic squares. Recently, quantum physicists and mathematicians introduced the notion of the quantum magic square, and for the first time studied in detail the properties of this quantum version of magic squares.

Lung-on-chip provides new insight on body's response to early tuberculosis infection Posted: 24 Nov 2020 09:29 AM PST Scientists have developed a lung-on-chip model to study how the body responds to early tuberculosis (TB) infection.

Hormone found to switch off hunger could help tackle obesity Posted: 24 Nov 2020 09:29 AM PST A hormone that can suppress food intake and increase the feeling of fullness in mice has shown similar results in humans and non-human primates, says a new study.

New light on polar explorer's last hours Posted: 24 Nov 2020 08:13 AM PST Chemical analyzes of a black spot in a diary shed new light on the destiny and tragic death of legendary Inuit polar expedition member Jørgen Brønlund in Northeast Greenland in 1907.

Stress in pregnancy may influence baby brain development Posted: 24 Nov 2020 08:11 AM PST Infants' brains may be shaped by levels of stress their mother experiences during pregnancy, a brain scanning study has revealed.

Enzymatic photocaging for the study of gene regulation through DNA methylation Posted: 24 Nov 2020 08:10 AM PST The addition and removal of methyl groups on DNA plays an important role in gene regulation. In order to study these mechanisms more precisely, a team has developed a new method by which specific methylation sites can be blocked and then unblocked at a precise time through irradiation with light (photocaging).

Antimicrobial soap additive worsens fatty liver disease in mice Posted: 24 Nov 2020 07:10 AM PST Triclosan, an antimicrobial found in many soaps and other household items, worsens fatty liver disease in mice fed a high-fat diet.

World's first: Drug guides stem cells to desired location, improving their ability to heal Posted: 24 Nov 2020 07:10 AM PST Scientists have created a drug that can lure stem cells to damaged tissue and improve treatment efficacy -- a scientific first and major advance for the field of regenerative medicine.

Sound waves power new advances in drug delivery and smart materials Posted: 24 Nov 2020 07:10 AM PST Sound waves have been part of science and medicine for decades, but the technologies have always relied on low frequencies. Now researchers have revealed how high frequency sound waves could revolutionize the field of ultrasound-driven chemistry.

Researchers reveal switch used in plant defense against animal attack Posted: 24 Nov 2020 07:10 AM PST Researchers have identified the first key biological switch that sounds an alarm in plants when plant-eating animals attack. The mechanism will help unlock a trove of new strategies for improved plant health, from countering crop pest damage to engineering more robust global food webs.

More skin-like, electronic skin that can feel Posted: 24 Nov 2020 07:10 AM PST A research team has developed a multimodal ion-electronic skin that distinguishes temperature from mechanical stimuli. This skin can detect various movements and is applicable in fields including humanoid skin and temperature sensors.

AI helps scientists understand brain activity behind thoughts Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:22 AM PST Researchers have developed artificial intelligence (AI) models that help them better understand the brain computations that underlie thoughts.

Mother's touch lingers in her child's genes Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:22 AM PST Mothers leave their mark on their children in many ways - and researchers have discovered a protein called SMCHD1 is involved in this 'imprinting' process. SMCHD1 switches certain genes off, altering how a cell behaves. The new research has revealed that when an egg cell (or oocyte) is fertilized by a sperm, the egg cell's SMCHD1 lingers within the developing embryo, switching off at least 10 different genes and impacting the embryo's development - which could potentially have a lifelong impact on the offspring.

Cascading events led to 2018 Ki?lauea volcanic eruption, providing clues for forecasting Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:22 AM PST The 2018 eruption of Ki?lauea Volcano was one of the largest volcanic events in Hawai'i in 200 years. This eruption was triggered by a relatively small and rapid change at the volcano after a decade-long build-up of pressure in the upper parts of the volcano, according to a recent study.

Cocoa flavanols boost brain oxygenation, cognition in healthy adults Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:21 AM PST The brains of healthy adults recovered faster from a mild vascular challenge and performed better on complex tests if the participants consumed cocoa flavanols beforehand, researchers report. In the study, 14 of 18 participants saw these improvements after ingesting the flavanols.

AI system discovers useful new material Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:21 AM PST When the words 'artificial intelligence' (AI) come to mind, your first thoughts may be of super-smart computers, or robots that perform tasks without needing any help from humans. Now, a multi-institutional team has accomplished something not too far off: They developed an AI algorithm called CAMEO that discovered a potentially useful new material without requiring additional training from scientists.

Experimental evolution reveals how bacteria gain drug resistance Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:21 AM PST A research team has succeeded in experimentally evolving the common bacteria under pressure from a large number of individual antibiotics, and identified the mechanisms and constraints underlying evolved drug resistance. Their findings help develop drug-treatment strategies that minimize the chance that bacteria will develop resistance.

Which speaker are you listening to? Hearing aid of the future uses brainwaves to find out Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:21 AM PST In a noisy room with many speakers, hearing aids can suppress background noise, but they have difficulties isolating one voice - that of the person you're talking to at a party, for instance. Researchers have now addressed that issue with a technique that uses brainwaves to determine within one second whom you're listening to.

Potential treatment against antibiotic-resistant bacteria causing gonorrhea and meningitis Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:21 AM PST A team has demonstrated the effectiveness of an inexpensive molecule to fight antibiotic-resistant strains of the bacteria responsible for gonorrhea and meningococcal meningitis. These two infections affect millions of people worldwide.

Brain waves guide us in spotlighting surprises Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:21 AM PST Neuroscientists have found that the dynamic interplay of different brain wave frequencies, rather than dedicated circuitry, appears to govern the brain's knack for highlighting what's surprising and downplaying what's predictable.

One in three who are aware of deepfakes say they have inadvertently shared them on social media Posted: 24 Nov 2020 06:21 AM PST A new study has found that one in three Singaporeans who said they were aware of deepfakes believe they have circulated deepfake content on social media which they later found out was a hoax. When compared to a similar demographic in the United States, the study found that those in the US were more aware of deepfakes. More reported sharing content that they later learnt was a deepfake in the US than in Singapore.

Nature is widely adapted to current climate -- making it harder to adjust to a new one Posted: 23 Nov 2020 01:10 PM PST To do the right thing at the right time, organisms need to glean cues from their environment. With ongoing climate change, the timing of these cues, like the accumulation of warm days, is rapidly shifting. Now a network of researchers working on an unprecedentedly large dataset of seasonal events has shown that the timing of species' activity fail to keep up with their cues, and that how quickly activity shifts reflects past evolution.

A rich source of nutrients under the Earth's ice sheets Posted: 23 Nov 2020 01:10 PM PST Trace elements such as iron and zinc are essential micronutrients for all kinds of organisms. Below ice sheets, which cover around ten percent of the Earth's land surface, larger quantities of these substances are mobilised than previously assumed. This is shown by new data from Greenland and Antarctica, which were collected and analysed by an international research team.

Measuring risk-taking - by watching people move computer mouses Posted: 23 Nov 2020 01:10 PM PST How you move a computer mouse while deciding whether to click on a risky bet or a safe choice may reveal how much of a risk-taker you really are. Researchers found that people whose mouse drifted toward the safe option on the computer screen - even when they ended up taking the risky bet - may be more risk-averse than their choice would indicate.

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