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Radar tracking uncovers mystery of where honeybee drones have sex
Scientists from Queen Mary University of London and Rothamsted Research have used radar technology to track male honeybees, called drones, and reveal the secrets of their mating behaviours.
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Ultra-sensitive light detector gives self-driving tech a jolt
A new light detecting device can more accurately amplify weak signals bouncing off faraway objects than current technology allows, giving autonomous vehicles a fuller picture of what's happening on the road.
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A brand new cocktail to fight HIV
Researchers at the University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM) and Yale University have succeeded in reducing the size of the HIV reservoir in humanized mice by using a "molecular can opener" and a combination of antibodies found in the blood of infected individuals.
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Overcoming long-term trauma can be facilitated
Older traumatic experiences are harder to get over compared to recent ones, and EPFL scientists have started to understand why - at the level of brain circuits in mice. The results point the way for treating long-term trauma in humans.
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Palaeontology: Ancient turtle from Texas yields evolutionary insights
The discovery of the oldest known North American species of side-necked turtle -- turtles that withdraw their necks sideways into their shells when threatened -- is reported in Scientific Reports this week.
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2016 US presidential election skewed BP, heart rhythms in those with existing conditions
Two new studies examined the possible heart health impact of the 2016 US presidential election. The uncertainty and divisiveness of elections can often cause stress for many people, similar to heightened stress associated with natural disasters, during which raised blood pressures and increased episodes of abnormal heart rhythms have been documented.
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Moderate-to-high TV viewing in midlife linked to later cognitive and brain health decline
Television viewing is a type of sedentary behavior that is cognitively passive or does not require much thought.Moderate-to-high amounts of television viewing during midlife are associated with greater declines in cognitive function and lower gray matter volumes in the brain.Higher amounts of midlife television viewing did not seem to impact dementia risk.The amount of time spent watching TV may be an important lifestyle modification to support brain health.
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Gender-affirming hormone therapy may not increase CVD risk for transgender adolescents
Before receiving gender-affirming hormone therapy, transgender adolescents are more likely to have at least one atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) risk factor compared to cisgender (same gender as at birth) adolescents.After one year of gender-affirming hormone therapy, fewer adolescent transgender females had at least one ASCVD risk factor, and transgender males were more likely to have one risk factor, compared to their ASCVD results when the study began.
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Adult obesity, inactivity associated with violent crime in Black and Hispanic communities
High violent crime rates in Chicago were associated with high levels of physical inactivity and obesity in adults in Black and Hispanic communities, yet this was not the case in white communities.As the violent crime rate increased, the prevalence of physical inactivity and obesity also increased, even after accounting for family income, grocery store availability, public park spaces and walkability.
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Social isolation and loneliness linked to increased risk of CVD in post-menopausal women
Social isolation and loneliness were each associated with a higher risk for cardiovascular disease in post-menopausal women.The risk of cardiovascular disease events in the women increased 29% when the effect of social isolation and loneliness were combined.Researchers suggest assessing social isolation and loneliness, even with a brief questionnaire, should be incorporated into standard care practice.
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Healthy lifestyle behaviors reduced dementia risk despite family history of dementia
A family history of dementia is among the strongest risk factors for dementia, which is a condition characterized by cognitive decline.By making healthy lifestyle behaviors a routine part of their lives, even people with a family history of dementia can notably reduce their risk.
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Black adults in US who consume ultra-processed foods at greater risk for hypertension
A study of almost 6,000 adults ages 45 and older found that Black adults who ranked within the top 25% of all participants for consumption of ultra-processed food were 55% more likely to have high blood pressure compared to white adults who consumed a similar amount of ultra-processed foods.Men and adults who had less education, lower household income and lower levels of physical activity were the most likely to consume ultra-processed foods.
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Taking more steps daily may lead to a longer life
Taking more steps per day, either all at once or in shorter spurts, may help you live longer.The benefits of more daily steps occurred with both uninterrupted bouts of steps (10 minutes or longer) and short spurts such as climbing stairs.
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Early menopause linked to higher risk of future coronary heart disease
Early-onset menopause (before the age of 40) was independently associated with higher long-term risk of developing coronary heart disease among both Black and white women.Black women were three times more likely to experience premature natural menopause.Women who underwent surgical menopause were not included in this study.
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US CVD death rate drops overall, county-level data signals ongoing regional disparities
Nationwide, death rates from cardiovascular disease have declined over the past few decades.A new county-by-county analysis reveals that despite the overall improvement, the counties with the lowest and highest death rates have, for the most part, maintained those rankings.The researchers found that societal differences in structural, social and health characteristics continue to impact death rates.
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Independent of IQ, "decision acuity" predicts broad range of decision-making abilities
A common factor called "decision acuity" underpins diverse decision-making abilities in adolescents and young adults, suggests a study appearing May 20th in the journal Neuron. A large set of behavioral and neuroimaging data revealed that decision acuity is stable over time, distinct from IQ, and reduced in individuals with low general social functioning.
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Swifts set new record for swiftness
Swifts aren't called "swifts" for nothing. They're known for being among the fastest migrating small birds around. When they aren't breeding, common swifts stay in the air most of the time--up to 10 months of the year. Scientists had thought they travel about 500 kilometers per day on average. Now, new evidence reported in the journal iScience on May 20 shows that's a conservative estimate.
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Self-organizing human heart organoids
Biologist Sasha Mendjan at the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna and his team have used human pluripotent stem cells to grow sesame-seed-sized heart models, called cardioids, that spontaneously self-organize to develop a hollow chamber without the need of experimental scaffolds. This advance, which allows for the creation of some of the most realistic heart organoids to date, appears on May 20th in the journal Cell.
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Special issue on the COVID-19 pandemic
The international journal Risk Analysis has published a timely special issue for May 2021, "Global Systemic Risk and Resilience for Novel Coronavirus and COVID-19." Featuring 11 papers written for this issue over the past year, the collection represents a sampling of insights and viewpoints from scholars across risk sciences and resilience analytics to guide decision-making and operations related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Deep learning enables dual screening for cancer and cardiovascular disease
In research published today in Nature Communications, a team of engineers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and clinicians from Massachusetts General Hospital developed a deep learning algorithm that can help assess a patient's risk of cardiovascular disease with the same low-dose computerized tomography (CT) scan used to screen for lung cancer. This approach paves the way for more efficient, more cost-effective, and lower radiation diagnoses, without requiring patients to undergo a second CT scan.
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