Culture
Current scenarios used to inform climate policy have a weakness in that they typically focus on reaching specific climate goals in 2100 - an approach which may encourage risky pathways that could have long-term negative effects. A new IIASA-led study presents a novel scenario framework that focuses on capping global warming at a maximum level with either temperature stabilization or reversal thereafter.
Dark matter is only known by its effect on massive astronomical bodies, but has yet to be directly observed or even identified. A theory about what dark matter might be suggests that it could be a particle called an axion and that these could be detectable with laser-based experiments that already exist. These laser experiments are gravitational-wave observatories.
Los Angeles - A UCLA-led study has found that using three-dimensional virtual reality models to prepare for kidney tumor surgeries resulted in substantial improvements, including shorter operating times, less blood loss during surgery and a shorter stay in the hospital afterward.
Previous studies involving 3D models have largely asked qualitative questions, such as whether the models gave the surgeons more confidence heading into the operations. This is the first randomized study to quantitatively assess whether the technology improves patient outcomes.
Findings from the Garvan Institute of Medical Research show modern humans acquired a gene variant from Denisovans that heightened their immune reactions, indicating adaptation of the immune system to a changing environment.
The breakthrough study, published in Nature Immunology, is the first to demonstrate a single DNA sequence variant from an extinct human species that changes the activity of the modern human immune system.
The timing of anemia--a common condition in late pregnancy--can make a big difference for the developing fetus, according to research at Karolinska Institutet published in JAMA Psychiatry. The researchers found a link between early anemia and increased risk of autism, ADHD and intellectual disability in children. Anemia discovered toward the end of pregnancy did not have the same correlation. The findings underscore the importance of early screening for iron status and nutritional counselling.
Drugs known as "beta-blockers" have been used since the 1960s as a low-cost, safe and effective means to lower heart rate and control blood pressure. But now researchers from the University of Missouri School of Medicine and the MU Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders have discovered a version of the drug known as propranolol could provide cognitive and social benefits for those living with autism spectrum disorder.
A new study shows that nearly half of phase 3 cancer clinical trials carried out by the National Cancer Institute (NCI)-sponsored SWOG Cancer Research Network, one of five groups in NCI's National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN), were associated with clinical care guidelines or new drug approvals. NCI is part of the National Institutes of Health.
Award winning wines tend to be more complex and the best have high ethanol and sugar levels.
That's the finding of a recent paper in the Journal of Wine Research from Washington State University scientists, working with a colleague at the University of Lisbon in Portugal.
The researchers wanted to know what characteristics were prevalent in the wines that won the top awards at an international wine competition.
To find out, they crunched several years of data from the Mundus Vini Challenge, which is held twice a year in Germany.
A Swansea University doctoral student has found a way to view the life of plants and animals in murky waters - by using a lens of freshwater.
Some recent research suggests that educational achievement can be predicted based on differences in our genes. But does this really mean that genes set limits on an individual's academic potential? Or do these findings just reflect how standardized educational systems reward certain inborn learning styles and aptitudes at the expense of others?
Scientists have designed a new method for post-operative wound closing and healing that is both fast and effective. This strategy revolves around engineered "cell sheets" - or layers of skin-based cells. The procedure culminates in a wound dressing that is custom made for a specific cut or lesion that can be used to effectively treat open skin areas after surgeries.
The findings were published in Scientific Reports on July 18th and have the potential to address one of the greatest challenges of post-operative procedures: wound closing and adhesion.
A new study from The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, published this week in JAMA Network Open, finds that most U.S. physician practices and hospitals report screening patients for at least one social need, a trend that is expected to increase in the future, and that practices that care for disadvantaged patients report higher screening rates.
NASA's Aqua satellite is one in a fleet of NASA satellites that provide data for research. NASA's Aqua satellite provided a visible image of Major Hurricane Humberto and its very long "tail" of thunderstorms stretching past eastern Canada.
Hurricanes are the most powerful weather event on Earth. NASA's expertise in space and scientific exploration contributes to essential services provided to the American people by other federal agencies, such as hurricane weather forecasting.
(Boston)--After years of generalized theories and hypothesis, research has finally pinpointed certain aspects of childhood experience linked to people living longer.
Individuals raised in families with higher socioeconomic status were more optimistic in midlife, and in turn, lived longer. Those who experienced more psychosocial stressors, such as parental death, frequent moves and harsh discipline, tended to encounter more stressful life events in midlife, and had greater risk of dying.
TUCSON, ARIZONA, September 18, 2019--A new tool from the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) can predict the odds that honey bee colonies overwintered in cold storage will be large enough to rent for almond pollination in February. Identifying which colonies will not be worth spending dollars to overwinter can improve beekeepers' bottom line.