Earth
The mass of 'invisible' microplastics found in the upper waters of the Atlantic Ocean is approximately 12- 21 million tonnes, according to research published in the journal Nature Communications today.
Significantly, this figure is only for three of the most common types of plastic litter in a limited size range. Yet, it is comparable in magnitude to estimates of all plastic waste that has entered the Atlantic Ocean over the past 65 years: 17 million tonnes. This suggests that the supply of plastic to the ocean have been substantially underestimated.
Before China declared giant pandas a protected species in 1962 - hunters in pursuit of the black and white bear used dogs to track them. Since then measures have been put in place to protect the vulnerable pandas, but more than half a century later, dogs are still jeopardizing their safety, according to a group of researchers that included Drexel's James Spotila, PhD.
Influenza viruses can spread through the air on dust, fibers and other microscopic particles, according to new research from the University of California, Davis and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai. The findings, with obvious implications for coronavirus transmission as well as influenza, are published Aug. 18 in Nature Communications.
Osaka, Japan - No matter how much we try and fight it, aging is a part of life. High cholesterol, diabetes, and fatty liver, the collection of conditions referred to as lifestyle diseases, all become more commonplace as we get older. Interestingly, however, many of these age-related conditions are caused by changes inside adipocytes, the fat cells responsible for storing excess energy.
Over the last few years of frequent and intense wildfire seasons, many parts of the U.S. have experienced hazardous air quality for days on end. At the same time a number of low-cost air quality monitors have come on the market, allowing consumers to check the pollutant levels in their own homes and neighborhoods. So, air quality scientists at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) wanted to know: are these low-cost monitors any good?
The answer is: yes - to a degree.
Liquid water is considered the cornerstone of life and has many extraordinary physical and biochemical properties. The hydrogen bond network of liquid water is widely recognized to play a crucial role in these properties. Due to the complexity of intermolecular interactions and the large spectral overlap of relevant modes, the study of hydrogen bond dynamics is challenging. In recent years, exciting the liquids resonantly with terahertz (THz) waves provides a new perspective for exploring the transient evolution of low-frequency molecular motion.
The research, which analysed data from 2,569 participants of the Children of the 90s health study, found that more time spent doing moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity (MVPA) from age 12 years was associated with stronger hips at age 25 years, whereas time spent in light intensity activity was less clearly associated with adult hip strength.
Peak bone mass occurs in young adulthood and is considered to be a marker of the risk of fracture and osteoporosis in later life. Hip fractures make up a large proportion of the osteoporosis disease burden.
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common chronic liver disease in the world, with sometimes life-threatening consequences. A high-protein, calorie-reduced diet can cause the harmful liver fat to melt away - more effectively than a low-protein diet. A new study by DIfE/DZD researchers published in the journal Liver International shows which molecular and physiological processes are potentially involved.
Causes and consequences of a non-alcoholic fatty liver
Researchers at the University of Hawai'i (UH) at Mānoa's Hawai?i Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB) have just discovered that the Hawaiian tiger cowrie (Leho-kiko in Hawaiian) is a voracious predator of alien sponges such as the Orange Keyhole sponge, which can overgrow native corals and has become a concern as it spread across reefs within Kāne?ohe Bay. In the study published recently, researchers found that each cowrie eats more than half their body weight in sponges each week.
Research published this week in Earth System Dynamics reports that the most sensitive climate models overestimate global warming during the last 50 years.
Three scientists from the University of Exeter studied the output of complex climate models and compared them to temperature observations since the 1970s.
Recent developments in cloud modelling have produced models that portray very large sensitivity to rising greenhouse gas concentrations.
In boreal forest during late winter, freezing temperatures are typical but at the same time the sun can already shine very brightly. This combination is especially dangerous to evergreen plants, such as conifers. The chlorophyll pigment-proteins in their needles absorb light, but the enzyme activity, stopped by the cold, prevents the plants from using the light for photosynthesis. This exposes the cells to damage.
A group of theoretical physicists, including two physicists from the University of Groningen, have proposed a 'table-top' device that could measure gravity waves. However, their actual aim is to answer one of the biggest questions in physics: is gravity a quantum phenomenon? The key element for the device is the quantum superposition of large objects. Their design was published in New Journal of Physics on 6 August.
Many farmers are used to sharing big equipment--like tractors and other costly machinery -- with neighboring farms. Sharing cuts costs, lowers the farmer's debt load, and increases community wellbeing. But big machinery might not be the only opportunity for farmers to reap the benefits of cost-sharing with their neighbors. New research suggests that the concept could also be applied to a more lively kind of agricultural resource -- wild bees.
Unlike living organisms, to avoid extinction, viruses need to hijack living host machineries to generate new viruses. The devastating respiratory virus, influenza A virus, utilize its hemagglutinin (HA) proteins to search for suitable host cells. Generally, HA has two important functions: selection of host cell and viral entry. Upon attaching to host cells, Influenza A virus are brought into host cells via endocytosis. A lipid bilayer cargo, known as endosome, carries influenza A virus from cell membrane into cytoplasm of host cell.
Hydrogenases can convert hydrogen just as efficiently as expensive platinum catalysts. In order to make them usable for biotechnological applications, researchers are deciphering how they work in detail. A team from Ruhr-Universität Bochum and the University of Oxford now reports in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) that the transfer of protons and electrons by the enzyme takes place spatially separated, but is nevertheless coupled and thus, a decisive factor for efficiency. The article was published online on 10 August 2020.