Tech
(Boston)--Medical errors pose a serious threat to patient safety and are estimated to account for more than 250,000 deaths in the U.S. each year. While few studies have analyzed the frequency and nature of adverse events in interventional radiology (minimally-invasive imaging), published data suggest that many adverse events in this field are preventable and frequently involve technical mishaps such as improper device positioning and device misuse or malfunction.
LA JOLLA--(December 17, 2020) If you've ever forgotten something mere seconds after it was at the forefront of your mind--the name of a dish you were about to order at a restaurant, for instance--then you know how important working memory is. This type of short-term recall is how people retain information for a matter of seconds or minutes to solve a problem or carry out a task, like the next step in a series of instructions. But, although it's critical in our day-to-day lives, exactly how the brain manages working memory has been a mystery.
Crops grown near Chernobyl are still contaminated due to the 1986 nuclear accident, new research shows.
Scientists analysed grains including wheat, rye, oats and barley and found concentrations of radioactive isotopes - strontium 90 and/or caesium 137 - above Ukraine's official safe limits in almost half of samples.
The researchers also examined wood samples and found three quarters contained strontium 90 concentrations above Ukrainian limits for firewood.
By some estimates, the amount of solar energy reaching the surface of the earth in one year is greater than the sum of all the energy we could ever produce using non-renewable resources. The technology necessary to convert sunlight into electricity has developed rapidly, but inefficiencies in the storage and distribution of that power have remained a significant problem, making solar energy impractical on a large scale. However, a breakthrough by researchers at UVA’s College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, the California Institute of Technology and the U.S.
Cambridge, MA (December 17, 2020)--Artificial intelligence is classifying real supernova explosions without the traditional use of spectra, thanks to a team of astronomers at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian. The complete data sets and resulting classifications are publicly available for open use.
Researchers at the National Eye Institute (NEI) report that a brain region in the superior temporal sulcus (fSTS) is crucial for processing and making decisions about visual information. The findings, which could provide clues to treating visual conditions from stroke, appear today in the journal Neuron. NEI is part of the National Institutes of Health.
DALLAS - Dec. 17, 2020 - DNA that ends up where it doesn't belong in cancer cells can unleash an immune response that makes tumors more susceptible to immunotherapy, the results of two UT Southwestern studies indicate. The findings, published online today in Cancer Cell, suggest that delivering radiation - which triggers DNA release from cells - before immunotherapy could be an effective way to fight cancers that are challenging to treat.
Super-fast quantum computers and communication devices could revolutionize countless aspects of our lives -- but first, researchers need a fast, efficient source of the entangled pairs of photons such systems use to transmit and manipulate information. Researchers at Stevens Institute of Technology have done just that, not only creating a chip-based photon source 100 times more efficient that previously possible, but bringing massive quantum device integration within reach.
Scientists from Skoltech, the Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry of RAS, and the London Institute of Medical Sciences (LMS) have developed an enhanced version of SuperNova, a genetically encoded phototoxic synthesizer, that helps control intracellular processes by light exposure. The research was published in the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
Superhard materials are in high demand in industry, from energy production to aerospace, but finding suitable new materials has largely been a matter of trial and error based on classical materials such as diamonds. Until now.
DURHAM, N.C. -- Mortality rates among young adults are rising in the U.S. due in part to "deaths of despair" -- preventable deaths from suicide, drug overdoses and alcohol-related liver disease. An intensive childhood intervention program called Fast Track could help reduce these deaths by reducing risky behaviors in adolescence and young adulthood, finds new research from Duke University and the Conduct Problems Prevention Research Group.
An international team of more than 80 collaborators led by Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) investigators is developing new classification criteria for clinical research of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS), a life-threatening autoimmune clotting disorder.
Infant circumcision may lead to social challenges as an adult
Undergoing circumcision as an infant has delayed psychological complications. This is shown by an international study led by researchers from Aarhus University.
Fibrous proteins such as collagen and fibrinogen form a thin solid layer on the surface of an aqueous solution similar to the "skin" that forms on warm milk, according to a team of Penn State Researchers, who believe this finding could lead to more efficient bioprinting and tissue engineering.
In the human body, fibrous proteins provide structural support for cells and tissues and aid in biomechanics. Collagen makes up 80% of our skin and 10% of our muscles, while fibrinogen helps in blood clotting by forming the hydrogel fibrin.
Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have shed new light on the formation mechanisms of a rare earth-bearing mineral that is in increasingly high demand across the globe for its use in the green energy and tech industries.
Their discovery has important economic implications because there are no substitute alternatives to these rare earth elements (REEs), which are indispensable due to their ability to form small and very powerful magnets essential for smart devices and low-carbon energy generation (e.g., electronics, wind turbines, hybrid cars).