Tech
When a tropical cyclone consolidates, it means that it is getting more organized and its circulation is improving. An improved circulation helps make for a stronger storm. Infrared imagery from NASA's Aqua satellite showed that Teddy was consolidating in the Central North Atlantic Ocean.
Infrared Data Reveals Teddy is organizing
A new study has detailed the damaging role played by the immune system in a severe brain condition most commonly caused by the cold sore virus.
Researchers have identified the specific type of immune cell that induces brain inflammation in herpes simplex virus (HSV) encephalitis. Crucially, they have also determined the signalling protein that calls this immune cell into the brain from the bloodstream.
DURHAM, N.C. - If human eyes came in a package, it would have to be labeled "Natural product. Some variation may occur." Because the million-plus retinal ganglion cells that send signals to the human brain for interpretation don't all perform exactly the same way.
They are what an engineer would call 'noisy' -- there is variance between cells and from one moment to the next. And yet, when we see a photograph of a beautiful flower, it looks sharp and colorful and we know what it is.
ROCHESTER, Minn. -- What causes some people to develop chronic diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, cancer and metabolic syndrome while others stay healthy? A major clue could be found in their gut microbiome -- the trillions of microbes living inside the digestive system that regulate various bodily functions.
To utilize the huge population of tiny organisms as a proxy for people's well-being, Mayo Clinic researchers have developed a Gut Microbiome Health Index. This index distinguishes a healthy microbiome from one that is diseased.
STUDY SAYS BLOOD PRESSURE READINGS ACCURATE WITH LESS THAN THREE MINUTES REST
Media Contact: Michael E. Newman, mnewma25@jhmi.edu
Some of the oldest remains of early human ancestors have been unearthed in Olduvai Gorge, a rift valley setting in northern Tanzania where anthropologists have discovered fossils of hominids that existed 1.8 million years ago. The region has preserved many fossils and stone tools, indicating that early humans settled and hunted there.
Solar cells have come a long way, but inexpensive, thin film solar cells are still far behind more expensive, crystalline solar cells in efficiency. Now, a team of researchers suggests that using two thin films of different materials may be the way to go to create affordable, thin film cells with about 34% efficiency.
"Ten years ago I knew very little about solar cells, but it became clear to me they were very important," said Akhlesh Lakhtakia, Evan Pugh University Professor and Charles Godfrey Binder Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics, Penn State.
Lung cancer is the leading cancer killer in the U.S. It is often missed in its earlier stages, and while recent imaging advances have enabled earlier detection, there are still no targeted treatments for early-stage lung cancers. New research from Boston Children's Hospital, in collaboration with Boston University and UCLA, provides an accelerated platform for identifying and testing potential treatments: "organoids" created from lung cells.
ADELPHI, Md -- Army research has extended the state-of-the-art in autonomy by providing a more complete picture of how actions and nonverbal signals contribute to promoting cooperation. Researchers suggested guidelines for designing autonomous machines such as robots, self-driving cars, drones and personal assistants that will effectively collaborate with Soldiers.
Every tree, even an evergreen, can be an air quality monitor. That's the conclusion of researchers at the University of Utah who measured the magnetism of particulate matter on the needles of evergreen trees on the U campus. That measurement, they found, correlated to general air quality, suggesting that analysis of the needles--a relatively simple and low-cost process--could provide a high-resolution, year-round picture of air quality.
Curtin University research has developed a new and easier on-site method to immediately and accurately detect and measure levels of PFAS, which are persistent environmental pollutants sometimes found in contaminated lands and waters around the industrialised world.
Migrants arrested for tending plants in the flats, houses and attics where cannabis is grown in bulk are often victims of trafficking and "debt bondage" - yet many are not recognised as such by police, according to a new study.
Research from Cambridge criminologists suggests that those charged with drug cultivation have often been forced into illegal work as a condition of debt to criminal gangs for smuggling them into the UK.
Animals in tropical and Mediterranean areas are the most sensitive to climate change and land use pressures, finds a new study by UCL researchers.
The findings, published today in Nature Ecology & Evolution, show how extinction risks are not evenly distributed worldwide, and suggest that large declines in tropical biodiversity are likely to occur imminently.
HOUSTON and SAN FRANCISCO ? New preclinical research from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and BridgeBio Pharma, Inc. affiliate Navire Pharma, Inc., finds that the novel SHP2 inhibitor IACS-13909 is able to overcome multiple therapeutic-resistance mechanisms in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), suggesting a possible new approach to treating cancers that have developed resistance to the targeted EGFR inhibitor osimertinib.
HANOVER, N.H. - September 14, 2020 - Information on social activity, screen time and location from smartphones can predict connectivity between regions of the brain that are responsible for emotion, according to a study from Dartmouth College.
In the research, data from phone usage was analyzed alongside results from fMRI scans to confirm that passively collected information can mirror activity in the brain linked to traits such as anxiety. Predictions based solely on the phone data matched the brain scans with 80 percent accuracy.