Showing 20 articles starting at article 361

< Previous 20 articles        Next 20 articles >

Categories: Anthropology: General, Space: Structures and Features

Return to the site home page

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A collaboration between quantum physicists and astrophysicists has achieved a significant breakthrough in understanding neutron star glitches. They were able to numerically simulate this enigmatic cosmic phenomenon with ultracold dipolar atoms. This research establishes a strong link between quantum mechanics and astrophysics and paves the way for quantum simulation of stellar objects from Earth.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Through analysis of high-resolution data from a ten-meter telescope in Hawaii, researchers have succeeded in generating new knowledge about three stars at the very heart of the Milky Way. The stars proved to be unusually young with a puzzling chemical composition that surprised the researchers.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An entirely new way to probe how active black holes behave when they eat has been discovered by an international team of astronomers.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A star near the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way Galaxy originated outside of the Galaxy according to a new study. This is the first time a star of extragalactic origin has been found in the vicinity of the super massive black hole.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The prevailing assumption has been that Einstein's theory of gravity must be modified, or 'quantized', in order to fit within quantum theory. This is the approach of two leading candidates for a quantum theory of gravity, string theory and loop quantum gravity. But a new theory challenges that consensus and takes an alternative approach by suggesting that spacetime may be classical -- that is, not governed by quantum theory at all. 

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Using the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers spot unexpected source of carbon monoxide ice at galactic region surprisingly devoid of stars.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers studying images from the James Webb Space Telescope have identified an object as a 'dusty star-forming galaxy' from nearly 1 billion years after the Big Bang. They have also discovered more than a dozen additional candidates, suggesting these galaxies might be three to 10 times as common as expected. If that conclusion is confirmed, it suggests the early universe was much dustier than previously thought.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Societies and political structures, like the humans they serve, appear to become more fragile as they age, according to an analysis of hundreds of pre-modern societies. A new study, which holds implications for the modern world, provides the first quantitative support for the theory that the resilience of political states decreases over time. 

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers give medieval Cambridge residents the 'Richard III treatment' to reveal hard-knock lives of those in the city during its famous university's early years. Study of over 400 remains from a hospital cemetery shows spectrum of medieval poverty, and suggests that some of Cambridge University's earliest scholars ended up in penury.   

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Research suggests that Paleolithic humans in the Middle East selected flint for their cutting tools based on differences in the mechanical properties of the rock. They seem to have purposefully selected the most suitable rocks for fashioning into tools, even being able to distinguish rocks that were unsuitable.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The discovery of a planet that is far too massive for its sun is calling into question what was previously understood about the formation of planets and their solar systems.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have provided the first observation of water and other molecules in the highly irradiated inner, rocky-planet-forming regions of a disk in one of the most extreme environments in our galaxy. These results suggest that the conditions for terrestrial planet formation can occur in a possible broader range of environments than previously thought. 

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Maize is one of the world's most widely grown crops. It is used for both human and animal foods and holds great cultural significance, especially for indigenous peoples in the Americas. Yet despite its importance, the origins of the grain have been hotly debated for more than a century. Now new research shows that all modern maize descends from a hybrid created just over 5000 years ago in central Mexico, thousands of years after the plant was first domesticated.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A recent study demonstrates how dripstones can be crucial for reconstructing past climates. The new approach can provide a detailed picture of the climate around early human occupations in South Africa.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists should seek answers hidden in the dirt using proven and state-of-the-art archaeological science techniques to support new discoveries about human evolution following recent controversies at a cave site in Africa, says a group of international experts. Their recommendations follow claims published in June of this year that Homo naledi --a small-brained human species -- buried their dead in Rising Star Cave, South Africa, between 335,000 and 241,000 years ago, and may also have decorated the cave walls with engravings.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have found a key new system of six transiting planets orbiting a bright star in a harmonic rhythm. This rare property enabled the team to determine the planetary orbits which initially appeared as an unsolvable riddle.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The Second Plague Pandemic of the mid-14th century, also known as the Black Death, killed 30-60 percent of the European population and profoundly changed the course of European history. New research suggests that this plague, potentially through resulting changes in diet and hygiene, may also be associated with a shift in the composition of the human oral microbiome toward one that contributes to chronic diseases in modern-day humans.  

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

While life on Earth is relatively new, geologically speaking, the ingredients that combined to form it might be much older than once thought. The simplest amino acid, carbamic acid, could have formed alongside stars or planets within interstellar ices. The findings could be used to train deep space instruments like the James Webb Space Telescope to search for prebiotic molecules in distant, star-forming regions of the universe.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Cutting-edge computer simulations combined with theoretical calculations are helping astronomers better understand the origin of some of the universe's most energetic and mysterious light shows -- gamma-ray bursts, or GRBs. The new unified model confirms that some long-lasting GRBs are created in the aftermath of cosmic mergers that spawn an infant black hole surrounded by a giant disk of natal material.

     (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In a remarkable discovery, astronomers have found a disc around a young star in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a galaxy neighboring ours. It's the first time such a disc, identical to those forming planets in our own Milky Way, has ever been found outside our galaxy. The new observations reveal a massive young star, growing and accreting matter from its surroundings and forming a rotating disc.