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Categories: Biology: Cell Biology, Offbeat: General

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Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
Published

Simple test for flu could improve diagnosis and surveillance      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Fewer than one percent of people who get the flu every year get tested, in part because most tests require trained personnel and expensive equipment. Now researchers have developed a low-cost paper strip test that could allow more patients to find out which type of flu they have and get the right treatment. The test uses CRISPR to distinguish between the two main types of seasonal flu, influenza A and B, as well as seasonal flu subtypes H1N1 and H3N2. It can also identify strains that resist antiviral treatment, and with further work, could potentially detect swine and avian flu strains, including H5N1, which is currently infecting cattle.

Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Study challenges popular idea that Easter islanders committed 'ecocide'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Some 1,000 years ago, a small band of Polynesians sailed thousands of miles across the Pacific to settle one of the world's most isolated places -- a small, previously uninhabited island they named Rapa Nui. Eventually, their numbers ballooned to unsustainable levels, they wrecked the environment, and their civilization collapsed. At least that is the longtime story, told in academic studies and popular books. A new study challenges this narrative of 'ecocide' saying that Rapa Nui's population never spiraled to unsustainable levels.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: Virtual Reality (VR) Mathematics: Modeling Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Prying open the AI black box      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Meet SQUID, a new computational tool. Compared with other genomic AI models, SQUID is more consistent, reduces background noise, and can yield better predictions regarding critical mutations. The new system aims to bring scientists closer to their findings' true medical implications.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology
Published

How to make aging a 'fairer game' for all wormkind      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have discovered a new fundamental mechanism governing the rules of ageing in worms. The researchers were able to manipulate the mechanism through genetic interventions which dramatically extend not just the lifespan of the worms, but also their health-span. In other words, trading weak, frail old age with vigorous golden years -- all without altering their diet, environment or other external factors.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

Iron meteorites hint that our infant solar system was more doughnut than dartboard      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Iron meteorites are remnants of the metallic cores of the earliest asteroids in our solar system. Iron meteorites contain refractory metals, such as iridium and platinum, that formed near the sun but were transported to the outer solar system. New research shows that for this to have happened, the protoplanetary disk of our solar system had to have been doughnut-shaped because the refractory metals could not have crossed the large gaps in a target-shaped disk of concentric rings. The paper suggests that the refractory metals moved outward as the protoplanetary disk rapidly expanded, and were trapped in the outer solar system by Jupiter.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Supermassive black hole appears to grow like a baby star      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Supermassive black holes pose unanswered questions for astronomers around the world, not least 'How do they grow so big?' Now, an international team of astronomers has discovered a powerful rotating, magnetic wind that they believe is helping a galaxy's central supermassive black hole to grow. The swirling wind, revealed with the help of the ALMA telescope in nearby galaxy ESO320-G030, suggests that similar processes are involved both in black hole growth and the birth of stars.

Mathematics: General Mathematics: Modeling Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Can AI learn like us?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists have developed a new, more energy-efficient way for AI algorithms to process data. His model may become the basis for a new generation of AI that learns like we do. Notably, these findings may also lend support to neuroscience theories surrounding memory's role in learning.

Biology: Biochemistry Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

First conclusive evidence that a terrestrial leech species can jump      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study presents video evidence that at least one species of terrestrial leech can jump, behavior that scientists have debated for more than a century.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Animals
Published

Wild yeasts from Patagonia could yield new flavors of lagers      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New strains of yeast for brewing lager beers, created by hybridizing wild strains of yeast from Patagonia with brewer's yeast, can yield novel flavors and aromas, researchers report.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

Titan's lakes may be shaped by waves      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Geologists studied Titan's shorelines and showed through simulations that coastlines of the moon's methane- and ethane-filled seas have likely been shaped by waves. Until now, scientists have found indirect and conflicting signs of wave activity, based on Cassini images of Titan's surface.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

Jupiter's great red spot is not the same one Cassini observed in 1600s      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Jupiter's iconic Great Red Spot has persisted for at least 190 years and is likely a different spot from the one observed by the astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini in 1665, a new study reports. The Great Red Spot we see today likely formed because of an instability in the planet's intense atmospheric winds, producing a long, persistent atmospheric cell, the study also finds.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Offbeat: General
Published

Researchers create new class of materials called 'glassy gels'      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have created a new class of materials called 'glassy gels' that are very hard and difficult to break despite containing more than 50% liquid. Coupled with the fact that glassy gels are simple to produce, the material holds promise for a variety of applications.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics
Published

Is coffee good for you or bad for you?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The effects of coffee consumption on human health is a knotty question, but one thing is sure: coffee is a psychoactive substance.

Computer Science: General Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General Physics: Optics
Published

Researchers leverage shadows to model 3D scenes, including objects blocked from view      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new technique can model an entire 3D scene, including areas hidden from view, from just one camera image. The method relies on image shadows, which provide information about the geometry and location of hidden objects.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astrophysics Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

What happens when neutron stars collide?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

New simulations show that hot neutrinos created at the interface of merging binary neutron stars are briefy trapped and remain out of equilibrium with the cold cores of the stars for 2 to 3 milliseconds.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Molecular
Published

How targeted nutrients can fight cancer      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international research team has discovered a new way to effectively treat cancer, by using nutrients to reactivate suppressed metabolic pathways in cancer cells.

Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

Fishy parenting? Punishing offspring encourages cooperation      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Scientists discovered that Neolamprologus savoryi fish use punishment to encourage offspring to cooperate in brood care, revealing advanced cognitive abilities previously thought unique to higher vertebrates. This study highlights that punishment for promoting cooperation exists beyond human societies, prompting a reevaluation of animal intelligence.