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Categories: Anthropology: General, Offbeat: General
Published The secret to longer lasting batteries might be in how soap works
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers show that one of the most promising substances for designing longer lasting lithium batteries form micelle-like structures like they do in soap.
Published Cultural artifacts serve as 'cognitive fossils,' helping uncover the psychology of the past
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source No two societies in history think exactly alike. In fact, the mindset of a given society throughout history can help historians unpack important clues about the effects of psychological shifts -- such as more social trust or more openness. Researchers explain how modern computing methods like text mining, face detection algorithms, and melodic extraction programs can enable large-scale analysis of cultural artifacts such as paintings, stories, or clothing to uncover this psychological data.
Published Yeast with an over half synthetic genome is created in the lab
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have combined over seven synthetic chromosomes that were made in the lab into a single yeast cell, resulting in a strain with more than 50% synthetic DNA that survives and replicates similarly to wild yeast strains. A global consortium is working to develop the first synthetic eukaryote genome from scratch. The team has now synthesized and debugged all sixteen yeast chromosomes.
Published Machine learning gives users 'superhuman' ability to open and control tools in virtual reality
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have developed a virtual reality application where a range of 3D modelling tools can be opened and controlled using just the movement of a user's hand.
Published 'Hot' new form of microscopy examines materials using evanescent waves
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of researchers has built a prototype microscope that does not rely on backscattered radiation, instead uses passive detection of thermally excited evanescent waves. They have examined dielectric materials with passive near-field spectroscopy to develop a detection model to further refine the technique, working to develop a new kind of microscopy for examining nanoscopic material surfaces.
Published French love letters confiscated by Britain finally read after 265 years
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Over 100 letters sent to French sailors by their fianc es, wives, parents and siblings -- but never delivered -- have been opened and studied for the first time since they were written in 1757-8.
Published Neuromorphic computing will be great... if hardware can handle the workload
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists believe they may have discovered a way to rework the hardware of AI. By mimicking the synapses of the human brain.
Published 450-million-year-old organism finds new life in Softbotics
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have used fossil evidence to engineer a soft robotic replica of pleurocystitids, a marine organism that existed nearly 450 million years ago and is believed to be one of the first echinoderms capable of movement using a muscular stem.
Published Studies of geologic faulting on icy moons aid exploration of extraterrestrial watery worlds
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Earth and space scientists document and reveal the mechanisms behind strike-slip faulting on the largest moon of Saturn, Titan, and Jupiter's largest moon, Ganymede.
Published Want the secret to less painful belly flops? These researchers have the answer
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers investigated belly flop mechanics and found surprising insights about air-to-water impacts that could be useful for marine engineering applications. They set up a belly flop-like water experiment using a blunt cylinder but added an important vibrating twist to it.
Published The fascinating relationship between mice and a plant that flowers once a century in terms of seed dispersal
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have discovered several factors that affect field mouse behavior using seeds from dwarf bamboo plants, a plant that flowers once in a century. Their findings not only suggest the previously underappreciated role of mice in the forest ecosystem, but also show that they store small sasa seeds for later use. These challenge a previously held model of mouse behavior.
Published Two fins are better than one: Fish synchronize tail fins to save energy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source They say two heads are better than one. But in the world of fish, it appears two fins are better than one. Researchers have produced a theoretical model that demonstrates the underlying mechanisms behind how fish will synchronize their fin movements to ride each other's vortices, thereby saving energy.
Published Mystery resolved: Black hole feeding and feedback at the center of an active galaxy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Almost every large galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its center. An international research team has recently observed the Circinus galaxy, which is one of the closest galaxies to the Milky Way, with high enough resolution to gain further insights into the gas flows to and from the black hole at its galactic nucleus.
Published Long-distance weaponry identified at the 31,000-year-old archaeological site of Maisières-Canal
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The hunter-gatherers who settled on the banks of the Haine, a river in southern Belgium, 31,000 years ago were already using spearthrowers to hunt their game. The material found at the archaeological site of Maisières-Canal permits establishing the use of this hunting technique 10,000 years earlier than the oldest currently known preserved spearthrowers. This discovery is prompting archaeologists to reconsider the age of this important technological innovation.
Published Fossils tell tale of last primate to inhabit North America before humans
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Paleontologists have shed light on the long-standing saga of Ekgmowechashala, based on fossil teeth and jaws found in both Nebraska and China. Ekgmowechashala is the last primate found in the fossil record before humans.
Published Frogs were Florida's first-known vertebrates from the Caribbean
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new fossil study shows that frogs from the genus Eleutherodactylus are geologically the oldest Caribbean vertebrates to be found in Florida. They made the journey 20 million years ago, when much of Florida was still underwater.
Published New secrets about cat evolution revealed
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source By comparing genomes of several cat species, the project has helped researchers understand why cat genomes tend to have fewer complex genetic variations (such as rearrangements of DNA segments) than other mammal groups, like primates. It also revealed new insights into which parts of cat DNA are most likely to evolve rapidly and how they play a role in species differentiation.
Published Rats have an imagination, new research suggests
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have developed a novel system to probe a rat's thoughts, finding that animals can control their brain activity to imagine remote locations.
Published Chimpanzees use hilltops to conduct reconnaissance on rival groups, study finds
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Research on neighboring chimpanzee communities in the forests of West Africa suggests a warfare tactic not previously seen beyond humans is regularly used by our closest evolutionary relatives.
Published Black holes are messy eaters
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New observations down to light-year scale of the gas flows around a supermassive black hole have successfully detected dense gas inflows and shown that only a small portion (about 3 percent) of the gas flowing towards the black hole is eaten by the black hole. The remainder is ejected and recycled back into the host galaxy.