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Categories: Anthropology: General, Offbeat: General

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Chemistry: Biochemistry Engineering: Nanotechnology Offbeat: General
Published

Super-sized nanocage could deliver bigger drug cargoes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Nanocages are tiny artificial containers that can be used to deliver therapeutics to a target destination in the body. But some drug molecules are like gifts that are too big for a standard-sized nanocage 'box'. Now researchers describe how they have built a super-sized nanocage that could be used to deliver larger drug cargoes. They have built a bigger box.

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

Twinkling stars fuel interstellar dust      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Of the many different kinds of stars, asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, usually slightly larger and older than our own sun, are known producers of interstellar dust. Dusty AGBs are particularly prominent producers of dust, and the light they shine happens to vary widely. For the first time, a long-period survey has found the variable intensity of dusty AGBs coincides with variations in the amount of dust these stars produce. As this dust can lead to the creation of planets, its study can shed light on our own origins.

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

Hubble unexpectedly finds double quasar in distant universe      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The early universe was a rambunctious place where galaxies often bumped into each other and even merged together. Using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and other space and ground-based observatories, astronomers investigating these developments have made an unexpected and rare discovery: a pair of gravitationally bound quasars, both blazing away inside two merging galaxies. They existed when the universe was just 3 billion years old.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Molecular Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Offbeat: Space Space: Astrophysics Space: General Space: The Solar System
Published

How were amino acids, one of the key building blocks of life, formed before the origin of life on Earth?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The amino acid abundances of two Ryugu particles were measured and compared with their rocky components. The results demonstrate the important role that water plays in the formation of amino acids on the giant precursors of asteroids like Ryugu. Our solar system formed from a molecular cloud, which was composed of gas and dust that was emitted into the interstellar medium (ISM), a vast space between stars. On collapse of the molecular cloud, the early sun was formed, with a large disk of gas and dust orbiting it. The dusty material collided to produce rocky material that would eventually grow in size to give large bodies called planetesimals.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Chemistry: Biochemistry Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

A miniature heart in a petri dish: Organoid emulates development of the human heart      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team has induced stem cells to emulate the development of the human heart. The result is a sort of 'mini-heart' known as an organoid. It will permit the study of the earliest development phase of our heart and facilitate research on diseases.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Zoology
Published

Elephants as a new model for understanding human evolution      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Human culture and language may be the result of 'self-domestication': an evolutionary process that leads to less aggressive and more prosocial individuals. A research team argues that elephants -- like humans and bonobos -- may also be self-domesticated. Elephants show many traits associated with self-domestication, such as prosocial behavior, playfulness and complex communication skills. This makes elephants an interesting new animal model for the evolution of prosociality.

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

Sleight-of-hand magic trick only fools monkeys with opposable thumbs      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An illusion involving a hidden thumb confounds capuchin and squirrel monkeys for the same reason it does humans -- it misdirects expected outcomes of actions they can carry out. However, marmosets have five equidistant digits, and were rarely fooled by the magician. The research adds to evidence that animals struggle to predict movements outside of their own 'biomechanical ability'.

Anthropology: Early Humans Anthropology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

One of Swedish warship Vasa's crew was a woman      (via sciencedaily.com) 

When the human remains found on board the Swedish warship Vasa (1628) were investigated, it was determined that the skeleton designated G was a man. New research now shows that the skeleton is actually from a woman. About thirty people died when Vasa sank on its maiden voyage in Stockholm, 1628. We cannot know who most of them were, only one person is named in the written sources. When the ship was raised in 1961 it was the scene of a comprehensive archaeological excavation, in which numerous human bones were found on board and examined.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General
Published

A new measurement could change our understanding of the Universe      (via sciencedaily.com) 

When it comes to measuring how fast the Universe is expanding, the result depends on which side of the Universe you start from. A recent study has calibrated the best cosmic yardsticks to unprecedented accuracy, shedding new light on what's known as the Hubble tension.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Computer Science: General Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Origami-inspired robots can sense, analyze and act in challenging environments      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A multidisciplinary team has created a new fabrication technique for fully foldable robots that can perform a variety of complex tasks without relying on semiconductors.

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

Galaxy clusters yield new evidence for standard model of cosmology      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study probing the structure and evolution of galaxy clusters shows good agreement with the predictions of standard cosmological models.

Computer Science: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Engineering: Robotics Research Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

Robotic hand can identify objects with just one grasp      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Newly created soft-rigid robotic fingers incorporate powerful sensors along their entire length, enabling them to produce a robotic hand that could accurately identify objects after only one grasp.

Offbeat: Computers and Math Offbeat: General
Published

English language pushes everyone -- even AI chatbots -- to improve by adding      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A linguistic bias in the English language that leads us to 'improve' things by adding to them, rather than taking away, is so common that it is even ingrained in AI chatbots, a new study reveals.

Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Yak milk consumption among Mongol Empire elites      (via sciencedaily.com) 

For the first time, researchers have pinpointed a date when elite Mongol Empire people were drinking yak milk, according to a new study.

Chemistry: General Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry Geoscience: Geography Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General
Published

Path to net-zero carbon capture and storage may lead to ocean      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Engineering researchers have developed a novel way to capture carbon dioxide from the air and store it in the 'infinite sink' of the ocean. The approach uses an innovative copper-containing polymeric filter and essentially converts CO2 into sodium bicarbonate (aka baking soda) that can be released harmlessly into the ocean. This new hybrid material, or filter, is called DeCarbonHIX (i.e., decarbonization through hybrid ion exchange material). The research has demonstrated a 300 percent increase in the amount of carbon captured compared with existing direct air capture methods.

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

Researchers discover birds with neurotoxin-laden feathers      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An expedition into the jungle of New Guinea has resulted in the discovery of two new species of poisonous birds. Genetic changes in these bird species have allowed them to carry a powerful neurotoxin.

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

Scientists observe flattest explosion ever seen in space      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have observed an explosion 180 million light years away which challenges our current understanding of explosions in space, that appeared much flatter than ever thought possible.

Anthropology: Cultures Anthropology: General Archaeology: General Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published

Researchers use 21st century methods to record 2,000 years of ancient graffiti in Egypt      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers are learning more about ancient graffiti -- and their intriguing comparisons to modern graffiti -- as they produce a state-of-the-art 3D recording of the Temple of Isis in Philae, Egypt.

Offbeat: General
Published

Thread-like pumps can be woven into clothes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have developed fiber-like pumps that allow high-pressure fluidic circuits to be woven into textiles without an external pump. Soft supportive exoskeletons, thermoregulatory clothing, and immersive haptics can therefore be powered from pumps sewn into the fabric of the devices themselves.

Anthropology: General Biology: Biochemistry
Published

New, exhaustive study probes hidden history of horses in the American West      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Indigenous peoples as far north as Wyoming and Idaho may have begun to care for horses by the first half of the 17th Century, according to a new study by researchers from 15 countries and multiple Native American groups.