Science
press releases.

Science30 Jun 2025

Tests to detect marijuana-impaired driving based on ‘pseudoscience’

PISCATAWAY, NJ – For years now, U.S. police departments have employed officers who are trained to be experts in detecting “drugged driving.” The problem is, however, that the methods those officers use are not based on science, according to a new editorial in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. With marijuana now legal in many U.S. states, the need for reliable tests for marijuana impairment is more pressing than ever. Police can evaluate alcohol-intoxicated drivers by using an objective measure of breath ...

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Science30 Jun 2025

Pigments that can do more

Anaerobic bacteria – masters of survival without oxygen Anaerobic bacteria were among the first life forms on earth and existed at a time when there was no oxygen in the atmosphere. While many organisms depend on an oxygen-rich environment to survive, anaerobes thrive in places where others cannot – in completely oxygen-free habitats such as the human gut or the ocean floor. The enzymes of these bacteria are even sensitive to oxygen. Their remarkable adaptability is increasingly attracting the attention of researchers. Anaerobic bacteria often produce unusual substances. This makes ...

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Science30 Jun 2025

How to refocus in the age of distraction

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Studies show that the average attention span is now only eight seconds. That’s about as much time as it takes to read a few sentences before being distracted. A new national survey of 1,000 American adults commissioned by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine finds that stress and anxiety contribute most to a short attention span (43%), followed by lack of sleep (39%) and digital devices (35%). Other contributing factors include boredom or lack of interest (31%); multitasking (23%); lack of physical activity (21%); poor diet/hydration (20%) and medical conditions such as ADHD ...

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Science27 Jun 2025

Device study offers hopes for spinal cord injuries

Spinal cord injuries are currently incurable with devastating effects on people’s lives, but now a trial at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland offers hope for an effective treatment. Spinal cord injuries shatter the signal between the brain and body, often resulting in a loss of function.“Unlike a cut on the skin, which typically heals on its own, the spinal cord does not regenerate effectively, making these injuries devastating and currently incurable,” says lead researcher Dr Bruce Harland, a senior research fellow in the School of Pharmacy at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland. Before birth, and to a lesser extent afterwards, ...

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Science27 Jun 2025

How urea forms spontaneously

Urea is one of the most important industrial chemicals produced worldwide. It is used as a fertiliser, for the production of synthetic resins and explosives and as a fuel additive for cleaning car exhaust gases. Urea is also believed to be a potential key building block for the formation of biological molecules such as RNA and DNA in connection with the question of the origin of life (see ETH News from 28 June 2023). Until now, the origin of urea itself on Early Earth has not been conclusively clarified. A research team led by Ruth Signorell, Professor of Physical Chemistry ...

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Science27 Jun 2025

A new genetic tuner for embryo development

The research was led by Dr Irène Amblard and Dr Vicki Metzis from the Development and Transcriptional Control group, in collaboration with LMS facilities and the Chromatin and Development and Computational Regulatory Genomics groups. All cells contain the same DNA but must turn specific genes ‘on’ and ‘off’ – a process known as gene expression – to create different body parts. The cells in your eyes and arms harbour the same genes but ‘express’ them differently to become each body part. The work focused on the gene Cdx2. The duration of Cdx2 expression helps to determine where and when a cell produces ...

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Science27 Jun 2025

Removing out-of-pocket fee improves access to 3D mammography

A new study by UCLA researchers shows that removing a modest $45 out-of-pocket fee significantly improved access to digital breast tomosynthesis (3D mammography), an advanced breast cancer screening technology. Researchers found that eliminating the fee increased overall usage several percentage points and particularly benefited underserved patient populations, including racial and ethnic minorities and non-English speakers. The study appears in the Journal of the American College of Radiology. Why it matters Even small financial barriers can prevent patients from accessing potentially life-saving medical technology. ...

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Science27 Jun 2025

Does reducing exposure to image and video content on messaging apps reduce the impact of misinformation? Yes and no

Elected officials, political analysts, and nonprofit organizations have for years spotlighted the spread of online election information in Western democracies—largely with a focus on media platforms popular in these nations, such as X and Facebook. But in most of the world—notably the Global South—misinformation often reaches citizens through social messaging apps, including WhatsApp. Most often, falsehoods are shared on these platforms through multimedia content, such as easy-to-share videos and images. Recognizing this, a team of researchers at New York University’s Center for Social Media and Politics (CSMaP) studied the behavior of WhatsApp users during ...

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Science27 Jun 2025

A global microbiome preservation effort enters its growth phase

A global effort to create a “microbial Noah’s Ark” to preserve the world’s diverse collection of healthy microbes before they disappear is now entering an active growth phase. In a perspective article published in Nature Communications, a team of 25 scientists involved in the formation of the Microbiota Vault Initiative reported their successes and also laid out an ethical framework to ensure equitable collaboration and depositor sovereignty. This set of principles is designed to guide the initiative in its mission to safeguard microbial diversity for future generations. The announcement, which coincides with World Microbiome Day on June 27, marks ...

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Science27 Jun 2025

Finding the enzymatic needle in the database haystack

To make advances in using microbes to sustainably produce materials, it is necessary to find new molecular tools, or “enzymes” — but this is labor intensive. A Kobe University team now developed a technique that can classify thousands of candidates and a workflow that can evaluate representatives overnight, in what may become a fundamental technology for biomanufacturing. As oil reserves dwindle and prices soar, microorganisms can help us produce useful chemicals and fuels from renewable resources. They can convert raw materials ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Attention scan: How our minds shift focus in dynamic settings

Attention scan: How our minds shift focus in dynamic settings A person’s capacity for attention has a profound impact on what they see, dictating which details they glean from the world around them. As they walk down a busy street, the focus of their attention may shift to a compelling new billboard advertisement, or a shiny Lamborghini parked on the curb. Attention, however, can be fleeting. When that person reaches a busy intersection, for instance, details of the billboard or sportscar disappear. The person’s attention instead ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Do you have a nosy coworker? BU research finds snooping colleagues send our stress levels rising

They’re a common office menace: the nosy coworker. They read over shoulders, loiter as friends chitchat, ask uncomfortable personal questions. It can be tempting to duck for cover whenever you see them heading your way. But separating the prying and obtrusive from the merely curious and concerned can be challenging. What one person considers nosy, another might think is friendly; some people are open books, others like to keep their personal lives private. Those blurry lines aren’t just issues for the 9-to-5 crowd to navigate, they’ve been a thorny problem for researchers ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Research explores human factors in general aviation plane crashes

On average, four planes crash each day in the United States with almost all of aircraft involved being single-engine plans. One in five of those crashes were caused by inflight loss of control, defined by the Federal Aviation Administration as “unintended departure of an aircraft from controlled flight.” Nearly half of accidents caused by inflight loss of control are fatal. New research from a University of Arkansas mechanical engineering assistant professor, Neelakshi Majumdar, investigates why inflight loss of control occurs in general aviation, which includes all civil flights except for commercial transports of people or cargo, and how pilots can prevent ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Further insights into the consequences of abnormal chromosome numbers

It has been known for several years that abnormal chromosome numbers lead to protein imbalances in the affected cells. Researchers at RPTU have now investigated the detailed effects of such imbalances. Surprisingly, they found that imbalanced proteome changes impair mitochondrial function. This, in turn, could be relevant for the drug treatment of cancer. The results are published in the journal Nature Communications. Every healthy human cell contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, which must be duplicated and ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

New study confirms that the oldest rocks on Earth are in northern Canada

A team of Canadian and French researchers has confirmed that northern Quebec is home to the oldest known rocks on Earth, dating back 4.16 billion years. Under the leadership of Jonathan O’Neil, an associate professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Ottawa, this major discovery is the fruit of a collaboration involving Christian Sole (who completed a master’s at the University of Ottawa in 2021), Hanika Rizo, (a professor at Carleton University), Jean-Louis Paquette (a now-deceased researcher ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Deeper sleep is more likely to lead to eureka moments

“Sleeping on it,” especially dropping deeper than a doze, might help people gain insight into certain kinds of tasks, according to a study published June 26th in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Anika Löwe, Marit Petzka, Maria Tzegka and Nicolas Schuck from the Universität Hamburg, Germany, and colleagues. Humans sometimes find that they have a sudden “eureka” moment on a problem they’ve been working on, producing sudden insight or breakthroughs. Scientists have yet to have their ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Review: New framework needed to assess complex “cascading” natural hazards

In a Review, Brian Yanites and colleagues argue the need for a unified, interdisciplinary approach to studying cascading land surface hazards. Earth’s surface is continually shaped by a range of natural processes, from slow erosion to sudden disasters like earthquakes and floods. Notably, one hazardous event can trigger a series of subsequent, interrelated disasters, or ”cascading hazards,” that unfold over timescales ranging from seconds to centuries. However, despite their growing impact on human populations, a comprehensive mechanistic ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Flipping an evolutionarily disabled switch unlocks ear tissue regeneration in mice

By flipping an evolutionarily disabled genetic switch involved in Vitamin A metabolism, researchers have enabled ear tissue regeneration in mice. Unlike some animals such as fish and salamanders, mammals have limited capacity to regenerate damaged tissues or organs fully. A variety of strategies have been explored to trigger regeneration in mammals, such as stem cell therapies, gene editing, and electrical stimulation. While these approaches have shown promise, none have fully restored organ function. This is likely ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

When ideas travel further than people

The transition to agriculture and a sedentary lifestyle is one of the great turning points in human history. Yet how this Neolithic way of life spread from the Fertile Crescent across Anatolia and into the Aegean has been hotly debated. A Turkish-Swiss team offers important new insights, by combining archaeology and genetics in an innovative way. How open are people to experimenting with new ways of life? Did farming spread from its origins in Anatolia to neighboring regions by farmers migrating? Or ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

British ash woodland is evolving resistance to ash dieback

Scientists at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Queen Mary University of London have discovered that a new generation of ash trees, growing naturally in woodland, exhibits greater resistance to the disease compared to older trees. They find that natural selection is acting upon thousands of locations within the ash tree DNA, driving the evolution of resistance. The study, published in Science, offers renewed hope for the future of ash trees in the British landscape and provides compelling evidence for a long-standing prediction of Darwinian theory. Ash dieback, caused by the fungus Hymenoscyphus fraxineus, arrived in Britain in 2012, prompting an emergency COBRA meeting. The ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

MD Anderson Research Highlights for June 26, 2025

MD Anderson Research Highlights for June 26, 2025 Promising treatment results for blood cancers, colorectal cancer and brain metastases Novel insights into early pancreatic cancer cell progression A new therapeutic target for patients with high blood pressure HOUSTON, JUNE 26, 2025 ― The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Research Highlights showcases the latest breakthroughs in cancer care, research and prevention. These advances are made possible through seamless collaboration between MD Anderson’s ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Knowledge Unlatched finds a new home with Annual Reviews

Annual Reviews today announced that it has signed an agreement with Wiley that enables Knowledge Unlatched (KU) – most recently owned and operated by Wiley – to move to a new home within the Annual Reviews organization. The move supports one of the most recognized initiatives in open access publishing and marks KU’s return to nonprofit stewardship. Founded in 2012 by publishing innovator Frances Pinter, KU pioneered a crowdfunding model that enables libraries worldwide to support the open access ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Receipt of buprenorphine and naltrexone for opioid use disorder by race and ethnicity and insurance type

About The Study: In this cohort study of opioid-related index health care events, race and ethnicity–based and insurance-based disparities in access to medications for opioid use disorder persisted despite efforts to expand treatment availability. These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions, including culturally tailored care, expanded access points, and policy reforms to address structural barriers and reduce inequities contributing to the overdose crisis. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Utsha G. Khatri, MD, MSHP, email utsha.khatri@mountsinai.org. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Scientists complete the most thorough analysis yet of India's genetic diversity

With around 5,000 different ethno-linguistic and religious groups, India is one of the most culturally and genetically diverse countries in the world. Yet, it remains underrepresented in genomic surveys, even when compared to other non-European groups, such as East Asians and Africans. A new analysis of Indian genomes — the largest and most complete to date — helps untangle these groups' complex evolutionary history, uncovering a 50,000-year history of genetic mixing and population bottlenecks that shaped genetic variation, ...

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Science26 Jun 2025

Kelp-eating microalgae offer huge potential

Diatoms are some of the most common algae found in the ocean. There are at least 100,000 species. Most of these tiny diatoms use photosynthesis. This means that they use sunlight, carbon dioxide and water to produce the sugar and energy they need to grow, live and reproduce. However, some diatoms are different, such as the one with the not very catchy name of Nitzschia sing1. “These algae have stopped photosynthesising and started living off kelp,” explained Finn L. Aachmann, Professor at the Department of Biotechnology and Food Science at the Norwegian University ...

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