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Science

MSU research: Eating brown rice increases exposure to arsenic compared to white rice

Why this matters: Arsenic levels in brown rice were found to be higher for U.S. consumers than in white rice, despite people often looking to brown rice as a healthier alternative. There is significant arsenic risk for U.S. children under 5 who consume brown rice, as arsenic is a toxic chemical element that can lead to health problems. Arsenic levels in U.S.-grown rice were found to be considerably lower than rice grown outside the country, suggesting there is concern to U.S. consumers who eat rice grown outside the country. EAST LANSING, Mich. – Whether you buy rice at the grocery store or order a side of it while ...

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Science

A new smartphone-sized device can test for tuberculosis. Here’s why that matters for children

Tulane University researchers have developed a first-of-its-kind handheld diagnostic device that can deliver rapid, accurate tuberculosis diagnoses in under an hour, according to a study published in Science Translational Medicine. The smartphone-sized, battery-powered lab-in-tube assay (LIT) provides a cost-effective tool that can improve TB diagnoses, particularly in resource-limited rural areas where health care facilities and lab equipment are less accessible. Over 90% of new TB cases occur in low- and middle-income countries. This point-of-care device is the first to detect Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) DNA in saliva, in addition to blood and sputum samples. Saliva is ...

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Colourful city birds
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Colourful city birds

Urbanization has a huge impact on the ecosystem and poses enormous challenges to animals and plants. The ongoing, worldwide increase in urbanization is considered one of the main causes of the steady decline in biodiversity. Urban ecology is the field of research that focuses on the effects of urbanization on different organisms. For example, many studies have investigated how urban noise affects communication in birds. However, little is still known about the relationship between urbanization and plumage colour in birds. Plumage colour serves many important functions: it can play a role in ...

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Science

To upgrade apps, listen to users

How do apps improve? For some of today’s most popular applications, it’s by listening to their customers. Instagram responded to requests for in-app editing tools by offering filters, brightness, and contrast adjustments. Offline maps, by Google Maps, answered users who wanted to use the tool when they couldn’t get online. But listening to user feedback isn’t an easy task. The Apple App Store alone offers 3.8 million appswith as many as 1.8 million reviews apiece. New research from ...

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Science

Comprehensive analysis of imaging and pathological features in 20 cases of pulmonary mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma: a retrospective study

Background: Pulmonary mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma is a rare, indolent subtype of non-Hodgkin lymphoma with distinct radiological and pathological characteristics. Clinically, patients may present with nonspecific symptoms such as cough or dyspnea, and the disease can mimic other pulmonary conditions. High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) imaging plays a critical role in identifying characteristic lung patterns, such as nodules, consolidation, or ground-glass opacities, which help in differentiating pulmonary MALT lymphoma from other pulmonary disorders. The ...

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Science

Financial well-being varies across generations

Generations are already seen as unique in terms of values and beliefs. These differences may stretch into the realm of finance, according to a new study from the University of Georgia. Financial well-being reflects a person’s ability to hold out against financial troubles and achieve their goals. If financial well-being is low, there can be negative impacts on a person’s mental health. The researchers looked at data from the 2016 Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s National ...

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Science

AI-powered smart clothing logs posture, exercises

ITHACA, N.Y. – Researchers at Cornell University have developed a new type of smart clothing that can track a person’s posture and exercise routine but looks, wears – and washes – just like a regular shirt. The new technology, called SeamFit, uses flexible conductive threads sewn into the neck, arm and side seams of a standard short-sleeved T-shirt. The user does not need to manually log their workout, because an artificial intelligence pipeline detects movements, identifies the ...

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Science

Pregnancy-related deaths in the US, 2018-2022

About The Study: In this cross-sectional analysis of pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S., rates increased during 2018 to 2022, with large variations by state and race and ethnicity. The concerning rates in the U.S. should be an urgent public health priority. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Yingxi Chen, MD, PhD, email yingxi.chen@nih.gov. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.4325) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions ...

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Science

Opioid cap laws and opioid prescriptions after total joint replacements in older adults

About The Study: The findings of this study suggest that the New York opioid restriction law was associated with reductions in opioid quantities in the immediate total joint replacement postoperative period. Additional refinements may further reduce opioid prescribing in New York, and these findings may serve as a foundation for refining laws in other states that may not achieve their intended targets or have not implemented similar laws. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Caroline P. Thirukumaran, MBBS, MHA, PhD, email caroline.thirukumaran@northwestern.edu. To ...

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Longest known seafaring venture 8,500 years ago brings hunter-gatherers to Malta before early farmers
Science

Longest known seafaring venture 8,500 years ago brings hunter-gatherers to Malta before early farmers

Seafaring hunter-gatherers were accessing remote, small islands such as Malta thousands of years before the arrival of the first farmers, a new international study has found. Published in Nature, the research team – led by Professor Eleanor Scerri of the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (MPI-GEA) and the University of Malta – found hunter-gatherers were crossing at least 100km of open water to reach the Mediterranean island of Malta 8,500 years ago, a thousand years before the arrival of agricultural practises. This ...

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Science

Serendipitous discovery could lead to more efficient catalysts

PULLMAN, Wash. – Preparing catalysts by sending hot, steamy car exhaust over them could improve their efficiency and reduce the amount of rare and expensive metals required in vehicle catalytic converters and many other emission control and industrial processes. Reporting in the journal, Nature, an international team of researchers found that the hot car exhaust containing nitrogen oxides and carbon monoxide caused a previously unknown reaction that, used proactively, can significantly improve catalytic activity. Catalysts are substances that increase the rate of chemical reactions. The researchers found that hot exhaust encouraged ceria particles, one of the components of the ...

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Science

Every cloud has a silver lining: DeepSeek’s light through acute respiratory distress syndrome shadows

Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) continues to be a tough nut to crack in critical care, taking lives despite years of research and better ventilator strategies. It is defined by acute hypoxemia, bilateral infiltrates on chest imaging, and non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema, and it remains a heterogeneous condition with mortality rates stubbornly close to 40%. Its complexity—spanning diverse etiologies, inflammatory profiles, and therapeutic responses—demands innovative solutions beyond traditional paradigms. In recent years, artificial intelligence ...

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Scientific Program announced for inaugural eLTER Science Conference in Finland
Science

Scientific Program announced for inaugural eLTER Science Conference in Finland

The scientific programme for the inaugural eLTER Science Conference has just been launched, marking a major milestone in the lead-up to the event. Held from 23 to 27 June 2025 in Tampere, Finland, the conference will explore integrated, policy-relevant approaches to ecosystem and socio-ecological research under the theme: “Toward a whole-system approach to ecosystem science.” Organised by the Integrated European Long-Term Ecosystem, critical zone and socio-ecological systems Research Infrastructure (eLTER RI), the event is expected to welcome over 300 participants from across Europe and beyond. The scientific programme features: 25 keynote speakers recognised for their leadership ...

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Does blastocyst size matter? Exploring reproductive aging and genetic testing
Science

Does blastocyst size matter? Exploring reproductive aging and genetic testing

“[…] when selecting non-PGT-A tested embryos for embryo transfer (ET) or frozen embryo transfer (FET), a small hatching blastocyst seems to be a better choice than a large expanded one, especially for advanced-age patients for whom the risk of aneuploidy is higher.” BUFFALO, NY — April 9, 2025 — A new research paper was published in Aging (Aging-US) Volume 17, Issue 3, on March 5, 2025, titled “Reproductive aging, preimplantation genetic testing for aneuploidy, and the diameter of blastocysts: does size matter?” In this study, a team led by first author Jakub Wyroba from the Malopolski Institute of Fertility Diagnostics ...

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Science

Man’s best friend may be nature’s worst enemy, study on pet dogs finds

New Curtin University research into the overlooked environmental impact of pet dogs has found far-reaching negative effects on wildlife, ecosystems and climate. While ecological damage caused by cats has been extensively studied, the new research found dogs, as the world’s most common large carnivores, present a significant and multifaceted environmental threat. Lead researcher Associate Professor Bill Bateman, from Curtin’s School of Molecular and Life Sciences, said the research found that human-owned, pet dogs disturb and directly harm wildlife, particularly shorebirds, even when leashed. “As well as predatory behaviour like chasing wildlife, ...

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With new database researchers may be able to predict rare milky seas bioluminescent, glowing event
Science

With new database researchers may be able to predict rare milky seas bioluminescent, glowing event

For generations, sailors around the globe have reported a mysterious phenomenon: Vast areas of the ocean glow steadily at night, sometimes for months on end. The light is bright enough to read by and is oddly similar to the green and white aura cast by glow-in-the dark stars that have decorated children’s rooms. Stretching over ocean space as broad as 100,000 square kilometers, the light can, at times, even be seen from space. This rare bioluminescent display was coined by sailors as “milky seas.” Despite being encountered for centuries, scientists still know very little about what causes this glowing effect because ...

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Study finds handheld electro-shockers can pose risk for individuals with cardiac implants
Science

Study finds handheld electro-shockers can pose risk for individuals with cardiac implants

Philadelphia, April 9, 2025 – Research has found that handheld electro-shockers commonly used for self defense can potentially interact with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) such as pacemakers, putting individuals at risk. The study in Heart Rhythm, the official journal of the Heart Rhythm Society, the Cardiac Electrophysiology Society, and the Pediatric & Congenital Electrophysiology Society, published by Elsevier, shows that the individual interactive risk is primarily based on the applied voltage, but also on the manufacturer and type of implanted CIED. The use of TASER pistols by security forces has been controversial ...

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Holograms that can be grabbed and manipulated
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Holograms that can be grabbed and manipulated

Doctor Elodie Bouzbib, from Public University of Navarra (UPNA), together with Iosune Sarasate, Unai Fernández, Manuel López-Amo, Iván Fernández, Iñigo Ezcurdia and Asier Marzo (the latter two, members of the Institute of Smart Cities) have succeeded, for the first time, in displaying three-dimensional graphics in mid-air that can be manipulated with the hands. 'What we see in films and call holograms are typically volumetric displays,' says Bouzbib, the first ...

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Warm temperature promotes sex change in ricefield eel, a protogynous hermaphrodite freshwater fish
Science

Warm temperature promotes sex change in ricefield eel, a protogynous hermaphrodite freshwater fish

The ricefield eel (Monopterus albus) is the only protogynous hermaphrodite freshwater fish. While the mechanism underlying the natural sex change in this species has been fascinating scientists for a long time, it remains elusive and mysterious. In a new study published in Water Biology and Security, a team of researchers in China reported a temperature-induced sex reversal mechanism in ricefield eel. “We show that warm temperature induces the expression of male sex determination genes in ovarian tissues, ...

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Lip sync: study reveals gender differences in preference for lip size
Science

Lip sync: study reveals gender differences in preference for lip size

A new study by psychologists has shed light on the way lip size could influence perceptions of facial attractiveness. Led by Professor David Alais in the School of Psychology at the University of Sydney, researchers have uncovered gender-specific biases and the potential influence of cosmetic procedures on Western perceptions of beauty. The study used digitally manipulated images to alter lip size on both male- and female-appearing faces and asked participants to rate their attractiveness. The results showed a difference in ...

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Science

High prevalence of tooth and gum issues in teenage professional footballers in England

The prevalence of tooth and gum issues among teenage (academy) professional footballers in England is high, finds research published in the open access journal BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine. Inadequate oral hygiene, poor diet, and infrequent routine visits to the dentist, are all contributory factors, the findings suggest, prompting the researchers to call for remedial action to promote good oral health. This is essential for wellbeing, quality of life, long term health, and ultimately sporting performance, they emphasise. Previously published research indicates high levels of tooth and gum disease among professional senior team footballers in England ...

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Science

Prescribing parkrun is a retrograde step, argues doctor

General practitioners are now “prescribing" parkrun for their patients as part of a social prescribing initiative to promote preventative care. But in The BMJ today, Dr Margaret McCartney argues that turning parkrun into a prescription medicalises a walk in the park and is a retrograde step. Parkrun is an organised, timed, and free 5 km run, jog, walk, or wheel on Saturday mornings—in parks, on beaches, or on trails around the world but mainly in the UK, where it originated. Parkrun ...

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SwRI launches BEAMoCap™ markerless motion capture for 3D animation in gaming, film
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SwRI launches BEAMoCap™ markerless motion capture for 3D animation in gaming, film

SAN ANTONIO — April 8, 2025 – Southwest Research Institute has launched a new markerless motion capture system that simplifies how film and gaming studios capture human movement for 3D animations. SwRI’s Biomechanical Evaluation and Animation Motion Capture (BEAMoCap™) tool converts video into realistic 3D animations without the conventional marker suits worn by actors. BEAMoCap won a 2025 Technology Innovation Award from the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB). SwRI staff accepted the award at ...

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Science

Researchers identify safer pathway for pain relief

University of Florida scientists have helped identify a novel drug compound that selectively activates pain-altering receptors in the body, offering a potentially safer alternative to conventional pain medications. In a new study published in Nature Communications, researchers describe how this drug compound provides pain relief without the dangerous side effects commonly associated with opioids administered to patients. The National Institutes of Health funded the study. The human body relies on three kinds of opioid receptors to regulate pain, much like traffic control systems on a busy highway. Understanding these pathways ...

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Coffee too weak? Try this!
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Coffee too weak? Try this!

WASHINGTON, April 8, 2025 – Tens of billions of kilograms of coffee are consumed around the world each year. However, due to its very specific agricultural needs, coffee can be difficult to cultivate, and ongoing climate change threatens its growth. To efficiently meet the high demand for coffee grounds, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania worked to optimize their use in pour-over coffee. They presented their suggestions in Physics of Fluids, by AIP Publishing. “What we recommend is making the pour height as high as possible, while still maintaining a laminar ...

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