Science
press releases.

Science15 Jan 2025

The Offshore Wind Innovation Hub 2025 call for innovators opens today

The Offshore Wind Innovation Hub today announced the opening of its 2025 application process, designed to identify and support entrepreneurial and innovative companies that will help unleash the potential of the dynamic emerging offshore wind industry. Winners take on a six-month mentoring and business development program residency designed to prepare them for strategic partnerships with major offshore wind developers and to be part of the larger offshore wind value chain. The program aims to enable innovators to overcome barriers ...

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Science15 Jan 2025

Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s (ASAP) launches a new funding opportunity to join the Collaborative Research Network

The Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s (ASAP) initiative opened applications for members of the research community to apply to join the Collaborative Research Network (CRN) 2025 Scientific Track. The new Scientific Track grants will support collaborative research teams focused on dissecting the mechanisms that contribute to Parkinson’s disease (PD) heterogeneity across one of six focus areas listed below, offering funding of up to $3 million per year over three years. Examining PD in the context of aging Understanding how co-pathologies can influence PD pathogenesis and progression Dissecting ...

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Science15 Jan 2025

State-of-the-art fusion simulation leads three scientists to the 2024 Kaul Foundation Prize

Three scientists were awarded the 2024 Kaul Foundation Prize for Excellence in Plasma Physics Research and Technology Development based on their decades of groundbreaking research about how plasma behaves in fusion reactors. Choongseok (CS) Chang, Seung-Hoe Ku and Robert Hager of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) were recognized “for experimentally validated simulations of turbulence-broadened divertor heat flux widths using the X-Point Included Gyrokinetic Code (XGC),” following decades of research developing comprehensive simulations to model the fusion plasma edge. Recently, ...

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Science15 Jan 2025

Media registration now open: ATS 2025 in San Francisco

New York, NY – Jan. 15, 2025 –We are excited to welcome you to San Francisco for the ATS 2025 International Conference! Journalists will have access to leaders, as well as emerging scientists and clinicians, who are at the forefront of medical breakthroughs and clinical innovation in pulmonary, critical care and sleep medicine. Join us beginning Sunday, May 18* through Wednesday, May 21. Register now and check out our Program at a Glance. As always, you are welcome to contact the ATS communications and marketing director about scientific sessions and expert interviews whether you are joining us in person or from your (home) office. Registered ...

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Science15 Jan 2025

Octopus arms have segmented nervous systems to power extraordinary movements

Octopus arms move with incredible dexterity, bending, twisting, and curling with nearly infinite degrees of freedom. New research from the University of Chicago revealed that the nervous system circuitry that controls arm movement in octopuses is segmented, giving these extraordinary creatures precise control across all eight arms and hundreds of suckers to explore their environment, grasp objects, and capture prey. “If you're going to have a nervous system that's controlling such dynamic movement, that's a good way to set it up,” said Clifton Ragsdale, PhD, Professor of Neurobiology at UChicago and senior author ...

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Science15 Jan 2025

Over 97 million US residents exposed to unregulated contaminants in their drinking water

Nearly a third of people in the U.S. have been exposed to unregulated contaminants in their drinking water that could impact their health, according to a new analysis by scientists at Silent Spring Institute. What’s more, Hispanic and Black residents are more likely than other groups to have unsafe levels of contaminants in their drinking water and are more likely to live near pollution sources. The findings, published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, add to growing concern about the quality of drinking water in the United States and the disproportionate impact of contamination ...

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Science15 Jan 2025

Waking up is not stressful, study finds

Waking up does not activate an increase in the release of the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol does, however, increase in the hours prior to wakening as part of the body’s preparation for the next day, new research led by the University of Bristol has found. The study is published today [15 January] in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B. For many years it has been generally accepted that waking up results in a stimulus to release hormone cortisol - a phenomenon called the “cortisol awakening response” (CAR). This response has been used to investigate many clinical conditions including PTSD, depression, obesity, and chronic ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Long before the L.A. fires, America’s housing crisis displaced millions

A new USC study reveals that the challenges that led to a national shortage of affordable housing and soaring home prices were set in motion long ago — and could have been foreseen. The researchers behind the study say that the problem will only worsen as more natural disasters — such as the devastating Los Angeles area wildfires and large hurricanes — flatten entire communities. Los Angeles County officials estimate that more than 10,000 homes and businesses have been lost so far to the fires that erupted across the region last week. “A ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Breaking barriers: Collaborative research studies binge eating disorders in older Hispanic women

SAN ANTONIO, Jan. 14, 2025 – Scientists from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) and Trinity University are partnering with the San Antonio Food Bank for a four-year, $2.2 million study on eating disorders in older Hispanic women. A grant from the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health is funding this transformative study, which aims to redefine how the intersection of binge eating, food insecurity and health disparities among ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

UVA receives DURIP grant for cutting-edge ceramic research system

The University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science is set to revolutionize materials science with the development of a state-of-the-art electromagnetic levitation (EML) system, funded by a competitive Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) grant. Designed to operate in extreme conditions, the system enables researchers to study ultra-high-temperature ceramics (UHTCs) in their solid and molten states — unlocking new possibilities for aerospace, defense and industrial applications. Rethinking High-Temperature Research Traditional methods of studying UHTCs are limited by the challenges of chemical contamination at extreme temperatures. The EML system’s ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Genetic mutation linked to higher SARS-CoV-2 risk

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Researchers have identified a novel genetic risk factor for SARS-CoV-2 infection, providing new insights into the virus’ ability to invade human cells. SARS-CoV-2 is the virus that spreads COVID-19. The study, led by immunologist Declan McCole at the University of California, Riverside, shows that a loss-of-function variant in the phosphatase gene PTPN2, commonly associated with autoimmune diseases, can increase expression of the SARS-CoV-2 receptor ACE2, making cells more susceptible to viral invasion. A loss-of-function ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Harnessing nature to defend soybean roots

The microscopic soybean cyst nematode (SCN) may be small, but it has a massive impact. This pest latches onto soybean roots, feeding on their nutrients and leaving a trail of destruction that costs farmers billions in yield losses each year. Unfortunately, current methods to combat SCN are faltering as the pest grows resistant to traditional controls. But new research is now offering a glimmer of hope. A collaborative team of scientists from BASF Agricultural Solutions and the Advanced Bioimaging Laboratory at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center are working on a potential solution: ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Diving deep into dopamine

Positive feedback is helpful for learning, but usually, our greatest lessons actually come from failure— and a new project at the University of Pittsburgh aims to uncover the neural mechanisms behind this phenomenon. Helen Schwerdt, assistant professor of bioengineering at Pitt’s Swanson School of Engineering, received a five-year, $2.5 million R01 award from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study dopamine’s role in learning. Schwerdt’s team develops novel multimodal neural interfaces ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

PolyU researchers develop breakthrough method for self-stimulated ejection of freezing droplets, unlocking cost-effective applications in de-icing

Water droplets under freezing conditions do not spontaneously detach from surfaces as they do at room temperature due to stronger droplet-surface interaction and lack of an energy transformation pathway. Since accumulated droplets or ice have to be removed manually or with mechanical equipment, which is costly and inefficient, preventing droplet accretion on surfaces is both scientifically intriguing and practically important. Researchers at The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have invented a ground-breaking self-powered mechanism of freezing droplet ejection that allows droplets to ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Bioinspired weather-responsive adaptive shading

Pine cones as a model: Researchers at the universities of Stuttgart and Freiburg have developed a new, energy-autonomous facade system that adapts passively to the weather. The journal Nature Communications has published the research results. "Most attempts at weather responsiveness in architectural facades rely heavily on elaborate technical devices. Our research explores how we can harness the responsiveness of the material itself through advanced computational design and additive manufacturing," says Professor Achim Menges, head of the Institute for Computational Design and Construction ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Knowledge and use of menthol-mimicking cigarettes among adults in the US

About The Study: In this survey study of U.S. adults, a substantial proportion were aware of and had already experimented with synthetic cooling agent menthol-mimicking cigarettes. These products may serve as a substitute for menthol cigarettes and reduce the public health benefits of a menthol cigarette ban in promoting smoking cessation. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Kelvin Choi, PhD, email kelvin.choi@nih.gov. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.54608) Editor’s ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Global study pinpoints genes for depression across ethnicities

New genetic risk factors for depression have been identified across all major global populations for the first time, allowing scientists to predict risk of depression regardless of ethnicity. The world’s largest and most diverse genetic study ever into major depression has revealed nearly 300 previously unknown genetic links to the condition, experts say. 100 of the newly discovered genetic variations – small differences in the DNA sequence that makes up a gene – were identified due to the inclusion of people of African, East Asian, Hispanic and South Asian descent, the study found. Previous research into the genetics ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Epigenetics ensures placenta functioning

If the development of blood vessels in the placenta is impaired, fetal growth retardation may result. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Mannheim Medical Faculty of Heidelberg University discovered that the correct development of functioning blood vessels in the mouse placenta is controlled epigenetically: One of the enzymes that modify gene activity using methyl groups is responsible. The researchers also observed a connection with a deficiency of this “methyltransferase” in a well-known pregnancy complication. In all female mammals, including humans, the growing fetus in the uterus is supplied via the placenta. Through this temporary ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Eating pork linked with better handgrip strength, vegetable intake in Korean older adults

New research1 underscores the potential role of pork consumption in supporting dietary and muscle health in Korean older adults. Older adults are a nutritionally vulnerable population who often face unique challenges, including meeting daily protein and micronutrient requirements. The study,* conducted through a collaborative partnership between researchers from Gachon University in South Korea, Tufts University, Think Healthy Group, LLC, and other leading institutions, suggests that pork consumption may be positively linked to nutrient intake, diet quality and handgrip strength—an indicator of overall muscle strength in older adults. Using data from more than 2,000 ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Scientists uncover rapid-acting, low-side-effect antidepressant target

The global burden of anxiety- and depression-related disorders is on the rise. While multiple drugs have been developed to treat these conditions, current medications have several limitations, including slow action and adverse effects with long-term use. This underscores the urgent need for novel, rapidly-acting therapeutic agents with minimal side effects. The delta opioid receptor (DOP) plays a key role in mood regulation, making it a promising target for therapeutic intervention. Studies have shown that selective DOP agonists (compounds that activate DOP), such as SNC80 ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Samsung takes top spot in U.S. patents for third year running while TSMC rises into second place; after four-year falloff, grants increase nearly 4%

New Haven, Conn., Jan. 14, 2025—After four years of decline, U.S. patent grants headed upward, rising 3.8 percent from calendar year 2023 to 324,043 and Samsung retained the top spot for the third year in a row, according to IFI CLAIMS Patent Services, the world’s most trusted patent data source. IFI CLAIMS Patent Services is a Digital Science company that compiles and tracks data from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and other patent-issuing agencies around the globe. IFI translates its world-leading data into an annual U.S. Top 50 and ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Smoking may lead people to earn less

A new paper in Nicotine & Tobacco Research, published by Oxford University Press, finds that smoking has a negative effect on earnings among younger workers. This is particularly true among the less well educated. The adverse health effects of smoking are well known. Smoking increases the risk of various cancers, respiratory issues, and cardiovascular diseases, with approximately 14% of all deaths in 2019 attributed to smoking. Despite smoking rates declining since the 1990s, in 2019 18% of women and 27% of men in high income countries still smoked. Tobacco smoking has ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

World’s oldest 3D map discovered

Researchers have discovered what may be the world’s oldest three-dimensional map, located within a quartzitic sandstone megaclast in the Paris Basin. The Ségognole 3 rock shelter, known since the 1980s for its artistic engravings of two horses in a Late Palaeolithic style on either side of a female pubic figuration, has now been revealed to contain a miniature representation of the surrounding landscape. Dr Anthony Milnes from the University of Adelaide’s School of Physics, Chemistry and Earth Sciences, participated in the research ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Applications of ultrafast nano-spectroscopy and nano-imaging

Optical microscopy has long been a fundamental tool for scientific discovery. Yet, traditional far-field techniques are limited by diffraction, restricting their resolution to hundreds of nanometers, which can be inadequate for capturing phenomena in quantum and solid-state materials. With the emergence of tip-based microscopy capable of achieving atomic-scale spatial resolution, near-field optical nano-spectroscopy and nano-imaging have evolved into versatile tools for characterizing the optical properties of materials at the nanoscale. When further combined with ultrafast pump-probe ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Scientists explain how a compound from sea sponge exerts its biological effects

Girolline, a compound extracted from the sea sponge Pseudaxinyssa cantharella, has been investigated for possible antitumor effects and also found to have anti-malarial effects. Now, thanks to work by scientists from the RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, researchers have a better idea of how it works. In addition to its possible medicinal properties, the current findings suggest that the compound could also be useful as a chemical probe for research in areas such as aging and mitochondrial health. GIrolline is one of a number of compounds with biological functions that were isolated from Pseudaxinyssa ...

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