Science
press releases.

Science14 Jan 2025

Why older women are embracing the open road

Older Australian women are challenging traditional views of aging, embarking on solo road trips and travelling the country in search of adventure, personal growth and new horizons. Equipped with a caravan, campervan, or a sturdy 4WD and a tent, these women are navigating vast landscapes, from the dusty Oodnadatta Track to the spectacular Tasmanian wilderness. Margaret Yates, a PhD candidate from the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Faculty of Health and a retired nurse, interviewed 29 women travellers to explore their motivations and experiences. The majority were over sixty and considered themselves ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Tobacco advertising + sponsorship bans linked to 20% lower odds of smoking

Implementing bans on the advertising, promotion, and sponsorship of tobacco products is linked to 20% lower odds of smoking, and 37% lower risk of taking up the habit, reveals a pooled data analysis of the available research, published online in Tobacco Control. The findings indicate that these bans do influence behaviour, lending further weight to calls for their wider international implementation and enforcement, conclude the researchers. In 2019 alone, more than a billion people around the globe regularly smoked tobacco, and smoking caused nearly 8 million deaths, note the researchers. To curb the toll ...

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Science14 Jan 2025

Vascular ‘fingerprint’ at the back of the eye can accurately predict stroke risk

A vascular ‘fingerprint’ on the light sensitive tissue layer at the back of the eye—the retina—can predict a person’s risk of stroke as accurately as traditional risk factors alone, but without the need for multiple invasive lab tests, finds research published online in the journal Heart. The fingerprint, comprising 29 indicators of vascular health, is a practical and readily implementable approach that is particularly well suited for primary healthcare and low-resource settings, conclude the researchers. Stroke affects around 100 million people around the globe and ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Researchers develop breakthrough one-step flame retardant for cotton textiles

Although extremely flammable, cotton is one of the most commonly used textiles due to its comfort and breathable nature. However, in a single step, researchers from Texas A&M University can reduce the flammability of cotton using a polyelectrolyte complex coating. The coating can be tailored for various textiles, such as clothing or upholstery, and scaled using the common pad-dry coating process, which is suitable for industrial applications. This technology can help to save property and lives on a large scale. “Many of the materials in our ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

UCF biology researchers win awards from NOAA to support critical coastal work

Biology researchers in the College of Sciences and UCF Coastal have received two awards from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) totaling more than $2.3 million. A new $1.1 million award to UCF from NOAA Sea Grant as part of the Marine Debris Challenge Competition will fund joint research between UCF’s CEELAB and Aquatic Biogeochemistry Laboratory’s research on plastic-free restored habitats in coastal shorelines and oyster reefs. UCF’s work, in partnership with Texas A&M, and University of Texas Marine Science Institute was selected as one of 11 projects ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Geochemist Kevin Rosso appointed a Battelle Fellow

RICHLAND, Wash.— Geochemist Kevin Rosso, a senior scientific leader at the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, has been named a Battelle Fellow, the highest recognition at PNNL for leadership and accomplishment in science. He joins six other current Battelle Fellows at PNNL in an honor that less than 0.5% of PNNL scientists achieve during their careers. Rosso is internationally known for his fundamental research on how energy flows among minerals, solutions and microorganisms. These complex processes center on the key role that interfaces—which are shared boundaries—play in controlling ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

NIH-funded study finds cases of ME/CFS increase following SARS-CoV-2

What: New findings from the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER) Initiative suggest that infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, may be associated with an increase in the number of myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) cases. According to the results, 4.5% post-COVID-19 participants met ME/CFS diagnostic criteria, compared to 0.6% participants that had not been infected by SARS-CoV-2 virus. RECOVER is NIH’s national program to understand, diagnose, prevent, and treat Long COVID. The research team, led by Suzanne D. Vernon, Ph.D., from the Bateman Horne Center in Salt Lake City, ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Polygamy is (not) for the birds

Researchers at Rice University have uncovered new insights into the evolution of bird behavior, revealing why certain mating systems persist while others disappear over time. In a recent paper published in the journal Evolution, Rafael S. Marcondes and Nicolette Douvas reveal that lekking — a mating system where males display for females without forming lasting bonds — is an evolutionarily stable strategy. In contrast, resource-defense polygamy, where one sex — usually but ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Study: US methamphetamine mortality 61 times higher in '21 than 1999

OXFORD, Miss. – Methamphetamine deaths in the U.S. rose 61-fold from 1999 to 2021, according to a new study, highlighting a growing crisis in addiction and public health. Looking at the gender breakdown of these deaths could improve harm-reduction efforts and outcomes for patients suffering from addiction, said Andrew Yockey, University of Mississippi assistant professor of public health and co-author of the study. “We know that, across the board, men are more likely to use every substance except tranquilizers than women, and we found that to be true here,” Yockey said. “Especially if we're thinking about methamphetamine, ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Ash tree variability may offer restoration path post-beetle decimation

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The invasive emerald ash borer, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was first found in the United States in southeast Michigan in 2002. In the decades since, the wood-boring beetle has spread east and west across the U.S. and Canada, killing tens of millions of ash trees, causing one of the costliest forest insect invasions to date. More than 90% of all ash infested by the insect native to Asia eventually die, threatening to make the tree species functionally extinct in North America. In response, researchers at Penn State are working with the U.S. Forest Service and other partners to identify and develop ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

New tool for synthetic biology

Scientists at the University of Stuttgart have succeeded in controlling the structure and function of biological membranes with the help of "DNA origami". The system they developed may facilitate the transportation of large therapeutic loads into cells. This opens up a new way for the targeted administration of medication and other therapeutic interventions. Thus, a very valuable instrument can be added to the toolbox of synthetic biology. Prof. Laura Na Liu and her team published their findings in the journal Nature Materials (DOI: 10.1038/s41563-024-02075-9). The ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

ExxonMobil donates $10 million to fund MD Anderson-led Be Well™ Beaumont initiative

HOUSTON and BEAUMONT, TEXAS ― In an effort to improve public health and reduce cancer risk in East Texas, leaders in Beaumont are working with The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to launch Be Well™ Beaumont through a newly announced $10 million gift from ExxonMobil. Community members, collaborators and representatives from MD Anderson kicked off the 10-year initiative today in Beaumont. Be Well Beaumont aims to promote wellness and to lower cancer risk among community members by providing them with cancer prevention education and tools. ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Six-month outcomes in the long-term outcomes after the multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children study

About The Study: The results of this cohort study suggest that although children and young adults with multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) can have severe disease during the acute phase, most recovered quickly and had a reassuring midterm prognosis. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Dongngan T. Truong, MD, email truongd@kidsheart.com. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.5466) Editor’s Note: Please see the article for additional information, including other authors, author contributions and affiliations, ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Global prevalence of sexual violence against children

About The Study: The findings of this systematic review and meta-analysis highlight the burden of sexual violence against children worldwide based on current available evidence. There is a pressing need to enhance data collection efforts globally, especially in under-researched regions and for boys. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Antonio Piolanti, PhD, email antonio.piolanti@aau.at. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.5326) Editor’s ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

‘True food’ research database offers rankings for 50,000 processed foods

‘True Food’ Research Database Offers Rankings for 50,000 Processed Foods The database, developed by researchers at Mass General Brigham and made available to the public, sheds light on the availability of processed foods at different grocery stores, highlighting the need for more understanding and regulation of the foods offered A new study by investigators from Mass General Brigham provides information to empower consumers and policymakers about the degree of processing of the foods available at three large grocery retailers. Using an algorithm, the researchers analyzed ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Sodium-ion batteries need breakthroughs to compete

Legions of battery engineers and their supporters have sought for years to build batteries cheaper than the dominant lithium-ion technology, hoping to capture some of lithium-ion’s $50 billion-a-year and growing market. The latest darling contender among researchers, startups, and venture capitalists – sodium-ion batteries – has received much attention after COVID-induced mineral supply chain challenges sent lithium prices on a wild ride. Still, achieving a low-cost contender may be several years away for sodium-ion batteries and will require a set of technology advances and favorable ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Financial incentives found to help people quit smoking, including during pregnancy

Rewards and financial incentives are successful methods to help people quit smoking, according to a new Cochrane review co-led by a University of Massachusetts Amherst public health and health policy researcher. For the first time, the researchers also found “high-certainty evidence” that this intervention works for pregnant people as well. A previous review of studies, also published in the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, found moderate certainty that financial ...

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Science13 Jan 2025

Rewards and financial incentives successfully help people to give up smoking

Offering rewards helps people to stop smoking, with success rates continuing long after incentives have stopped. The new research, led by the University of East Anglia, also explored whether incentives were effective in helping pregnant women to give up smoking. While previous research found rewards played a moderate role in encouraging pregnant women to quit smoking, this up-to-date study found there is now “high certainty evidence” that such schemes are successful in this ...

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Science11 Jan 2025

New tablet shows promise for the control and elimination of intestinal worms

A new tablet combining albendazole and ivermectin is safe and more effective than albendazole alone in treating Trichuris trichiura and other soil-transmitted helminths (STH), according to a clinical trial conducted by the STOP consortium and led by the Barcelona Institute of Global Health (ISGlobal), a centre supported by “la Caixa” Foundation. The findings, published in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, open opportunities to improve the control of these neglected tropical infections, which affect around ...

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Science10 Jan 2025

nTIDE January 2025 Jobs Report: Encouraging signs in disability employment: A slow but positive trajectory

East Hanover, NJ – January 10, 2025 – The employment-to-population ratio for people with disabilities has remained stable over the past 15 months amid historically high levels, with recent data suggesting a modest but encouraging upward trend, according to today’s January 2025 National Trends in Disability Employment monthly update (nTIDE) issued by Kessler Foundation and the University of New Hampshire’s Institute on Disability (UNH-IOD). Month-to-Month nTIDE Numbers (comparing November 2024 to December 2024) Based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) ...

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Science10 Jan 2025

‘What is that?’ UCalgary scientists explain white patch that appears near northern lights

A whitish, grey patch that sometimes appears in the night sky alongside the northern lights has been explained for the first time by researchers at the University of Calgary. The article, which was published on Dec. 30 in the journal Nature Communications, explores a “structured continuum emission” that’s associated with aurora borealis. “You’d see this dynamic green aurora, you’d see some of the red aurora in the background and, all of a sudden, you’d see this structured – almost like a patch – grey-toned or white toned-emission connected to the aurora,” says Dr. Emma Spanswick, ...

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Science10 Jan 2025

How many children use Tik Tok against the rules? Most, study finds

How many children use Tik Tok against the rules? Most, study finds As the U.S. Supreme Court considers whether Congress can ban Tik Tok, new research highlights the health risks that top social media platforms pose to children. Most 11- and 12-year-olds use Tik Tok and other social media despite the platforms’ age restrictions, and many show signs of addiction to social media, a new UC San Francisco study found. Tik Tok, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat require users to be at least 13 years old to have an account. But the study found that a majority of 11- and 12-years olds across the country have accounts on the platforms, ...

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Science10 Jan 2025

Tickling the nerves: Why crime content is popular

Consumers of content about serial killers watch and read it to experience intense emotions that are often lacking in everyday life and to understand the reasons that drive people to commit crimes. However, such content does not contribute to increased aggression. These conclusions were drawn by sociologists from HSE University. The results of their study have been published in Crime, Media, Culture: An International Journal. Research on the modern media market shows that content about serial killers is popular worldwide, spanning films, true crime series, short videos, and written materials detailing crimes, investigations, ...

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Science10 Jan 2025

Breakthrough study reveals the secrets behind cordierite’s anomalous thermal expansion

Cordierite, a remarkable mineral familiar to many as the material behind heat-resistant pizza stones, exhibits an unusual ability to resist changes in size despite significant temperature fluctuations. While widely used in diverse applications from automotive catalytic converters to high-temperature industrial processes, the fundamental reasons behind this anomalous thermal behaviour have remained largely unexplained. A new study, led by researchers at Queen Mary University of London and published in Matter, now provides the first comprehensive explanation, with profound implications for the design and development of advanced materials. "Modern society demands materials that ...

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Science10 Jan 2025

Harnessing microwave flow reaction to convert biomass into useful sugars

Fukuoka, Japan—Researchers at Kyushu University have developed a device that combines a catalyst and microwave flow reaction to efficiently convert complex polysaccharides into simple monosaccharides. The device utilizes a continuous-flow hydrolysis process, where cellobiose—a disaccharide made from two glucose molecules—is passed through a sulfonated carbon catalyst that is heated using microwaves. The subsequent chemical reaction breaks down cellobiose into glucose. Their results were published in the journal ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering. Converting biomass into ...

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