Science
press releases.

Science2 Aug 2024

Genetic signatures of domestication identified in pigs, chickens

Wild boars and red junglefowl gave rise to common pigs and chickens. These animals’ genes evolved to express themselves differently, leading to signatures of domestication — such as weaker bones and better viral resistance — in pigs and chickens, according to a research team based in Japan. The findings, published on July 6 in Animals, could provide insight into the genetic changes of the domestication process and highlight target genes for healthier and more productive livestock breeding, the researchers ...

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Science2 Aug 2024

Scientists find a human “fingerprint” in the upper troposphere’s increasing ozone

Ozone can be an agent of good or harm, depending on where you find it in the atmosphere. Way up in the stratosphere, the colorless gas shields the Earth from the sun’s harsh ultraviolet rays. But closer to the ground, ozone is a harmful air pollutant that can trigger chronic health problems including chest pain, difficulty breathing, and impaired lung function. And somewhere in between, in the upper troposphere — the layer of the atmosphere just below the stratosphere, where most aircraft cruise — ozone contributes to warming the planet as a potent greenhouse gas. There are signs that ozone is continuing to rise in the upper troposphere despite efforts to reduce its ...

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Science2 Aug 2024

'Screaming Woman' mummy may have died in agony 3,500 years ago

In 1935, the Metropolitan Museum of New York led an archaeological expedition to Egypt. In Deir Elbahari near Luxor, the site of ancient Thebes, they excavated the tomb of Senmut, the architect and overseer of royal works – and reputedly, lover – of the famed queen Hatschepsut (1479-1458 BCE). Beneath Senmut's tomb, they found a separate burial chamber for his mother Hat-Nufer and other, unidentified relatives. Here, they made an uncanny discovery: a wooden coffin holding the mummy of an elderly woman, wearing a black wig and two scarab rings in silver and gold. But what struck the archaeologists was the ...

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Science2 Aug 2024

First full 2-D spectral image of aurora borealis from a hyperspectral camera

Auroras are natural luminous phenomena caused by the interaction of electrons falling from the sky and the upper atmosphere. Most of the observed light consists of emission lines of neutral or ionized nitrogen and oxygen atoms and molecular emission bands, and the color is determined by the transition energy levels, molecular vibrations and rotations. There is a variety of characteristic colors of auroras, such as green and red, but there are multiple theories about the emission process by which they appear in different types of auroras, and to understand the colors of auroras, the light must be broken down. ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Trying to limit calories? Skip the dip, researchers advise

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Snacks provide, on average, about one-fourth of most people’s daily calories. With nearly one in three adults in the United States overweight and more than two in five with obesity, according to the National Institutes of Health, researchers in the Penn State Sensory Evaluation Center are investigating how Americans can snack smarter. The latest study conducted in the center, housed in the College of Agricultural Sciences, investigated how eating behavior changes when consumers are served a dip with a salty snack. The findings, available online now and to be published in the November issue ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Innovation Crossroads welcomes seven entrepreneurs for Cohort 2024

Seven entrepreneurs comprise the next cohort of Innovation Crossroads, a Department of Energy Lab-Embedded Entrepreneurship Program node based at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The program provides energy-related startup founders from across the nation with access to ORNL’s unique scientific resources and capabilities, as well as connect them with experts, mentors and networks to accelerate their efforts to take their world-changing ideas to the marketplace. “Supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs is part of ORNL’s ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

American College of Rheumatology opens press registration for ACR Convergence 2024

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Aug. 1, 2024 Media Contact: Monica McDonald (404) 365-2162 mmcdonald@rheumatology.org American College of Rheumatology Opens Press Registration for ACR Convergence 2024 ATLANTA – Complimentary press registration is now open for journalists to cover research presented at ACR Convergence 2024, taking place Nov. 14-19 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. A listing of sessions for the meeting can be found in the online program. Approved ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Half a billion-year-old spiny slug reveals the origins of mollusks

UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL 19:00 BST / 14:00 ET THURSDAY 1 AUGUST 2024 Images available via link in the notes section Exceptional fossils with preserved soft parts reveal that the earliest molluscs were flat, armoured slugs without shells. The new species, Shishania aculeata was covered with hollow, organic, cone-shaped spines. The fossils preserve exceptionally rare detailed features which reveal that these spines were produced using a sophisticated secretion system that is shared with annelids (earthworms and relatives). A team of researchers including scientists from the University of Oxford have made an astonishing discovery of ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Genetic insights into how prickles develop across different plants, despite evolutionary separation

The evolutionary gain and loss of plant prickles – sharp pointed epidermal outgrowths – are controlled by a shared genetic program involving cytokinin biosynthesis, researchers report. The study sheds light on the genetic basis of the emergence of similar traits in distantly related organisms and reveals genomic targets for prickle removal for crop improvement. The genetic basis of trait convergence is a central question in evolutionary biology, and the extent to which it is driven by ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Angel Martí elected fellow of the American Chemical Society

By Jade Boyd Special to Rice News Rice University’s Angel Martí has been elected a fellow of the American Chemical Society (ACS), one of his discipline’s highest honors. Martí, professor and department chair of chemistry, is among 37 newly elected fellows announced by ACS this week. With more than 200,000 members in 140 countries, ACS is one of the largest scientific organizations. Fewer than 1% of its members are fellows, a distinction reserved for those with exemplary records of both service to the society and outstanding scientific or professional achievement. Martí joined ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Venezuelan crisis has negatively affected country’s Internet

As the Venezuelan crisis intensifies, researchers and policy experts have worked to understand its ramifications on the country’s politics, economics, health services, water security, infrastructure and more. Now, Northwestern University computer scientists have comprehensively examined the effects of the crisis on a previously unexplored area: the Internet. In a new study, the researchers found the crisis has significantly — and negatively — affected Venezuela’s Internet infrastructure and connectivity. Compared to the ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

'Cowpuppy' takes readers into secret world of cows

During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic Gregory Berns, a neuroscientist at Emory University, moved from Atlanta to a farm an hour south of the city. His reinvention from city dweller to farmer led to his upcoming book “Cowpuppy: An Unexpected friendship and a Scientist’s Journey into the Secret World of Cows.” Set for publication by Harper Collins on August 20, the book describes Berns’ crash course to becoming a cattleman and his ongoing fascination with the interior world of cows. Berns originally bought a few cows to keep the grass in the ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Warming stops tiny organisms working together

Hotter conditions prevent two tiny organisms working together for mutual benefit, new research shows. University of Exeter scientists studied a single-celled organism (Paramecium bursaria) which can absorb and host algae (Chlorella spp). This pairing is common in freshwater worldwide, and their symbiotic relationship provides benefits including trading of nutrients and protection for the algae. But when scientists made the water 5°C warmer, the partnership stopped working – and the results suggest the algae may even become parasitic. The breakdown of such relationships could have a major impact on ecosystems. “This ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Gun permits may be more effective than background checks alone at reducing firearm homicides

Despite widespread support, laws enforcing universal background checks at the time of firearm purchase may not be enough to move the needle on reducing shooting deaths in the United States. A Tufts University School of Medicine study, published August 1 in the journal JAMA Network Open, reports that states that require gun permits rather than relying solely on universal background checks see firearm homicide rates, on average, 18% lower than states with background check policies alone. The analysis compared firearm homicide data from the 12 states with universal background check laws but no permit ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Universal background checks, permit requirements, and firearm homicide rates

About The Study: This cross-sectional study found that universal background checks alone were not associated with firearm homicide rates, but a permit requirement for the purchase and possession of firearms was associated with substantially reduced rates of firearm homicide. The findings suggest that combining universal background checks and permit-to-purchase requirements is an effective strategy for firearm-related fatality reduction. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Michael Siegel, MD, MPH, email mike.siegel@tufts.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.25025) Editor’s ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Judging your own happiness could backfire

Judging how happy you are could backfire and negatively impact life satisfaction and psychological well-being, according to research published by the American Psychological Association. In three experiments comprising more than 1,800 participants, researchers found that having concerns or judgments about one’s own level of happiness were associated with lower well-being, due in part to greater negativity and disappointment about positive events. The research was published in the journal Emotion. Thinking too much about one’s own level of happiness could be related to fears about not measuring up or not being as happy as other people, said lead researcher Felicia ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Uncontrolled hypertension: The old ‘silent killer’ is alive and well

In the United States and worldwide, cardiovascular disease is the leading avoidable cause of premature death and disability. Primarily heart attacks and stroke, cardiovascular disease accounts for more than 900,000 annual deaths nationally and about 10 million deaths globally. Uncontrolled hypertension or high blood pressure is a major risk factor for stroke and heart attacks. Prevention and management of cardiovascular disease involves therapeutic lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise and adjunctive drug therapies of proven benefit. In a commentary published in The American ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Talking about regeneration

Researchers including those from the University of Tokyo’s Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences transferred genes from simple organisms capable of regenerating their bodies into common fruit flies, more complex animals that cannot. They found the transferred gene suppressed an age-related intestinal issue in the flies. Their results suggest studying genes specific to animals with high regenerative capability may uncover new mechanisms for rejuvenating stem cell function and extending the healthy lifespan ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Tipping risks from overshooting 1.5 °C can be minimised if warming is swiftly reversed

Human-made climate change can lead to a destabilisation of large-scale components of the Earth system such as ice sheets or ocean circulation patterns, the so-called tipping elements. While these components will not tip over night, fundamental processes are put into motion unfolding over tens, hundreds or thousands of years. These changes are of such a serious nature that they should be avoided at all costs, the researchers argue. In their new study, they assessed the risks of destabilisation of at least one ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Tipping risks from overshooting 1.5°C can be minimized if warming is swiftly reversed

Current climate policies imply a high risk for tipping of critical Earth system elements, even if temperatures return to below 1.5°C of global warming after a period of overshoot. A new study indicates that these risks can be minimized if warming is swiftly reversed. Human-made climate change can lead to a destabilization of large-scale components of the Earth system such as ice sheets, ocean circulation patterns, or global biosphere components, the so-called tipping elements. In their new study published in Nature Communications, researchers from IIASA and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) analyzed the risks for four interconnected core climate tipping elements ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Comprehensive meta-analysis pinpoints what vaccination strategies different countries should adopt

Vaccines are safe and effective, and help reduce death and illness. But global vaccination rates are suboptimal and have trended downward, leaving humanity more vulnerable to vaccine-preventable diseases such as COVID-19, influenza, measles, polio, and HPV. Identifying interventions that could increase vaccine coverage could help save lives. A new paper from a team led by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania offers the first comprehensive meta-analysis examining what types of vaccine intervention strategies have the ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Predicting the future: Easy tool helps estimate fall risks

Osaka, Japan — An aging society has posed a new global problem, the risk of falling. It is estimated that 1 in 3 adults over the age of 65 falls each year and the resulting injuries are becoming more prevalent. To tackle this growing issue, Associate Professor Hiromitsu Toyoda and Specially Appointed Professor Tadashi Okano from Osaka Metropolitan University’s Graduate School of Medicine, together with Professor Chisato Hayashi from the University of Hyogo, have developed a formula and assessment tool for estimating fall risks that is simple for older adults to use. The tool was developed using data collected from older adults over a ten-year period from April 2010 to December ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Eccentric-only resistance training can lower passive muscle stiffness

Resistance, or weight training, is widely recommended in sports and rehabilitation as an effective exercise to increase muscular strength and size. This form of exercise involves applying resistance to muscle contraction to build strength. However, some practitioners believe resistance training can increase passive muscle stiffness over time. Passive muscle stiffness is a key indicator of how muscles behave mechanically when they are stretched without active contraction. Specifically, it refers to the amount of force required to change the muscle length by a given amount during passive stretching. Studies ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

$2.4 million grant helping MCG scientists better understand what happens to our skeleton as we age

AUGUSTA, Ga. (Aug. 1, 2024) – Figuring out how the tissues in our bones, adrenal glands, muscle and fat “talk” to each other could help scientists better understand what happens to our skeletons with age, when our bones tend to lose mass and become weaker, leaving us at risk for falls and fractures. “Tissues don’t function in isolation – everything in the body “talks” to everything else to keep people healthy across the lifespan,” explains Meghan McGee-Lawrence, PhD, bone biologist at the Medical College of Georgia at ...

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Science1 Aug 2024

Pursuing the middle path to scientific discovery

In electronic technologies, key material properties change in response to stimuli like voltage or current. Scientists aim to understand these changes in terms of the material’s structure at the nanoscale (a few atoms) and microscale (the thickness of a piece of paper). Often neglected is the realm between, the mesoscale — spanning 10 billionths to 1 millionth of a meter. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory, in collaboration with Rice University and DOE’s Lawrence ...

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