Science
press releases.

Science9 May 2024

New ‘forever chemical’ cleanup strategy discovered

As the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency cracks down on insidious “forever chemical” pollution in the environment, military and commercial aviation officials are seeking ways to clean up such pollution from decades of use of fire suppressant foams at military air bases and commercial airports. Fire-suppression foams contain hundreds unhealthful forever chemicals, known by chemists as PFAS or poly- and per-fluoroalkyl substances. These compounds have stubbornly strong fluorine-to-carbon bonds, which allow them to persist indefinitely in the environment, hence the moniker “forever chemicals.” ...

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Science9 May 2024

NSF awards $630,000 to study teeth of non-human primates

The National Science Foundation awarded $630,444 to Kathleen Paul, an assistant professor of anthropology at the U of A, to provide a comprehensive outline of dental genetic architecture for two primate species of tamarins and macaques. Paul's research team’s ultimate goal is to harness this information to advance bioanthropological practice, including the use of teeth for reconstructing evolutionary processes and experiences of stress and illness. No live animals will be used in the research. Instead, skeletonized individuals from collections ...

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Science9 May 2024

Discrimination may accelerate aging

Discrimination may speed up the biological processes of aging, according to a new study led by researchers at the NYU School of Global Public Health. The research links interpersonal discrimination to changes at the molecular level, revealing a potential root cause of disparities in aging-related illness and death. “Experiencing discrimination appears to hasten the process of aging, which may be contributing to disease and early mortality and fueling health disparities,” said Adolfo Cuevas, assistant professor in the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences at NYU’s ...

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Science9 May 2024

Topological Phonos: Where vibrations find their twist

An international team of researchers has discovered that the quantum particles responsible for the vibrations of materials—which influence their stability and various other properties—can be classified through topology. Phonons, the collective vibrational modes of atoms within a crystal lattice, generate disturbances that propagate like waves through neighboring atoms. These phonons are vital for many properties of solid-state systems, including thermal and electrical conductivity, neutron scattering, and quantum phases like charge density waves and superconductivity. The spectrum of phonons—essentially ...

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Science9 May 2024

Vilcek Foundation appoints Dr. Jedd Wolchok to Board of Directors

The Vilcek Foundation has announced the appointment of Dr. Jedd Wolchok to the board of directors, effective May 1, 2024. Wolchok is the Meyer Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center and a professor of medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine in New York. “Jan, Marica, and I are delighted to welcome Jedd to the Vilcek Foundation board,” says Vilcek Foundation President Rick Kinsel. “We look to our board of directors for insight and perspective on our projects and programs: Jedd is not only a leader in immunotherapy and oncology, but an academic and scientific mentor, and a philanthropist in his own right. We are honored and grateful to have him ...

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Science9 May 2024

The beginning of becoming a human

“Debates on when human life begins are rooted deep in philosophical history. However, until recently they have been limited by the state of technology.” BUFFALO, NY- May 9, 2024 – A new review paper was published in advance by Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science), entitled, “The beginning of becoming a human.” According to birth certificates, the life of a child begins once their body comes out of the mother’s womb. In this new review, researchers Polina A. Loseva and Vadim N. Gladyshev from Harvard Medical School pose ...

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Science9 May 2024

Place-based measures of inequity and vision difficulty and blindness

About The Study: Residential measures of inequity through segregation, income inequality, or persistent poverty were associated with a greater number of residents living with vision difficulty and blindness in this cross-sectional study. It is essential to understand and address how neighborhood characteristics can impact rates of vision difficulty and blindness. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Patrice M. Hicks, Ph.D., M.P.H., email pmhicks@med.umich.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamaophthalmol.2024.1207) Editor’s ...

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Science9 May 2024

Discovery made into which children will outgrow their peanut allergy

Australian researchers have discovered how changes in antibody levels over time can predict which children are likely to outgrow their peanut allergy. The research, led by Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) in Melbourne and published in Allergy, found two thirds of children with a peanut allergy remain allergic by the age of 10. But for those who did naturally outgrow their allergy, the majority achieved this by six years old. The study was the first to use antibodies as biomarkers to identify persistent or a resolved ...

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Science9 May 2024

Eleventh Nano Research Award goes to Louis E. Brus and Moungi Bawendi

Recently, Nano Research announced awardees of the 11th Nano Research Award. Two outstanding scientists, Professor Louis E. Brus of Columbia University and Professor Moungi Bawendi of Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have been awarded this honor. The Nano Research Award, established by the journal Nano Research together with Tsinghua University Press (TUP) and Springer Nature in 2013, aims to recognize outstanding contributions to nano research by an individual scientist. The winner is selected by the Award Committee ...

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Science9 May 2024

Traffic injuries to low-income NYC residents fell 30% in first five years of ‘vision zero’ road safety program, NYU study finds

Among New Yorkers with low incomes, the “Vision Zero” initiative to stem roadway crashes resulted in a marked, 30% reduction in traffic injuries of varying severity from early 2014 – when the city government launched the program – until 2019, according to a new study conducted at New York University. The study, scheduled for publication May 8 at 4:00 p.m. (ET) in the American Journal of Public Health, revealed this trend of improved safety by comparing Medicaid-covered injury ...

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Science9 May 2024

How aging clocks tick

Aging clocks can measure the biological age of humans with high precision. Biological age can be influenced by environmental factors such as smoking or diet, thus deviating from the chronological age that is calculated using the date of birth. The precision of these aging clocks suggests that the aging process follows a programme. Scientists David Meyer and Professor Dr Björn Schumacher at CECAD, the Cluster of Excellence Cellular Stress Responses in Aging-Associated Diseases of the University of Cologne, have now discovered that aging clocks actually measure the increase in stochastic changes in cells. The study ‘Aging clocks based on accumulating stochastic variation’ ...

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Science9 May 2024

Understanding the crucial role of information delivery in improving citizen perceptions of government policy: insights from Kyoto City

Citizens are often deeply concerned about how the government manages public finances and taxes. However, understanding government fiscal policy can be complex, leaving citizens without a complete picture of the factors guiding budget decisions. Kyoto City, the ninth most populous city in Japan, has been facing financial difficulties due to declining tax revenues and rising government spending. This has caused citizens to hold negative views about government policies, even though they may not fully understand them. A study published in the journal International Review of Administrative Sciences ...

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Science9 May 2024

Endoscopic procedure burns stomach lining to reduce ‘hunger hormone’ and lead to weight loss

BETHESDA, MD. (May 9, 2024) — A new weight-loss treatment could be on the horizon with an innovative endoscopic procedure that ablates (burns) the stomach lining to reduce production of ghrelin, a hormone that triggers hunger, resulting in decreased appetite and significant weight loss, according to a first-in-human trial to be presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2024. The six-month trial involving 10 female patients with obesity resulted in a 7.7% loss of body weight and a reduction of more than 40% in fasting ghrelin levels. Patients reported through validated questionnaires that their hunger was diminished by more than a third. The procedure also caused a 42% reduction ...

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Science9 May 2024

GI procedures can produce dangerous levels of smoke

BETHESDA, MD. (May 9, 2024) — Health care professionals attending certain smoke-producing endoscopic gastrointestinal procedures, including a procedure that uses electrical current to remove polyps, could be exposed to dangerous toxin levels equivalent to smoking a cigarette during each procedure and face “significant health risks” over their careers, according to a study scheduled for presentation at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2024. “Surgeons in the operating room have regulations and guidelines to mitigate smoke exposure, but that does not exist for gastrointestinal endoscopy,” said Trent Walradt, MD, a research fellow at Brigham and ...

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Science9 May 2024

30-year US study links ultra-processed food to higher risk of early death

Higher consumption of most ultra-processed foods is linked to a slightly higher risk of death, with ready-to-eat meat, poultry, and seafood based products, sugary drinks, dairy based desserts, and highly processed breakfast foods showing the strongest associations, finds a 30-year US study in The BMJ today. The researchers say not all ultra-processed food products should be universally restricted, but that their findings “provide support for limiting consumption of certain types of ultra-processed food for long term health.” Ultra-processed ...

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Science9 May 2024

Inconclusive evidence suggests zinc may slightly shorten common cold

A new Cochrane review has found that taking zinc may help to reduce the duration of common cold symptoms by about two days, but the evidence is not conclusive and potential benefits must be balanced against side-effects. Since the 1980s, zinc products have been marketed as treatments for the common cold and are particularly popular in the USA. Zinc is an essential mineral naturally found in many foods and plays a role in immune function. Most people in high-income countries get enough zinc through their diets, although aging and some chronic diseases may lead to deficiency. The theory behind zinc-based lozenges, sprays and syrups is that the zinc may interfere ...

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Science8 May 2024

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute announces Reid Wiseman as Bicentennial Commencement Speaker and will award its first posthumous honorary degree to Emily Warren Roebling

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) today announced two special honorands for its Bicentennial Commencement celebrations. Astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman ’97 will return to RPI as the Bicentennial Commencement Speaker, and Emily Warren Roebling, who led the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge to completion, will receive a posthumous honorary degree, the first to be awarded in the history of RPI. Reid Wiseman ’97 Reid Wiseman ’97, decorated naval aviator, test pilot, and commander of the Artemis II mission — which will ...

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Science8 May 2024

New insight into genesis of spina bifida

A group of researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine led an investigation that offers new insight into the causes of spina bifida, the most common structural disorder of the human nervous system. Work of the group, led by Keng Ioi Vong, Ph.D., and Sangmoon Lee, M.D. Ph.D., both from the laboratory of Joseph G. Gleeson, M.D., at the UC San Diego School of Medicine Department of Neurosciences and the Rady Children’s Institute for Genomic Medicine, reveals the first link between spina bifida and a common chromosomal microdeletion ...

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Science8 May 2024

The spread of misinformation varies by topic and by country in Europe

The eventual prevalence of a piece of misinformation may depend on its topic and the country in which it spreads, with notable differences between the UK, Germany, France and Italy, according to a study published May 8, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Fabiana Zollo from the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, Italy, and colleagues. This finding suggests that policies to combat misinformation and polarization may need to be context-specific in order to be effective, the authors say. Researchers analyzed ...

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Science8 May 2024

Pacific Oyster density has increased up to 32-fold across a decade in some California waters, and coincides with summer seawater temperature increases of 2-4°C

Pacific Oyster density has increased up to 32-fold across a decade in some California waters, and coincides with summer seawater temperature increases of 2-4°C ### Article URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0302935 Article Title: Intra-decadal increase in globally-spread Magallana gigas in southern California estuaries Author Countries: USA Funding: “Funding was provided by CSU Fullerton and via subcontracts with Merkel & Associates, Inc. and Port of San Diego to DCZ. Funders had no involvement in the study design or data collection process.” The funders had no role in study design, data collection ...

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Science8 May 2024

USC study reveals role of iron in allergic asthma and points to potential new therapies

New USC research shows that iron serves as a gas pedal driving certain immune cells that cause inflammation in the lungs during an allergic asthma attack – and blocking or limiting iron may reduce the severity of symptoms. During an attack, immune cells known as group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) can become overactive, causing excessive inflammation and a tightening of the airways, making it difficult to breath. However, the underlying biology is poorly understood. Now, researchers from the Keck School ...

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Science8 May 2024

Seven faculty members elected AAAS Fellows

Each year, the American Association for the Advancement of Science elects distinguished scientists, engineers and innovators to become AAAS Fellows. Seven faculty members from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, were awarded this lifetime honor as members of the recently announced 2023 class of AAAS Fellows. Elected faculty are Rigoberto Advincula, Takeshi Egami, Heidi Goodrich-Blair, Sergei Kalinin, Keith Kline, Anthony Mezzacappa and Michela Taufer. They represent a wide range of disciplines across the College of Arts and Sciences, the UT Institute of Agriculture and the Tickle College of Engineering. They join a distinguished group of UT faculty who have been elected AAAS ...

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Science8 May 2024

MD Anderson Research Highlights for May 8, 2024

HOUSTON ― 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 world-leading clinicians and scientists, bringing discoveries from the lab to the clinic and back. Recent developments at MD Anderson offer insights into expanding the use of FGFR inhibitors, maintaining radiation therapy as standard of care for locally recurrent endometrial cancer, an antibody-drug ...

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Science8 May 2024

Strictly no dancing

Since the discovery of quantum mechanics more than a hundred years ago, it has been known that electrons in molecules can be coupled to the motion of the atoms that make up the molecules. Often referred to as molecular vibrations, the motion of atoms act like tiny springs, undergoing periodic motion. For electrons in these systems, being joined to the hip with these vibrations means they are constantly in motion too, dancing to the tune of the atoms, on timescales of a millionth of a billionth of a second. But all this dancing around leads ...

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Science8 May 2024

High-fidelity model for designing efficient thermal management surfaces

In the past decade, fires from electronic devices and batteries, from small smartphones to electrical vehicles and airplanes, have repeatedly made headlines. Enhanced computational power has led to a large amount of waste heat generation and undesirable temperature rise of electronics. Poor heat management is the cause of over half of electronic device failures. To tackle this issue, it is crucial to develop advanced cooling technologies to effectively manage heat and maintain temperatures in the working conditions. Among various cooling technologies, liquid-vapor phase-change cooling, which utilizes the boiling or evaporation of ...

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