Urbana, Illinois — The Speech Accessibility Project is almost halfway through its first phase of gathering voice recordings from people with Parkinson’s. The project still needs more participants, especially those with related neurological conditions like MSA, PSP, CBD, and those who are post-DBS. They must be U.S. residents older than age 18. They can sign up via the Speech Accessibility App. Led by UIUC with support from Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft, the Speech Accessibility Project aims to make voice recognition technology ...

Many diseases affecting the brain and nervous system are linked to the formation of protein aggregates, or solid condensates, in cells from their liquid form condensate, but little is known about this process. This liquid-to-solid transition can trigger the formation of what are called amyloid fibrils. These can further form plaques in neurons causing neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. Biomedical engineers at the University of Sydney, in collaboration with scientists at the University of Cambridge ...

Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) Professor Dr. Frank Narducci, Chair of the Department of Physics, received a Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) award to build what could become the most precise atomic instrument of its kind for applications to quantum sensing experiments in navigation and timekeeping. Called an atomic tower, the instrument is expected to have unprecedented sensitivity to acceleration and rotation measurements due to its unprecedented height. NPS research utilizing this instrument has many applications of interest to the Department of the Navy, Narducci explained. “Most immediately ...

Griffith University researchers are on the brink of a technological breakthrough in vaccine development with a possible new vaccine modality.   Professor Bernd Rehm and Dr Shuxiong Chen from the Griffith Institute for Drug Discovery (GRIDD) and Griffith’s Centre for Cell Factories and Biopolymers have succeeded in developing a new vaccine modality that is a stable particulate vaccine.   The new vaccine modality is at proof-of-concept stage and in early development.   To demonstrate this vaccine approach, it was tested with a more established Griffith vaccine against Strep A that is currently performing strongly in human clinical trials in Canada.    Professor ...

Whenever the precision of a measurement approaches the uncertainty limit defined by quantum mechanics, the outcomes of the measurement depend on the dynamics of the interactions with the meter used to determine a physical property of the system. This finding may explain why quantum experiments often produce conflicting results and may contradict basic assumptions regarding physical reality. Two quantum physicists from Hiroshima University recently analyzed the dynamics of a measurement interaction, where the value of a physical property is identified with a quantitative change in the meter state. This is a difficult problem, because quantum theory does not identify the value ...

Autism is difficult to study and more difficult to treat because it is an individual condition lacking precise quantification. The development of mouse models of human mental disorders has proven a tractable approach to studying the molecular mechanisms, a new review argues and highlights the current state of the art in autism research. Whether or not the autism spectrum is a disorder to be treated or a disability to be accommodated is debated by experts. This, however, is symptomatic for the fact that it is a very individual condition that has many expressions as well as causes, with no quantitative evaluation system or objective, mechanized diagnostic method. This makes ...

William Shakespeare used the word dotage to capture reduced mental ability (as in being blindly in love) rather than as a quaint term for old age, successes were really outcomes – one could talk of a ‘bad success’ – and, it turns out, the word bastard back then most often referred to a flower that was genetically hybrid. A new dictionary, a verbal treasure trove of the nuances and uses of Shakespeare’s words, is published this week. While dinner was preferred by Shakespeare for what we might think of as lunch (although his contemporaries used it to refer to an evening meal), beef, as today, was strongly associated with the English, but particularly the lower ...

BRCA1 and BRCA2 are well-known breast cancer genes associated with a significantly increased risk of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer. However, there are an additional eleven genes associated with elevated risk for these types of cancer. A multi-year Swedish study now reveals that the proportion of women with genetically confirmed hereditary breast cancer doubled by including all genes in the screening test. In a Swedish research study including patients between 2012 and 2018, all cancer genetic clinics in Sweden participated. A total of 4759 individuals underwent comprehensive ...

Picture this scenario: You and a friend are walking around your neighborhood when you stop at a crosswalk. As you wait, the noises of the world and your internal thoughts all vie for your attention. Suddenly, you see a motorist nearly hit a bicyclist.   “Whoa, did you see that?” you say to your friend.   “I sure did; that was a fully restored 1967 Ford Mustang,” your friend replies, referring to a car separate from the near-traffic collision. Despite being in the same place at the same time, and looking at the same scene, you and your friend paid attention to different things.   Why? ...

DURHAM, N.C. -- If you happened upon a witch hazel plant in the forest, you might describe it as a sweet-smelling shrub with crinkly ribbon-like petals. But to Duke University graduate student Justin Jorge, it’s a howitzer. That’s because of the impressive firepower of its fruits. When witch hazels are ready to disperse their seeds, their woody seed capsules split open. Pressure builds up, and eventually the seeds shoot out like bullets fired from a rifle, hitting 30 feet per second in about half a millisecond. “If you blink you’ll miss it,” said Jorge, who worked on this project as part of his Ph.D. thesis in biomechanics with senior author ...

URBANA, Ill. — Like every industry, modern farming relies heavily on plastics. Think plastic mulch lining vegetable beds, PVC pipes draining water from fields, polyethylene covering high tunnels, and plastic seed, fertilizer, and herbicide packaging, to name a few. In a new review article, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers say these plastics are now widely dispersed in agricultural soils in the form of microplastics and nanoplastics.  That’s not necessarily new; microplastics have been found in nearly every ...

In the rural United States, an adolescent who drinks heavily has a 43% greater probability of carrying a handgun in the following year, according to a study published this month in The Journal of Rural Health. “While there has been a lot of research on this correlation in urban areas, little is known about the association between alcohol use, particularly heavy drinking, and handgun carrying in rural areas,” said lead author Alice Ellyson, an acting assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine and investigator in UW Medicine's  Firearm Injury & Policy Research Program. “Our study ...

In a groundbreaking endeavor, researchers at the University of Rochester have successfully transferred a longevity gene from naked mole rats to mice, resulting in improved health and an extension of the mouse’s lifespan. Naked mole rats, known for their long lifespans and exceptional resistance to age-related diseases, have long captured the attention of the scientific community. By introducing a specific gene responsible for enhanced cellular repair and protection into mice, the Rochester researchers have opened exciting possibilities for unlocking the secrets of aging and extending human lifespan. “Our study provides a proof of principle ...

As ocean temperatures rise, coral reefs face increasing threats as ecosystem damage has accelerated in recent decades. The ability to preserve and revive biodiverse coral samples has become an essential priority for the health and future of the world’s oceans. A Texas A&M University-led interdisciplinary team of researchers demonstrated that live coral can be preserved through a new technique called “isochoric vitrification.” This process takes selected coral fragments through the stages of cryopreservation, ...

“We hope that these results will inform future attempts at anti-macrophage therapy and lead to better outcomes for patients in the not-too-distant future.”  BUFFALO, NY- August 23, 2023 – A new editorial paper was published in Oncotarget's Volume 14 on June 6, 2023, entitled, “A macrophage is a macrophage is a macrophage—in metastasis.” In this new editorial, researcher Thomas T. Tapmeier from Monash University, Hudson Institute of Medical Research and University of Oxford discusses a recent study he co-authored on how lung macrophages evolve during metastatic growth of lung colonies in a mouse model of melanoma. Macrophages have important roles ...

With an extendable pole fitted with a small camera, Alison Ke could get a clear view of the inside of a nest box, including one time when a small, green Pacific parrotlet laid eggs. Ke, who earned a Ph.D. in ecology from UC Davis, led a research project to find out how converting rainforest to farmland affects the habitat of birds who rely on tree holes, or cavities, for nesting. Ke worked closely with local scientists and community members to study birds around the Mache-Chindul Ecological Reserve, an area in northwest Ecuador that has experienced rapid deforestation and agricultural expansion in the past 50 years. Their study, ...

Between 30 to 50 percent of people living with multiple sclerosis (MS) will experience memory problems but the cause is uncertain. Brain lesions are the hallmark imaging sign used to diagnose MS and are often associated with memory dysfunction. However, increased MS brain lesions are not specific to memory problems and are also associated with fatigue, walking difficulty and other common MS symptoms. Previous studies that attempted to align the anatomy of lesions associated with memory problems in MS led to conflicting ...

The Fannie and John Hertz Foundation, an organization dedicated to empowering the nation’s most promising innovators in science and technology, announced today that it is accepting applications for the 2024 Hertz Fellowship awards. The Hertz Foundation has been granting fellowships to empower the nation’s most promising young minds in science and technology since 1963. Hertz Fellows receive five years of funding, which offers flexibility and freedom from the traditional constraints of graduate training and the independence needed to pursue research to advance our ...

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Getting a COVID-19 vaccine may not only reduce a person's risk of getting long-haul COVID, but also could mean fewer symptoms for people who develop the condition. Mayo Clinic researchers discovered that long-haul COVID patients who were vaccinated before contracting the virus were less likely to experience symptoms such as abdominal pain, chest pain, dizziness, and shortness of breath, according to a study published in the Journal of Investigative Medicine. The study is believed to be among the first to examine COVID-19 vaccines' potential to reduce ...

MSU research suggests natural selection can slow evolution, maintain similarities across generations Highlights: New research from Michigan State University suggests that natural selection, famous for rewarding advantageous differences in organisms, can also preserve similarities. Reporting in the journals New Phytologist and Evolution, the researchers worked with a plant called wild radish and its stamens, or pollen-producing parts, two of which are short and four are long. Roughly 55 million years ago, wild radish ancestors had stamens of equal length. The team selectively bred — or artificially selected — ...

ITHACA, N.Y. - To prepare for extreme heat waves around the world – particularly in places known for cool summers – climate-simulation models that include a new computing concept may save tens of thousands of lives. The concept, called “ensemble boosting,” uses computationally efficient modeling to simulate a large set of extreme but plausible heat waves, all while avoiding hundreds of hours of expensive calculations on large computers. The study on the new modeling method, led by scientists at ETH Zurich, Switzerland and Cornell University, was published Aug. ...

In the wake of the 2022 Supreme Court ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization that overturned Roe v. Wade, researchers at the University of Chicago set out to investigate whether anticipation of restricted abortion access increased interest in vasectomies in the preceding years. In a new analysis, they found that vasectomy rates in the United States witnessed a remarkable surge from 2014 to 2021, as more men opted for the outpatient surgical procedure that offers permanent contraception by preventing ...

Almost everything about insects called kissing bugs is revolting, from the insidious way they bite people’s faces at night to drink their blood while they sleep to the way they spread disease through their poop. Some carry a parasite called Trypanosoma cruzi that causes Chagas disease, a leading cause of disability and premature death in the Americas. Left untreated, Chagas disease can cause serious heart and digestive problems. It’s showing up more and more in patients in the United States. Now researchers at the University of Cincinnati are investigating ...

DURHAM, N.C. -- New research finds brands that leverage a reputation for quality to pay employees less risk eroding profits. The paper, published online June 12 in the Journal of Marketing Research and authored by researchers from Duke University, London Business School and Texas A&M University, shows that vertical brand differentiation (being perceived as better) is associated with lower pay, whereas horizontal brand differentiation (being perceived as different) is associated with higher pay. High-quality brands taking advantage of brand cachet to pay employees less erodes profits due to negative effects on employee productivity ...

Technologies developed by researchers at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory have received six 2023 R&D 100 Awards.   R&D World magazine announced the winners from their selection of finalists announced last week. The winners will be recognized at the organization’s award ceremony November 16 in San Diego, California. “ORNL strives to deliver technological solutions for the nation’s toughest problems,” said interim ORNL Director Jeff Smith. “This year’s R&D 100 Awards are a reminder of how hard our scientists and engineers work to accomplish that feat.” Often referred ...