Many years ago, I got to spend some time in Ngorongoro Crater, a unique place in Africa where immense herds of animals are being watched by equally immense crowds of 4x4-riding tourists, and traffic jams of all kinds are frequent. On my last evening there, a local guide told me at a campfire that some buffalo in the crater had figured out the meaning of car turn signals and used that understanding to get out of the way of turning Jeeps and Land Rovers. I never had a chance to return to the crater and still don’t know if that story was true, but it got me interested in animals’ perception of – and interactions with – human-made vehicles. Of course, the most ...

Over the past decade, much research has focused on the connection between skeletal muscle health and cognitive disorders. Scientists have found that sarcopenia, a geriatric syndrome characterized by progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and function, appears to be strongly associated with an elevated risk of dementia. The complex relationship between our muscles and brain health represents a promising frontier in preventive medicine, particularly as global populations continue to age.   However, to date, most studies on the link between muscle health and dementia have predominantly targeted elderly populations or individuals already diagnosed with cognitive impairment. ...

Intracellular protein trafficking and secretion of proteins into the extracellular environment are sequential and tightly regulated processes in eukaryotic cells. Conventionally, proteins that are bound for secretion harbor an N-terminal signal peptide that guides their movement from the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi apparatus to the exterior of the cell. However, some proteins can bypass this system using unconventional mechanisms, including direct translocation across the plasma membrane, transporter-mediated ...

A group of fossils of elasmosaurs – some of the most famous in North America – have just been formally identified as belonging to a “very odd” new genus of the sea monster, unlike any previously known. Long-necked and measuring in at 12 metres, Traskasaura sandrae – as it is officially named today in this new study – possessed heavy, sharp, robust teeth, ideal for crushing. Findings, published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, highlight Traskasaura as having a strange mix of primitive and derived traits unlike any other elasmosaur. Its unique suite ...

Australia needs to urgently prioritise state and national conservation policies according to a new study, with the findings warning more than 220 critically endangered species are at risk of being lost due to their small distributions coupled with uneven protections.  In the first known study of its kind, the team led by Griffith University, assessed how much of each species’ habitat in Australia was outside protected areas and considered to have agricultural capability, potentially elevating risk of conversion.  They ...

SAN DIEGO (May 22, 2025) – A new scientific study led by San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance researchers sheds light on the social dynamics that drive the continued consumption of bear bile in Việt Nam, revealing that gift-giving among close social networks plays a crucial role in sustaining demand. The findings suggest that conservation efforts could be more effective if they focus on shifting behaviors within influential social groups rather than broad public awareness campaigns.  Bear bile, extracted from the gallbladders of Asiatic black bears and sun ...

Heat waves destroy crops, drive wildfires, and kill humans and wildlife, but these extreme weather events aren’t just limited to land. Large bodies of water can also be hit by heat waves that linger for weeks, months and sometimes years—much like “The Blob,” a sprawling hot spot off the U.S. West Coast that wreaked havoc on Pacific Ocean ecosystems from 2013 to 2016. New University of Maryland-led research reveals that the Chesapeake Bay has seen “significant increases” in annual marine heat waves, defined in the study as “prolonged periods of anomalously warm water.” Published in the journal Estuaries and Coasts, the study leveraged ...

NEW YORK, NY (May 22, 2025)--When Columbia neurologist and scientist Neil Shneider speaks to his ALS patients who volunteer for experimental therapies, he’s unwaveringly honest. “Patients always ask me, “What can I hope to get out of this?” Shneider says. “And I always say, in most clinical trials, our hope is that we can slow the disease or maybe even halt progression.”  So it was a big surprise when some of the patients treated with an experimental drug—a therapy that emerged from Shneider’s research efforts—showed improvements. “When testing new drugs for ALS, we do not expect to ...

As we get older, our bodies stop performing as they once did. We aren’t as strong as we once were, we don’t see as well as we used to and we start becoming less mobile. These changes inevitably lead to almost a third of people over the age 65 falling each year, resulting in injuries and occasionally death. In the United States alone, it costs the healthcare system billions of dollars annually. However, while aging is a certainty, falling may be preventable. ‘One big challenge is that small balance impairments can go unnoticed until someone actually falls. So, we wanted to ask: Can we detect these impairments before someone gets hurt?’ explains Jiaen ...

Images   A newly discovered silicone variant is a semiconductor, University of Michigan researchers have discovered—upending assumptions that the material class is exclusively insulating.  "The material opens up the opportunity for new types of flat panel displays, flexible photovoltaics, wearable sensors or even clothing that can display different patterns or images," said Richard Laine, U-M professor of materials science and engineering and macromolecular science and engineering and corresponding author ...

Tropical cyclones, including storms below hurricane and typhoon strength, were associated with a sharp rise in infant mortality in low- and middle-income countries during the first two decades of this century, according to new research published in Science Advances. The findings point to a critical need for stronger disaster response and child health protections in vulnerable regions, especially as climate change increases the frequency and severity of these storms. Infants in these regions exposed to tropical cyclones before they were born ...

Roughly 10 percent of the U.S. population is afflicted with major depressive disorder at any given time, and up to 20 percent will exhibit MDD symptoms over their lifetimes. Yet despite its prevalence, methods to treat MDD often fall short for a not-insignificant portion of the population. Antidepressants—the standard of treatment—don’t work for 30 percent with MDD. When infused at a low dose ketamine shows remarkable efficacy as a rapidly acting antidepressant, with effects observed within hours even in patients who have been resistant to other ...

University of Illinois Physics Professor Paul Kwiat and members of his research group have developed a revolutionary new tool for precision measurement at the nanometer scale in scenarios where background noise and optical loss from the sample are present. This new optical interferometry technology leverages the quantum properties of light—specifically, extreme color entanglement—to enable faster and more precise measurements than widely used classical and quantum techniques can achieve. Colin ...

TAMPA, Fla. – Moffitt Cancer Center will play a key role at the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, which will take place May 30 to June 3 in Chicago. Physician-scientists and researchers from Moffitt are contributing to more than 30 oral, rapid-oral and poster presentations, offering new data and perspectives that could help shape the future of cancer care. This year’s ASCO theme, “Driving Knowledge to Action. Building a Better Future,” reflects a shared commitment to turning scientific discoveries ...

Wildfire risks will continue to evolve as both society and forests change across the southeastern United States, according to a new report. The report is one part of the Southern Forest Outlook, a project undertaken by the USDA Forest Service in partnership with the Southern Group of State Foresters to help forest managers and the public understand changing forest conditions in the South over the coming decades. USDA Forest Service researcher Lars Pomara and his team first modeled and mapped current wildfire risks across the South, including risks to people from direct fire exposure ...

CORNELL UNIVERSITY MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE FOR RELEASE: May 21, 2025   Kaitlyn Serrao 607-882-1140 kms465@cornell.edu   On-site health clinics boost attendance in rural classrooms ITHACA, N.Y. - Students miss less class time in rural upstate New York schools that host comprehensive health clinics, according to Cornell University research that is the first to confirm such benefits in rural areas. The work is also informing a legislative proposal to expand access to these clinics.   Analyzing more than 66,000 students in a four-county region over four years, the researchers found that children ...

(New York, May 22, 2025) – Four Weill Cornell Medicine investigators received the Ritu Banga Healthcare Disparities Research Awards, recognizing innovative research that will help close care gaps in clinical settings. Endowed through a generous $5 million gift from Board of Fellows member Ritu Banga and her husband, Ajay Banga, each $50,000 award supports projects aimed at improving health outcomes for populations that have historically faced systemic barriers to care. “It is an honor to help bring to life the Banga’s vision of a health care system where everyone can experience high-quality care,” ...

Key Takeaways Vision scientists from the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have developed new tools—four novel promoters—to address the challenge of treating advanced stages of inherited retinal diseases that cause vision loss. These promoters drive strong and specific gene expression in rod and cone photoreceptors even in mid-to-late stages of disease, outperforming most currently used promoters in retinal gene therapy. These novel promoters are ideally sized for effective adeno-associated virus (AAV)-mediated delivery.   Inherited retinal degenerations (IRDs) are a group of genetic disorders that lead ...

As the national debate intensifies around immigration, a new study from the University of California School of Global Policy and Strategy is challenging conventional wisdom about “brain drain”—the idea that when skilled workers emigrate from developing countries, their home economies suffer. Published in Science, the paper reveals high-skilled emigration from developing countries may actually boost economic development, human capital and innovation in migrants’ countries of origin.  With the U.S. undergoing sweeping immigration ...

LOS ANGELES — Researchers from City of Hope®, one of the largest and most advanced cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States with its National Medical Center named Top 5 “Best Hospital” in the nation for cancer care by U.S. News & World Report, will present novel cancer treatment approaches and combinations, leading-edge targeted therapies, and supportive care interventions that could reduce cancer risk and improve survival at the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting taking place May 30 ...

CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Separating crude oil into products such as gasoline, diesel, and heating oil is an energy-intensive process that accounts for about 6 percent of the world’s CO2 emissions. Most of that energy goes into the heat needed to separate the components by their boiling point. In an advance that could dramatically reduce the amount of energy needed for crude oil fractionation, MIT engineers have developed a membrane that filters the components of crude oil by their molecular size. “This is a whole new way of envisioning a separation process. Instead of boiling mixtures to purify them, why not separate ...

Groundbreaking Discovery What if the human body contained a natural bioreactor capable of regenerating vital organs? A collaborative team from ​Wenzhou Medical University, Nanjing University, and University of Macau has redefined the spleen’s potential, transforming it into a ​self-sustaining hub for organ regeneration, as published in Science Translational Medicine (May 21). This breakthrough could revolutionize treatments for type 1 diabetes and beyond. Redesigning the Spleen: From Filter to "Living Bioreactor" Confronting ...

A leading cardiovascular disease researcher from Simon Fraser University is ringing the alarm on universal recommendations intended to improve heart health around the globe. Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide, with 80 per cent of deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries. However, international heart-health guidelines are primarily based on research from high-income countries and often overlook upstream causes of CVD, says Scott Lear, a health sciences professor at SFU and the Pfizer/Heart & Stroke Foundation Chair in Cardiovascular Prevention Research. “The world extends beyond high-income countries when we think ...

A new study from UBC Okanagan says students appear to be using generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) responsibly, and as a way to speed up tasks, not just boost their grades. Dr. Meaghan MacNutt, who teaches professional ethics in the UBCO School of Health and Exercise Sciences (HES), recently published a study in Advances in Physiology Education. Published this month, the paper—titled Reflective writing assignments in the era of GenAI: student behaviour and attitudes suggest utility, not futility—contradicts ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Scientists aiming to advance cancer diagnostics have developed a machine learning tool that is able to identify metabolism-related molecular profile differences between patients with colorectal cancer and healthy people. The analysis of biological samples from more than 1,000 people also revealed metabolic shifts associated with changing disease severity and with genetic mutations known to increase the risk for colorectal cancer. Though there is more analysis to come, the resulting “biomarker discovery pipeline” shows promise as a noninvasive method of diagnosing colorectal cancer and monitoring disease progression, said Jiangjiang Zhu, ...