Hidden beneath the heavily cratered surface of Mimas, one of Saturn's smallest moons, lies a secret: a global ocean of liquid water. This astonishing discovery, led by Dr. Valéry Lainey of the Observatoire de Paris-PSL and published in the journal Nature, reveals a "young" ocean formed just 5 to 15 million years ago, making Mimas a prime target for studying the origins of life in our Solar System.  “Mimas is a small moon, only about 400 kilometers in diameter, and its heavily cratered surface gave no hint of the hidden ocean beneath," says Dr Nick Cooper, ...

An international research group has discovered a new state of matter characterized by the existence of a quantum phenomenon called chiral current. These currents are generated on an atomic scale by a cooperative movement of electrons, unlike conventional magnetic materials whose properties originate from the quantum characteristic of an electron known as spin and their ordering in the crystal. Chirality is a property of extreme importance in science, for example, it is fundamental also to understand DNA. ...

In a new study, Tokyo Medical and Dental University researchers shed light on partial endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition in the tumor microenvironment Tokyo, Japan - Endothelial-mesenchymal transition (EndoMT, also termed as EndMT), a biological process resulting in the formation of mesenchymal (or lineage-committed) phenotypes from endothelial cells (lining blood vessels), plays a crucial role in tumor progression. Despite the important role of EndoMT, the underlying mechanism and characteristics of cells in intermediate/partial EndoMT remain largely unexplored. Now, researchers from Japan have developed a system to study these EndoMT stages.  In ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – After serving decades in prison, Rwandans convicted of crimes of genocide returned to their communities articulating a “narrative of redemption,” saying they were good people, despite their past crimes.   And they were hopeful about their prospects for reintegrating into their communities.   Many of these former prisoners had been convicted of murder, often of their own neighbors, connected to the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. But they said they had changed – even while minimizing their role in the killings.   In ...

Fukuoka, Japan—Researchers at Kyushu University have found that Japan's current policy of stopping the sale of gas vehicles by 2035 and transitioning only to hybrids and electric vehicles may be insufficient to reduce the country's CO2 emissions and prevent it from reaching its decarbonization target goals. In fact, emissions may temporarily increase. The team's analysis showed that along with the policy, the Japanese government must simultaneously work to increase production of clean ...

The European project entitled “Bone, Brain, Breast and Axillary Medical Microwave Imaging Twinning (3BAtwin)” has been awarded with €1.5M to reinforce our training on Medical Microwave Imaging (MMWI). The project is led by the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon (Ciências ULisboa) (Portugal), in collaboration with University of Galway (Ireland) and Turin Polytechnic University (Italy). The goal of this twinning project is to accelerate the transition of Medical Microwave Imaging “from the research bench ...

PLYMOUTH MEETING, PA [February 7, 2024] — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®)—an alliance of leading cancer centers—today published its first ever set of treatment recommendations pertaining to neuroblastoma. Neuroblastoma is a type of solid tumor cancer that typically occurs in early childhood, with the majority diagnosed before age five.[1] Neuroblastoma is the most common type of solid tumor (outside of brain tumors) in children, with more than 700 cases diagnosed in the United States every year.[2] Research innovations ...

Highlights: Alterations in gut microbiota may influence immune system changes during pregnancy. However, the connection isn’t well known. Researchers in China analyzed gut microbiota, metabolites and cytokines in healthy pregnant and non-pregnant young women. The new study identifies numerous pathways by which the gut microbiome may change the immune system. Washington, D.C.—During pregnancy, a woman’s immune system changes dramatically but researchers don’t yet understand all the underlying mechanisms. A new study shows how the gut microbiota may play a role. In a paper published this week in mSystems, researchers in China report that during pregnancy, ...

Highlights: Wastewater, even when treated, can deliver antimicrobial resistance genes to rivers. Further research is needed on if rivers function as a protective barrier. Researchers subjected biofilms from pristine rivers to wastewater. Antibiotic resistant bacteria from wastewater successfully integrated at first, but in the warmest water were edged out by naturally occurring microbes. The study suggests that temperature can influence the microbial competition in rivers. Washington, D.C.—Antimicrobial resistant genes (ARGs) from wastewater can end up in natural biofilms in rivers, but they may not stick around very long. This week in mSphere, ...

Accelerating Innovation in Medicine - Health Initiative (AIM-HI) is proud to celebrate a significant milestone in the journey of one of its esteemed portfolio companies, Yiviva. A clinical-stage platform biotechnology company, Yiviva has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with AstraZeneca China, a multinational biopharmaceutical leader. AIM-HI exists to support bold new ideas in treating and preventing cancer. So when Yale Professor Yung-Chi Cheng approached us years ago about mining ancient Chinese herbs for modern therapies, we took notice. Other investors ...

DALLAS, Feb. 7, 2024 — Research teams from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, New York University and Duke University will work together to assess the accuracy of the American Heart Association’s new PREVENTTM risk calculator with funding from the Association’s De-biasing Clinical Care Algorithms project. The American Heart Association, celebrating 100 years of service in 2024, is­ the single largest non-government supporter of heart and brain health research in the U.S. The de-biasing project is funded by a grant from the Doris Duke Foundation to study the role of race and ethnicity in clinical equations and their ...

Geographic sorting along ideological lines is on the rise. Counties and regions of the United States differ in political ideology. But do they differ in personality as well? Further, are people who ‘fit’ their communities healthier, happier, or more highly achieving than those who do not? In the context of these growing divisions and to address this question, a study by Florida Atlantic University’s Kevin Lanning, Ph.D., senior author and a professor of psychology and data science in the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College on FAU’s John D. MacArthur Campus in Jupiter, and ...

One of the most important components of satellites that enable telecommunication is the waveguide, which is a metal tube for guiding radio waves. It is also one of the heaviest payloads satellites carry into orbit. As with all space technology, reducing weight means reducing the amount of expensive and greenhouse gas-producing fuel it takes to launch a rocket, or increasing the number of devices carried by the same rocket to space. Researchers from Drexel University and the University of British Columbia are trying to lighten the load by creating and testing a waveguide made ...

More than half of Americans do not currently meet the daily recommendation of 5–7 ounce equivalents^ of nuts and seeds per week.1 One possible contributor to such low intakes of tree nuts could be a fear that the calories or fat composition of tree nuts leads to weight gain. For example, past studies suggest that up to 87% of Americans think eating nuts can lead to weight gain due to their dietary fat content2 despite scientists confirming that eating nuts every day, including pistachios,3 can be an achievable and simple strategy to ...

A more accurate way of identifying underground nuclear tests, including those conducted in secret, has been developed by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU).   The new method could help international observers better identify tests carried out by countries or actors known to possess nuclear weapons, as well as providing new information about those suspected of being armed.   According to lead author Dr Mark Hoggard, in the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis and Partial Test Ban Treaty in the 1960s, testing of nuclear ...

DALLAS, Feb. 6, 2024 — Five promising scientific researchers will advance their work to better understand and treat the most common birth defect in the U.S., congenital heart defects (CHDs), thanks to joint financial support from the American Heart Association and The Children’s Heart Foundation's Congenital Heart Defect Research Awards program. To date, the American Heart Association, celebrating 100 years of lifesaving service and devoted to a world of healthier lives for all, and The Children’s Heart Foundation, dedicated to funding congenital heart defect research, have ...

HOUSTON – (Feb. 7, 2024) – Artificial intelligence is good at many tasks involving data in the form of text, audio and images, including face recognition and text summarization. “AI is an amazing tool and has been extended over less conventional domains, such as climate data defined on spheres (representing the Earth) and traffic data defined on road networks,” said Santiago Segarra, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering and statistics. With his five-year, $599,138 CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation, Segarra intends to study the use of graphs to represent these ...

Whether it’s singing in a choir, playing the living room piano, joining in hymns at church, or just whistling along with the radio, a new poll finds that nearly all older adults say music brings them far more than just entertainment. Three-quarters of people age 50 to 80 say music helps them relieve stress or relax and 65% say it helps their mental health or mood, according to the new results from the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging. Meanwhile, 60% say they get energized or motivated ...

Sewage sludge is the solid waste resulting from wastewater treatment. According to data from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, 1.2 million tons of this waste were produced in Spain in 2021 alone, and its management is a growing problem. Although some of it may have agricultural applications, such as being used as fertilizer after composting, its high concentration of metals limits its use, generating environmental problems. A new study has managed to give this waste a second life, turning it into activated carbon, a product boasting ...

Although change-oriented behaviors are critical to high quality public service delivery, encouraging employees to embrace and pursue change in the public sector is difficult. Even with sufficient job autonomy–the principal antidote to resistance to change in the public sector literature–public servants may still lack the incentives, skills, information, and sense of security necessary to engage in proactive change-oriented behavior. Consequently, while job autonomy is undoubtedly important, it alone is not enough, as demonstrated by the many cases in which autonomy fails to lead to change and work process improvements. Given the importance of attitudes ...

For the first time, a hydrogel material made of nanocellulose and algae has been tested as an alternative, greener architectural material. The study, from Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden and the Wallenberg Wood Science Center, shows how the abundant sustainable material can be 3D printed into a wide array of architectural components, using much less energy than conventional construction methods. The construction industry today consumes 50 percent of the world’s fossil resources, generates 40 percent of global waste and causes 39 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions. There is a growing line of research into biomaterials and their applications, in ...

When it comes to making fuel from plants, the first step has always been the hardest — breaking down the plant matter. A new study finds that introducing a simple, renewable chemical to the pretreatment step can finally make next-generation biofuel production both cost-effective and carbon neutral. For biofuels to compete with petroleum, biorefinery operations must be designed to better utilize lignin. Lignin is one of the main components of plant cell walls. It provides plants with greater structural integrity and resiliency from microbial attacks. However, these natural properties of lignin also make it difficult to extract and utilize ...

The Sun’s polar regions were the most active emitting high energy radiation during the previous solar maximum, an imbalance yet to be explained, and reported for the first time in a study led by a researcher of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Lisbon (Ciências ULisboa) (Portugal). The Sun shines brightly in the visible light, but how does it look like at the highest energies of the electromagnetic radiation? The Sun’s picture taken in gamma rays is a deadly sight, luckily blinded by the Earth’s atmosphere and only seen from space. Each photon carries a billion times more energy than its ultraviolet sibling. How does the Sun’s regular gamma rays’ ...

A major challenge to developing better neural prostheses is sensory encoding: transforming information captured from the environment by sensors into neural signals that can be interpreted by the nervous system. But because the number of electrodes in a prosthesis is limited, this environmental input must be reduced in some way, while still preserving the quality of the data that is transmitted to the brain. Demetri Psaltis (Optics Lab) and Christophe Moser (Laboratory of Applied Photonics Devices) collaborated with Diego Ghezzi of the Hôpital ophtalmique Jules-Gonin – Fondation Asile des Aveugles (previously Medtronic Chair in Neuroengineering at EPFL) to apply machine ...

A study led by researchers at the Nagoya University Museum in Japan may change how we understand the cultural evolution of Homo sapiens at the time of their dispersal across Eurasia about 50,000 to 40,000 years ago. These findings challenge traditional beliefs about the timing and nature of cultural transitions during this critical period in human history.  Published in Nature Communications, the researchers’ insights into stone tool technology suggest that the commonly held view of a ‘revolution’ in culture and technology that allowed anatomically modern humans to outcompete ...