UK law changes pose a threat to the security of messaging apps – and therefore their use in the NHS. In The BMJ today, doctors warn that patient care will suffer if they can no longer use apps such asWhatsApp and Signal to share information. In March 2020, in the face of the pandemic, clinicians were officially allowed to use messaging services such as WhatsApp “where the benefits outweigh the risk,” reversing years of caution about their use in patient care – provided ...

A tiny fraction of schools in England – about three in every 500 – have whole-school policies which address foreign languages, English usage, and integrating students who speak English as an additional language (EAL), new research indicates. The study of almost 1,000 secondary schools, by researchers at the University of Cambridge, questions many schools’ claims to being ‘inclusive’ spaces that value the linguistic diversity of their communities. It also suggests that language learning, and an appreciation of different languages, is being deprioritised, conflicting with Government ambitions for 90% of students to study a ...

Female Meadow Brown butterflies have fewer spots if they develop in warmer weather – so climate change could make them less spotty, new research shows. University of Exeter scientists found females that developed at 11°C had six spots on average, while those developing 15°C had just three. The findings challenge long-held scientific views about why these butterflies have varying numbers of spots. “Meadow Browns always have large ‘eyespots’ on their forewings, probably for startling predators,” said Professor Richard ffrench-Constant, from the Centre for Ecology and Conservation on Exeter’s Penryn Campus in Cornwall. “They ...

After children experienced severe traumatic brain injury, the infusion of bone marrow mononuclear cells derived from the patient’s own bones led to less time spent in intensive care, less intense therapy, and, significantly, the structural preservation of white matter, which constitutes about half the total volume of the brain, according to new research from UTHealth Houston. The study, published recently in the medical journal Brain, was based on the results of a Phase II clinical trial led by first author Charles S. Cox Jr., MD, the George and Cynthia Mitchell Distinguished Chair in Neurosciences and the Glassell Family Distinguished Chair in the ...

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Tony Garcia often reflects on his grandfather’s words: “Work hard and be good to people, and you’ll end up happy.” This simple principle has been Garcia’s beacon throughout his academic and professional journeys, and now has led to his recognition with a prestigious 2023 Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers STAR of Today award for technical achievement. The STAR awards recognize individuals in STEM who are not only excelling in their fields but also making a significant impact through their work, research ...

Imagine journeying back in time to the era of woolly mammoths, some 14,000 years ago. That’s what a team of international researchers from the University of Ottawa, the University of Alaska Fairbanks, McMaster University and Adelphi University, and Indigenous scholars, managed to do. Using novel high-resolution isotope profiling (a sort of “paleo-GPS”), they were able to connect the dots between the wanderings of a woolly mammoth and the earliest known human settlements in the remote ...

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that the City University of New York is receiving $75 million from the Simons Foundation, the University’s largest-ever donation. The gift earmarks $50 million to establish CUNY as a hub for computational science and $25 million to support CUNY’s participation in the Governor’s proposed Empire AI project. Computational science uses programming techniques to solve problems in fields such as biology, astrophysics and neuroscience. “For many New Yorkers, higher education is critical to pursuing a career ...

Scientists have known about a particular organelle in plant cells for over a century. However, UC Riverside scientists have only now discovered that organelle’s key role in aging. The researchers initially set out to understand more generally which parts of plant cells control plant responses to stress from things like infections, too much salt, or too little light. Serendipitously, they found this organelle, and a protein responsible for maintaining the organelle, control whether plants survive being left too often in the dark.   Because they had not expected this discovery, which is ...

If you hate the rain, you have something in common with wolf spiders. Researchers at the University of Cincinnati found that wolf spiders can’t signal others or perceive danger from predators as easily on rain-soaked leaves compared to dry ones. Even communicating with would-be mates is harder after it rains. The study was published in the Journal of Insect Behavior. Biologists in UC’s College of Arts and Sciences studied Schizocosa ocreata, a wolf spider found across much of the United States. Males respond to chemical signals from females by using a combination of visual ...

Leesburg, VA, January 17, 2024—According to the American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR), the No Surprises Act’s (NSA) independent dispute resolution (IDR) process would be financially unfeasible for a large portion of out-of-network (OON) claims for hospital-based specialties—more so for radiologists than other specialists. “Although the NSA enacted important patient protections, IDR fees limit clinicians’ opportunities to dispute payer-determined payments and potentially undermine their bargaining power in contract negotiations,” ...

[Boston, MA—January 17, 2024] The American Meteorological Society (AMS) will open its 104th Annual Meeting with a Presidential Forum on how to advance society’s acceptance and use of climate science. Distinguished atmospheric scientist Dr. Kerry Emanuel will moderate a “fireside chat” with Monica Medina, President and CEO of the Wildlife Conservation Society and former Deputy Assistant Secretary at the State Department, and Bob Inglis, Executive Director of RepublicEn.org and former congressman from South Carolina. The Forum, with opening remarks by AMS President ...

Bacterial infections can lead to the formation of abscesses — pockets of dead cells and debris surrounded by inflammatory immune cells. Bacteria multiply within abscesses, causing more inflammation and further damage to surrounding tissues. In severe cases, these immune reactions spread across the body, resulting in life-threatening organ failure, or sepsis. But how these abscesses form and what can be done to prevent them were previously not well understood. Using preclinical models, investigators from Brigham and ...

January 17, 2024   The Heat is on: UMass Amherst Scientists Discover Southern Africa’s Temps Will Rise Past the Rhinos’ Tolerance  New research shows that rising temperatures caused by climate change are impacting the remaining black and white rhinoceros populations on the African continent, suggests taking steps to mitigate impact now   AMHERST, Mass. – Southern Africa contains the vast majority of the world’s remaining populations of both black and white rhinoceroses ...

A civil engineer at the University of Pittsburgh is applying his expertise in bridges and infrastructure to develop new materials that better treat spinal injury, repair, and recovery. Amir Alavi’s proposal received a $557,000 boost from the National Institutes of Health to test the first “metamaterial” orthopedic implants. With an estimated 342,000 procedures per year in the U.S.1, interbody spinal fusion is a popular procedure to treat a range of spinal pain and injuries, from herniated discs and degenerative diseases to trauma. Interbody fusion cages are spinal implants that are used in most of ...

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - An innovative study at Marshall University published in ArthroplastyToday explores the use of robotic-assisted joint replacement in revision knee scenarios, comparing the pre- and post-revision implant positions in a series of revision total knee arthroplasties (TKA) using a state-of-the-art robotic arm system. In this retrospective study, the orthopaedic team at the Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine and Marshall Health performed 25 revision knee replacements with a robotic assisted computer system. The procedure involved placing new implants at the end of the thighbone and top of the shinbone with the computer's aid to ensure ...

RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- After COVID vaccination, it usually takes weeks for our bodies to develop protective antibody responses. Imagine, however, a vaccine that speeds up the production of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that spreads COVID-19. A research team led by Rong Hai, an associate professor of microbiology and plant pathology at the University of California, Riverside, has developed such a vaccine by using preexisting immunity to a separate virus (the influenza virus) to help kickstart the process of making antibodies ...

MINNEAPOLIS – Approximately 23% of people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or another related dementia in their 60s and later have cases that can be explained by controllable risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, physical inactivity, and too little or too much sleep, and that percentage varies depending on race and ethnicity, according to a new study published in the January 17, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. When including APOE ε4, a gene variant associated with the strongest genetic risk for late-age Alzheimer’s disease, the study found about a third of cases could be explained ...

MINNEAPOLIS – Migraine can impact many aspects of a person’s life, but less is known about how feelings of stigma about the disease affect quality of life. For people with migraine, these feelings of stigma were linked to more disability, increased disease burden and reduced quality of life, according to new research published in the January 17, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. “Stigma is common where the disease is not readily apparent to others, and there is indication that it could be especially relevant for those living with migraine,” said study author Robert Evan Shapiro, ...

WHAT: Three different HIV antibodies each independently protected monkeys from acquiring simian-HIV (SHIV) in a placebo-controlled proof-of-concept study intended to inform development of a preventive HIV vaccine for people. The antibodies—a human broadly neutralizing antibody and two antibodies isolated from previously vaccinated monkeys—target the fusion peptide, a site on an HIV surface protein that helps the virus fuse with and enter cells. The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, was led by the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.  Antibodies ...

Social networks of sanctuary-living Grauer’s gorillas provide unique insights into the behavior of a critically endangered species and inform on their care and future release. Adult female gorillas are at the centre of social networks in a sanctuary-living Grauer's Gorilla group, according to social network analysis which also finds them to be the most gregarious. #### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0295561 Article Title: Group structure and individual relationships of sanctuary-living Grauer’s ...

In a study of nearly 5,000 North American first-year college students, those who were more extraverted, more agreeable, or less neurotic were more likely to feel a greater sense of belonging at school. Alexandria Stubblebine, an independent researcher in Ocala, Florida, USA, and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on January 17, 2024. Prior research has suggested that one’s personality traits are associated with one’s general sense of belonging. Within a college-specific context, other research has linked a secure sense of belonging to many positives, such as better academic performance and better mental health. Some studies have investigated ...

When it comes to trends in mortality over the last thirty years, countries around the world can be grouped into five clusters, roughly representing the five continents, according to a new study published January 17, 2024, in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by David Atance of Universidad de Alcalá, Spain, and colleagues. While the clusters follow different trajectories, they share some commonalities, including longer life expectancies and fewer disparities between genders and groups of countries with different mortality and longevity indicators. Most countries in the world have seen improvements in longevity over the last two centuries, ...

Mothers with high levels of dental plaque are 8 times more likely to transfer Candida albicans, involved in tooth decay, to their babies, underlining the need for moms to keep their own teeth clean ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0290938 Article Title: Multilocus sequence typing of Candida albicans oral isolates reveals high genetic relatedness of mother-child dyads in early life Author Countries: Kuwait, USA Funding: JX; grants K23DE027412 and R01DE031025 from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. https://www.nidcr.nih.gov/ The funders ...

Dancing is an effective way for overweight and obese people to lose weight and fat, per meta-analysis ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0296089 Article Title: Is dancing an effective intervention for fat loss? A systematic review and meta-analysis of dance interventions on body composition Author Countries: China Funding: We are sure that our funder is the Hunan Provincial Social Science Achievements Evaluation Committee project, the award number is XSP21YBZ163, and the Grant recipient is Longjun Jin. The funder had no role in study design, data collection ...

Arsenic concentrations are predicted to increase significantly in Bangladesh's drinking well water, consumed by around 97% of Bangladeshis, thanks to sea level rise from climate change ### Article URL:  https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0295172 Article Title: Sea level rise from climate change is expected to increase the release of arsenic into Bangladesh’s drinking well water by reduction and by the salt effect Author Countries: USA Funding: The fieldwork in Bangladesh was funded by the United States Agency of International Development (USAID; contract number US AID RE III 388-0070; https://www.usaid.gov/). ...