Fentanyl has killed hundreds of thousands of people globally since 2015. Detection of the drugs during interdiction is currently done through Raman spectroscopy or chemical strips—both of which require direct access to samples. Michael Malone and colleagues use a magnetic resonance technique to detect fentanyl hydrochloride inside sealed opaque containers and packages—an approach that could be used in airports, border crossings, post offices, and other contexts. Nuclear quadrupole resonance (NQR) spectroscopy sends a radio frequency pulse with ...

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem is proud to announce that Prof. Eran Meshorer has been elected as a member of EMBO, a prestigious European organization recognizing exceptional research leaders in life sciences across Europe and beyond. “At a time when Israel faces significant challenges, it is especially meaningful to celebrate achievements that highlight the strength and resilience of our academic community. The election of Prof. Eran Meshorer to EMBO is not only a personal honor, but also a testament to the world-class research conducted at the Hebrew University. His groundbreaking work in epigenetics ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio – As glaciers retreat due to a rise in global temperatures, one study shows detailed 3D elevation models could drastically improve predictions about how they react to Earth’s warming climate.   While only 10% of Earth is covered in glacial ice, these masses have far-reaching impacts on all the world’s ecosystems. Rapid melting can trigger natural disasters, and glaciers help to regulate the planet’s temperature and sea level and are sources of pristine fresh drinking water. To better differentiate between seasonal ice loss and that caused by long-term climate trends, ...

In a Perspective, Julio M. Ottino describes different classes of creativity and proposes a benchmark for the highest level of creativity. Combinative creativity is the process of combining existing elements to create new solutions, while transformative creativity leads to entirely new frameworks. But beyond the breakthroughs of transformative creativity, according to Ottino, is the “break-with,” a conceptual advance that destroys previous worldviews completely and ushers in a new order. Advances that rise to the level of a break-with include quantum mechanics in physics and cubism in ...

Antarctic sea ice is more than just a platform for penguins. The sea ice’s high reflectivity influences the whole Earth’s climate, and the ice is a key habitat for underwater as well as above-water ecosystems. Antarctic sea ice cover is becoming much more variable as the climate changes; there has been a string of record high years followed by years with record low areas of ice. Edward Doddridge and colleagues studied these record-low years, which they expect will become more common as the climate warms. Using observations ...

As technology increasingly integrates complex soundscapes into virtual spaces, understanding how humans perceive directional audio becomes vital. This need is bolstered by the rise of immersive media, such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), where users are virtually transported into other worlds. In a recent study, researchers explored how listeners identify the direction from which a speaker is facing while speaking.   The research was led by Dr. Shinya Tsuji, a postdoctoral fellow, Ms. Haruna Kashima, ...

The scientific team of Dr. Miloslav Polášek at IOCB Prague has developed a new method of separating the rare earth elements, or lanthanides, which are widely used in the electronic, medical, automotive, and defense industries. The unique method allows metals such as neodymium or dysprosium to be purified from used neodymium magnets. The environmentally friendly process precipitates the rare earths from water without organic solvents or toxic substances. The results were published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS) at the end of June. Global demand for rare ...

CLEVELAND—Epilepsy is among the most common neurological conditions, marked by unpredictable seizures, accidents and injuries, reduced quality of life, stigma and—in the worst case—premature death.  But a program—developed over several years by a Case Western Reserve University-led research team—that teaches people with epilepsy how to “self-manage” their disorder is showing positive results. The program has been found to help people with epilepsy reduce related health complications and improve their mood and quality of life, according to a new study recently ...

While glucose, or sugar, is a well-known fuel for the brain, Weill Cornell Medicine researchers have demonstrated that electrical activity in synapses—the junctions between neurons where communication occurs—can lead to the use of lipid or fat droplets as an energy source. The study, published July 1 in Nature Metabolism, challenges “the long-standing dogma that the brain doesn’t burn fat,” said principal investigator Dr. Timothy A. Ryan, professor of biochemistry and of biochemistry in anesthesiology, and the Tri-Institutional ...

A new study challenges the belief in a universal “pet effect” on human well-being. Using data collected during COVID-19 lockdowns, researchers found no significant change in respondents' well-being when they acquired or lost a pet in their household. The findings suggest that, even during a time of extreme isolation, human-animal bonds may not be as emotionally transformative as we like to believe. Humans and their pets, a match made in heaven? Does adopting a new dog make you happier and less lonely? It is now commonplace to associate pet ownership with health ...

Embargo 01 July 2025 at 10:00 London time / 05:00 US Eastern Time Peer-reviewed / Genomics / Cancer treatment NEW INSIGHTS ON GENETIC DAMAGE OF SOME CHEMOTHERAPIES COULD GUIDE FUTURE TREATMENTS WITH LESS HARMFUL SIDE EFFECTS For the first time, scientists have systematically studied the genetic effects of chemotherapy on healthy tissues. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the University of Cambridge, Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH) and their collaborators analysed blood cell genomes from 23 patients of all ages who had been treated with a range of chemotherapies. Published ...

Scientists have discovered that certain species of microbe found in the human gut can absorb PFAS - the toxic and long-lasting ‘forever chemicals.’ They say boosting these species in our gut microbiome could help protect us from the harmful effects of PFAS. PFAS have been linked with a range of health issues including decreased fertility, developmental delays in children, and a higher risk of certain cancers and cardiovascular diseases. Scientists at the University of Cambridge have identified a family of bacterial species, found naturally in the human gut, that absorb various PFAS molecules from their surroundings.  When nine of these ...

New research has for the first time tracked ice shelf, sea ice and ocean swell wave conditions over multiple years in the lead-ups to three large-scale iceberg ‘calving’ events in Antarctica, revealing common patterns. Published in Nature Geoscience, the study, led by the Universities of Melbourne and Adelaide, found long periods of sea ice loss surrounding the ice shelves in the six to 18 months prior to calving, as well as the collapse of the ‘landfast’ sea ice attached to the ice shelves only weeks prior to the calving events. University of Melbourne Professor Luke Bennetts explained that the researchers ...

DURHAM, N.C. -- Any high school reunion is a sharp reminder that some people age more gracefully than others. Some enter their older years still physically spry and mentally sharp. Others start feeling frail or forgetful much earlier in life than expected. “The way we age as we get older is quite distinct from how many times we’ve traveled around the sun,” said Ahmad Hariri, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University. Now, scientists at Duke, Harvard and the University of Otago in New Zealand have ...

Bottom Line: Uterine cancer incidence and mortality rates are projected to increase significantly over the next three decades in the United States, with incidence-based mortality expected to be nearly three times higher in Black women compared with white women by 2050. Journal in Which the Study was Published: Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a journal of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Author: Jason D. Wright, MD, chief of the Division of Gynecologic Oncology at Columbia University Background: ...

Previously described as playing astronomical ‘spot the difference,’ Kilonova Seekers asks the public to compare the latest images of a section of night sky to an image of the same section of space taken on previous nights. Their goal – to spot new stars or significant changes in light intensity that may indicate that something remarkable has happened in space. Published today in Astronomy & Astrophysics, the project has announced its first published major discovery – a bright exploding star. The object underwent an extreme brightening (increasing ...

Ann Arbor, July 1, 2025 - Novel research has revealed that adolescent vaping of current delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD), and synthetic cannabinoids (SCs) has increased between 2021 and 2023. Also, adolescents are increasingly unsure about the substances they vaped in their e-cigarettes. A new study appearing in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, published by Elsevier, sheds light on this alarming trend and contributes to informing evidence-based public health policies and harm reduction strategies aimed at protecting ...

Embargo Tuesday 1st July 2025 06:00AM BST   Today, just over 100 days after the launch into production of the world first openly available 24/7 operational AI forecast model AIFS-Single, ECMWF (European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts) is unveiling the first ensemble model using Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning. The new model, called AIFS ENS, will be available as open source to the user community over the coming weeks. The new ensemble model outperforms state-of-the-art physics-based models for many measures, including surface temperature, with gains of up to 20%. At ...

DAVIS, California, USA, 1 July 2025 – In a comprehensive Genomic Press Innovators & Ideas interview, Dr. Danielle Beckman reveals how her passion for microscopy has evolved into a mission to understand viral impacts on brain health, offering hope for patients suffering from post-viral neurological symptoms. From Rio to Revolutionary Research Dr. Beckman's journey from aspiring writer in Rio de Janeiro to leading neurovirology researcher exemplifies scientific determination. Her journey began to change during an undergraduate physiology course where she discovered her fascination with the brain. "I vividly remember that class and how fascinated I became with the brain," ...

Discovering relatedness outside of a topical issue helps diverse groups to overcome differences and develop action for social change. The Kobe University addition to educational theory offers a framework to analyze and promote intersectional learning. To achieve social change in a fragmented modern society, individuals from diverse backgrounds need to join together and develop a common plan for action. This is important especially for education related to social change, where groups of varying involvement in a particular issue, e.g., learners and teachers, interact in a structured setting. Current educational theories fall short of offering a framework of how such cultural differences ...

Scientists have found that eating too much dairy could ruin your sleep. Researchers questioned more than 1,000 students about the quality of their sleep, their eating habits, and any perceived link between the two, and found a strong association between nightmares and lactose intolerance — potentially because gas or stomach pain during the night affects people’s dreams.   “Nightmare severity is robustly associated with lactose intolerance and other food allergies,” said Dr Tore Nielsen of Université de Montréal, lead author of the article in Frontiers in Psychology. “These new findings imply that changing eating habits for ...

The three most common reasons schools called emergency medical services (EMS) were for neurological crises such as seizures, psychiatric conditions or substance abuse, and trauma related injuries, according to data from the national EMS registry analyzed by researchers from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago. During the study period (2018-2022), school-based medical emergencies constituted 11 percent of EMS encounters for children and two-thirds resulted in transport to the hospital. Findings, published in Pediatrics, can help schools prioritize training so staff can respond even before EMS arrival. “While many schools have taken ...

A research team led by Professors Xianfeng Wang and Bin Ding from Donghua University has developed a breakthrough in protective textile technology by engineering highly permeable, liquid-repellent textiles (HPPT) with micro/nano-network structures. Published in Nano-Micro Letters, this innovative work presents a scalable and practical solution to the long-standing challenge of balancing protection and comfort in medical clothing. The newly developed HPPT materials offer superior air and moisture permeability, robust mechanical durability, and exceptional ...

A team of researchers from Yonsei University and Pohang University of Science and Technology, led by Professors Sang-Young Lee, Sang-Woo Kim, and Changshin Jo, has unveiled a groundbreaking strategy to overcome the long-standing challenge of efficient energy storage in triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) systems. Published in Nano-Micro Letters, this work introduces a system-level solution that leverages frequency modulation to significantly enhance the compatibility and charging efficiency between TENGs and supercapacitors ...

A research team led by Haruyo Yamamoto, Chisa Nakashima, and Atsushi Otsuka from Department of Dermatology, Kindai University Faculty of Medicine, in collaboration with the Faculty of Engineering at Kindai University and other institutions, has developed a diagnostic system that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to accurately identify the type of facial pigmented lesions and support laser treatment decisions. A paper on this study was published online in Cureus, an international medical journal on June 5, 2025.   1. Key Points Demonstrated superior diagnostic accuracy compared to dermatologists, when identifying ...