Most of the genetic risk for developing a substance use disorder comes from genes that broadly affect how our brains process rewards, regulate impulses and weigh consequences – not from genes that specifically influence substance use disorder or any single drug. Researchers of a Rutgers Health–led study headed by Holly Poore, a faculty instructor of psychiatry at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, analyzed genetic data from previously published genome-wide association studies totaling more than 2.2 million individuals to understand how genes shape vulnerability ...

New research reveals that ‘foundation models’ trained on vast, general time‑series data may be able to forecast river flows accurately, even in regions with little or no local hydrological records. The approach could improve flood warnings, drought planning and water-resource management in parts of the world where monitoring data is limited. The study, published in Machine Learning: Earth, was conducted by researchers from The University of Texas at Austin and Hydrotify LLC. In many parts of the ...

As interest in structured mountain adventure continues to surge across Europe and North America, a new study led by researchers at the University of Eastern Finland and Lakehead University provides the first comprehensive scoping review and research agenda dedicated specifically to Via Ferrata tourism and recreation. Published in the Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism, the study examines the rapid growth of this hybrid outdoor sport, which combines elements of hiking, mountaineering and rock ...

Computer simulations can help people gain a better understanding of the situation faced by migrants. This is shown by a new study in which 148 teenagers were assigned random migration pathways, with different start and end points. Along the way, they encountered unforeseen events that affected their journey. Experiences from the game led to a partial shift in attitudes towards migration. The researchers set out to investigate whether it is possible to improve the standard methods currently used in teaching about migration. One common teaching method is for teachers to present international migration statistics. The teaching ...

Do you track your sleep? The increasing availability of sleep monitoring apps, and rising interest in sleep health, has led to a sharp increase in people tracking their rest. But these apps might not give people an accurate image of their sleep, and they could be making it harder for people to rest. Now scientists studying the use of sleep apps in Norway have found that while the apps helped some people, those who reported insomnia experienced more negative effects.  “The rapid development of sleep app technology requires the scientific community to keep up with technological ...

A new Murdoch University study has found that cold blooded animals (ectotherms) are unable to adjust physiologically to daily temperature fluctuations, a limitation that could leave them increasingly vulnerable as climate change drives even greater temperature variability. Daily temperature variations are a common feature in natural environments, ranging from subtle to extreme depending on the geographic location, season, and local climate patterns. Ectotherms, which includes almost all fish, reptiles, and invertebrates, rely on external sources to regulate their body heat. Their internal temperature closely mirrors the temperature of their environment, ...

Queensland general practitioners provide compassionate, holistic care to patients seeking voluntary assisted dying (VAD), but many face significant hurdles that limit their capacity to participate, new QUT‑led research has found. Published in the Australian Journal of General Practice, the study explored the experiences of 12 Queensland GPs during the first year of the state’s VAD legislation. Researchers identified wide variation in GP involvement - from no participation to more than 50 cases - and highlighted the need for improved remuneration, streamlined processes, and broader education to support safe ...

Electrolytes sit at the heart of modern electrochemical energy storage. They control how ions move, how interfaces form, how stable a battery remains over time, and ultimately how safe and efficient the device can be. Yet discovering better electrolyte molecules remains a very challenging problem. The relevant behavior depends on subtle intermolecular interactions, solvation effects, and charge distributions, which are often expensive to resolve with quantum-chemical calculations at the scale needed for materials discovery. This is where artificial intelligence (AI) has ...

By comparing sulfuric and boric acid absorption systems, they found sulfuric acid delivers higher recovery rates and reduces isotope fractionation, even at low concentrations. Field applications successfully distinguished emissions from cropland, livestock, orchards, and vegetables, improving the accuracy of ammonia source identification. NH₃ is the most important alkaline gas in the atmosphere and a major contributor to air pollution. It reacts with sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) to form ammonium sulfate and ammonium ...

DURHAM, N.C. – Kidney stones can cause some of the most intense pain people ever experience, affecting daily life and leading many to hospital emergency visits. It affects 1 in 11 people in the U.S., and almost half will experience a recurrence. A major new study from the Urinary Stone Disease Research Network, coordinated by the Duke Clinical Research Institute, tested whether a behavioral program could help people drink enough fluids to prevent stones from coming back. The study, published in The Lancet on March 19, ...

A University of East Anglia systematic review of 5,000+ social media posts found misinformation rates as high as 56% on some platforms. TikTok scored worst: 52% of ADHD and 41% of autism videos were inaccurate, compared to 22% on YouTube and under 15% on Facebook.

Researchers at UC Riverside built a counterfeit drug detector from cheap infrared line-following sensors. By tracking how pills dissolve in water and converting the data into digital fingerprints, the open-source device correctly identified 90% of 30+ tested medications.

University of Utah geophysicists used airborne electromagnetic imaging to detect a deep freshwater reservoir beneath the Great Salt Lake, with saturated sediments reaching 3-4 km depth. The water could potentially be tapped to suppress toxic dust from the lake's exposed playa.

A Yale study using functional near-infrared spectroscopy found that pairs of people listening to harmonically consonant chord progressions during face-to-face eye contact showed heightened activity in brain regions linked to social perception and emotional connection.

In a 52-student trial across Chicago public schools, robots that openly admitted lacking emotions helped fourth-graders master social-emotional learning vocabulary more effectively than robots given fictional backstories and feelings.

New modeling from Rice University reveals that SMC proteins fold replicating bacterial DNA into accordion-like structures, creating repulsive forces that drive chromosome copies apart — explaining how bacteria split their genomes without the spindle machinery human cells require.

Eesha Oza, a freshman biomedical engineering student, led a study analyzing 62 cases of squamous cell carcinoma of the colon spanning 70 years, producing the most comprehensive review of a cancer so rare it makes up just 0.02% to 0.1% of all colon cancers.

Researchers found banned antibiotic residues in fish from Brazil's Piracicaba River, then showed that the aquatic plant Salvinia auriculata can strip antibiotics from water — while also discovering that the plant's presence sometimes made remaining drugs more bioavailable to fish.

A new study maps the overlap between unregistered groundwater wells, former industrial zones, and known contamination sites across the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Area, revealing that 22 million residents face an invisible water safety crisis driven by decades of unmonitored solvent pollution.

The RURAL Heart and Lung study found that Assumption Parish residents without a high school diploma are more than twice as likely to have high blood pressure and high cholesterol, with 75% obesity rates versus 48% for those with some college education.

A new study calculates that biochar produced from bioenergy crops grown on China's abandoned farmland could remove atmospheric CO2 for roughly $9.60 per ton, compared to about $91 per ton for bioenergy with carbon capture and storage. The approach could scale to 1.88 billion tons annually under optimized conditions.

Mayo Clinic delivered 93 IV chemotherapy infusions to 10 patients at home with no treatment-related reactions or catheter infections. The pilot study, published in NEJM Catalyst, supports a model that combines virtual care and remote monitoring to move cancer treatment out of infusion centers.

Researchers redesigned sewage sludge biochar through a stepwise extraction and reprocessing method, then loaded it with Bacillus velezensis bacteria. Applied to cabbage, the combination increased aboveground biomass by nearly 40% and reshaped root-zone microbial communities to favor nitrogen cycling.

Fine biochar particles suppress crop disease quickly but lose effectiveness; coarser particles release nutrients gradually, sustaining beneficial microbe populations that fight soil pathogens for longer. The distinction could reshape how farmers apply biochar.

A decade-long study of more than 25,000 U.S. adults found that people living in densely developed neighborhoods had a 2.5% lower risk of first-time stroke, challenging assumptions that urban environments harm cardiovascular health.