Astronomers have found a planet that orbits at an angle of 90 degrees around a rare pair of peculiar stars. This is the first time we have strong evidence for one of these ‘polar planets’ orbiting a stellar pair. The surprise discovery was made using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Several planets orbiting two stars at once, like the fictional Star Wars world Tatooine, have been discovered in the past years. These planets typically occupy orbits that roughly align with the plane in which their host stars orbit each ...

Astronomers have discovered a planet that orbits at a 90-degree angle around a rare pair of strange stars – a real-life ‘twist’ on the fictional twin suns of Star Wars hero Luke Skywalker’s home planet of Tatooine. The exoplanet, named 2M1510 (AB) b, orbits a pair of young brown dwarfs — objects bigger than gas-giant planets but too small to be proper stars. Only the second pair of eclipsing brown dwarfs known – this is the first exoplanet found on a right-angled path to the orbit of its two host stars. An international team of researchers led ...

A QUT-led study analysing data from NASA’s Perseverance rover has uncovered compelling evidence of multiple mineral-forming events just beneath the Martian surface – findings that bring scientists one step closer to answering the profound question: did life ever exist on Mars? The QUT research team led by Dr Michael Jones, from the Central Analytical Research Facility and the School of Chemistry and Physics, includes Associate Professor David Flannery, Associate Professor Christoph Schrank, Brendan Orenstein and Peter Nemere, together with researchers from North America and Europe. The findings were published in the prestigious journal ...

Using advanced DNA sequence analysis, a research team led by NYU Tandon School of Engineering's Assistant Professor Elizabeth Hénaff has discovered that tiny organisms in Brooklyn's highly contaminated Gowanus Canal have developed a comprehensive collection of pollution-fighting genes. The findings were published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology on April 15, 2025. The team identified 455 species of microorganisms wielding 64 different biochemical pathways to degrade pollutants ...

Piezoelectric materials have long been celebrated for their ability to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy, making them indispensable in smart systems for sensing, actuation, and vibration control. However, incorporating porosity and multidirectional grading into these materials introduces a host of challenges in understanding their behavior under varying environmental conditions. These complexities are further compounded by the interaction of hygrothermal conditions with electrical and mechanical loads. As a result, there is a pressing need for more in-depth research to predict the real-world performance of these materials. Published ...

Switching from diesel to electric trains dramatically improved the air quality aboard the San Francisco Bay Area’s Caltrain commuter rail line, reducing riders’ exposure to the carcinogen black carbon by an average of 89%, finds a new study published today in the journal Environmental Science and Technology Letters.  The electrification of the system also significantly reduced the ambient black carbon concentrations within and around the San Francisco station, the study found. “The transition from diesel to electric trains occurred over just a few weeks, and yet we saw the same drop in black carbon concentrations in the station as California ...

A bioreactor that mimics a circulatory system can deliver nutrients and oxygen to artificial tissue, enabling the production of over 10 grams of chicken muscle for cultured meat applications. These results are publishing in the Cell Press journal Trends in Biotechnology on April 16. “Our study presents a scalable, top-down strategy for producing whole-cut cultured meat using a perfusable hollow fiber bioreactor,” says senior author Shoji Takeuchi of The University of Tokyo. “This system enables cell distribution, alignment, contractility, ...

Physicists in the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have created a compact laser that emits extremely bright, short pulses of light in a useful but difficult-to-achieve wavelength range, packing the performance of larger photonic devices onto a single chip. Published in Nature, the research is the first demonstration of an on-chip, picosecond, mid-infrared laser pulse generator that requires no external components to operate. The device can make what’s called an optical frequency comb, a spectrum of light consisting of equally spaced frequency lines (like a comb), used today in precision measurements. ...

About The Study: This analysis found that past-month binge drinking among young adult females in 2021-2023 was higher than males, reversing 2017-2019 patterns, whereas males in other age groups continued to binge and heavy drink at higher rates. These findings may be due to more rapid decreases in binge drinking over time among young adult males relative to females, or to plateauing or increases in binge drinking among females. Further investigation using other nationally representative surveys is needed to elucidate these explanations. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Bryant Shuey, MD, MPH, email bryant.shuey@pitt.edu. To ...

Beneath Yellowstone lies a magma reservoir, pulsing with molten and superheated rock and exsolved gases. Scientists have long known about the chamber’s existence, but have yet to precisely locate its uppermost boundary and characterize the contents of the chamber closest to the surface—information crucial for understanding the potential perils this volcanic feature poses. That changed this week with new research by seismologists from the University of Utah and the University of New Mexico (UNM) who used hundreds of portable seismometers and a mechanical vibration source to render 2D seismic reflection images of the ground beneath Yellowstone’s caldera. Using ...

A team of scientists led by Prof. LIU Zhaoping at the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering (NIMTE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with researchers from the University of Chicago and other institutions, has developed zero thermal expansion (ZTE) materials. This innovation has achieved nearly 100% voltage recovery in aging lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), as detailed in a study published in Nature. LIBs have become increasingly essential in the markets for electric vehicles and aircraft. Lithium-rich layered oxide cathode materials can deliver record capacities exceeding 300 mAh/g, thanks to revolutionary oxygen-redox (OR) ...

New research from Barcelona and Dresden: Glycolysis — the process of converting sugar into energy — plays a key role in early development. More than fuel: Glycolysis doesn’t just power cells — it helps steer them toward specific tissue types at critical moments in development. Better embryo models: Stem-cell–based embryo models that rely on glycolysis form structures more similar to natural embryos. Predict and control development in a dish: These findings improve our ability to predict and control how stem-cell-based embryo models will develop, ...

About The Study: Across multinational cohorts, a noise-adapted artificial intelligence (AI)-electrocardiogram (ECG) model estimated heart failure risk using lead I ECGs, suggesting a potential heart failure risk-stratification strategy requiring prospective study using wearable and portable ECG devices. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Rohan Khera, MD, MS, email rohan.khera@yale.edu. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2025.0492) Editor’s ...

About The Study: In this randomized clinical trial, 2 hours of mother-neonate skin-to-skin contact (SSC) in the delivery room did not enhance neurodevelopmental outcomes at 2 to 3 years of age. However, the SSC group demonstrated improved breastfeeding practices up to 12 months compared with standard care, suggesting that the feasible and low-cost SSC intervention should be encouraged in clinical practice. Corresponding Author: To contact the corresponding author, Laila Kristoffersen, RN, PhD, email laila.kristoffersen@ntnu.no. To ...

Scientists have designed a ‘cosmic radio’ detector which could discover dark matter in 15 years.  Published today in Nature, scientists at King’s College London, Harvard University, UC Berkley and others have shared the foundation of what they believe will be the most accurate dark matter detector to date.  Dark matter is the unobservable form of matter could make up as much as 85% of mass in the Universe, but scientists are not sure exactly what it is.  Axions are one of the leading ...

As we age, blood stem cells, the essential source of new blood cells in the body, can accumulate genetic mutations. These mutations can give the cells a growth advantage, laying the foundation for developing serious health conditions. Now, scientists at The Jackson Laboratory (JAX) have not only discovered the mechanism that fuels their unchecked growth but have also found a way to stop it. Led by Jennifer Trowbridge, professor and The Dattels Family Chair at JAX, the study reported today in the April 16 issue of Nature Communications reveals that a common aging-associated mutation in the gene Dnmt3a boosts the power-generating function of mitochondria ...

One reason why our livers excel at clearing waste from our blood system is that the organ functions according to three key “zones” that perform specific major tasks. So, if scientists hope to create self-growing patches of liver organoid tissue that could help repair damaged organs, it’s important that the lab-grown tissue faithfully reproduce such zones. In a groundbreaking paper published April 16, 2025, in the prestigious journal Nature, a team of organoid medicine experts at Cincinnati Children’s reports achieving just such a milestone – made from human stem cells. When these humanized organoids were transplanted into rodents whose own liver-bile duct system ...

Replicating the liver’s complexity While organoids aim to mimic human organs, the liver’s repertoire of complex functions – and thus the energy it needs to operate – have made it challenging for researchers to grow organoids that proliferate and fully function, says Sato. When prioritizing growth and survival in laboratory settings, hepatocytes, the liver’s main cells, eventually transformed into cells resembling cholangiocytes, which line the bile duct. Hepatocyte functions only lasted 1-2 weeks at most.  The study team, led by Ryo Igarashi and Mayumi Oda at the Keio University School of Medicine, ...

A team of Lehigh University researchers has successfully predicted abnormal grain growth in simulated polycrystalline materials for the first time—a development that could lead to the creation of stronger, more reliable materials for high-stress environments, such as combustion engines. A paper describing their novel machine learning method was recently published in Nature Computational Materials.  “Using simulations, we were not only able to predict abnormal grain growth, but we were able to predict it far in advance of ...

Individuals with a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s disease show altered blood levels indicating damaged neuronal contacts as early as 11 years before the expected onset of dementia symptoms. This is evident in the levels of the protein “beta-synuclein”. An international team, including researchers from DZNE, Ulm University Hospital and University Medicine Halle report these findings in the journal “Alzheimer’s & Dementia”. The biomarker studied here could potentially help to detect neurodegeneration at an early stage and thus ...

Researchers evaluating a nature-based programme of activities for patients with mild to moderate mental health conditions have shown that improvements in mood and anxiety levels can be seen in as little as 12 weeks.  As part of the UK government’s commitment to transform mental health services, seven ‘test and learn’ green social prescribing sites were identified across England, which included a programme in Humber and North Yorkshire - the first of the seven sites to publish results from the national programme.  Green social prescribing is a practice whereby a healthcare professional refers a patient to community-based nature activities ...

A University of Virginia School of Medicine scientist and collaborators have developed a much-needed new tool to increase the efficiency of genomic research and accelerate the development of new ways to improve human health. UVA researcher Nathan Sheffield, PhD, has spent four years developing a new data standard to ensure that scientists are comparing apples to apples when doing genomic analysis. This type of analysis helps researchers understand the operating instructions for our cells and see how those instructions are carried out. The resulting insights help us understand the workings of both healthy cells and unhealthy ones, pointing us to new ways to treat and prevent disease. Genomics ...

“We find that epigenetic clocks based on the entropy of methylation states predict chronological age with similar accuracy as common approaches that are based on methylation levels of individual cytosines.” BUFFALO, NY — April 16, 2025 — A new research paper was published in Aging (Aging-US) Volume 17, Issue 3, on March 12, 2025, titled “DNA methylation entropy is a biomarker for aging.” Researchers Jonathan Chan, Liudmilla Rubbi, and Matteo Pellegrini from the University of California, Los Angeles, led a study that discovered a new way to measure changes in DNA that can help predict a person’s ...

The Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital’s cardiology faculty practice has received the 2024 Human Experience Pinnacle of Excellence Award® from Press Ganey, one of the nation’s leading patient experience organizations.   The faculty practice is located at The Mount Sinai Hospital and has several physicians with top expertise in cardiovascular care. It is one of 10 heart centers across the country, and the only one in New York, to receive this prestigious award placing it on the leading ...

Affectionate mothering in childhood may have a lasting impact on important personality traits, potentially influencing life outcomes such as educational achievement, economic success, and health and well-being, according to research published by the American Psychological Association. The findings suggest that positive maternal parenting could foster important traits such as openness, conscientiousness and agreeableness. “Personality traits are strong predictors of important life outcomes, from academic and career success to health and well-being,” ...