Monitoring daily activity patterns using a wrist-worn device may detect early warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease, according to a new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. The researchers analyzed movement data from wristwatch-like devices called actigraphs worn by 82 cognitively healthy older adults who were participants in a long-running study of aging. Some of the participants had detectable brain amyloid buildup as measured by PET scan. Buildup of the protein amyloid beta in the brain is a key feature of Alzheimer’s disease. Using a sensitive statistical technique, the ...

They published their work on new superionic mechanism in fluorite oxide electrolyte for low temperature protonic ceramic fuel cells  in Energy Material Advances.   "The development of low-temperature and high-performance solid oxide fuel cells is imperative." said corresponding author Dr. Jianbing Huang, Associate Professor of the State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong University.   Dr. Huang explained that protonic ceramic fuel cell has several significant advantages as an alternative solid oxide fuel cell ...

WASHINGTON, March 11, 2024 — For years, scientists thought some complex molecules could only be formed on Earth. But what if we found these kinds of molecules out in space after all? In this episode of Reactions, we explore new findings that show complex carbon ring structures can be formed in space, and what that might mean for biology, chemistry and our own chemical history! https://youtu.be/Jh_O5JP10aQ?si=HFvdSchFY95y4idV Reactions is a video series produced by the American Chemical Society and PBS Digital Studios. Subscribe to Reactions at http://bit.ly/ACSReactions and follow us on Twitter @ACSReactions. The ...

A research team at Microsoft has designed an efficiency tool called TaskMatrix.AI that can be used to accomplish a wide variety of specific AI tasks. TaskMatrix.AI connects general-purpose foundation models like GPT-4, the model behind ChatGPT, with specialized models suitable for certain tasks — much like a human project manager. This research was published Feb. 16 in Intelligent Computing, a Science Partner Journal. Foundation models and specialized models usually have different mechanisms thus are not easily compatible. Rather than modifying and integrating existing models, TaskMatrix.AI bridges the gaps between them through application ...

A piece of rotting fruit is likely covered in hundreds if not thousands of microscopic roundworms, including C. elegans—a popular experimental model system for studying neurogenetics. With a lifespan of only a few weeks, C. elegans must reproduce quickly and often. The species is made up of hermaphrodites and males. The hermaphrodites have female bodies, can self-fertilize, and can mate with males. Recent research from of the Portman Lab at the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester, found the males do not mate indiscriminately—they are selective about things like age, mating history, and nutrition. “We ...

Anemonefish form mutualistic relationships with the sea anemones they live in and these associations are not random: some species such as the yellow-tail anemonefish (Amphiprion clarkii) are generalists and can live in almost any sea anemone, others like the tomato clownfish (Amphiprion frenatus) are specialists, living in only one sea anemone species, the bubble-tip sea anemone (Entacmaea quadricolor). Reasons for these preferences are unclear because we know very little about the genetic diversity of giant sea anemones.   Researchers at the Marine Eco-Evo-Devo Unit and Marine Genomics Unit at the Okinawa Institute of Science ...

About The Study: In this study of 15,000 infants born extremely preterm, redirection of care discussions (withdrawal, withholding, or limiting escalation of treatment) occurred less often for Black and Hispanic infants than for white and non-Hispanic infants. It is important to explore the possible reasons underlying these differences.  Authors: Jane E. Brumbaugh, M.D., of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, is the corresponding author. To access the embargoed study: Visit our For The Media website at this link https://media.jamanetwork.com/ (doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2024.0125) Editor’s ...

About The Study: The findings of this study of 50 discharge summaries suggest that large language models can be used to translate discharge summaries into patient-friendly language and formats that are significantly more readable and understandable than discharge summaries as they appear in electronic health records. However, implementation will require improvements in accuracy, completeness, and safety. Given the safety concerns, initial implementation will require physician review.  Authors: Jonah ...

Key Takeaways  Suicide by firearm rates increased 18% in nine years in states that began allowing firearm owners to openly carry a firearm without a permit, a new study finds.   U.S. rates of firearm-related suicide rose from 21,175 in 2013 to 26,328 in 2021, an increase that may be related to more permissive open carry laws.  CHICAGO: In states that relaxed firearm laws to allow openly carrying a loaded firearm in public without a permit, significantly more people died by firearms and ...

The particle accelerators that enable high-energy physics and serve many fields of science, such as materials, medical, and fusion research, are driven by superconducting magnets that are, to put it simply, quite finicky.  Superconductors are a special class of materials which, when cooled below a certain temperature, carry large electrical currents without resistance. If you arrange the material in coils, the current passing through will produce strong magnetic fields, effectively storing the potential energy of the moving electrons in the form of magnetic field. But if they get ...

In many cities worldwide, the notion of walking as sustainable urban mobility is becoming increasingly popular. Improving the walkability of cities has many benefits, including improved health, reduced traffic, and consequently lower air pollution. To improve walkability, it is important to conduct a thorough analysis of what factors make cities more walkable.   One essential aspect in analyzing walkability is understanding traveler behavior. Before and during their journey, various factors can influence their path choices. For example, travelers can consider the most efficient route before starting but could encounter unexpected events necessitating route changes. ...

A Newcastle research team has been exploring the role of vitamin A in the pathogenesis of psychiatric disorders. Professor Murray Cairns of the University of Newcastle and Hunter Medical Research Institute said the connectivity between neurons in the brain is thought to be altered in people with schizophrenia and other psychiatric conditions. “Our previous research suggests this could be to do with vitamin A levels or retinol levels, which are known to play an important role in the differentiation, maturation and synaptic function of brain cells. “Our new study by William Reay and colleagues combined the summary statistics from thousands of individual ...

A team of researchers from Bohai University in China have designed and synthesized a bifunctional catalyst that can solve the environmental pollution caused by mustard gas and phenolic compounds. They synthesized this bifunctional catalyst, a new three-dimensional polyoxovanadate-based metal-organic framework, under hydrothermal conditions.   Their work is published in the journal Polyoxometalates on March 4, 2024.   The team’s bifunctional catalyst shows satisfying catalytic performances for the selective oxidation of 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide (CEES) to corresponding ...

University of Virginia School of Medicine scientists have found important answers about strokes, heart attacks and cardiovascular diseases by probing the biological glue our bodies create to protect us from those deadly dangers. The researchers, led by Mete Civelek, PhD, wanted to better understand factors that influence our risk for cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, the hardening of the arteries. Atherosclerosis is characterized by the buildup of fatty plaques ...

[Toronto, March 11, 2024] — Little is known about the willingness of sexual minority adults—people who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or other nonheterosexual orientation identities—to use digital health tools. A new study, published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research by Dr Wilson Vincent of Temple University, has shed light on this question in the context of public health screening and tracking. The research challenges assumptions about the uptake of such technologies, particularly amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr Vincent notes that past studies have seldom looked into how willing ...

UNIST has once again been internationally recognized for maintaining the highest standard of quality in its business education programs. On February 26, UNIST proudly announced that the School of Business Administration, the Graduate School of Technology and Innovation Management, and the Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Management have successfully renewed their accreditation in business education from the prestigious Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB). This renewal of accreditation by AACSB underscores the exceptional quality of business programs at UNIST, with the university initially earning AACSB accreditation in 2018. UNIST holds the distinction ...

A groundbreaking technology that enables the real-time display of colors and shapes through changes in nanostructures has been developed. This innovative technology, pioneered by Professor Kang Hee Ku and her team in the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering at UNIST, has the potential to revolutionize various fields, such as smart polymer particles. Utilizing block copolymers, the research team has achieved the self-assembly of photonic crystal structures on a large scale, mimicking natural phenomena observed ...

      Americans' basic confidence in science and scientific expertise was unshaken by the Trump administration's attacks on scientific expertise, and has remained high during the last six decades, according to an analysis led by the University of Michigan.   Trump's attacks on scientific experts—exemplified by criticism of Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases—increased the level of partisan polarization in the United States and made the question of scientific expertise more salient ...

Natural products have unique chemical structures and biological activities and can play a pivotal role in advancing pharmaceutical science. In a pioneering study, researchers from Shinshu University discovered Inaoside A, an antioxidant derived from Laetiporus cremeiporus mushrooms. This breakthrough sheds light on the potential of mushrooms as a source of therapeutic bioactive compounds. The search for novel bioactive compounds from natural sources has gained considerable momentum in recent years due to the need for new therapeutic ...

Researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine have shown that three months of social worker follow-up support to people hospitalized with HIV in Tanzania had health benefits at low cost. The protocol shortened the time it took participants to attend an HIV clinic and to start on antiretroviral therapy after discharge. However, the study published in JAMA on Mar. 6 found that the care benefits didn’t translate to a decrease in mortality after one year. They compared a group that received extended case management intervention with a control group receiving ...

University of Michigan researchers have identified the protein that enables mammals to sense cold, filling a long-standing knowledge gap in the field of sensory biology.   The findings, published in Nature Neuroscience, could help unravel how we sense and suffer from cold temperature in the winter, and why some patients experience cold differently under particular disease conditions.   "The field started uncovering these temperature sensors over 20 years ago, with the discovery of a heat-sensing protein called TRPV1," said neuroscientist Shawn ...

Emergency planners in Shanghai and New York City face increasing pressure to protect elderly citizens from the devastating impact of coastal flooding caused by storms and cyclones, a new study reveals. Both cities are highly exposed to storm-induced flooding and analysis shows that - with two distinct systems of emergency operation – there are significant differences between them in evacuating elderly people to safety. After studying emergency operations in the cities, experts devised a blueprint for efficient evacuation that could be used in similar flood-threatened cities around the globe such as Mumbai, Bangkok, Jakarta, Ho Chi Minh City, Miami, ...

Peer-reviewed – survey - people  More than a third of people who self-identify as having a smell disorder have had at least one gas safety scare in the last five years, according to new research.  The study, led by the University of East Anglia (UEA) in collaboration with the charity Fifth Sense, asked people who cannot smell well what safety concerns they had and if they had experienced any hazardous events.  A total of 432 people responded to the online survey, which was conducted from February 25 to September 28, 2022, and distributed via the charity.  It ...

At school, he was inspired by Schrödinger´s book ‘What is Life?’. Now, several decades later, Leonid Sazanov is awarded the Erwin Schrödinger Prize by the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW). The scientist heads a research group at the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (ISTA) and was honored “for his outstanding achievements in the field of structural biology of membrane protein complexes.” Sazanov is the sixth ISTA scientist to receive the prestigious Schrödinger Award. “I am especially ...

New research indicates that individuals with persistent and worsening metabolic syndrome—which encompasses conditions such as high blood pressure, elevated blood sugar, excess abdominal fat, and abnormal cholesterol—face an elevated risk of developing various types of cancer. The findings are published by Wiley online in CANCER, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. In the study, 44,115 adults in China with an average age of 49 years were categorized into 4 different trajectories based on trends from ...