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Inadequate exposure to UVB light from the sun may be associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer, particularly in older age groups, according to a study using data on 186 countries, published in the open access journal BMC Public Health.

Scientists have reconstructed the Eastern Mediterranean silver trade, over a period including the traditional dates of the Trojan War, the founding of Rome, and the destruction of Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem. The team of French, Israeli and Australian scientists and numismatists found geochemical evidence for pre-coinage silver trade continuing throughout the Mediterranean during the Late Bronze and Iron Age periods, with the supply slowing only occasionally. Silver was sourced from the whole north-eastern Mediterranean, and as far away as the Iberian Peninsula.

Why are gold deposits found at all? Gold is famously unreactive, and there seems to be little reason why gold should be concentrated, rather than uniformly scattered throughout the Earth's crust. Now an international group of geochemists have discovered why gold is concentrated alongside arsenic, explaining the formation of most gold deposits

Scientists have found an unexplained cache of fossilised shark teeth in an area where there should be none - in a 2900 year old site in the City of David in Jerusalem. This is at least 80 km from where these fossils would be expected to be found. There is no conclusive proof of why the cache was assembled, but it may be that the 80 million-year-old teeth were part of a collection, dating from just after the death of King Solomon*.

Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University have used high power impulse magnetron scattering (HiPIMS) to create thin films of tungsten with unprecedentedly low levels of film stress. By optimizing the timing of a 'substrate bias pulse' with microsecond precision, they minimized impurities and defects to form crystalline films with stresses as low as 0.03 GPa, similar to those achieved through annealing. Their work promises efficient pathways for creating metallic films for the electronics industry.

Researchers studied pelagic red crab range and strandings from 1950 to 2019 and compared these data with ocean conditions, like temperature and current movements. The team found that the appearance of red crabs outside of their normal range correlated with the amount of seawater flowing from Baja California to central California.

For the first time in the UAE, researchers at NYU Abu Dhabi have used nuclear magnetic resonance techniques to determine the structure of a specific nanobody, Nb23, potentially leading to a better understanding of how this small protein derived from an antibody type, found only in camelids (i.e camels, llamas, and alpacas) and sharks, can fight diseases ranging from rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and psoriasis to lymphoma and breast cancer.

To survive life threatening injuries, cancer cells use a technique in which they eat parts of the membrane surrounding them. This is shown for the first time in research from a team of Danish researchers.

Immunotherapy has revolutionized the field of cancer treatment. However, inflammatory reactions in healthy tissues frequently trigger side effects that can be serious. Scientists (UNIGE/Harvard Medical School) have succeeded in establishing the differences between deleterious immune reactions and those targeting tumor cells that are sought after. It appears that while the immune mechanisms are similar, the cell populations involved are different. This work makes it possible to envisage targeted and less dangerous treatments for cancer patients.

Using a method developed for HIV, researchers have identified stable T cell vaccine targets in SARS-CoV-2. These stable targets, known as highly networked epitopes, are highly likely to be stable in different variants of the virus. The results provide a path forward for a broadly protective COVID-19 T cell vaccine.

"Based on what we learned in the survey, there are some simple measures, such as providing a borrowed wheelchair to people so they have mobility while their chair is being repaired, that could reduce the adverse consequences," said Dr. Dyson-Hudson. "Other facilitators include increasing the speed of repairs, training people in wheelchair maintenance, and routinely scheduling follow-up appointments after a repair is made, so any subsequent problems can be caught early."

Neuroscientists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have demonstrated in new research that dopamine plays a key role in how songbirds learn complex new sounds.

Petroglyphs are carved in a material called rock varnish, the origins of which have been debated for years. Now, scientists argue it's the result of bacteria and an adaptation that protects them from the desert sun's harsh rays.

Engineers at the University of California, Berkeley, have created an insect-scale robot that can swerve and pivot with the agility of a cheetah, giving it the ability to traverse complex terrain and quickly avoid unexpected obstacles. Small, robust robots like these could be ideal for conducting search and rescue operations or investigating other hazardous situations, such as scoping out potential gas leaks.

Some three quarters of the biomass in hop plants used in beer-making ends up in landfills. But a group of Japanese researchers has developed a technique that 'upcycles' that waste hop into cellulose nanofibers (CNFs). A paper describing the technique was published in the journal ACS Agricultural Science & Technology on June 11, 2021.

Engineers at the University of California, Berkeley, have created an insect-scale robot that can swerve and pivot with the agility of a cheetah, giving it the ability to traverse complex terrain and quickly avoid unexpected obstacles. Small, robust robots like these could be ideal for conducting search and rescue operations or investigating other hazardous situations, such as scoping out potential gas leaks.

Would you be more willing to get vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus if you could participate in a lottery for cash and prizes? The answer was surprisingly no, according to Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) researchers who found that Ohio's "Vax-a-Million" lottery-based incentive system, intended to increase COVID-19 vaccination rates, was not associated with an increase in COVD-19 vaccinations.

A new study found that while 43 states (out of 51, including all 50 states and Washington, D.C.) created a committee to develop a vaccine distribution plan, only 20 plans mentioned using a health equity committee to assist with plan development.

Nitrogen is essential for all life on Earth. In the global oceans however, this element is scarce, and nitrogen availability is therefore critical for the growth of marine life. Some bacteria found in marine waters can convert nitrogen gas (N2) to ammonia (known as N2 fixation), and thereby supply the marine food web with nitrogen.

A recent study by Kansas State University virologists demonstrates successful post-infection treatment for SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.