Culture

Psychology researchers at UC Santa Cruz have found that playing games in virtual reality creates an effect called "time compression," where time goes by faster than you think. Grayson Mullen, who was a cognitive science undergraduate at the time, worked with Psychology Professor Nicolas Davidenko to design an experiment that tested how virtual reality's effects on a game player's sense of time differ from those of conventional monitors.

ATS 2021, New York, NY - The use of e-cigarettes is associated with wheezing and shortness of breath in young adults and adolescents, even in those who don't smoke cigarettes or marijuana, according to research presented at the ATS 2021 International Conference.

ATS 2021, New York, NY - Individuals with asthma who live in redlined neighborhoods have worse lung function than those in locales that excluded Black people and benefited from decades of inequitable wealth accumulation at the expense of Black communities in the United States, according to research presented at the ATS 2021 International Conference.

Session: TP16

Abstract Presentation Time: Available On-Demand; 8 a.m. EDT, Friday, May 14, 2021

ATS 2021, New York, NY - While vaping is thought to be a safer alternative to smoking, teens and adults who use e-cigarettes have increased odds of developing asthma and having asthma attacks, according to research presented at the ATS 2021 International Conference.
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Session: TP91

Abstract Presentation Time: On Demand; 8 a.m. EDT, Friday, May 14, 2021

ATS 2021, New York, NY - Having genetic risk variants in the ABO gene might significantly increase the chances of developing COVID-19, and other genes may also increase COVID-19 risk, according to research presented at the ATS 2021 International Conference.

The mysteries of sexual attraction just became a little less mysterious - at least for moths. A team of six American and European research groups including Tufts University has discovered which gene expressed in the brain of the male European corn borer moth controls his preference for the sex pheromone produced by females. This complements a previous study on the gene expressed in the female pheromone gland that dictates the type of blend she emits to attract males. The study was reported today in Nature Communications.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been shown to have caused a significant strain on the healthcare system and resources in the United States. However, data regarding the impact of the virus on hip fractures, primarily seen in elderly patients, is lacking.

Researchers at the University of Bristol found that plant eaters diversified quickly after mass extinctions to eat different kinds of plants, and the ones that were able to chew harsher materials, which reflected the drying conditions of the late Triassic, became the most successful. These tougher herbivores included some of the first dinosaurs.

While it has been said that the eyes are a window to the soul, a new study shows they could be a means for understanding diseases of the brain. According to new research by scientists at the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, retinal scans can detect key changes in blood vessels that may provide an early sign of Alzheimer's, while offering important insights into how one of the most common Alzheimer's risk genes contributes to the disease.

Plants have evolved unique immunity mechanisms that they can activate upon detecting the presence of a pathogen. Interestingly, the presence of some nonpathogenic microorganisms can also prompt a plant to activate its systemic immunity mechanisms, and some studies have shown that pretreating agricultural crops with such "immunity-activating" nonpathogenic microorganisms can leave the crops better prepared to fight off infections from pathogenic microorganisms.

Ishikawa, Japan - Today, many well-studied materials in various fields, such as electronics and catalysis, are close to reaching their practical limits. To further improve upon modern technology and outperform state-of-the-art devices, researchers looking for new functional materials have to push the boundaries and explore more extreme cases. A clear example of this is the study of low-dimensional materials, such as monoatomic layers (2D materials) and monoatomic chains (1D materials).

An international research team analyzed a database of more than 1000 supernova explosions and found that models for the expansion of the Universe best match the data when a new time dependent variation is introduced. If proven correct with future, higher-quality data from the Subaru Telescope and other observatories, these results could indicate still unknown physics working on the cosmic scale.

The protein made by the ASH1L gene plays a key role in the development of acute leukemia, along with other diseases. The ASH1L protein, however, has been challenging to target therapeutically.

Now a team of researchers led by Jolanta Grembecka, Ph.D., and Tomasz Cierpicki, Ph.D., from the University of Michigan has developed first-in-class small molecules to inhibit ASH1L's SET domain -- preventing critical molecular interactions in the development and progression of leukemia.

A new study with zebrafish shows that a deadly form of skin cancer -- melanoma -- alters the metabolism of healthy tissues elsewhere in the body. The research from Washington University in St. Louis suggests that these other tissues could potentially be targeted to help treat cancer.

A group of the world's leading experts in the transmission of airborne pathogens is calling for a tightened regulatory system to control air quality in buildings - as a way of reducing the spread of covid-19 and other illnesses.

Writing in the journal Science, the 40 scientists say: "A paradigm shift is needed on the scale that occurred when Chadwick's Sanitary Report in 1842 led the British government to encourage cities to organise clean water supplies and centralised sewage systems.