Culture
BOSTON - What does SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, do once it enters a person's airways, and how does infection in lung cells affect patients' immune responses? New research led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and published in Nature Communications provides insights that could help improve treatment strategies for infected patients.
If you thought your morning hike was contributing to your wellbeing, a new study shows that you're right, especially if our avian friends were singing while you strolled.
WESTMINSTER, Colorado - December 15, 2020 - In recent years, junglerice has become a significant problem in dicamba-resistant cotton and soybean crops. In Tennessee, for example, growers routinely find populations of the weed that escape applications of dicamba plus glyphosate and/or clethodim - two "go to" herbicide controls.
A new study challenges the long-held view that the destruction of Central Asia's medieval river civilizations was a direct result of the Mongol invasion in the early 13th century CE.
The Aral Sea basin in Central Asia and the major rivers flowing through the region were once home to advanced river civilizations which used floodwater irrigation to farm.
"While, for example, the closing of cultural institutions was only supported by 49 percent of respondents at the beginning of November, it is now considered appropriate by 62 percent", says BfR President Professor Dr. Dr. Andreas Hensel. "The threat of the pandemic is present in the population."
BfR-Corona-Monitor - as to 8-9 December 2020
https://www.bfr.bund.de/cm/349/201208-bfr-corona-monitor-en.pdf
It has long been known that the choice of shoe, surface and type of sport can all be contributing factors when someone suffers an anterior cruciate ligament rupture. Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have now observed that genes also play a decisive role.
WESTMINSTER, Colorado - December 15, 2020 - New research featured in the journal Invasive Plant Science and Management (IPSM) shows that genetics matter when it comes to the effective control of alligatorweed, an invasive plant found in or near aquatic settings across the southern U.S. and California.
A recent study has identified four factors that predict user satisfaction with customer service chatbots. The study also found that a positive chatbot experience was associated with customer loyalty, highlighting the potential importance of the findings to corporate brands.
In order to adapt to the changing environment, bacteria must quickly transform extracellular information into appropriate intracellular reactions. Two component system (TCS) is the main signal transduction protein in prokaryotic cells to transform environmental stimuli into cellular responses.
An analysis of the first wave of the epidemic in Iran in 8902 people suggests the overall proportion of people with SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in their blood - known as seroprevalence - may be higher than rates based on clinical cases alone, at around 17.1% seropositivity vs 0.6% based on modelling from previous studies, by end of April 2020.
However, seroprevalence varies widely between cities - with the highest estimates found in Rasht (72.6%) and the lowest in Sanandaj (1.7%) although some cities had small samples sizes.
About two in 10 U.S. school districts have already adopted, plan to adopt or are considering adopting virtual schools after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new RAND Corporation study.
The survey of district leaders indicates that virtual schooling was the innovative practice that most district leaders anticipated would continue, citing both student and parent demand for continuing various forms of online instruction.
Researchers at the HSE Institute for Cognitive Neuroscience have shown experimentally that economic activity can actively change the brain. Signals that predict regular financial losses evoke plastic changes in the cortex. Therefore, these signals are processed by the brain more meticulously, which helps to identify such situations more accurately. The article was published in Scientific Reports.
Future novel hybrid energy systems could lead to paradigm shifts in clean energy production, according to a paper published last week in Joule.
Researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) three applied energy laboratories--Idaho National Laboratory (INL), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), and the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL)--co?authored the paper describing such integrated energy systems.
A drug that boosts the removal of cellular debris in immune cells may increase the protective effects of vaccines in older adults, a study published today in eLife shows.
The results may lead to new approaches to protect older individuals from viruses such as the one causing the current COVID-19 pandemic and influenza.
Philadelphia, December 15, 2020 - The study of human emotions can be used to gauge the sensory acceptance of dairy products. A possible route to increase worldwide consumption of sheep milk kefir may be to improve its sensory acceptance, which can be a determining factor for its inclusion in daily diets.