Earth
A simple molecule in the atmosphere that acts as a "detergent" to breakdown methane and other greenhouse gases has been found to recycle itself to maintain a steady global presence in the face of rising emissions, according to new NASA research. Understanding its role in the atmosphere is critical for determining the lifetime of methane, a powerful contributor to climate change.
If you ever find yourself staring down a manta ray, you'll probably notice two things right away: the massive, flapping fins that produce the shark cousin's 20-foot wingspan and the two fleshy growths curling out of its head that give it the nickname "devil ray." A new San Francisco State University study shows that these two very different features have the same origin -- a discovery that reflects an important lesson for understanding the diversity of life.
The Wizard of Oz, followed by Star Wars and Psycho, is identified as the most influential film of all time in a study published in the open access journal Applied Network Science.
Researchers at the University of Turin, Italy, calculated an influence score for 47,000 films listed in IMDb (the internet movie database). The score was based on how much each film had been referenced by subsequent films. The authors found that the top 20 most influential films were all produced before 1980 and mostly in the United States.
From diagnosis of HIV to successful viral suppression: in a rapid communication published in Eurosurveillance today, ECDC and co-authors from Public Health England and The National AIDS Trust summarise the progress towards HIV elimination in 52 countries in Europe and Central Asia. The main issues: diagnosing those who are unaware of their HIV infection and treating them.
When tiny particles strike a metal surface at high speed -- for example, as coatings being sprayed or as micrometeorites pummeling a space station -- the moment of impact happens so fast that the details of process haven't been clearly understood, until now.
Capturing and reproducing realistic, real-world objects for any virtual environment is complex and time-consuming. Imagine using a conventional camera with a built-in flash--from any mobile device or off-the-shelf digital camera--to simplify this task. A global team of computer scientists have developed a novel method that replicates physical objects for the virtual and augmented reality space just using a point-and-shoot camera with a flash, without the need for additional, and oftentimes expensive, supporting hardware.
WASHINGTON-- Blue whales around the world are singing a little flat, and scientists may now have more clues as to the reason why.
A new study finds there's a seasonal variation in the whales' pitch correlated with breaking sea ice in the southern Indian Ocean. The new research also extends the mysterious long-term falling pitch to related baleen whales and rules out noise pollution as the cause of the global long-term trend, according to the study's authors.
The UK Government needs to urgently implement new carers' employment rights and work with employers to better support carers in the workplace, a new report from the Work Foundation states today.
USC researchers have developed a polio vaccine that doesn't require refrigeration, meaning it could someday be used all over the world to deliver the final blow to this longtime foe.
The injectable vaccine, which was freeze-dried into a powder, kept at room temperature for four weeks and then rehydrated, offered full protection against the polio virus when tested in mice.
A study of 89 fishing communities in East Africa has found that good neighbors who agree with common proposals to improve shared fisheries management are uncommon, illustrating that the "tragedy of the commons" dilemma is alive for many fisheries facing sustainable use challenges.
Stressful events in the evening release less of the body's stress hormones than those that happen in the morning, suggesting possible vulnerability to stress in the evening.
The body's central system reacts less strongly to acute psychological stress in the evening than it does in the morning, according to research conducted at Japan's Hokkaido University.
Powerful storms that cause extreme weather conditions such as flooding across Europe and North America, with the potential to wreak social and economic havoc, could increase threefold by the end of the 21st century due to climate change.
Pioneering new research, led by Dr Matt Hawcroft from the University of Exeter, has shown new and detailed information on projections of the frequency of extratropical cyclones.
CHICAGO - Young football players may experience a disruption in brain development after a single season of the sport, according to a new study presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
"This research demonstrates that playing a season of contact sports may affect normal gray matter pruning in high school and youth football players," said Gowtham Krishnan Murugesan, M.S., research assistant in the Department of Radiology at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas.
Researchers in Israel have discovered that breast tumors can boost their growth by recruiting stromal cells originally formed in the bone marrow. The study, which will be published November 23 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, reveals that the recruitment of bone marrow-derived fibroblasts lowers the odds of surviving breast cancer, but suggests that targeting these cells could be an effective way of treating the disease.
An international study lead by University of Manchester scientists has discovered the identity of genes that predispose people to chronic kidney disease.
The discovery is a major advance in understanding of the significantly under-diagnosed disorder which, if left undetected, can lead to failing kidneys that need dialysis or kidney transplantation.
The discovery of 35 kidney genes is an important step forward to the future development of new diagnostic tests and treatments for the disease that affects around one in ten adults.