Using results of a survey of more than 2,700 self-reported users of the herbal supplement kratom, sold online and in smoke shops around the U.S., Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers conclude that the psychoactive compound somewhat similar to opioids likely has a lower rate of harm than prescription opioids for treating pain, anxiety, depression and addiction.
Many of the biggest questions in physics can be answered with the help of quantum field theories: They are needed to describe the dynamics of many interacting particles, and thus they are just as important in solid state physics as in cosmology. Often, however, it is extremely complicated to develop a quantum field theoretical model for a specific problem - especially if the system in question consists of many interacting particles.
An international research group with Dr. Longjian Xie from the Bavarian Research Institute of Experimental Geochemistry & Geophysics (BGI) of the University of Bayreuth has succeeded for the first time in measuring the viscosity that silicate melt exhibit under the pressure and temperature conditions found in the lower earth mantle. The data obtained support the assumption that a bridgmanite-enriched rock layer was formed during the early history of the earth at a depth of around 1,000 kilometres - at the border to the upper mantle.
Renewed investments in hydrogen fuel cell technologies and infrastructure by companies like Amazon; nations like China; and automakers like Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai, are sparking sales and fresh interest in the vast possibilities of polymer-electrolyte fuel cells. The fresh interest could revolutionize transportation and fill streets with vehicles whose only effluent is water vapor.
Oil poses a considerable danger to aquatic life. Researchers at the Universities of Bonn and Aachen and the Heimbach-GmbH have developed a new technology for the removal of such contaminations: Textiles with special surface properties passively skim off the oil and move it into a floating container. The scientists used surfaces from the plant kingdom as a model. The study has now been published in the journal "Philosophical Transactions A".
For over a century, Alzheimer's disease has confounded all attempts to treat it. But in recent years, perplexing experiments using flickering light have shown promise.
Now, researchers have tapped into how the flicker may work. They discovered in the lab that the exposure to light pulsing at 40 hertz - 40 beats per second - causes brains to release a surge of signaling chemicals that may help fight the disease.
ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. (Feb 3, 2020) -- A big data approach to neuroscience promises to significantly improve our understanding of the relationship between brain activity and performance.
Darwin's finches are among the most celebrated examples of adaptive radiation in the evolution of modern vertebrates and now a new study, led by scientists from the University of Bristol, has provided fresh insights into their rapid development and evolutionary success.
Study of the finches has been relevant since the journeys of the HMS Beagle in the 18th century which catalysed some of the first ideas about natural selection in the mind of a young Charles Darwin.
SPOKANE, Wash. -- English proficiency shouldn't be a barrier to health care. That's why the federal government requires hospitals to make translated documents and interpreters available to patients.
Every year, about 8 million metric tons of plastic are put into the world's oceans. Of particular concern are microplastics, materials found in the marine environment that occur in sizes below five millimeters and are the most abundant form of marine debris observed at the ocean surface.