Tech
In February 2020, the Israeli government issued emergency rules to contain the spread of COVID-19, ordering individuals considered as exposed to COVID-19 to self-quarantine. This regulation was extended in March to include almost the entire population. In enacting the rules, the country's health officials hoped that the public would comply with the orders. However, one potential obstacle to compliance is concern over loss of income.
Worldwide, flooded rice cultivation has degraded soil quality, reducing rice yield and requiring intense use of inputs like fertilizers. On the other hand, integrated crop-livestock systems (ICLS) appear to be a good alternative to increase nutrient-use efficiency of rice, improving rice yield.
In a recent Agronomy Journal article, researchers evaluated the impact of no-till and ICLS adoption on soil fertility and flooded rice nutrition and yield. Although these practices are not widely adopted in paddy fields, their combination has demonstrated several benefits.
Physicians from Sapienza University in Rome have published promising results of a small prospective interventional trial using noninvasive pulsed electromagnetic field therapy (PEMF) to treat men suffering from benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). After one month of treatment, prostate volume and symptoms significantly decreased. Men with moderate-severe lower urinary tract symptoms and without metabolic syndrome benefitted more from the treatment. The study was recently published in Andrology, the highest ranked journal of andrological research.
Mantis shrimps have earned fame for their powerful punching limbs, incredibly unusual eyes, and vivid exoskeletons. And, it turns out, they're also really good at finding their way home. Through a series of painstaking experiments with these often-uncooperative creatures, Rickesh Patel has produced new findings on mantis shrimp navigation, published this week in Current Biology.
In another verification of the validity of Einstein's theory of general relativity, published in Nature Photonics, scientists from the RIKEN Center for Advanced Photonics and Cluster for Pioneering Research, with colleagues, have used two finely tuned optical lattice clocks, one at the base and one on the 450-meter observatory floor of Tokyo Skytree, to make new ultraprecise measurements of the time dilation effect predicted by Einstein's theory of general relativity.
What does it actually look like deep inside our ears? This has been very difficult to study as the inner ear is protected by the hardest bone in the body. But with the help of synchrotron X-rays, it is now possible to depict details inside the ear three-dimensionally. Together with Canadian colleagues, researchers from Uppsala University have used the method to map the blood vessels of the inner ear.
Leading research groups in the field of nanophotonics are working toward developing optical transistors - key components for future optical computers. These devices will process information with photons instead of electrons, thus reducing the heat and increasing the operation speed. However, photons do not interact with each other well, which creates a big problem for microelectronics engineers.
Researchers at the University of Sydney have discovered the basic science of how sweet taste perception is fine-tuned in response to different diets. While it has long been known that food can taste different based on previous experience, until now we didn't know the molecular pathways that controlled this effect.
Since their invention in the 1930s, electron microscopes have helped scientists peer into the atomic structure of ordinary materials like steel, and even exotic graphene. But despite these advances, such imaging techniques cannot precisely map out the 3D atomic structure of materials in a liquid solution, such as a catalyst in a hydrogen fuel cell, or the electrolytes in your car's battery.
All organisms have DNA, the genetic material that provides a blueprint for life. The long double-helix-shaped DNA molecules in the body's cells are first translated into RNA molecules and then translated into proteins that ensure the functioning of the cell and the entire organism. But there are large parts of the DNA that are not used for making proteins. This is called 'junk DNA', because its function remained unclear for a long time.
Researchers of the Structural Engineering Laboratory, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology have developed a new concept for strengthening steel in critical building structures using bond-free carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) laminates to enhance the buckling performance of structural steel elements. This method does not require steel surface treatment prior to CFRP application because the CFRP is not bonded onto the surface, which contributes to structural strength through its flexural rigidity.
Proteins are made up of long chains of amino acids, and most proteins have one or more of the sulfur-containing amino acid methionine. Oxidation of the sulfur atom in methionine is an important biomolecular reaction that can have a wide range of biological consequences depending on the context and the protein involved.
Scientists and engineers are on a quest to develop electronic devices that are compatible with our bodies: think of materials that can help wire neurons back together after brain injuries, or diagnostic tools that can easily be absorbed within the body.
powerful Tropical Cyclone Harold from the Solomon Islands to the island of Tonga in the South Pacific. Satellite data was used to calculate the rainfall generated as Harold moved through the Southern Pacific Ocean. NASA also provided infrared imagery on Harold.
powerful Tropical Cyclone Harold from the Solomon Islands to the island of Tonga in the South Pacific. Satellite data was used to calculate the rainfall generated as Harold moved through the Southern Pacific Ocean. NASA also provided infrared imagery on Harold.
Researchers at the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center are shedding new light on the way microorganisms that live in the gastrointestinal tract can affect the development of colorectal cancer.