Tech
SEATTLE--Despite progress toward global education targets, a new study reveals that 1 in 10 women ages 20-24 in low- and middle-income countries had zero years of schooling in 2017, and 1 in 6 had not completed primary school.
For the first time, researchers have mapped years of education and child malnutrition across all low- and middle-income countries at the level of individual districts. The findings include precision maps illuminating disparities within countries and regions often obscured by national-level analyses.
CHICAGO (January 8, 2020): Taking a more active role in one's own health is known to promote better outcomes, but it is especially critical for patients who are waiting for a kidney transplant.
More than 20 years ago, the lab of developmental biologist Olivier Pourquié discovered a sort of cellular clock in chicken embryos where each "tick" stimulates the formation of a structure called a somite that ultimately becomes a vertebra.
In the ensuing years, Pourquié and others further illuminated the mechanics of this so-called segmentation clock across many organisms, including creation of the first models of the clock in a lab dish using mouse cells.
Biological Engineers at the University of Bath have developed a test that could help medics quickly diagnose urinary tract infections (UTIs), using a normal smartphone camera.
Similar in principle to a pregnancy test, the process can identify the presence of harmful E. coli bacteria in a urine sample in just 25 minutes. As well as being far faster than existing testing, it could make accurate UTI testing more widely available in developing nations and remote regions thanks to its potential to be made portable, and far more cheaply than existing lab-based tests.
Experts from the University of Seville have published a recent study in which they determine that the start of the increase in the verdure of vegetation (equivalent to the start of spring) in Africa is directly connected to the amount of hours of sunshine a day, that is to say the it would be the "photoperiod" which controls this process and not the arrival of the first rains, as was believed until now. This work has been published in 'Communications Biology', a new review from the Nature group.
New viruses which cause diseases often come from animals. Well-known examples of this are the Zika virus transmitted by mosquitoes, bird flu viruses, as well as the MERS virus which is associated with camels. In order to identify new viral diseases quickly and prevent possible epidemics, DZIF scientists at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin are targeting their search at viruses in animals. In a current study, they have now discovered hundreds of novel viruses in insects. The results have been published in PLOS Pathogens*.
A recently published study that looked at public opinion on plant-based diets has found widespread support for the ethics and environmental benefits of veganism and vegetarianism among meat eaters, but finds that the barriers are practical matters of taste, price, and convenience.
During storms in the southwestern U.S., some rattlesnakes drink rain droplets from scales on their backs. This unusual behavior could help them survive in a desert environment with infrequent rain. Now, researchers have figured out how the nanotexture of scales from these snakes helps them use their bodies to harvest rain. They report their results in in ACS Omega. Watch a video about the snake scales here.
BROOKLYN, New York, Weekday, January 8, 2020 - Scientific literature abounds with examples of ways in which member diversity can benefit a group - whether spider colonies' ability to forage or an industrial company's financial performance. Now, a newly published mathematical framework substantiates the seemingly counterintuitive observations made by prior scholars: Interaction among dissimilar individuals can speed consensus.
With the 2020 elections looming and amid continuing concerns over social media's role in U.S. politics, four top universities have published a comprehensive new report recommending how candidates, tech platforms and regulators can ensure that digital political campaigns promote and protect fair elections.
E-cigarette use is rising, particularly among young adults and teens. Recent illnesses and deaths attributed to vaping have caused intense scrutiny of the chemicals in e-liquids and vapor, but little is known about the size of vaping particles and their deposition patterns in human airways. Now, researchers reporting in ACS' Chemical Research in Toxicology have analyzed how e-cigarette particle size and deposition change with factors such as device power, e-liquid composition and vaping practices.
University of Toronto Engineering researchers have developed a super-stretchy, transparent and self-powering sensor that records the complex sensations of human skin.
Dubbed artificial ionic skin -- or AISkin for short -- the researchers believe the innovative properties of AISkin could lead to future advancements in wearable electronics, personal health care and robotics.
Conventional wisdom says that having just one mutated copy of the cystic fibrosis gene has no effects on a person's health--the disease occurs when both copies of the gene are mutated. But a new study from the University of Iowa suggests that may not be the case.
The research, published recently in the journal PNAS, found that people with one mutated copy of the cystic fibrosis (CF) gene, sometimes called CF carriers, are at increased risk for all of the conditions that affect people with CF.
Dying cells in the body can keep the immune system in check, thus preventing unwanted immune responses against the body's own tissues. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center have now identified a receptor on murine immune cells that activates this protective mechanism and can thus prevent dangerous autoimmune reactions in which the immune system attacks the patient's own body tissues.
Viruses are not easy to characterize. But we need to because being able to quickly predict the surface charge of viruses opens up new possibilities for vaccine purification and making gene therapy treatments for eye diseases and muscular dystrophy.