Tech
Bottles of beer, wine and spirits contain potentially harmful levels of toxic elements, such as lead and cadmium, in their enamelled decorations, a new study shows.
Researchers at the University of Plymouth analysed both the glass and enamelled decorations on a variety of clear and coloured bottles readily available in shops and supermarkets.
They showed that cadmium, lead and chromium were all present in the glass, but at concentrations where their environmental and health risks were deemed to be of low significance.
SEATTLE - G20 leaders meeting in Japan this week should focus on fulfilling their obligations to improve and expand their nations' health care systems.
In a 600-ft.-long saltwater wave tank on the coast of New Jersey, a team of New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) researchers is conducting the largest-ever simulation of the Deepwater Horizon spill to determine more precisely where hundreds of thousands of gallons of oil dispersed following the drilling rig's explosion in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010.
Delicate yet voracious, the sea slug Elysia rufescens grazes cow-like on bright green tufts of algae, rooting around to find the choicest bits.
But this inch-long marine mollusk gains not only a tasty meal -- it also slurps up the algae's defensive chemicals, which the slug can then deploy against its own predators.
The region covered by the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has significant potential to be powered by solar energy, researchers report June 27 in the journal Joule. Less than 4 percent of the maximum solar potential of the region could meet the BRI's electricity demand for 2030. The research suggests a possible solution to reduce BRI countries' need for fossil fuels as they develop. This is the first time the renewable energy potential of the region is quantified.
DURHAM, N.C. -- In the search for new weapons against malaria, most drug development has focused on the parasites that cause the disease. But Duke University researchers are trying a different tack. Instead of targeting the malaria parasite directly, the idea is to discover drugs aimed at the human cell machinery conscripted to do malaria's dirty work.
Fleeting differences in gene expression between individuals that occur at different points in time during cell development may have consequences on the ultimate risk for disease in mature tissues and cell types.
Lung cancer cells use antioxidants, endogenous or dietary, to spread in the body by activating a protein called BACH1 and increasing the uptake and use of sugar, Swedish and American researchers report in two independent studies. The studies, which are published in the eminent scientific journal Cell, pave the way for new therapeutic strategies for lung cancer.
The origin of a single, transient radio pulse has been pinpointed to a distant galaxy several billion light years away, representing the first localization of a non-repeating fast radio burst (FRB). The FRB's burst source and host galaxy are distinct from those of the only other localized FRB, a repeating fast radio burst pegged to its galaxy in 2017. Short blasts of radio energy from powerful, yet currently unknown, astrophysical processes travel far and wide across vast intergalactic expanses.
Inspired by the properties of nacre - the opalescent biological composite found inside seashells - researchers have engineered a new glass that's ductile yet tough, and highly impact-resistant. The mother-of-pearl-bioinspired material more than doubles the impact tolerance of widely used tempered and laminated glass, whilst maintaining all the unique qualities that make glass one of the most ubiquitous materials of our everyday lives.
Overeating, by cutting the brain's natural brakes on food intake, may result in neurological changes that continue to fuel pathological eating and lead to obesity, reports a new study in mice. The results demonstrate how diet-induced obesity alters the function of a crucial neurological feeding suppression system - findings that could help identify novel therapeutic targets for eating disorders and obesity in humans.
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have discovered a pathway that functions like a car wash to prevent the buildup of a toxic protein associated with Alzheimer's disease. The report appeared online today in the journal Cell.
(Millbrook, NY) Since its discovery in 1999, Nipah virus has been reported almost yearly in South and Southeast Asia, with Bangladesh and India being the hardest hit. In a new study, published today in PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, scientists used machine learning to identify bat species with the potential to host Nipah virus, with a focus on India - the site of a 2018 outbreak. Four new bat species were flagged as surveillance priorities.
Bottom Line: An online survey study suggests how people feel about cosmetic surgery may be associated with what social media and photo editing apps they use. Most of the 252 survey participants were white and women, with an average age of almost 25, and had not previously undergone any cosmetic surgeries. Self-esteem and acceptance of cosmetic surgery attitudes were measured. YouTube and WhatsApp social media users had lower self-esteem scores than nonusers, as did photo editing platforms users of VSCO and Photoshop.
This year, German environmentalists collected 1.75 million signatures for a 'save the bees' law requiring an immediate transition toward organic farming. But to create healthy ecosystems