Other Sciences News

Interbreeding between Neanderthals and modern humans gave us genetic tools to combat viral infections. Image credit: Claire Scully.

Study: Humans Inherited Viral Defenses from Neanderthals

Oct 10, 2018 by News Staff

Neanderthal DNA introgressed in modern humans helped them adapt against RNA viruses, according to new research published in the journal Cell. Interbreeding...

Brain areas reflecting choice set value: areas shown in red to yellow exhibit a linear increase in fMRI activity as a function of S during the exposure stage of the pooled choice trials. Image credit: Reutskaja et al, doi: 10.1038/s41562-018-0440-2.

Neuroscientists Identify Brain Areas Responsible for Choice Overload

Oct 8, 2018 by News Staff

Scientists have long known that we are overwhelmed by too many choices. Now, Caltech Professor Colin Camerer and co-authors have discovered what’s happening...

Receiving a hug on the day of conflict was associated with improved concurrent negative and positive affect and improved next day negative affect compared to days when conflict occurred but no hug was received. Image credit: Rawpixel.

Study: Hugs Protect against Conflict-Related Psychological Distress

Oct 4, 2018 by News Staff

According to new research, receiving hugs — a common support behavior that individuals engage in with a wide range of social partners — may...

UV active ink can be printed on paper making sensors cheap and easy to produce. Image credit: RMIT University.

Researchers Develop Wearable Paper-Based UV Sensors

Oct 3, 2018 by News Staff

An international team of researchers led by RMIT University has developed paper-based UV sensors that could help people manage vitamin absorption and avoid...

Pleistocene backed artifact dated to 43,000 years ago showing evidence of use on its working edge: ventral and dorsal surfaces. Image credit: McDonald et al, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0202511.

Aboriginal People Lived in Australian Deserts 43,000 Years Ago, New Research Finds

Oct 2, 2018 by News Staff

New evidence from Karnatukul (Serpents Glen), a rock shelter site in the Australian Western Desert, indicates that Aboriginal people lived in this interior...

An artistic conception of the early Earth. Image credit: Simone Marchi / NASA.

Plate Tectonics Was Active from Earth’s Very Beginning, Study Suggests

Oct 1, 2018 by News Staff

New research overturns previous scientific beliefs that Earth’s tectonic plates were developed over the course of billions of years. An artistic conception...

Adhering to a healthy diet, in particular a traditional Mediterranean diet, or avoiding a pro-inflammatory diet appears to confer some protection against depression in observational studies. Image credit: Rita E.

Eating Healthier, Plant-Rich Diet May Help Prevent Depression

Oct 1, 2018 by News Staff

According to a comprehensive, systematic review of previous studies, a diet of vegetables, fruits, nuts, plant-based food and fish — typical of a...

Kühn et al show that cocoa beans from different growing regions contain vitamin D2.

Cocoa and Chocolate are Rich Dietary Sources of Vitamin D2, Study Shows

Sep 28, 2018 by Natali Anderson

A study carried out by the Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg and the Max Rubner-Institut, Germany, shows that cocoa and cocoa-based foods contain...

Dr. David Ferrier’s monkey brain map, 1874: the highlighted area labeled ‘EF’ is the area he observed to cause eye and head movements when electrically stimulated.

Neuroscientists Find Brain Area Linked to High-Risk Behavior

Sep 26, 2018 by News Staff

Rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) who learned how to gamble have helped neuroscientists locate an area of the brain linked to risky behavior. The findings,...

An example of 3D-printed LCP part with complex fiber architecture and geometry: an impact-resistant Bouligand-type structure with twisted plywood arrangement of printed fibers. Image credit: Gantenbein et al, doi: 10.1038/s41586-018-0474-7.

Researchers Develop Way to 3D Print with Liquid-Crystal Polymers

Sep 25, 2018 by News Staff

A team of researchers at ETH Zürich in Switzerland has developed an approach to 3D print recyclable materials using cheap desktop printers that outperform...

The Servants Drive a Herd of Yahoos into the Field by Louis John Rhead. Image credit: Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Yahoo in Gulliver’s Travels Represent 18th Century Description of Sasquatch, Researcher Says

Sep 24, 2018 by News Staff

Australian National University researcher Debbie Argue may have solved one of English literature’s most enduring mysteries: Jonathan Swift’s inspiration...

Gerlach et al determine four new personality types: average, reserved, self-centered and role model. Image credit: GraphicMama Team / Sci-News.com.

Researchers Determine Four New Personality Types

Sep 19, 2018 by News Staff

A team of researchers at Northwestern University has sifted through data from more than 1.5 million people around the world and found at least four distinct...

Dairy consumption was associated with lower risk of mortality and major cardiovascular disease events in a diverse multinational cohort. Image credit: Rita E.

Higher Dairy Consumption Reduces Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

Sep 17, 2018 by News Staff

According to investigators from the Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiology (PURE) study, dairy intake of around three standard servings per day is associated...

Karshalev et al created a micromotor pill and demonstrated its attractive use as a platform for oral delivery of active micromotors: (A) left: schematic of in vivo administration of a micromotor pill for actuation in the stomach; right: schematic of the micromotor pill composition consisting of a lactose/maltose pill matrix and the encapsulated a magnesium/titanium dioxide/polylactic-co-glycolic acid (Mg/TiO2/PLGA) micromotors; a zoom-in view illustrates the micromotor structure consisting of a Mg microsphere core with a TiO2 shell layer and a cargo-loaded PLGA film coating; (B) schematic of micromotor pill dissolution in gastric fluid and subsequent micromotor release; (C) left: image showing different sizes of disk-shaped micromotor pills; center: microscope image showing the dissolution of a micromotor pill in gastric fluid simulant; right: propulsion of the released Mg-based micromotors in gastric fluid simulant. Image credit: Karshalev et al, doi: 10.1021/acsnano.8b03760.

Researchers Create Micromotor Pill

Sep 14, 2018 by News Staff

A team of scientists at the University of California, San Diego has found a way to encapsulate micromotors into pills. The pill’s coating protects the...

The Reference Elevation Model of Antarctica shows the continent in stunning detail. Image credit: National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.

New High-Resolution Map of Antarctica Unveiled

Sep 13, 2018 by News Staff

A team of cartographers and researchers from the University of Minnesota and the Ohio State University has produced a high-resolution terrain map of Antarctica...

Hensleigh et al developed a new process to 3D print graphene structures. Image credit: Hensleigh et al, doi: 10.1039/C8MH00668G.

Scientists Find New Way to 3D Print Graphene Objects

Sep 12, 2018 by News Staff

A team of scientists at Virginia Tech and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has developed a new 3D printing process to create complex objects out...

Increasing daily fasting times made mice healthier and live longer compared to mice who ate more frequently. Image credit: Mitchell et al, doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2018.08.011.

Study: Daily Fasting Improves Health and Longevity in Male Mice

Sep 12, 2018 by News Staff

A new study led by the National Institute on Aging shows that a long daily period of fasting improves the health and survival of male mice, regardless...

Chandrasekhar et al invented a proof-of-concept blood pressure app that can give accurate readings using an iPhone. Image credit: Michigan State University.

New Smartphone App Accurately Measures Blood Pressure from Fingertip

Sep 11, 2018 by News Staff

A team of researchers at Michigan State University has developed an iPhone X app that measures blood pressure via the ‘oscillometric finger pressing...

Wind and solar farms are known to have local effects on heat, humidity and other factors that may be beneficial to the regions in which they are situated. Image credit: Erich Westendarp.

Large-Scale Solar and Wind Farms in Sahara Would Increase Rain and Vegetation

Sep 10, 2018 by News Staff

Energy generation by wind and solar farms could reduce carbon emissions and thus mitigate anthropogenic climate change. A new climate-modeling study, published...