Новости за 08.09.2022

It is sometimes said that science is about truth, while engineering is about compromise.

Supplementing the feed of dairy cattle with enzymes from two fungi simultaneously has a positive effect on the animals' lactational performance, according to Penn State researchers, who studied the concept in an experiment with cows.

Shale oil, a type of crude oil similar to petroleum, is found between layers of organic-rich shale. It can be refined into petrol, diesel, and other products, making it a sought-after resource. The Qingshankou Formation in the Gulong Sag of the Songliao Basin in China is a large geological body of shale deposits formed at the bottom of an ancient lake. These deposits contain about 15.3 billion tons of pure shale oil. Naturally, the Gulong-Qingshankou Formation is an important national reservoir for shale oil. Читать дальше...

Recent advances in imaging technology have made it possible to visualize intracellular dynamics, which offers a better understanding of several key biological principles for accelerating therapeutic development. Fluorescent labeling is one such technique that is used to identify intracellular proteins, their dynamics, and dysfunction. Both internal as well as external probes with fluorescent dyes are used for this purpose, although external probes can better visualize intracellular proteins as compared to the internal probes. Читать дальше...

A Penn State-led team of interdisciplinary researchers has developed techniques to improve the efficiency of CRISPR-Cas9, the genome editing technique that earned the Nobel Prize in 2020. While CRISPR-Cas9 is faster, less expensive and more accurate than other gene-editing methods, according to project leader Xiaojun "Lance" Lian, associate professor of biomedical engineering and biology at Penn State, the technology has limitations—especially in applications to improve human health.

Just two weeks after announcing the development of a mouse embryo model, complete with beating hearts and the foundations for a brain and other organs, from mouse stem cells, researchers in the laboratory of Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz, Bren Professor of Biology and Biological Engineering, have published new findings about another mouse embryo model reaching similar developmental stages, but created out of only mouse embryonic stem cells. This modification has simplified the protocol and makes the embryo... Читать дальше...

Charging and discharging a battery cell transforms its electrode material into a "super" material.

Researchers have developed a thin lens with a continuously tunable focal length. The new lens could one day make visual fatigue from augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) devices a thing of the past.

Researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) and the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP) have conducted the most comprehensive genetic analysis ever of the American bullfrog (Aquarana catesbeiana) in Brazil, concluding that there are two populations of the species here, living on frog farms or invading local ecosystems. Bullfrogs are considered the world's main invasive amphibian.

States are acting to decriminalize possession of most or all controlled substances, according to updated data released today by the Temple University Center for Public Health Law Research on LawAtlas.org that provide a high-level overview of legislation seeking to decriminalize personal drug possession.

Membrane technology is widely applied in water treatment for removing suspended particles, colloids, and organic pollutants from polluted water. As a typical representative of inorganic membrane with advantages such as high flux and chemical resistance, ceramic membrane has massive potential value in the treatment of surface water, municipal wastewater, and drinking water.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Latinas left their jobs in large numbers as they were forced to shoulder an unequal share of household and child care responsibilities, and most haven't reentered the workforce despite an economic rebound, according to a report published today by the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute.

Solid-aqueous interfaces are ubiquitous and essential in a diverse range of natural and man-made systems and processes, from mineral formation, rock weathering and metal corrosion, to the intricate functioning of biological membranes and ion channels.

Stable isotopes in precipitation are important indicators for studying changes in the Earth's water cycle and reconstructing the paleoclimate history. Previous studies have shown that the precipitation stable isotopes in Asia recorded in stalagmites and other sediments have prominent periodic change patterns on the 10,000-year scale (orbital scale) in geological periods, but in the scientific community there are still controversies about the climatological significance indicated by the precipitation isotope changes in different parts of Asia.

When the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe, many people turned to online sources to find health information. That was also largely the case for racial and ethnic minority populations in the United States, and a new study from the University of Kansas found they faced many of the same challenges such as encountering misinformation online, but also unique factors such as harassment, hostility and racial animus. They also relied on media from the United States and their home countries, as well as social media for information... Читать дальше...

A review paper by scientists at Zhejiang University summarized the development of continuum robots from the aspects of design, actuation, modeling and control. The new review paper, published on Jul. 26 in the journal Cyborg and Bionic Systems, provided an overview of the classic and advanced technologies of continuum robots, along with some prospects urgently to be solved.

A new study published September 8 in Science finds that between 90 and 99% of all deforestation in the tropics is driven directly or indirectly by agriculture. Yet only half to two-thirds of this results in the expansion of active agricultural production on the deforested land.

Water is the one thing all life on Earth needs, and the cycle of rain to river to ocean to rain is an essential part of what keeps our planet's climate stable and hospitable. When scientists talk about where to search for signs of life throughout the galaxy, planets with water are always at the top of the list.

The donkey has shaped the history of humankind, both as a source of power for farm work, and of transportation in sometimes hard to reach areas.

Lugging around a tapeworm that's one third your body weight can be a real drag. So threespine stickleback fish evolved resistance to tapeworms—but resistance has costs of its own, a team of researchers show in Science on September 8.

A new analysis of mentoring relationships in academic research finds that gender inequities in the resources available to women mentors in the life sciences appear to disproportionately affect the subsequent careers of women trainees. Leah Schwartz and colleagues at Oregon Health and Science University present these findings on September 8th in the open-access journal PLOS Biology.

The El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a global climate phenomenon most famous for the El Niño phase characterized by warm sea surface temperatures in the eastern Pacific Ocean, intense winter storms and high precipitation. El Niño impacts plants, animals and people around the world by devastating Pacific fisheries, sparking droughts in some parts of the world and causing massive flooding in others.

The question of what makes modern humans unique has long been a driving force for researchers. Comparisons with our closest relatives, the Neandertals, therefore provide fascinating insights. The increase in brain size, and in neuron production during brain development, are considered to be major factors for the increased cognitive abilities that occurred during human evolution. However, while both Neandertals and modern humans develop brains of similar size, very little is known about whether modern... Читать дальше...

An ultracompact circularly polarized light source is a crucial component for the applications of classical and quantum optics information processing. The development of this field relies on the advances of two fields: quantum materials and chiral optical cavities. Conventional approaches for circularly polarized photoluminescence suffer from incoherent broadband emission, limited DOP, and large radiating angles. Their practical applications are constrained by low efficiency and energy waste to undesired handedness and emission directions. Читать дальше...

Multiple climate tipping points could be triggered if global temperature rises beyond 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, according to a major new analysis published in the journal Science. Even at current levels of global heating the world is already at risk of passing five dangerous climate tipping points, and risks increase with each tenth of a degree of further warming.