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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 8:12am

If we are going to tackle climate change, we have to think about both cultural and technical solutions."

The study also underscored an important wrinkle in the emissions due to clothes drying: They vary greatly from region to region in the U.S. In areas powered primarily by coal, for example, dryers are going to lead to more emissions than areas relying more heavily on sustainable options, like hydroelectric power.

So the fact that there is variation makes sense, but the size of it is staggering. Depending on where the change is made, switching from a gas dryer to an electric dryer can reduce emissions by more than 90% or increase them by more than 220%.

Thus, moving toward a cleaner energy grid is another technical solution to reduce the impact of dryers

When you can simply dry the clothes for free in your backyard, why spend money on it and increase your carbon foot print as well?

Zhu Zhu et al, The relative benefits of electrification, energy efficiency, and line drying clothes in the United States, Resources, Conservation and Recycling (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.resconrec.2025.108212

Part 2

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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 8:12am

Clothes dryers and the bottom line: Switching to air drying can save hundreds

Researchers are hoping their new study will inspire some people to rethink their relationship with laundry. Because, no matter how you spin it, clothes dryers use a lot of comparatively costly energy when air works for free.

Household dryers in the U.S. consume about 3% of our residential energy budget, about six times that used by washing machines. Collectively, dryers cost more than $7 billion to power each year in this country, and generating that energy emits the equivalent of more than 27 million tons of carbon dioxide.

The U.S. also leads the world in dryer ownership, with more than 80% of homes having one, compared with less than 30% in South Korea, just over 40% in Germany and just under 60% in the United Kingdom.

That got researchers in the U-M School for Environment and Sustainability, or SEAS, wondering what it would mean for the average American household if we warmed up to air drying.

In most other places in the world, it's hard to find a clothes dryer. 

 Dryers consume a lot of energy, so what if you used line drying instead? How much could you save? How many CO₂ emissions could you avoid?

Researchers   investigated the costs and emissions associated with different drying technology behaviors in the U.S.

Over the lifetime of a dryer, 100% line drying could save a household upwards of $2,100. That would also cut back CO₂ emissions by more than 3 tons per household over the same time. Though the contrast between dryers and line drying is stark, it's not surprising, the researchers said.

The researchers did find some striking results in its analysis, published in the journal Resources, Conservation and Recycling.

For example, a mixture of line drying and dryer use proved to be the second most economical and eco-friendly option, over changes like upgrading to more efficient dryers. And, in some cases, households that invested in more energy-efficient dryers wouldn't end up saving money in the long run.

"We tend to focus on technological improvements, but a lot of the time, behavioral changes can have larger impacts.
Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 7:18am

Frame dragging 

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 7:12am

Climate change may reduce the number of satellites that can safely orbit in space

Aerospace engineers have found that greenhouse gas emissions are changing the environment of near-Earth space in ways that, over time, will reduce the number of satellites that can sustainably operate there.

In a study appearing in Nature Sustainability, the researchers report that carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases can cause the upper atmosphere to shrink. An atmospheric layer of special interest is the thermosphere, where the International Space Station and most satellites orbit today.

When the thermosphere contracts, the decreasing density reduces atmospheric drag— a force that pulls old satellites and other debris down to altitudes where they will encounter air molecules and burn up.

Less drag therefore means extended lifetimes for space junk, which will litter sought-after regions for decades and increase the potential for collisions in orbit.

The team carried out simulations of how carbon emissions affect the upper atmosphere and orbital dynamics, in order to estimate the "satellite carrying capacity" of low-Earth orbit. These simulations predict that by the year 2100, the carrying capacity of the most popular regions could be reduced by 50–66% due to the effects of greenhouse gases.

There's been a massive increase in the number of satellites launched, especially for delivering broadband internet from space. If we don't manage this activity carefully and work to reduce our emissions, space could become too crowded, leading to more collisions and debris, the experts warn.

William Parker, Greenhouse gases reduce the satellite carrying capacity of low Earth orbit, Nature Sustainability (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41893-025-01512-0. www.nature.com/articles/s41893-025-01512-0

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 7:01am

This finding may simultaneously explain wider mysteries of our galaxy, such as a specific type of X-ray observation found at the center of the Milky Way—known as the "511-keV emission line." This specific energy signature could also be due to the same low-mass dark matter colliding and producing charged particles.

Pedro De la Torre Luque et al, Anomalous Ionization in the Central Molecular Zone by Sub-GeV Dark Matter, Physical Review Letters (2025). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.134.101001

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 7:00am

Mysterious phenomenon at center of galaxy could reveal new kind of dark matter

A mysterious phenomenon at the center of our galaxy could be the result of a different type of dark matter.

Dark matter, the mysterious form of unobserved matter which could make up 85% of the mass of the known universe, is one of science's biggest manhunts.

In this first of its kind study, scientists have taken a step closer to understanding the elusive mystery matter. They think a reimagined candidate for dark matter could be behind unexplained chemical reactions taking place in the Milky Way.

At the center of our galaxy sit huge clouds of positively charged hydrogen, a mystery to scientists for decades because normally the gas is neutral. So, what is supplying enough energy to knock the negatively charged electrons out of them?

The energy signatures radiating from this part of our galaxy suggest that there is a constant, roiling source of energy doing just that, and our data says it might come from a much lighter form of dark matter than current models consider.

The most established theory for dark matter is that it is likely a group of particles known as Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (WIMPs), which pass through regular matter without much interaction—making them extremely hard to detect.

However, this study, published recently in Physical Review Letters, has potentially revived another type of dark matter with much lower mass than a WIMP.

The researchers think that these tiny dark matter particles are crashing into each other and producing new charged particles in a process called "annihilation." These newly produced charged particles can subsequently ionize the hydrogen gas.
Previous attempts to explain this ionization process had relied on cosmic rays, fast and energetic particles that travel throughout the universe. However, this explanation has faced some difficulties, as energy signatures recorded from observations of the Central Molecular Zone (CMZ) where this is happening, don't seem to be large enough to be attributed to cosmic rays. Such a process doesn't seem to be possible with WIMPs either.

The research team were left with the explanation that the energy source causing the annihilation is slower than a cosmic ray and less massive than a WIMP.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 6:54am

Moreover, in real neural networks, connectivity is not static—it evolves over time, influenced by both external stimuli and internal network activity. This dynamic nature of connectivity might play a crucial role in shaping how neural populations process and encode information, potentially offering insights into how learning and adaptive properties affect information encoding in neural systems.

 Giacomo Barzon et al, Excitation-Inhibition Balance Controls Information Encoding in Neural Populations, Physical Review Letters (2025). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.134.068403.

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 6:52am

Optimal brain processing requires balance between excitatory and inhibitory neurons, study suggests

The brain's ability to process information is known to be supported by intricate connections between different neuron populations. A key objective of neuroscience research has been to delineate the processes via which these connections influence information processing.

Researchers recently carried out a study aimed at better understanding the contribution of excitatory and inhibitory neuron populations to the brain's encoding of information. Their findings, published in Physical Review Letters, show that information processing is maximized when the activity of excitatory and inhibitory neurons is balanced.

The brain continuously receives and integrates sensory inputs, and neurons do not act in isolation—they are part of complex, recurrent networks. One particularly intriguing feature of these networks is the balance between the activity of excitatory and inhibitory neurons, which has been observed across different brain regions.

Researchers wanted to determine whether the balance between excitatory and inhibitory neurons does more than stabilize neural activity. Specifically, the team explored the possibility that this balance also optimizes information processing.

They analyzed a model that captures the interactions between these two populations and investigated—both analytically and numerically—their response to external signals.

Specifically, by employing tools of information theory, they revealed a fundamental trade-off:  neural networks optimized for accurate encoding over long timescales may be less responsive to rapid changes in the input.

Employing mathematical and theoretical approaches for studying information processing, the researchers showed that information processing is most effective at the edge of stability, a critical state in which the activity of excitatory and inhibitory neurons is balanced. Their results suggest that the fine-tuning of this excitation-inhibition balance could not only stabilize the brain's activity, but could also play a crucial role in its ability to optimally encode information.

Part 1

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 6:46am

Within a few weeks of implantation, the BCC model helped the animals regain normal erectile function both spontaneously and in response to electrical stimulation, allowing them to mate and reproduce successfully.
These results open exciting possibilities for treating penile tissue damage and even making penis transplants a reality using the 3D-printed BCC model. The researchers also think that the findings of this study will support the further development of 3D-printed blood-vessel-rich functional organs for transplantation.

 Zhenxing Wang et al, 3D-printed perfused models of the penis for the study of penile physiology and for restoring erectile function in rabbits and pigs, Nature Biomedical Engineering (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41551-025-01367-y

Part 2

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on March 11, 2025 at 6:43am

3D-printed tissue restores erectile function and aids reproduction in animal study

Erectile dysfunction affects over 40% of men over 40, yet our understanding of the condition remains limited. Research on this issue has mostly relied on real organs, making it difficult to study the detailed interaction between blood flow and tissue during an erection.

In a recent study published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, a team of scientists from China, Japan and the U.S. presented a 3D printed hydrogel-based penile model complete with essential blood vessels to mimic the natural function of a penis.

Once implanted into rabbits and pigs with penile deformities, the bioengineered organ enabled them to mate and reproduce within weeks.
Apart from transporting oxygen and essential nutrients throughout the body, the vascular system also plays a crucial role in penile erection. This is especially true of the corpora cavernosa with its numerous cavernous spaces, with the cavernous artery running through the center of the penis.

During an erection, these spaces get filled with blood and press against nearby veins that block the blood from flowing out, causing the penis to swell and stay firm. Damage to this intricate system of vessels can lead to erectile dysfunction (difficulty achieving an erection) and Peyronie's disease (penile curvature and deformation).

Scientists created a detailed penile system which included the glans (tip of the penis), corpus spongiosum (the tissue surrounding the urethra) with urethral structures and an implantable model of the corpus cavernosum, the sponge-like vascular tissue responsible for erections. This biomimetic corpus cavernosum (BCC) model helped them visualize how different structures and fluids interact during both normal and dysfunctional erections.

The study also explored repairing penile tissue damage in rabbits and pigs. The process began with introducing endothelial cells (lining of blood vessels) derived from the corpus cavernosum of said animals in the BCC model. After 14 days of in-vitro culture, the implantable 3D-printed organ was ready with a fused endothelial layer.

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