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Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 19, 2020 at 12:35pm

Colorful, magnetic Janus balls could help foil counterfeiters

Counterfeiters who sell knockoffs of popular shoes, handbags and other items are becoming increasingly sophisticated, forcing manufacturers to find new technologies to stay one step ahead. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Nano have developed tiny Janus balls that show their colored side under a magnetic field. These microparticles could be useful in inks for anti-counterfeiting tags, which could be verified with an ordinary magnet, the researchers say. 

Janus balls are microspheres that have two sides with distinct properties. Researchers wanted to make Janus balls out of two unmixable resins: one that contained magnetic nanoparticles, and another that contained silica particles. The magnetic side of the ball would also contain carbon black, causing that hemisphere to appear dark, whereas the silica particles on the other side of the ball would self-assemble into a crystalline lattice, producing structural colors. The result would be tiny balls that normally have their black sides facing up, except when a magnetic field causes them to flip to their colorful sides.

To make Janus balls, the researchers used a microfluidic device to unite drops of the two resins, with a surfactant added to stabilize the joined drops into a spherical shape. Because the silica-containing colored side of the drops was heavier than the black magnetic side, the force of gravity caused the black side to spontaneously face upward, like a roly-poly toy, when the balls were placed in water. Then, the researchers permanently aligned the magnetic nanoparticles in the balls in the same direction. By applying a magnetic field in the opposite direction, they could flip the balls to their colored sides. The researchers made red and green Janus balls by using different sizes of silica particles, with their magnetic nanoparticles aligned in opposite directions. By changing the direction of the applied magnetic field, they could change the colors of 3D-printed chameleon and butterfly shapes. Using different colors and orientations of Janus balls in inks could produce sophisticated, user-interactive anti-counterfeiting tags, the researchers say.

https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/presspacs/2020/acs-pre...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 19, 2020 at 12:19pm

 Kangaroos really can 'talk' to us, study finds

Kangaroos can intentionally communicate with humans, research reveals

Animals that have never been domesticated, such as kangaroos, can intentionally communicate with humans, challenging the notion that this behavior is usually restricted to domesticated animals like dogs, horses or goats, a new study has found.

The research which involved kangaroos, marsupials that were never domesticated, at three locations across Australia, revealed that kangaroos gazed at a human when trying to access food which had been put in a closed box. The kangaroos used gazes to communicate with the human instead of attempting to open the box themselves, a behaviour that is usually expected for domesticated animals.

1. Alan G. McElligott, Kristine H. O'Keeffe, Alexandra C. Green. Kangaroos display gazing and gaze alternations during an unsolvable problem task. Biology Letters, 2020; 16 (12): 20200607 DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2020.0607

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/12/201217135258.htm

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https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-new-variant-genomics-resear...

Coronavirus new variant – genomics researcher answers key questions

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 19, 2020 at 12:04pm

Forensic science: laser technique distinguishes human and animal blood

New research published recently could soon offer law enforcement another valuable crime scene tool—a quick and accurate way to distinguish human blood from animal blood.

In a proof-of-concept study researchers used laser technology to rapidly differentiate human blood samples from nearly a dozen animal species.

This could prove to be key in car crash investigations when the suspect is unsure if a human or animal was struck.

technique relies on Raman spectroscopy, which works by shining a laser on a dry blood sample and measuring the interaction. No two samples produce the same results, offering a unique measurement (similar to a fingerprint). The results are instantaneous and do not destroy the sample, preserving it for future testing.

In the new study researchers used attenuated total reflection Fourier transform-infrared (ATR FT-IR) spectroscopy, a complementary technique to Raman spectroscopy, on 15 human blood samples and a total of 89 cat, dog, rabbit, horse, cow, pig, opossum and raccoon blood samples. Although each sample  appeared nearly identical to the naked eye, the ATR FT-IR spectroscopy analysis, coupled with advanced statistics, was able to classify them as human or animal with 100 percent accuracy.

Samples from three other species—deer, elk and ferret—were included to further test the statistical model, and were all correctly classified.

Ewelina Mistek-Morabito et al. Discrimination between human and animal blood by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, Communications Chemistry (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s42004-020-00424-8

https://phys.org/news/2020-12-forensic-chemist-laser-technique-dist...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 19, 2020 at 11:54am

SARS-CoV-2-like particles very sensitive to temperature

Why do corona viruses become more active in winter?

A new study tested how temperatures and humidity affect the structure of individual SARS-Cov-2 virus-like particles on surfaces. They found that just moderate temperature increases broke down the virus' structure, while humidity had very little impact. In order to remain infectious, the SARS-Cov-2 membrane needs a specific web of proteins arranged in a particular order. When that structure falls apart, it becomes less infectious. The findings suggest that as temperatures begin to drop, particles on surfaces will remain infectious longer.

This is the first study to analyze the mechanics of the virus on an individual particle level, but the findings agree with large-scale observations of other coronaviruses that appear to infect more people during the winter months.

Temperature makes a huge difference, and that's what the researchers saw. To the point where the packaging of the virus was completely destroyed by even moderate temperature increases. They 

hey tested the virus-like particles on glass surfaces under both dry and humid conditions. Using atomic force microscopy they observed how, if at all, the structures changed. The scientists exposed samples to various temperatures under two conditions: with the particles inside a liquid buffer solution, and with the particles dried out in the open. In both liquid and bare conditions, elevating the temperature to about 93 degrees F for 30 minutes degraded the outer structure. The effect was stronger on the dry particles than on the liquid-protected ones. In contrast, surfaces at about 71 degrees F caused little to no damage, suggesting that particles in room temperature conditions or outside in cooler weather will remain infectious longer.

They saw very little difference under levels of humidity on surfaces, however the scientists stress that humidity likely does matter when the particles are in the air by affecting how fast the aerosols dry out. The research team is continuing to study the molecular details of virus-like particle degradation.

A. Sharma et al, Structural stability of SARS-CoV-2 virus like particles degrades with temperature, Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications (2020). DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2020.11.080

** https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-12-sars-cov-like-particles-sens...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 19, 2020 at 11:36am

Exploring the role of prefrontal-amygdala brain circuits in social decision-making

In recent years, neuroscientists have been trying to understand the neural underpinnings of social behaviors and cognition. Studies on animal species, including primates and rodents, have identified a number of brain regions and neural circuits that may underpin social behaviors.

Researchers a have been conducting extensive research investigating the roles of the medial prefrontal cortex and the amygdala in social decision-making, particularly focusing on the interactions between different brain regions in the prefrontal-amygdala pathways. In a recent paper published in Nature Neuroscience, the researchers reviewed and summarized the evidence gathered in past studies that examined the neural mechanisms of social decision-making in humans, non-human primates and rodents.

Overall, the findings reviewed  the researchers highlight the crucial role of interactions between the medial prefrontal cortex and amygdala in the social cognition of a wide variety of animal species. The medial prefrontal cortex has previously been found to contribute to a number of sensorimotor, cognitive and emotional processes, while the amygdala is a region deep within the brain that integrates a number of emotions, emotional reactions and motivations.

Some recent studies also revealed that neural ensembles involved in the processing of information that is both related and unrelated to social communication can interact with one another. These interactions appear to facilitate or attenuate social functions, increasing or decreasing their prevalence over non-social functions.

 Prefrontal-amygdala circuits in social decision-making. Nature Neuroscience (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41593-020-00738-9

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-12-exploring-role-prefrontal-am...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 18, 2020 at 12:29pm

Science behind miracles

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 18, 2020 at 12:18pm

Astronomers May Have Detected The First Radio Signal From an Exoplanet

https://www.sciencealert.com/astronomers-detect-the-first-potential...

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These Arctic squirrels recycle bits of their own bodies to survive winter

The secrets of the animals’ metabolism during hibernation could someday help human medicine

S.A. Rice et al. Nitrogen recycling buffers against ammonia toxicity from skeletal m.... Nature Metabolism. Published online December 7, 2020. doi: 10.1038/s42255-020-00312-4.

https://www.sciencenews.org/article/arctic-squirrels-recycle-protei...

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Scientists take a step towards expanding the use of magnetic fluids...

Magnetic fluids are used in many different areas, including medicine, electronics, mechanical engineering, ecology, etc. Such a wide range of applications is explained by a number of its useful properties. Researchers from Peter the Great St.Petersburg Polytechnic University (SPbPU) in collaboration with colleagues from Jiangsu Normal University (JSNU) discovered new effects in magnetic fluids, which will increase its effectiveness for medical purposes in future. The results were published in Springer Proceedings in Physics.

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When light and atoms share a common vibe

An especially counter-intuitive feature of quantum mechanics is that a single event can exist in a state of superposition—happening both here and there, or both today and tomorrow.

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 18, 2020 at 12:09pm

These ‘beetlebots’ keep flying, even after crashing into poles

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 18, 2020 at 12:08pm

Why are our tears salty?

Well, all fluids in our bodies have a little bit of salt in them. This salt is made into electricity to help our muscles contract and our brains to think. The amount of salt in our body fluids (like tears, sweat, and saliva) is about the same as the amount of salt in our blood — just under 1%, or about two teaspoons of salt per litre.

The saltiness of your tears can actually vary depending on what kind of tears your eyes are making.

That’s right, your eyes — or a part of your eyes called the lacrimal gland, to be precise — make three different types of tears. These are called basal tears, reflex tears and emotional tears.

• basal tears keep your eyes wet and stop nasty germs infecting your eyes
• reflex tears are made when your eyes need to wash away something harmful that gets in, such as smoke or a grain of sand
• emotional tears are the kind you cry when you’re feeling very happy or sad.

Basal tears and reflex tears have more salt in them than emotional tears, which is important for keeping your eyes healthy. Emotional tears contain more of other things, including a hormone (a special type of chemical in your body) that works like a natural painkiller. This might help to explain why we sometimes feel better after having a good cry.

https://theconversation.com/curious-kids-why-are-our-tears-salty-15...

Comment by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on December 18, 2020 at 11:50am

Being Scientists Doesn’t Make Us Science Communicators

Effectively relating science to the public is a science in itself, and expertise on a topic doesn’t guarantee expertise in explaining it.

https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/opinion-being-scientists...

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