A Man Has Died After Eating Bags of Black Licorice Daily

A man in Massachusetts died after eating too much black licorice, which contains a compound known to be toxic in large doses, according to a new report. The 54-year-old man was in a fast food restaurant when he suddenly gasped, began shaking and lost consciousness, according to the report Emergency medical personnel found that the man was experiencing ventricular fibrillation, a life-threatening heart rhythm problem. The man received CPR and briefly regained consciousness before being rushed to the hospital. A discussion with the man's family revealed that he had a poor diet, consuming one to two large packages of soft candy every day, and little else. A few weeks earlier, the man had switched from eating red, fruit-flavored candy to black licorice candy. Black licorice often contains a compound called glycyrrhizin, which is derived from licorice root. Consuming too much licorice root or candies flavored with licorice root can be dangerous because glycyrrhizin lowers the body's potassium levels. This, in turn, can lead to high blood pressure and abnormal heart rhythms.

In the man's case, very low potassium levels led to his heart problems. The man received treatment to restore his potassium levels, along with multiple other treatments in the intensive care unit, including being placed on a ventilator. Despite these efforts, the man died 32 hours after arriving at the hospital. 

Although the death is an "extreme case," eating just 2 ounces of black licorice a day for two weeks can cause heart rhythm problems, particularly for people ages 40 and older.

https://www.livescience.com/black-licorice-death.html

https://www.sciencealert.com/man-dies-from-eating-black-licorice-da...

Body fat deep below the surface is a toxic risk, especially for your heart

BMI can’t provide information about the shape and size of potentially dangerous internal fat deposits, known as “visceral fat”. Over recent years it’s become apparent visceral fat can lead to disease, and good fat can turn into toxic fat when there is too much.

Various organs seem to accumulate visceral fat. This can be a problem because it can create and release damaging molecules and hormones into the blood. These are transported in the bloodstream, potentially causing health complications in distant parts of the body.

For example, toxic fat can release proteins that blunt the body’s sensitivity to insulin. Blood glucose levels then rise, potentially causing diabetes in the long term. Visceral fat can also stimulate uncontrolled cell growth and replication, potentially triggering some forms of cancer. A fatty liver is associated with metabolic diseases, and excess kidney fat interferes with the body’s fluid balance.

The heart is especially vulnerable

https://theconversation.com/body-fat-deep-below-the-surface-is-a-to...

Seven Warning Signs of Bogus Science

1. The discoverer pitches the claim directly to the media.

2. The discoverer says that a powerful establishment is trying to suppress his or her work.

3. The scientific effect involved is always at the very limit of detection.

4. Evidence for a discovery is anecdotal.

5. The discoverer says a belief is credible because it has endured for centuries.

6. The discoverer has worked in isolation.

7. The discoverer must propose new laws of nature to explain an observation.

https://quackwatch.org/related/signs/

White supremacists believe in genetic ‘purity’. Science shows no such thing exists

Science does not support the idea of pure races with ancient origins. In the past few years, genetic sequencing of ancient and modern humans and related species has given us a flood of new information about how human populations have evolved.

The evidence reveals a history of ongoing genetic mingling, due to interbreeding between different populations and even species. Humans from different groups had children together, and even with Neanderthals and members of other now-extinct hominin species.

This mingling occurred constantly in the long process of human migration across the globe. Europeans inhabit one region of a large genetic continuum and are no more or less “pure” than any other population.

https://theconversation.com/white-supremacists-believe-in-genetic-p...

Antifungal preventive drugs reduce mortality risk following lung transplantation: Study

The retrospective study, published in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society, is the largest ever to evaluate the effectiveness of antifungal preventive drugs in lung transplant recipients who are particularly susceptible to invasive fungal infections. These infections are associated with a nearly threefold increase in mortality for lung transplant recipients.

The study showed that  the risk of death within the first year posttransplant is about twice as high in patients not receiving antifungal preventive treatment, compared with those receiving treatment.

https://www.atsjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1513/AnnalsATS.202003-267OC

Ecologists confirm Alan Turing's theory for fairy circles

Fairy circles are one of nature's greatest enigmas and most visually stunning phenomena. An international research team has now, for the first time, collected detailed data to show that Alan Turing's model explains the striking vegetation patterns of the Australian fairy circles. In addition, the researchers showed that the grasses that make up these patterns act as "eco-engineers" to modify their own hostile and arid environment, thus keeping the ecosystem functioning.

Researchers used drone technology, spatial statistics, quadrat-based field mapping, and continuous data-recording from a field-weather station. With the drone and a multispectral camera, the researchers mapped the "vitality status" of the Triodia grasses (how strong and how well they grew) in five one-hectare plots and classified them into high- and low-vitality.

The systematic and detailed fieldwork enabled, for the first time in such an ecosystem, a comprehensive test of the 'Turing pattern' theory. Turing's concept was that in certain systems, due to random disturbances and a 'reaction-diffusion' mechanism, interaction between just two diffusible substances was enough to allow strongly patterned structures to spontaneously emerge. Physicists have used this model to explain the striking skin patterns in zebrafish or leopards for instance.

The data show that the unique gap pattern of the Australian fairy circles, which occur only in a small area east of the town of Newman, emerges from ecohydrological biomass-water feedbacks from the grasses. In fact, the fairy circles—with their large diameters of 4m, clay crusts from weathering and resultant water run-off—are a critical extra source of water for the dryland vegetation. Clumps of grasses increased shading and water infiltration around the nearby roots. With increasing years after fire, they merged more and more at the periphery of the vegetation gaps to form a barrier so that they could maximize their water uptake from the fairy circle's runoff. The protective plant cover of grasses could reduce soil-surface temperatures by about 25°C at the hottest time of the day, which facilitates the germination and growth of new grasses. In summary, the scientists found evidence both at the scale of the landscape and at much smaller scales that the grasses, with their cooperative growth dynamics, redistribute the water resources, modulate the physical environment, and thus function as "ecosystem engineers" to modify their own environment and better cope with the arid conditions.

Stephan Getzin et al, Bridging ecology and physics: Australian fairy circles regenerate following model assumptions on ecohydrological feedbacks, Journal of Ecology (2020). DOI: 10.1111/1365-2745.13493

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-ecologists-alan-turing-theory-austral...

Metformin treatment linked to slowed cognitive decline

Metformin is the first-line treatment for most cases of type 2 diabetes and one of the most commonly prescribed medications worldwide, with millions of individuals using it to optimize their blood glucose levels.

A new research study, conducted over six years 

 has revealed an additional effect: individuals with type 2 diabetes who used metformin experienced slower cognitive decline with lower dementia rates than those who did not use the medication.

The findings provide new hope for a means of reducing the risk of dementia in individuals with type 2 diabetes, and potentially those without diabetes who number nearly 47 million people worldwide.

Diabetes Care (2020). DOI: 10.2337/dc20-0892

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-09-metformin-treatment-linked-c...

--

Scientists discover why tarantulas come in vivid blues and greens

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-scientists-tarantulas-vivid-blues-gre...

Researchers show conscious processes in birds' brains for the first time

By measuring brain signals, a neuroscience research group has demonstrated for the first time that corvid songbirds possess subjective experiences. Simultaneously recording behavior and brain activity enabled the group  to show that crows are capable of consciously perceiving sensory input. Until now this type of consciousness has only been witnessed in humans and other primates, which have completely different brain structures to birds.

For humans and our nearest relatives in the animal kingdom, the nonhuman primates, our ability to perceive things consciously is localized in the cerebral cortex. Over many years research has discussed whether animals with brains that are structured completely differently, without a cerebral cortex, are also endowed with conscious perception. Until now however there has been no experimental neurological data to support such a claim.

In order to track conscious processes in birds, the Tübingen scientists trained two crows: they had to signal whether they had seen a stimulus on a screen by moving their heads. Most of the stimuli were perceptually unambiguous: different trials presented either bright figures or no stimulus at all, and the crows reliably signaled the presence or absence of these stimuli, respectively. However, some stimuli were so faint that they were at the threshold of perception: for the same faint stimulus, the crows sometimes indicated that they had seen it, whereas in other cases they reported that there was no stimulus. Here, the subjective perception of the crows came into play.

While the crows responded to the visual stimuli, the researchers simultaneously recorded the activity of individual nerve cells in the brain. When the crows reported having seen something, the nerve cells were active in the period between presentation of the stimulus and the behavioral response. If they did not perceive a stimulus, the nerve cells remained silent. Surprisingly, it was possible to predict the subjective experience of the crows with regard to the stimulus based on the activity of the nerve cells.

These results conclusively show that nerve cells at higher processing levels of the crow's brain are influenced by subjective experience, or more precisely, produce subjective experiences."

This means that in terms of evolutionary history the origins of consciousness could be far older and more widespread in the animal kingdom than previously thought. the capability of conscious experience can be realized in differently structured brains and independently of the cerebral cortex.

Nieder et al., A neural correlate of sensory consciousness in a corvid bird. Science (2020). science.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi … 1126/science.abb1447

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-conscious-birds-brains.html?utm_sourc...

Scientists Have Found The Molecule That Allows Bacteria to 'Exhale' Electricity

For mouthless, lungless bacteria, breathing is a bit more complicated than it is for humans. We inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide; Geobacter - a ubiquitous, groundwater-dwelling genus of bacteria - swallow up organic waste and 'exhale' electrons, generating a tiny electric current in the process.

https://www.livescience.com/electron-breathing-geobacter-microbes.html

https://www.sciencealert.com/bacteria-in-mud-breathe-through-giant-...

First Compelling Evidence of Organisms That Eat Viruses as a Food Source

Two types of single-celled organisms found drifting in the waters of the Gulf of Maine off North America's coast just might be the first true virophages known to science.

Researchers identified the virus grazers after sifting nearly 1,700 plankton cells collected from the waters of the gulf and the Mediterranean Sea, and amplifying the DNA inside each and every one to create individualised genomic libraries.

In the gulf sample, half of the libraries contained snippets of genes from 50 or more different viruses. In the Mediterranean sample it was closer to a third of the sample.

Most of the virus sequences appeared to be from bacteriophages – pathogens that invade and replicate inside bacterial cells.

Bacteria are a common food source for marine protozoans, so finding their dinner came pre-infected isn't much of a surprise.

But representatives belonging to groups known as choanozoans and picozoans, both collected from the waters off North America, stood out as a little unusual.

For one thing, in many cases there was not a shred of bacterial DNA in sight. Without any signs of a bacterial brunch, it's hard to know how bacteriophage genes might have ended up inside the planktons' cells.

More compelling still is that the two completely different phyla of protozoans shared near-identical viral sequences, making it hard to argue that infection was responsible.

While the evidence for a diet of virus snacks could be considered circumstantial, it's not unlike finding dark crumbs dusting your toddler's fingers near an empty box of Oreos. Nobody's going to blame you for being suspicious.

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2020.524828/full

https://www.sciencealert.com/first-compelling-evidence-of-organisms...

Electrons that flow like water in ultra-pure graphene

Since its discovery in 2004, graphene has largely been known for its quantum properties. But recently, researchers discovered that electron flow in graphene at certain temperatures could be described using the very classical laws of hydrodynamics.

People observed that electrons in graphene flowed collectively, akin to water in a pipe. This was exciting not only because it provided a new playground to study electron interactions but also because it could also provide a new way to control electrons.”

Since that initial discovery, researchers wondered if the behavior could be replicated in other quantum materials.

Now, a team of researchers have classified different types of hydrodynamic behaviours which could arise in quantum materials where electrons flow collectively. This research opens the door to studying exotic physics and electron hydrodynamics in a range of new materials beyond graphene and paves the way for potentially interesting applications for extremely energy efficient electronics.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1788-9

https://researchnews.cc/news/2744/Electrons-that-flow-like-water-ar...

Study finds that high levels of a growth factor increases risk for several cancers

A study of almost 400,000  participants has identified a new link between raised levels of the growth factor IGF-1 and increased thyroid cancer risk and has confirmed associations with breast, prostate and colorectal cancer. This could lead to new preventative strategies, including diet and lifestyle interventions.

IGF-1 (insulin-like growth factor-1) helps to support normal cell growth and development, processes which can lead to cancer if they become dysregulated.

https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2020-09-15-study-finds-high-levels-growth....

https://researchnews.cc/news/2729/Study-finds-that-high-levels-of-a...

**Mutation leading to biological changes may play role in cancer

A new study from McGill University’s Goodman Cancer Research Centre (GCRC) has revealed significant biological changes in mice expressing an activated, mutant form of the Estrogen Receptor alpha (ER alpha), shedding new light on the role of this important gene in development and cancer. Over-expressed in approximately 70 % of breast cancer cases, the Estrogen Receptor is often associated with breast cancer therapy resistance when it mutates and therefore can contribute to poor patient outcomes. To understand how the biological effects of ER alpha mutations can lead to cancer, researchers at the GCRC have generated the first mouse model expressing one of these mutations early in development, bringing new insight on its effects on the development of the sexual organs.

https://researchnews.cc/news/2743/Mutation-leading-to-biological-ch...

Optical Wi-Fi allows for ultrafast underwater communications

Common pelvic pain drug is ineffective, study finds

--

Plastic-eating enzyme 'cocktail' heralds new hope for plastic waste

The scientists who re-engineered the plastic-eating enzyme PETase have now created an enzyme 'cocktail' which can digest plastic up to six times faster.

A second enzyme, found in the same rubbish dwelling bacterium that lives on a diet of plastic bottles, has been combined with PETase to speed up the breakdown of plastic.

PETase breaks down polyethylene terephthalate (PET) back into its building blocks, creating an opportunity to recycle plastic infinitely and reduce plastic pollution and the green house gasses driving climate change.

Brandon C. Knott el al., "Characterization and engineering of a two-enzyme system for plastics depolymerization," PNAS (2020). www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.2006753117

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-plastic-eating-enzyme-cocktail-herald...

Commercial battery cells that can monitor their own chemical and thermal state

Battery technology can sometimes be unstable and volatile, two characteristics that impair its safety and reliability. Actively monitoring the chemical and thermal state of battery cells over time could help to detect changes that may cause incidents or malfunctions, giving users the chance to intervene before a problem arises.

Researchers  have recently designed a Na(Li)-ion battery that can monitor its own chemical and thermal state via a series of optical sensors integrated in its cells. This unique self-monitoring battery, presented in a paper published in Nature Energy, could provide greater safety and a more sustained efficiency compared to conventional battery technologies.

Jiaqiang Huang et al. Operando decoding of chemical and thermal events in commercial Na(Li)-ion cells via optical sensors, Nature Energy (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41560-020-0665-y

C. P. Grey et al. Sustainability and in situ monitoring in battery development, Nature Materials (2016). DOI: 10.1038/nmat4777

https://techxplore.com/news/2020-09-commercial-battery-cells-chemic...

Low doses of the insecticide, Imidacloprid, cause blindness in insects

New research has identified a mechanism by which low levels of insecticides such as, the neonicotinoid Imidacloprid, could harm the nervous, metabolic and immune system of insects, including those that are not pests, such as our leading pollinators, bees. This study shows that low doses of Imidacloprid trigger neurodegeneration and disrupt vital body-wide functions, including energy production, vision, movement and the immune system, in the vinegar fly, Drosophila melanogaster.

With insect populations  declining around the world and intense use of insecticides suspected to play a role, the findings provide important evidence that even small doses of insecticides reduce the capacity of insects to survive, even those that are not pests.

Felipe Martelli el al., "Low doses of the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid induce ROS triggering neurological and metabolic impairments in Drosophila," PNAS (2020). www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.2011828117

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-insect-armageddon-doses-insecticide-i...

Scientists precisely measure total amount of matter in the universe

A top goal in cosmology is to precisely measure the total amount of matter in the universe, a daunting exercise for even the most mathematically proficient. A team led by scientists  has now done just that.

The team determined that matter makes up 31% of the total amount of matter and energy in the universe, with the remainder consisting of dark energy.

"To put that amount of matter in context, if all the matter in the universe were spread out evenly across space, it would correspond to an average mass density equal to only about six hydrogen atoms per cubic meter.

However, since we know 80% of matter is actually dark matter, in reality, most of this matter consists not of hydrogen atoms but rather of a type of matter which cosmologists don't yet understand.

*one well-proven technique for determining the total amount of matter in the universe is to compare the observed number and mass of galaxy clusters per unit volume with predictions from numerical simulations. Because present-day galaxy clusters have formed from matter that has collapsed over billions of years under its own gravity, the number of clusters observed at the present time is very sensitive to cosmological conditions and, in particular, the total amount of matter.*

Researchers developed "GalWeight ", a cosmological tool to measure the mass of a galaxy cluster using the orbits of its member galaxies. The researchers then applied their tool to observations from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) to create "GalWCat19," a publicly available catalog of galaxy clusters. Finally, they compared the number of clusters in their new catalog with simulations to determine the total amount of matter in the universe.

 Mohamed H. Abdullah et al, Cosmological Constraints on Ω m and σ 8 from Cluster Abundances Using the GalWCat19 Optical-spectroscopic SDSS Catalog, The Astrophysical Journal (2020). DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/aba619

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-scientists-precisely-total-amount-uni...

Faced with shortages, researchers combine heat and humidity to disinfect N95 masks

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-09-shortages-combine-humidity-d...

--

Cement-free concrete beats corrosion and gives fatbergs the flush

Researchers have developed an eco-friendly zero-cement concrete, which all but eliminates corrosion

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/09/200928103418.htm

--

How sewage testing helps contain COVID-19

Scientists have found an early-warning tool for COVID-19 in our sewage to help detect its spread. Here's a run down on how it works.

https://ecos.csiro.au/how-sewage-testing-helps-contain-covid-19/?ut...

--

There’s no single gene for left-handedness. At least 41 regions of DNA are involved

https://theconversation.com/theres-no-single-gene-for-left-handedne...

Neurons in spinal-cord injuries are reconnected in vivo via carbon nanotube sponges

Research conducted by two groups have shown that functional materials based on carbon nanotubes facilitate the reconnecting of neuronal networks damaged as a result of spinal cord injuries. The study constitutes a huge step forward in research geared toward recovery from injuries of this type.

Collaboration between the groups has shown that biomaterials based on carbon nanotubes facilitate communication between neurons, neuronal growth and the establishing of connections by means of materials of this type. The electrical and mechanical properties of this material enable many applications unthinkable for any other materials. In particular, the interaction of excitable cells, such as nerve and heart cells, make carbon nanotubes of great relevance. The communication among cells increases when interfaced with carbon nanotubes, and it is also possible to construct mechanically stable scaffolds that sustain nerve growth.

Sadaf Usmani el al., Functional rewiring across spinal injuries via biomimetic nanofiber scaffolds.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2020). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2005708117

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-neurons-spinal-cord-injuries-reconnec...

Saving lives through early detection of gastric cancer cells

 A new method for identifying gastric cancer cells within minutes and more accurately than by using traditional methods is underway. The aim is to reduce the number of deaths due to gastric cancer, one of the leading causes of cancer deaths worldwide.

However, the OEK method is a new technique that could be integrated with “lab-on-a-chip” systems that offers researchers opportunities to manipulate objects within a micro- and nanoscale bioengineering environment.

The rationale for applying OEK to gastric cancer is that these cells are not the same size and, crucially, possess different electrical characteristics to other cells in the peritoneal region. The new method is appealing because it is quick and non-invasive. In fact, within five minutes, it can separate out the gastric cancer cells on the OEK microfluidic chip.

https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/6/32/eaba9628.full

https://researchnews.cc/news/2751/Saving-lives-through-early-detect...

Lining the GI tract

By making use of enzymes found in the digestive tract, MIT engineers have devised a way to apply a temporary synthetic coating to the lining of the small intestine. This coating could be adapted to deliver drugs, aid in digestion, or prevent nutrients such as glucose from being absorbed.

The Sound of Gravity

**

Your Running Shoes Might Actually Increase Your Risk of Injury, Scientists Say

https://www.sciencealert.com/our-super-comfy-running-shoes-may-be-m...

Deadly Spread of Some Cancers May Be Driven by a Common Mouth Microbe

An ordinary bacterium can trigger changes in some primary tumors that lead to dangerous metastasis.

 Fusobacterium nucleatum, which normally lives harmlessly in the gums, appears to have a role in the spread of some cancers of the colon, esophagus, pancreas and—possibly—breast. Laboratory studies and evidence in patients indicate that the microbe can travel through the blood and infect tumor cells by attaching to a sugar molecule on their surface. There it provokes a range of signals and immune responses known to cause tumor cells to migrate. If further confirmed, the work with F. nucleatum could add to a growing understanding of how the microbiome influences cancer progression and may even point the way to fresh approaches to treatment.

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/deadly-spread-of-some-ca...

Computer model shows how COVID-19 could lead to runaway inflammation

Why do some people with COVID-19 develop severe inflammation? A study using computer models unlocks this mystery. 

The research shows how the molecular structure and sequence of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein—part of the virus that causes COVID-19—could be behind the inflammatory syndrome cropping up in infected patients. It used computational modeling to zero in on a part of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that may act as a "superantigen," kicking the immune system into overdrive as in toxic shock syndrome—a rare, life-threatening complication of bacterial infections.

team created a computer model of the interaction between the SARS-CoV-2 viral spike protein and the receptors on human T cells, the foot soldiers of the immune system. Under normal circumstances, T cells help the body fight off infection, but when these cells are activated in abnormally large quantities, as is the case with superantigens, they produce massive amounts of inflammatory cytokines—small proteins involved in immune system signaling—in what's known as a "cytokine storm."

Using this computer model, the team was able to see that a specific region on the spike protein with superantigenic features interacts with T cells. Then, they compared this region to a bacterial protein that causes toxic shock syndrome and found striking similarities in both sequence and structure. Importantly, the proposed SARS-CoV-2 superantigen showed a high affinity for binding T cell receptors—the first step toward touching off a runaway immune response.

Mary Hongying Cheng et al. Superantigenic character of an insert unique to SARS-CoV-2 spike supported by skewed TCR repertoire in patients with hyperinflammation, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2020). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2010722117

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-09-covid-runaway-inflammation.h...

Conversation quickly spreads droplets inside buildings: study

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-09-conversation-quickly-droplet...

--

**Understanding ghost particle (neutrino) interactions

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-ghost-particle-interactions.html?utm_...

--

** Evolution of pine needles helps trees cope with rainfall impact

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-evolution-needles-trees-cope-rainfall...

New insights into the origin of diamonds in meteorites

Scientists have offered new insights into the origin of diamonds in ureilites (a group of stony meteorites). These diamonds most likely formed by rapid shock transformation from graphite (the common low-pressure form of pure carbon) during one or more major impacts into the ureilite parent asteroid in the early solar system.

The ureilites that they investigated have all been highly shocked, based on the evidence from their silicate minerals, which strongly suggests that both large and small diamonds in these rocks formed from original graphite via shock processes.

Fabrizio Nestola et al. Impact shock origin of diamonds in ureilite meteorites, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2020). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1919067117

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-insights-diamonds-meteorites.html?utm...

**Nanotech filter coating offers promise against COVID-19

Researchers developed a nanotech coating designed to allow air filters to capture airborne or aerosolized droplets of the virus that causes COVID-19.

The coating works by capturing liquids which encase the virus particles while still allowing air to flow through unimpeded. That allows ventilation systems to remove the virus during normal operation, without retrofitting or limiting the system's ability to draw fresh air.

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-nanotech-filter-coating-covid-.html?u...

Nutation in magnetic materials was observed for the first time

Much of the 'memory' of the world and all our digital activities are based on media, hard disks, where the information is encoded thanks to magnetism, by orienting the spin of electrons in one direction or the other.

An international team of scientists has managed for the first time to observe the 'nutation' of these spins in magnetic materials, i.e. the oscillations of their axis during precession. The measured nutation period was of the order of one picosecond: one thousandth of a billionth of a second. In this research, physicists observed experimentally that the nutation of the magnetic spin axis is 1000 times faster than precession, a curiously similar ratio to that of Earth. This is the first direct and experimental evidence of the inertial movements of magnetic spins.

This new discovery on hitherto unknown physical characteristics of spins is fundamental in research to make digital technologies ever faster, compact and energetically efficient. 

Kumar Neeraj et al, Inertial spin dynamics in ferromagnets, Nature Physics (2020). DOI: 10.1038/s41567-020-01040-y

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-nutation-magnetic-materials.html?utm_...

CERN meets quantum technology

The CERN Quantum Technology Initiative will explore the potential of devices harnessing perplexing quantum phenomena such as entanglement to enrich and expand its challenging research programme

https://home.cern/news/news/computing/cern-meets-quantum-technology

--

Second alignment plane of solar system discovered

A study of comet motions indicates that the solar system has a second alignment plane. Analytical investigation of the orbits of long-period comets shows that the aphelia of the comets, the point where they are farthest from the Sun, tend to fall close to either the well-known ecliptic plane where the planets reside or a newly discovered "empty ecliptic." This has important implications for models of how comets originally formed in the solar system.

In the solar system, the planets and most other bodies move in roughly the same orbital plane, known as the ecliptic, but there are exceptions such as comets. Comets, especially long-period comets taking tens-of-thousands of years to complete each orbit, are not confined to the area near the ecliptic; they are seen coming and going in various directions.

Models of solar system formation suggest that even long-period comets originally formed near the ecliptic and were later scattered into the orbits observed today through gravitational interactions, most notably with the gas giant planets. But even with planetary scattering, the comet's aphelion, the point where it is farthest from the Sun, should remain near the ecliptic. Other external forces are needed to explain the observed distribution.

The solar system does not exist in isolation; the gravitational field of the Milky Way galaxy in which the solar system  resides also exerts a small but non-negligible influence. 

when the galactic gravity is taken into account, the aphelia of long-period comets tend to collect around two planes. First the well-known ecliptic, but also a second "empty ecliptic." The ecliptic is inclined with respect to the disk of the Milky Way by about 60 degrees. The empty ecliptic is also inclined by 60 degrees, but in the opposite direction. Higuchi calls this the "empty ecliptic" based on mathematical nomenclature and because initially it contains no objects, only later being populated with scattered comets.

Arika Higuchi. Anisotropy of Long-period Comets Explained by Their Formation Process, The Astronomical Journal (2020). DOI: 10.3847/1538-3881/aba94d

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-alignment-plane-solar.html

Rocky icebergs and deep anchors – new research on how planetary forces shape the Earth's surface

https://theconversation.com/rocky-icebergs-and-deep-anchors-new-res...

--

The world's first jet suit paramedic  :  Emergency responders and engineers have successfully tested "the world's first jet suit paramedic", which could transform how life-savers reach isolated casualty sites.  

Filtering radioactive elements from water

How do you filter huge amounts of radioactive compounds from water? 

One of the methods usually  used 's reverse osmosis but it isn't particularly effective. Although it is possible to purify up to 70 percent of the contaminated water this way, radioactive elements accumulate in the remaining 30 percent. Some of these elements are highly radioactive and remain so for thousands of years.

Four years ago scientists invented  a filter membrane made primarily of denatured whey protein and activated carbon. The researchers then demonstrated how efficiently their product removes heavy metals, some radioactive elements such as uranium, and precious metals such as gold or platinum from water.

Now, they have used this membrane to purify hospital effluents contaminated with radioactive elements. Over the course of their investigation, the researchers discovered that their filter is efficient at removing these substances as well. 

Laboratory tests show that the membrane is able to remove radionuclides used in the medical field—technetium-99m, iodine-123 and gallium-68—from water with efficiencies of over 99.8% in just one filtration step.

The researchers also tested their filter membrane with a sample of real effluents from a Swiss hospital, which contained radioactive iodine-131 and lutetium-177. It removed both elements almost completely from the water.

Sreenath Bolisetty et al, Amyloid hybrid membranes for removal of clinical and nuclear radioactive wastewater, Environmental Science: Water Research & Technology (2020). DOI: 10.1039/D0EW00693A

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-filtering-radioactive-elements.html?u...

Wearable exosuit that lessens muscle fatigue could redesign the future of work

 Engineers have designed and determined that their back-assist exosuit, a clothing-like device that supports human movement and posture, can reduce fatigue by an average of 29-47 percent in lower back muscles. The exosuit's functionality presents a promising new development for individuals who work in physically demanding fields and are at risk for back pain, including medical professionals and frontline workers.

the low-profile, elastic exosuit applies assistive forces that cooperate with the low back extensor muscles, to relieve strain on the muscles and spine, and to help reduce injury risks.

This study showed that wearing the exosuit made holding a 35-pound weight (the average weight of a 4-year-old child) less tiring on the back than holding a 24-pound weight (the average weight of an 18-month-old baby) without the exosuit.

Lamers, E.P., Soltys, J.C., Scherpereel, K.L. et al. Low-profile elastic exosuit reduces back muscle fatigue. Sci Rep 10, 15958 (2020). doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-72531-4

Researchers report positive results for exosuit in stroke rehabilit...

https://techxplore.com/news/2020-09-wearable-exosuit-lessens-muscle...

Water on Mars: discovery of three buried lakes intrigues scientists

Combating Superbugs Through Comic Books 

https://www.asianscientist.com/2020/09/features/asias-changemakers-...

--

A brief history of Quantum mechanics

A Strong & Transparent Alternative To Plastic Instead of non-biodegradable plastic, your next ‘plastic’ bag could be made out of bacterial biofilms. 

Researchers in China have used bacteria to make an ultra-strong and transparent film that can replace plastic .

Although most plastic films—such as plastic bags and food wrappers—have a lifespan of mere minutes to hours, they persist in the environment for hundreds of years. Furthermore, exposure to sunlight, wind and wave action can cause a single plastic bag to be broken up into as many as 1.75 million microscopic fragments. These so-called microplastics have been found in every corner of the globe from Mount Everest to the Mariana Trench. Worryingly, they have been found in more than 100 species, including, fish, shrimp and birds. To reduce the use of plastic, a team led by Professor Yu Shuhong from the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) has developed a nanocomposite film inspired by mother of pearl that could one day replace many single-use plastics. The researchers first allowed a thin layer of Gluconacetobacter xylinus bacteria to grow on an agar plate before spraying on a layer of nano-clay. The nano-clay particles became entangled in the cellulose nanofibers secreted by the bacteria, forming a uniform hydrogel. Multiple layers of this hydrogel were then pressed together to form a dense composite film that showed a ‘brick and fibre’ structure found in nacre. When they tested the properties of the resulting film, the researchers found that it had a transmittance and haze of more than 73 percent and 80 percent respectively, suggesting that it could be useful for managing light in optoelectronic devices. The film was six times stronger than PET film and three times as stiff. It also was flexible enough to be folded and yet show no visible damage after unfolding. 

Guan et al. (2020) Nanocomposite Films for Plastic Substitute. https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S2590238520303726

https://www.cell.com/matter/fulltext/S2590-2385(20)30372-6?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS2590238520303726%3Fshowall%3Dtrue

https://www.asianscientist.com/2020/09/in-the-lab/bacteria-plastic-...

3-D printed 'invisible' fibers can sense breath, sound, and biological cells

From capturing your breath to guiding biological cell movements, 3-D printing of tiny, transparent conducting fibers could be used to make devices which can 'smell, hear and touch'—making it particularly useful for health monitoring, Internet of Things and biosensing applications.

Researchers used 3-D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, techniques to make electronic fibers, each 100 times thinner than a human hair, creating sensors beyond the capabilities of conventional film-based devices.

The fiber printing technique can be used to make non-contact, wearable, portable respiratory sensors. These printed sensors are high-sensitivity, low-cost and can be attached to a mobile phone to collect breath pattern information, sound and images at the same time.

"Inflight fiber printing toward array and 3D optoelectronic and sensing architectures" Science Advances (2020). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abd1882 , advances.sciencemag.org/lookup … .1126/sciadv.aba0931

https://techxplore.com/news/2020-09-d-invisible-fibers-biological-c...

Achieving invisibility: Cross-wavelength invisibility integrated with invisibility tactics

Using biomimicry - the natural ecological relationship between transparent oceanic animals and their predators that employ a cross-wavelength detection strategy - proposed a new concept of cross-wavelength invisibility that integrated a variety of invisibility tactics. They presented a Boolean metamaterial design strategy to balance divergent material requirements across cross-scale wavelengths. As proof of concept, they simultaneously demonstrated longwave cloaking and shortwave transparency using a nanoimprinting technique. The work extended stealth techniques from individual strategies of invisibility targeting a single-wavelength spectrum to integrated invisibility targeting cross-wavelength applications. These experiments will pave the way to develop cross-wavelength integrated metadevices.

The new strategy complements existing mainstream strategies of chameleon-like adaptive camouflage and the wave-bypassing invisibility cloak.  In this work, scientists break the existing ecological relationship by attempting to hide the transparent prey from the cross-spectral vision of their predators. As a result, this philosophy of invisibility will be of significance for practical stealth technologies.

Xu S. et al. Cross-wavelength invisibility integrated with various invisibility tactics, Science Advances, 10.1126/sciadv.abb3755

Ni X. et al. An ultrathin invisibility skin cloak for visible light, Science, 10.1126/science.aac9411

Landy N. et al. A full-parameter unidirectional metamaterial cloak for microwaves. Nature Materials, doi.org/10.1038/nmat3476

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-invisibility-cross-wavelength-tactics...

Mutations that affect aging: More common than we thought?

The number of mutations that can contribute to aging may be significantly higher than previously believed, according to new research on fruit flies. 

Many functions of our bodies deteriorate slowly but surely as we age, and eventually an organism dies. This thought may not be very encouraging, but most of us have probably accepted that this is the fate of all living creatures—death is part of life. However, those who study evolutionary biology find it far from clear why this is the case. The evolution of aging is, in a manner of speaking, a paradox. Evolution causes continuous adaptation in organisms, but even so it has not resulted in them ceasing to age.

Nearly 70 years ago, evolutionary biologists proposed two theories concerning two different types of mutation that contribute to aging. Both of these mutations have a detrimental effect as the organism becomes older—which leads to aging—while they are either advantageous or neutral early in life. Researchers have, however, not been able to determine which of the two types of mutation contributes most to aging, despite experimental studies.

A new theory was proposed a few years ago suggesting that aging is caused by mutations with a detrimental effect early in life, and whose negative effects increase with age. Those who support this hypothesis believe that many of the mutations that arise have negative effects right from the start, compared with the normal variant of a gene.

The study now published describes experiments to test the theory of mutations that have a detrimental effect throughout life and contribute to aging. The authors used one of the most well-studied animals in the world, namely the fruit fly, or Drosophila melanogaster. They tested 20 different mutations that they had placed into the genetic material of the flies. For each individual mutation, they studied a group of flies with the mutation and a control group without it. Each mutation had a specific, visible effect, which made it easy to follow, such as a somewhat different appearance of the wings or a different shape of the eyes.

As an organism ages, the probability that an individual dies increases, and its ability to reproduce falls. The researchers determined the fertility of the fruit flies and used it as a measure of aging. They counted the number of eggs laid by each female early in life, after two weeks, and finally after a further two weeks (which is a ripe old age for a fruit fly!). The researchers wanted to see whether the difference between flies with the mutations and the control group changed as they aged. The results support the theory they were testing. Most of the mutations had a negative effect on the fertility of the fruit flies early in life, and most of them also caused reproductive aging to occur more rapidly.

The results suggest that mutations that are detrimental early in life can also contribute to aging. Thus it may be that mutations that bring on aging are significantly more common than we previously thought.

 "Deleterious mutations show increasing negative effects with age in Drosophila melanogaster", Martin I. Brengdahl, Christopher M. Kimber, Phoebe Elias, Josephine Thompson and Urban Friberg, (2020), BMC Biology, published online 30 September, DOI: 10.1186/s12915-020-00858-5

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-mutations-affect-aging-common-thought...

Dinosaur feather study debunked: Overwhelming evidence supports Jurassic fossil does belong to Archaeopteryx

A new study provides substantial evidence that the first fossil feather ever to be discovered does belong to the iconic Archaeopteryx, a bird-like dinosaur named in Germany on this day in 1861. This debunks a recent theory that the fossil feather originated from a different species.

The new research finds that the Jurassic fossil matches a type of wing feather called a primary covert. Primary coverts overlay the primary feathers and help propel birds through the air. Researchers analyzed nine attributes of the feather, particularly the long quill, along with data from modern birds. They also examined the 13 known skeletal fossils of Archaeopteryx, three of which contain well-preserved primary coverts. The researchers discovered that the top surface of an Archaeopteryx wing has primary coverts that are identical to the isolated feather in size and shape. The isolated feather was also from the same fossil site as four skeletons of Archaeopteryx, confirming their findings.

Through scientific detective work that combined new techniques with old fossils and literature, scientists were able to finally solve these centuries-old mysteries.

Using a specialized type of electron microscope, the researchers determined that the feather came from the left wing. They also detected melanosomes, which are microscopic pigment structures. After refining their color reconstruction, they found that the feather  was entirely matte black, not black and white as another study has claimed.

Evidence corroborates identity of isolated fossil feather as a wing covert of Archaeopteryx, Scientific Reports (2020). doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-65336-y

https://phys.org/news/2020-09-dinosaur-feather-debunked-overwhelmin...

India pushes bold ‘one nation, one subscription’ journal-access plan

Pregnancy Loss: A possible link between olfaction and miscarriage

Unexplained repeated pregnancy loss is associated with an altered perception of male odors and differences in brain regions that process smells.

Exposing female rodents to the smell of adult males can lead to synchronized menstrual cycling  and accelerated sexual maturation, as well as to embryos failing to implant in the uterus . Olfactory cues might also play a role in human reproduction: for instance, the menstrual cycle phase may influence preferences for male odors . This presents the possibility that altered neural processing of socially relevant odors, such as the scent of a partner, may be linked to pregnancy loss and other reproductive disorders. Now researchers report that women who have experienced unexplained repeated pregnancy loss process the odors of males differently.

https://elifesciences.org/articles/62534?utm_source=content_alert&a...

Gene expression altered by direction of forces acting on cell

Tissues and cells in the human body are subjected to a constant push and pull – strained by other cells, blood pressure and fluid flow, to name a few. The type and direction of the force on a cell alters gene expression by stretching different regions of DNA, researchers found in a new study.

The findings could provide insights into physiology and diseases such as fibrosis, cardiovascular disease and malignant cancer, the researchers said.

Force is everywhere in the human body, and both external and internal forces can influence your body far more than you may have thought. These strains profoundly influence cellular behaviours and physiological functions, which are initiated at the level of gene expression.

They found that the force from the magnetic bead caused a rapid increase in expression for certain genes, but the amount of the increase depended on the direction the bead moved. When the bead rolled along the long axis of the cell, the increase was the lowest, but when the force was applied perpendicularly – across the short axis of the cell – gene activity increased the most. When the bead was moved at a 45-degree angle or rotated in the same plane as the cell to induce shear stress, the response was intermediate.
These observations show that gene upregulation and activation are very sensitive to the mode of the applied force, when the magnitude of the force remains unchanged.

In further experiments, the researchers found that the reason for the difference lies in the method that the forces are relayed to the cell’s nucleus, where DNA is housed. Cells have a network of support structures called the cytoskeleton, and the main force-bearing elements are long fibers of the protein actin. When they bend due to a force, they relay that force to the nucleus and stretch the chromosomes.

These actin fibers run lengthwise along the cell. So when the force strains them widthwise, they deform more, stretching the chromosomes more and causing greater gene activity, the researchers found.

https://news.illinois.edu/view/6367/385931150

Science and scientists highly regarded across globe: survey

As citizens across the world await a vaccine to end the coronavirus pandemic, a survey by Pew Research Center published Tuesday has good news: scientists and their research are widely viewed positively across much of the globe.

Majorities said the media does a good job covering science, but also said the public often doesn't know enough to understand news on scientific research.

Around two-thirds or more said the news media do a very or somewhat good job covering science topics, while far fewer said the media do a bad job covering science -- medians of 68 percent against 28 percent across the 20 countries.

But across the countries surveyed, 74 percent considered limited public understanding of science to be a problem for media coverage of science research.

https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2020/09/29/science-and-scientis...

https://researchnews.cc/news/2788/Science-and-scientists-highly-reg...

Smart Underwear Prevents Back Stress with just a Double Tap

--

Inside mitochondria and their fascinating genome

EPFL scientists have observed – for the first time in living cells – the way mitochondria distribute their transcriptome throughout the cell, and it involves RNA granules that turn out to be highly fluid.

Einstein's description of gravity just got much harder to beat

Einstein's theory of general relativity—the idea that gravity is matter warping spacetime—has withstood over 100 years of scrutiny and testing, including the newest test from the Event Horizon Telescope collaboration which  is a brand-new way to test general relativity using supermassive black holes.

According to the findings, Einstein's theory just got 500 times harder to beat.

Despite its successes, Einstein's robust theory remains mathematically irreconcilable with quantum mechanics, the scientific understanding of the subatomic world. Testing general relativity is important because the ultimate theory of the universe must encompass both gravity and quantum mechanics.

To perform the test, the team used the first image ever taken of the supermassive black hole at the center of nearby galaxy M87 obtained with the EHT last year. The first results had shown that the size of the black-hole shadow was consistent with the size predicted by general relativity.

The team did a very broad analysis of many modifications to the theory of general relativity to identify the unique characteristic of a theory of gravity that determines the size of a black hole shadow.

In this way, scientists can now pinpoint whether some alternative to general relativity is in agreement with the Event Horizon Telescope observations, without worrying about any other details. The team focused on the range of alternatives that had passed all the previous tests in the solar system.

Using the gauge they developed, they showed that the measured size of the black hole shadow in M87 tightens the wiggle room for modifications to Einstein's theory of general relativity by almost a factor of 500, compared to previous tests in the solar system. Many ways to modify general relativity fail at this new and tighter black hole shadow test.

Black hole images provide a completely new angle for testing Einstein's theory of general relativity

Dimitrios Psaltis et al. Gravitational Test beyond the First Post-Newtonian Order with the Shadow of the M87 Black Hole, Physical Review Letters (2020). dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.125.141104

https://phys.org/news/2020-10-einstein-description-gravity-harder.h...

Key control mechanism allows cells to form tissues and anatomical structures in the developing embryo

Under a microscope, the first few hours of every multicellular organism's life seem incongruously chaotic. After fertilization, a once tranquil single-celled egg divides again and again, quickly becoming a visually tumultuous mosh pit of cells jockeying for position inside the rapidly growing embryo. amid this apparent pandemonium, cells begin to self-organize. Soon, spatial patterns emerge, serving as the foundation for the construction of tissues, organs and elaborate anatomical structures from brains to toes and everything in between. For decades, scientists have intensively studied this process, called morphogenesis, but it remains in many ways enigmatic.

Now researchers have discovered a key control mechanism that cells use to self-organize in early embryonic development. 

Studying spinal cord formation in zebrafish embryos, a team revealed that different cell types express unique combinations of adhesion molecules in order to self-sort during morphogenesis. These "adhesion codes" determine which cells prefer to stay connected, and how strongly they do so, even as widespread cellular rearrangements occur in the developing embryo.

The researchers found that adhesion codes are regulated by morphogens, master signaling molecules long known to govern cell fate and pattern formation in development. The results suggest that the interplay of morphogens and adhesion properties allows cells to organize with the precision and consistency required to construct an organism.

Three genes—N-cadherin, cadherin 11 and protocadherin 19—emerged as essential for normal patterning. The expression of different combinations and different levels of these genes was responsible for differences in adhesion preference, representing what the team dubbed an adhesion code. This code was unique to each of the cell types and determined which other cells each cell type stays connected to during morphogenesis.

The analyses revealed that both cell type and adhesion-molecule gene expression were highly correlated, both in level and spatial position. This held true across the entire nascent spinal cord, where patterns of gene expression for cell type and adhesion molecule changed together in response to differences in Shh activity.

What they found is that this morphogen not only controls cell fate, it controls cell adhesion

Insights into how cells self-organize in early development could also aid efforts to engineer tissues and organs for clinical uses such as transplantation.

"An adhesion code ensures robust pattern formation during tissue morphogenesis" Science (2020). science.sciencemag.org/lookup/ … 1126/science.aba6637

https://phys.org/news/2020-10-key-mechanism-cells-tissues-anatomica...

Nights warming faster than days across much of the planet

Global warming is affecting daytime and night-time temperatures differently—and greater night-time warming is more common than greater daytime warming worldwide—new research shows.

Days warmed more quickly in some locations, and nights did in others—but the total area of disproportionately greater night-time warming was more than twice as large.

The study shows this "warming asymmetry" has been driven primarily by changing levels of cloud cover.

Increased cloud cover cools the surface during the day and retains the warmth during the night, leading to greater night-time warming. Whereas, decreasing cloud cover allows more warmth to reach the surface during the day, but that warmth is lost at night.

Warming asymmetry has potentially significant implications for the natural world.

Researchers also  demonstrate that greater night-time warming is associated with the climate becoming wetter, and this has been shown to have important consequences for plant growth and how species, such as insects and mammals, interact.

They also show that greater daytime warming is associated with drier conditions, combined with greater levels of overall warming, which increases species vulnerability to heat stress and dehydration.

Species that are only active at night or during the day will be particularly affected.

 Daniel T. C. Cox et al, Global variation in diurnal asymmetry in temperature, cloud cover, specific humidity and precipitation and its association with leaf area index, Global Change Biology (2020). DOI: 10.1111/gcb.15336

https://phys.org/news/2020-10-nights-faster-days-planet.html?utm_so...