Curated News: Staff Picks

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Newswise: Beach trash accumulates in predictable patterns on Washington and Oregon shores
Released: 23-Aug-2022 6:05 PM EDT
Beach trash accumulates in predictable patterns on Washington and Oregon shores
University of Washington

Citizen scientists spent thousands of hours observing trash on beaches in Washington and Oregon. Their surveys show that certain beaches, and certain areas of a single beach, are “sticky zones” that accumulate litter. Finding patterns for where litter lands could help to better prevent and remove trash in the marine environment.

Released: 23-Aug-2022 10:30 AM EDT
Skipping breakfast may increase chance of kids and teens developing psychosocial health problems
Frontiers

Young people who eat healthy breakfasts at home have better psychosocial health, shows a recent study in Frontiers in Nutrition.

Newswise: Asian Elephants Have a Nasal Pronunciation
Released: 23-Aug-2022 3:05 AM EDT
Asian Elephants Have a Nasal Pronunciation
University of Vienna

With the help of an acoustic camera that visualizes sound pressure, researchers from the University of Vienna investigated the calls of Asian elephants. The elephants emitted their low frequency “rumbles” mainly through their trunk or through their mouth and trunk simultaneously, and only seldomly through their mouth alone. This is the first study to conclusively demonstrate the combined oral and nasal call emission in a non-human animal. The study has recently been published in the journal “Animals”.

Newswise: Greenland’s Indigenous population favours extracting and exporting sand from melting ice sheet
Released: 18-Aug-2022 3:30 PM EDT
Greenland’s Indigenous population favours extracting and exporting sand from melting ice sheet
McGill University

A national survey of close to 1000 adults in Greenland (where approximately 90% of the population is Indigenous) conducted by a McGill University-led research team has found that a surprisingly large majority – 3 out of 4 Greenlanders – support extracting and exporting sand left by the melting ice sheet.

Newswise: Study: Collapse of Ancient Mayan Capital Linked to Drought
Released: 18-Aug-2022 11:45 AM EDT
Study: Collapse of Ancient Mayan Capital Linked to Drought
University at Albany, State University of New York

Prolonged drought likely helped to fuel civil conflict and the eventual political collapse of Mayapan, the ancient capital city of the Maya on the Yucatán Peninsula, suggests a new study that was published with the help of a University at Albany archeologist.

Newswise: Sleeping Giant Could End Deep Ocean Life
Released: 17-Aug-2022 5:15 PM EDT
Sleeping Giant Could End Deep Ocean Life
University of California, Riverside

A previously overlooked factor — the position of continents — helps fill Earth’s oceans with life-supporting oxygen. Continental movement could ultimately have the opposite effect, killing most deep ocean creatures.

Newswise:Video Embedded new-3d-model-shows-megalodon-could-eat-prey-the-size-of-entire-killer-whales
VIDEO
Released: 17-Aug-2022 4:15 PM EDT
New 3D Model Shows: Megalodon Could Eat Prey the Size of Entire Killer Whales
University of Zurich

The reconstructed megadolon (Otodus megalodon) was 16 meters long and weighed over 61 tons. It was estimated that it could swim at around 1.4 meters per second, require over 98,000 kilo calories every day and have stomach volume of almost 10,000 liters.

Newswise: Lungless Salamanders Develop Lungs as Embryos Despite Lung Loss in Adults for Millions of Years
Released: 17-Aug-2022 3:05 PM EDT
Lungless Salamanders Develop Lungs as Embryos Despite Lung Loss in Adults for Millions of Years
Harvard University, Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology

Lungs are essential to many vertebrates including humans. However, four living amphibian clades have independently eliminated pulmonary respiration and lack lungs, breathing primarily through their wet skin. Little is known of the developmental basis of lung loss in these clades.

Released: 17-Aug-2022 1:15 PM EDT
Preschoolers with Larger Vocabulary Before They Begin Education, Perform Better in Class – Study Shows
Taylor & Francis

Children who enter preschool with good vocabulary and attention skills do better in class, according to a study published in the peer-reviewed journal Early Education and Development. The findings based on 900 four-year-olds from eight US states show how a child’s ability to engage with teachers and peers is affected by the range of words they know.

Newswise: Research Method Predicts a Region’s Likelihood of Having Fish with Toxic Levels of Methylmercury
Released: 17-Aug-2022 12:50 PM EDT
Research Method Predicts a Region’s Likelihood of Having Fish with Toxic Levels of Methylmercury
Wiley

Consuming methylmercury-contaminated fish poses a hazard to human health. New research published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry may help environmental resource management officials predict which regions are likely to have fish with high concentrations of this toxin, without the need for extensive testing.

Newswise: How Young Chickens Play Can Indicate How They Feel
Released: 17-Aug-2022 12:45 PM EDT
How Young Chickens Play Can Indicate How They Feel
Linkoping University

It is common for young animals, in particular mammals, to play. Researchers at Linköping University (LiU), Sweden, have for the first time mapped the development of play in young chickens. The results show that the young chickens spend lots of time playing in different ways – just like puppies and kittens.

Released: 17-Aug-2022 11:10 AM EDT
Misophonia Is More Than Just Hating the Sound of Chewing
Ohio State University

Researchers for the first time have identified the parts of the brain involved in a less-commonly studied trigger of misophonia, a condition associated with an extreme aversion to certain sounds.

Released: 17-Aug-2022 10:20 AM EDT
First-in-Human Trial Shows Promise for Hard-to-Treat Ventricular Tachycardia Heart Rhythms
Mayo Clinic

A first-in-human multicenter trial involving Mayo Clinic used a new ablation technique for patients with ventricular tachycardia, an abnormally rapid heart rhythm that is a leading cause of sudden cardiac death worldwide.

Newswise: Having a Partner More Important Than Children to Staving Off Loneliness During Pandemic, New Study Finds
Released: 16-Aug-2022 11:45 AM EDT
Having a Partner More Important Than Children to Staving Off Loneliness During Pandemic, New Study Finds
University of Rhode Island

A new study released in the European Journal of Ageing found that having a partner had a greater impact than having children in helping to stave off loneliness among older adults during the pandemic’s first wave. Researchers at the University of Rhode Island, University of Florence, University of Maryland Baltimore County and the SGH Warsaw School of Economics analyzed data on more than 35,000 adults aged 50 and older from the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe to examine if unpartnered and childless older adults reported more loneliness and how that changed over the course of the pandemic.

Newswise: Harvesting Resources on Mars with Plasmas
10-Aug-2022 2:05 PM EDT
Harvesting Resources on Mars with Plasmas
American Institute of Physics (AIP)

Researchers have devised a plasma-based way to produce and separate oxygen within the Martian environment. It's a complementary approach to NASA's Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment and may deliver high rates of molecule production per kilogram of instrumentation sent to space. In the Journal of Applied Physics, the team presents the method for harnessing and processing local resources to generate products on Mars.

Newswise: NSU Researchers Use First-of-its-Kind Tracking Sensors to Study Billfish
Released: 11-Aug-2022 10:40 AM EDT
NSU Researchers Use First-of-its-Kind Tracking Sensors to Study Billfish
Nova Southeastern University

Researchers at NSU’s Guy Harvey Research Institute (GHRI) used high-tech sensors to track billfish – and now we now have, for the first time, a detailed view of exactly how these fish behave after they are caught and released.

Newswise: Bird behavior influenced by human activity during COVID-19 lockdowns
10-Aug-2022 3:15 PM EDT
Bird behavior influenced by human activity during COVID-19 lockdowns
University of Washington

For birds that inhabit developed areas of the Pacific Northwest, the reduction in noise and commotion from COVID-19 lockdowns may have allowed them to use a wider range of habitats in cities, a new study finds.

Newswise: Simultaneous climate events risk damaging entire socioeconomic systems
3-Aug-2022 10:05 AM EDT
Simultaneous climate events risk damaging entire socioeconomic systems
PLOS Climate

In heatwaves where heat and drought combine, effects can destabilize interlinked sectors, including health, energy and food production systems.

   
Released: 9-Aug-2022 3:50 PM EDT
Scientists issue plan for rewilding the American West
American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS)

As the effects of climate change mount, ecosystem restoration in the US West has garnered significant public attention, bolstered by President Joe Biden's America the Beautiful plan to conserve 30% of US land and water by 2030. Writing in BioScience, William J. Ripple and 19 colleagues follow up on the Biden plan with a proposal for a "Western Rewilding Network," comprising 11 large reserve areas already owned by the federal government.

Newswise: Study shows why ‘aromatic’ blueberries taste better
Released: 8-Aug-2022 1:05 PM EDT
Study shows why ‘aromatic’ blueberries taste better
University of Florida

So-called "aromatic" blueberries taste better. With new research, University of Florida scientists now know why, and their findings will help future plant breeding efforts.

Newswise:Video Embedded stars-shed-light-on-why-stellar-populations-are-so-similar-in-milky-way
VIDEO
5-Aug-2022 10:15 AM EDT
Stars Shed Light on Why Stellar Populations Are So Similar in Milky Way
Oden Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences

Using highly detailed simulations, a collaborative team led by researchers from the University of Texas at Austin has made a breakthrough discovery that star formation is a self-regulatory process, knowledge that may allow researchers to understand star formation within our own and far away galaxies.

Newswise: A lose-lose game: animals are under threat as the climate gets warmer and more variable
Released: 5-Aug-2022 2:10 PM EDT
A lose-lose game: animals are under threat as the climate gets warmer and more variable
Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB)

In an effort to understand how climate changes will affect many species at once, PhD candidate Guillermo Garcia Costoya created simulations that can predict how likely animals are to go extinct in different climatic conditions.

Newswise: New study calculates retreat of glacier edges in Alaska’s Kenai Fjords National Park
1-Aug-2022 2:05 PM EDT
New study calculates retreat of glacier edges in Alaska’s Kenai Fjords National Park
University of Washington

A new study measured 38 years of change for glaciers in Kenai Fjords National Park, which lies south of Anchorage, and found that 13 of 19 glaciers show substantial retreat, four are relatively stable, and two have advanced. It also finds trends in which glacier types are disappearing fastest.

Newswise: Research suggests that change in bird coloration is due to climate change
Released: 3-Aug-2022 4:05 PM EDT
Research suggests that change in bird coloration is due to climate change
University of the Basque Country

The work, which was conducted over a 15-year period (2005-2019) through a partnership between scientists from the UPV/EHU and the Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Évolutive in Montpellier (CEFE-CNRS), focused on two populations of blue tits in the south of France, one located on the outskirts of Montpellier and the other in the northwest of the island of Corsica.

Newswise: Study Shows Older Age and Smoking Most Important Risk Factors for Developing Any Cancer
2-Aug-2022 7:05 PM EDT
Study Shows Older Age and Smoking Most Important Risk Factors for Developing Any Cancer
American Cancer Society (ACS)

A new large study led by researchers at the American Cancer Society shows older age and smoking are the two most important risk factors associated with a relative and absolute five-year risk of developing any cancer. The findings also demonstrate that in addition to age and smoking history, clinicians should consider excess body fatness, family history of any cancer, and several other factors that may help patients determine if they may benefit from enhanced cancer screening or prevention interventions. The data was published today in the journal Cancer.

Newswise:Video Embedded researchers-reveal-how-an-insect-eating-plant-uses-rain-energy-to-power-its-traps
VIDEO
2-Aug-2022 4:05 AM EDT
Researchers reveal how an insect-eating plant uses rain energy to power its traps
University of Bristol

Scientists at the University of Bristol have uncovered the deadly workings of a carnivorous plant.

Released: 1-Aug-2022 5:05 PM EDT
Two heart medications tied to greater heart-attack risk during very hot weather
Yale School of Public Health

For people with coronary heart disease, beta-blockers can improve survival and quality of life, while aspirin and other antiplatelet medications can reduce the risk of a heart attack.

   
Newswise: New Mexico Mammoths Among Best Evidence for Early Humans in North America
Released: 1-Aug-2022 2:30 PM EDT
New Mexico Mammoths Among Best Evidence for Early Humans in North America
University of Texas at Austin, Jackson School of Geosciences

Butchering marks on the remains of two mammoths discovered in New Mexico show that humans lived in North America much earlier than previously thought. Credit: National Park Service.

Newswise: Oldest DNA from domesticated American horse lends credence to shipwreck folklore
Released: 27-Jul-2022 4:05 PM EDT
Oldest DNA from domesticated American horse lends credence to shipwreck folklore
Florida Museum of Natural History

An abandoned Caribbean colony unearthed centuries after it had been forgotten and a case of mistaken identity in the archaeological record have conspired to rewrite the history of a barrier island off the Virginia and Maryland coasts.

25-Jul-2022 12:45 PM EDT
Study: Chores, Exercise, and Social Visits Linked to Lower Risk of Dementia
American Academy of Neurology (AAN)

Physical and mental activities, such as household chores, exercise, and visiting with family and friends, may help lower the risk of dementia, according to a new study published in the July 27, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study looked at the effects of these activities, as well as mental activities and use of electronic devices in people both with and without higher genetic risk for dementia.

Newswise: Oldest DNA from domesticated American horse lends credence to shipwreck folklore
Released: 27-Jul-2022 2:00 PM EDT
Oldest DNA from domesticated American horse lends credence to shipwreck folklore
University of Florida

A single horse tooth from Haiti reveals that popular folklore that the Spanish shipwrecked horses off the coast of the U.S. is likely true.

Released: 27-Jul-2022 12:25 PM EDT
Parasites May Take a Heavier Toll on the Health of Mammal Populations Than Previously Thought, Study Suggests
University of Alberta

From cattle to uncontrolled wildlife, pesky but pervasive large parasites like tapeworms have a far greater impact on the total body health of their mammal hosts than previously known, new University of Alberta research suggests.

Released: 26-Jul-2022 4:05 PM EDT
Unhealthy food and beverage brands encouraging TikTok users to market their products for them
BMJ

Unhealthy food and beverage brands are encouraging TikTok users to market their products for them—effectively turning them into ‘brand ambassadors’—as well as using their own accounts for promotional activity, finds an assessment of video content posted on the social media platform and published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health.

   
Released: 26-Jul-2022 4:05 PM EDT
Moderna vaccines better protect long-term care home residents
McMaster University

Moderna vaccines are better than Pfizer in protecting residents of long-term care (LTC) homes from COVID-19 Omicron infections, say McMaster University researchers.

Newswise: Coronavirus Jumped to Humans at Least Twice at Market in Wuhan, China
Released: 26-Jul-2022 10:05 AM EDT
Coronavirus Jumped to Humans at Least Twice at Market in Wuhan, China
UC San Diego Health

In a pair of related studies, UC San Diego researchers show that the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic was at a Chinese market and resulted from at least two instances of the SARS-CoV-2 virus jumping from live animal hosts to humans working or shopping there.

Newswise: Human activities increase likelihood of more extreme heatwaves, researchers find
Released: 25-Jul-2022 3:30 PM EDT
Human activities increase likelihood of more extreme heatwaves, researchers find
Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

July 19 was the hottest day ever recorded in the United Kingdom, with temperatures surpassing 40 degrees Celsius (about 104 degrees Fahrenheit). The heatwave serves as an early preview of what climate forecasters theorized will be typical summer weather in the U.K. in 2050.

Released: 25-Jul-2022 12:45 PM EDT
Extreme Heat Exposure Worsens Child Malnutrition
Cornell University

Exposure to extreme heat increases both chronic and acute malnutrition among infants and young children in low-income countries – threatening to reverse decades of progress, Cornell University research finds.

Newswise:Video Embedded cytovale-reveals-10-minute-510-k-pending-cytovale-system-and-intellisep-test-for-sepsis-at-aacc-2022
VIDEO
Released: 25-Jul-2022 10:40 AM EDT
Cytovale Reveals 10-Minute, 510(K) Pending Cytovale System and Intellisep Test for Sepsis at AACC 2022
2022 AACC Annual Scientific Meeting Press Program

Cytovale®, a medical diagnostics company focused on providing rapid and insightful tools to improve early detection of fast-moving and immune-mediated diseases, will reveal its 510(k) pending Cytovale system and 10-minute IntelliSep® sepsis risk stratification test at the American Association for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) annual meeting, where new data featuring the test will also be shared. The instrument can be seen in the Cytovale booth, no. 5045, in the exhibit hall during Clinical Lab Expo hours. The IntelliSep test was recently named an AACC Disruptive Technology Award Semifinalist and is also being featured in the Disruptive Tech area of the exhibit hall during the meeting.

Newswise: Venomous! New pit viper discovered in Jiuzhaigou National Nature Reserve, China
Released: 22-Jul-2022 2:50 PM EDT
Venomous! New pit viper discovered in Jiuzhaigou National Nature Reserve, China
Pensoft Publishers

Jiuzhaigou National Nature Reserve, a World Heritage Site, lies in the transition zone from the eastern edge of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau to the Sichuan Basin in Sichuan Province, China, and occupies an area of 651 km2.

20-Jul-2022 10:05 AM EDT
No clear medical definition of ‘growing pains’
University of Sydney

here is a lack of consistency in how ‘growing pains’ are diagnosed, with researchers finding medical definitions of the condition often vague or even contradictory, including age of onset, the role of growth, and where the pain commonly occurs.

Newswise: Human-occupied submersible Alvin makes historic dive
Released: 21-Jul-2022 8:00 PM EDT
Human-occupied submersible Alvin makes historic dive
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Earlier today (July 21, 2022) the human-occupied submersible Alvin made history when it successfully reached a depth of 6,453 meters (nearly 4 miles) in the Puerto Rico Trench, north of San Juan, P.R. This is the deepest dive ever in the 58-year history of the storied submersible.

   
Newswise: Introducing a Protocol for Using Robotic Pets in Memory Care
Released: 20-Jul-2022 4:40 PM EDT
Introducing a Protocol for Using Robotic Pets in Memory Care
University of Utah

University of Utah researchers developed a protocol for using robotic pets with older adults with dementia. The protocol uses a low-cost robotic pet, establishes ideal session lengths, and identifies common participant responses to the pets to aid in future research.

   
Released: 20-Jul-2022 4:30 PM EDT
Professional athletes perform better against former clubs, according to research
National Research University - Higher School of Economics (HSE)

A team of Russian researchers affiliated with the HSE University, RANEPA, and NES found professional athletes to perform better against their former clubs.

Newswise: Using Holograms to Illuminate De Sitter Space
Released: 19-Jul-2022 8:05 PM EDT
Using Holograms to Illuminate De Sitter Space
Kyoto University

The holographic principle is used to describe the expanding universe in de Sitter space. It provides a solution to Einstein's general relativity equation with a positive cosmological constant. The proposed model uses a negative cosmological constant to account for gravity on anti-de Sitter space.

Newswise: Three New Species of Black-Bellied Salamander Found in Southern Appalachian Mountains
Released: 19-Jul-2022 10:05 AM EDT
Three New Species of Black-Bellied Salamander Found in Southern Appalachian Mountains
George Washington University

Three new species of black-bellied salamander have been discovered by a research team led by R. Alexander Pyron, the Robert F. Griggs Associate Professor of Biology at the George Washington University. The new salamanders, which are found in the southern Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States, stem from black-bellied populations that were long considered to be a single species.

Newswise: A Game-Changer for Young Children With Femur Fractures
Released: 19-Jul-2022 12:05 AM EDT
A Game-Changer for Young Children With Femur Fractures
Children's Hospital Los Angeles

For decades, the treatment for a young child with a broken femur has been the same: a surgically placed spica cast, commonly known as a body cast. But now, thanks to a new study led by Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, the days of casting these injuries may soon be over. The study, led by Lindsay Andras, MD, Vice Chief of the Jackie and Gene Autry Orthopedic Center at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, found that a pre-made functional brace provides equal healing to the cumbersome spica cast for young children with femur (thighbone) fractures. The braces also eliminate the need for anesthesia and are easier for parents to clean and care for.

Newswise: Ocean Warming Threatens Richest Marine Biodiversity
Released: 18-Jul-2022 11:05 PM EDT
Ocean Warming Threatens Richest Marine Biodiversity
University of Adelaide

An international team of scientists led by researchers from the University of Adelaide has revealed that rates of future warming threaten marine life in more than 70 per cent of the most biodiverse-rich areas of Earth’s oceans. 



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