Feature Channels: Story Ideas: Science

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Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have emerged as promising biomarkers for non-invasive disease diagnostics, offering an alternative to conventional biopsies. However, the challenge has been the efficient and pure isolation of EVs from biological fluids, as current methods yield variable results. Recognizing this gap, researchers have focused on developing advanced techniques that can isolate EVs with high efficiency and purity, crucial for the accurate detection and monitoring of diseases.

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A recent study has unveiled a significant advancement in refrigeration technology. This work introduces an optimized Compression-Absorption Cascade Refrigeration Cycle (CACRC) that remarkably reduces electricity consumption and capitalizes on waste heat, setting new benchmarks in refrigeration efficiency and sustainability.

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A pair of research papers reveals that genomic anomalies misled scientists about the true evolutionary history of birds.

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Global production of LED lights, wind turbine generators, EV batteries and more require critical materials that are in high demand. A new report, led by scientists at Argonne National Laboratory, assesses rare materials and their supply.

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Astrophysicists at the State University of New York, Stony Brook, and University of California, Berkeley, used the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility’s Summit supercomputer to compare models of X-ray bursts in 2D and 3D.

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Scientists created a highly accurate reference genome for one of the most important modern crops and found a rare example of how genes confer disease resistance in plants. Exploring sugarcane’s genetic code could help researchers develop more resilient and productive crops, with implications for both sugar production and biofuels.

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Human artificial chromosomes (HACs) capable of working within human cells could power advanced gene therapies, including those addressing some cancers, along with many laboratory applications, though serious technical obstacles have hindered their development.

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Professors at The University of Texas at El Paso have launched a new industrial engineering lab focused on supporting human performance and behavior in various application areas. Projects include supportive exoskeletons for high-strain occupations and virtual reality that simulates high-stress environments.

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The best measurements from Hubble show the universe is now expanding faster than predicted based on observations of how it looked shortly after the big bang. Some scientists suggested that Hubble observations are wrong due to some creeping inaccuracy in its deep-space yardstick. However, Webb’s sharp infrared views of milepost markers known as Cepheids agree with Hubble data.

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SEATTLE — March 1, 2024 — Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center announced 12 recipients of the 2024 Harold M. Weintraub Graduate Student Award, which recognizes exceptional achievement in graduate studies in the biological sciences. This year’s recipients come from U.S. and international research institutions with thesis topics that include brain signals related to learning and emotion, bacterial pathogens and health, AI algorithms in rare disease diagnosis and treatment, and immune cells involved in brain tumors.

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With virus cases rising and the holidays nigh, three expert from University of Michigan Health give their top 12 tips for avoiding or reducing the impact of COVID-19, flu, RSV, pneumonia and whooping cough in adults and kids.

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An examination of the impact of image size on measurements from magnetic force microscopy has won the Advances in Magnetism Award, sponsored by AIP Advances. The paper was selected as the winner from nearly 200 papers submitted and Michael Vaka, now a data engineer at Zontal, was awarded a cash prize and a travel stipend to next year’s conference for his work, performed at BYU under the supervision of Karine Chesnel.

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Researchers at Aalto University are investigating how a zombie plague would spread through Finland. It’s a light-hearted project, but it offers serious insights into global challenges, such as containing a pandemic or coping with disinformation.

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In APL Materials, researchers tested a molecular energy harvesting device that captures the energy from the natural motion of molecules in a liquid. Their work showed molecular motion can be used to generate a stable electric current. To create the device, they submerged nanoarrays of piezoelectric material in liquid, allowing the movement of the liquid to move the strands like seaweed waving in the ocean, except in this case the movement is on the molecular scale, and the strands are made of zinc oxide. When the zinc oxide material waves, bends, or deforms under motion, it generates electric potential.

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An automated pain recognition system using artificial intelligence (AI) holds promise as an unbiased method to detect pain in patients before, during and after surgery, according to research presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2023 annual meeting.

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Virtual reality (VR) may be an effective and reliable tool to alleviate the anxiety experienced by most parents or caregivers when their child undergoes surgery, according to research presented at the ANESTHESIOLOGY® 2023 annual meeting.

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Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time will help scientists map the large-scale structure of the Universe with finer precision than ever before. With Rubin’s wide field of view and high resolution, the subtle distortions of galaxy shapes caused by dark matter will be detectable, allowing scientists to map dark matter and explore its cosmic tug of war with dark energy.

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Multiomics3 analysis that integrates different layers of profiles altogether is challenging, since the number of variables in profile substantially differ from each other. For instance, gene expression profile and genomic DNA methylation profile are often analyzed together, however, there are only tens of thousands of genes, whereas the number of DNA methylation sites are as many as tens of millions.

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The nuclear reactions that power stellar explosions involve short-lived nuclei that are hard to study in the laboratory. Researchers used a combination of methods to measure a reaction where a neutron from a deuterium target is exchanged with a proton from a radioactive projectile, a reaction equivalent to a process in exploding stars.

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Jefferson Lab joins four other scientific research institutions in a collaborative research project that aims to measure the lifetime of spin polarization in particles used to fuel nuclear fusion. Here’s a look at Jefferson Lab’s role in the joint venture.

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Michigan State University has harnessed its vast water research expertise to create the MSU Water Alliance. This will be a bridging organization among existing water science units on campus and among faculty with water expertise to address challenges, which are immense.

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Binghamton University, State of New York Assistant Professor Adriane Lam’s research allows scientists to more accurately predict future climate and zoological changes as the Earth continues to warm.

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Scientists at Berkeley Lab have created multi-sensor systems that can map nuclear radiation in 3D in real-time. Researchers are now testing how to integrate their system with robots that can autonomously investigate radiation areas.

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By: Tisha Keller | Published: October 11, 2023 | 2:41 pm | SHARE: The 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry was recently awarded to three renowned scientists for the development of quantum dots — nanoparticles so small that their properties are determined by quantum phenomena. Quantum dots are used to illuminate televisions and computer screens, LED lamps, and help guide surgeons in removal of tumor tissue.

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University of Queensland research has found despite considerable conservation efforts, the illegal killing of critically endangered orangutans on Borneo may be an ongoing threat to the species.

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Transition metal dichalcogenide (TMD) semiconductors are special materials that have long fascinated researchers with their unique properties.

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Named after its habitat preference, Paroedura manongavato, from the Malagasy words “manonga” (to climb) and “vato” (rock), is a bouldering expert. Part of its “home range” is also very well-known to rock climbers for its massive granitic domes.

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Tens of thousands of endangered sharks and rays are caught by small-scale fisheries off the Republic of the Congo each year, new research shows.

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A chance social media post by an eagle-eyed amateur astronomer sparked the discovery of an explosive collision between two giant planets, which crashed into each other in a distant space system 1,800 light years away from planet Earth.

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Under normal conditions, the floating macroalgae Sargassum spp. provide habitat for hundreds of types of organisms. However, the Great Atlantic Sargassum Belt (GASB) that emerged in 2011 has since then caused unprecedented inundations of this brown seaweed on Caribbean coastlines, with harmful effects on ecosystems while posing challenges to regional economies and tourism, and concerns for respiratory and other human health issues.

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One of the world’s largest crop pathogen surveillance systems is set to expand its capacity to protect wheat productivity in food vulnerable areas of East Africa and South Asia.

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A new study of the microbial ecosystem in sourdough finds that using different types of flour fosters distinct bacterial communities, and that these differences contribute to the variation of sourdough aromas and flavors.

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Ateam from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the USDA Agricultural Research Service has used SIF to measure the effects of elevated ozone (O3) on soybean plants.

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Killer whales are some of the oceans’ top predators, but even they can be exposed to environmental pollution. In the largest study to date on North Atlantic killer whales, researchers in ACS’ Environmental Science & Technology report the levels of pollutants in 162 individuals’ blubber.

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Smaller, fluorinated compounds are becoming replacements for PFAS, though research suggests these versions could also be harmful. A study in ACS’ Environmental Science & Technology reports that levels of these substances indoor and human samples are similar to or higher than those of legacy PFAS.

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Researchers have discovered a way to tune some semiconductors to reduce the amount of energy needed to eject electrons. The approach works by placing a bilayer coating of an insulator and graphene on top of the semiconductor then applying a voltage between the semiconductor and graphene. This bilayer approach could improve the efficiency of electromechanical devices and electron accelerators.

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Cornell researchers have developed a new optimization tool to estimate motion throughout an input video, which has potential applications in video editing and generative AI video creation.

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PNNL researchers are investigating the cybersecurity vulnerabilities of an increasingly smart food and agriculture sector.

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Research teams from 11 projects will use resources at the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) and the Joint Genome Institute (JGI). Several of the projects also were awarded access to the Bio-SANS beamline through the Center for Structural Molecular Biology (CSMB) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Advanced Photon Source (APS) at Argonne National Laboratory.

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The need for “real-time” forecasting of tropical cyclones is more necessary than ever given the impact of climate change on rainfall amounts. Two climate scientists suggest Hurricane Ian can be used as a blueprint for rapid operational climate change attribution statements about extreme storms, in a paper published in the journal Environmental Research: Climate.

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In Review of Scientific Instruments, scientists developed a microwave microstrip line planar resonator sensor tool to detect water adulteration in honey. The tool is compact, cost-effective, and easily fabricated. The microstrip line resonator sensor is fabricated on a dielectric substrate, which is an insulator that can efficiently support electrostatic fields, such as ceramic or glass. The team tested honey samples with varying water content and found that the sensor's resonance frequency consistently decreases with increased added water content.

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Plant pathogens can hitch rides on dust and remain viable, with the potential for traveling across the planet, according to a new Cornell University study – a finding with important implications for global food security and predicting future outbreaks.