Science News
Discovery about the edge of fusion plasma could help realize fusion power
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 16:25
A major roadblock to producing safe, clean and abundant fusion energy on Earth is the lack of detailed understanding of how the hot, charged plasma gas that fuels fusion reactions behaves at the edge of fusion facilities...
Scientists demonstrate new wavelength shift with diode-pumped continuous-wave Yb:CALGO laser
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 16:10
In 1960, Maiman's first demonstration of the ruby laser initiated the beginning of the laser era. Solid-state lasers still comprise one of the most rapidly developing branches of laser science and has improved amazingly ...
Which animals are benefitting from coronavirus lockdowns?
New Scientist - 22 May 2020 11:22
It isn't true that dolphins have returned to Venice, but bees are benefitting from lower air pollution, and a drop in ocean traffic could be good for whales
Scientists solve half-century-old magnesium dimer mystery
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 22:59
Magnesium dimer (Mg2) is a fragile molecule consisting of two weakly interacting atoms held together by the laws of quantum mechanics. It has recently emerged as a potential probe for understanding fundamental phenomena ...
Coronavirus vaccine developed in China shows promise after early study in 100 people
Live Science - 22 May 2020 22:40
A potential coronavirus vaccine developed in China appeared safe and able to generate an immune response after an early trial in more than 100 people.
A clue as to why it's so hard to wake up on a cold winter's morning
Neuroscience News - 22 May 2020 22:38
Study reveals how sensory neurons regulate sleep-wake cycles.
New 'sniff test' predicts recovery of consciousness in brain
Neuroscience News - 22 May 2020 21:25
Researchers have developed a sniff test that can detect which patients in a vegetative state following a TBI will regain consciousness.
Study links severe childhood deprivation to neuropsychological difficulties in adulthood
Neuroscience News - 22 May 2020 21:10
Severe adversity experienced in childhood increases the risk of being diagnosed with ADHD later in life.
Placentas from COVID-19-positive pregnant women show injury
Neuroscience News - 22 May 2020 20:42
The placentas of sixteen women who contracted COVID-19 during pregnancy showed evidence of significant injury, a new study reports. The placental injuries were consistent with abnormal blood flow between mother and baby ...
All five of Earth's largest mass extinctions linked to global warming
New Scientist - 22 May 2020 20:04
There have been five particularly large extinction events in Earth's history, and for the first time all of them have been linked to global warming
A stitch in time: How a quantum physicist invented new code from old tricks
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 20:00
A scientist at the University of Sydney has achieved what one quantum industry insider has described as "something that many researchers thought was impossible".
AI can make personality judgments based on our photographs
Neuroscience News - 22 May 2020 19:31
A new machine-learning algorithm is more accurate at determining personality traits based on selfie photographs than humans are.
Oriented hexagonal boron nitride foster new type of information carrier
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 18:11
Today's computers use the presence or absence of charge (0s and 1s) to encode information, where the physical motion of charges consume energy and cause heat. A novel alternative is to utilize the wave quantum number of ...
Research team reports an important step to making optical simulators real-world devices
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 16:37
A group of Skoltech scientists, in collaboration with colleagues from the University of Southampton (UK), developed a fully optical approach to control the couplings between polariton condensates in optical lattices. Thi...
Researchers demonstrate transport of mechanical energy, even through damaged pathways
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 16:13
Most technologies today rely on devices that transport energy in the form of light, radio, or mechanical waves. However, these wave-guiding channels are susceptible to disorder and damage, either in manufacturing or afte...
A New Bionic Eye Could Give Robots and the Blind 20/20 Vision
Singularity Hub - 22 May 2020 16:00
A bionic eye could restore sight to the blind and greatly improve robotic vision, but current visual sensors are a long way from the impressive attributes of nature's design. Now researchers have found a way to mimic its...
Live Science podcast 'Life's Little Mysteries' special report: Coronavirus (May 21)
Live Science - 22 May 2020 14:53
In this special episode of Life's Little Mysteries, we'll give you the latest news and answer frequently asked questions about the new coronavirus and COVID-19.
Massive disk galaxy could change our understanding of how galaxies are born
Live Science - 22 May 2020 14:52
A massive, rotating disk galaxy that first formed just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang, could upend our understanding of galaxy formation, scientists suggest in a new study.
Fake news gets shared more when it is angry and anxiety-inducing
New Scientist - 22 May 2020 12:00
An analysis of fake news shared on social media service Weibo has found that posts flagged as fake news were more like to contain words associated with anger than real news
Researchers achieve broadest microcomb spectral span on record
Phys.org - 22 May 2020 07:31
Xu Yi, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Virginia, collaborated with Yun-Feng Xiao's group from Peking University and researchers at Caltech to achieve the broadest recorded ...
Can oilfield water safely be reused for irrigation in California?
EurekAlert! - 22 May 2020 06:00
(Duke University) Reusing low-saline oilfield water mixed with surface water to irrigate farms in the Cawelo Water District of California does not pose major health risks, as some opponents of the practice have feared, a...
Why toothpaste and cement harden over time
EurekAlert! - 22 May 2020 06:00
(University of Delaware) Cements, clays, soils, inks, paints, and even toothpaste. Many paste materials, also known as dense colloidal suspensions, stiffen as they age. Structural dynamics, or changes in the loads the ma...