ScienceDaily: All - November 06, 2024
Today's top research news
Groundbreaking study provides new evidence of when Earth was slushy
At the end of the last global ice age, the deep-frozen Earth reached a built-in limit of climate change and thawed into a slushy planet. Results provide the first direct geochemical evidence of the slushy planet -- otherwise known as the 'plume-world ocean' era -- when sky-high carbon dioxide levels forced the frozen Earth into a massive, rapid melting period.
Image: muratart/Shutterstock.com
Despite its impressive output, generative AI doesn't have a coherent understanding of the world
Large language models can achieve incredible performance on some tasks without having internalized a coherent model of the world or the rules that govern it, researchers find. This means these models are likely to fail unexpectedly if they are deployed in situations where the environment or task slightly changes.
Toward better surgical outcomes in patients undergoing knee replacement surgery
When performing a knee replacement surgery or total knee arthroplasty, doctors traditionally try to align the hip, knee, and ankle in a straight line, forming a neutral alignment, rather than replicating the patient's original alignment. To understand which approach is better, researchers have conducted a post-operation questionnaire comparing patient-reported outcomes to changes in knee alignment before and after surgery. Their findings may improve current surgical guidelines and patients' long-term quality of life.
Rethinking electric bus depots as 'profitable energy hubs'
How do you electrify a populous city's transit without destabilizing its grid? New research into Beijing's 27,000-bus system explores using depots to generate a solar power.
Microbes in mouth reflect lifestyle choices
According to a new study, the composition of beneficial microorganisms within the mouth differs over a range of subsistence strategies -- from nomadic hunter gatherers to farmers to industrialized groups.
Testing thousands of RNA enzymes helps find first 'twister ribozyme' in mammals
A new method can test the activity of thousands of RNA enzymes, called ribozymes, in a single experiment.
Physicists have investigated to which extent a piece of music can evoke expectations about its progression. They were able to determine differences in how far compositions of different composers can be anticipated. In total, the scientists quantitatively analyzed more than 550 pieces from classical and jazz music.
Ancient immune defense system plays an unexpected role in cancer
Along with defending against pathogens, the body's innate immune system helps to protect the stability of our genomes in unexpected ways -- ways that have important implications for the development of cancer, researchers are discovering.
An extra year of education does not protect against brain aging, study finds
Thanks to a 'natural experiment' involving 30,000 people, researchers were able to determine very precisely what an extra year of education does to the brain in the long term. To their surprise, they found no effect on brain structure and no protective benefit of additional education against brain aging.
AI-powered system detects toxic gases with speed and precision
Researchers have developed an AI-powered system that mimics the human sense of smell to detect and track toxic gases in real time. Using advanced artificial neural networks combined with a network of sensors, the system quickly identifies the source of harmful gases like nitrogen dioxide that poses severe respiratory health risks.
Meal timing may be crucial for night shift workers' health
A new study has found that overnight eating may be putting night shift workers at higher risk of chronic health conditions.
What's overweight enough for lower disability after stroke?
Slightly overweight stroke survivors have a lower risk of sustaining disabilities. New research adds another aspect to the obesity paradox but also highlights the importance of considering the population's normal when recommending best practices.
Bio-based fibers could pose greater threat to the environment than conventional plastics
New research has shown that bio-based fibers caused higher mortality, and reduced growth and reproductivity, among earthworms -- a species critical to the health of soils globally -- than conventional plastics. It has led scientists to suggest that materials being advocated as alternatives to plastic should be tested thoroughly before they are used extensively in a range of products.
Explaining science through dance
Explaining a theoretical science concept to high school students requires a new way of thinking altogether, which is precisely what researchers did when they orchestrated a dance with high school students at Orange Glen High School in Escondido as a way to explain topological insulators.
Towards a hydrogen-powered future: Highly sensitive hydrogen detection system
Hydrogen, a promising fuel, has extensive applications in many sectors. However, its safe and widespread use necessitates reliable sensing methods. While tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) has proved to be an effective gas sensing method, detecting hydrogen using TDLAS is difficult due to its weak light absorption property in the infrared region. Addressing this issue, researchers developed an innovative calibration-free technique that significantly enhances the accuracy and detection limits for sensing hydrogen using TDLAS.
High-quality nanomechanical resonators with built-in piezoelectricity
Researchers have developed a novel type of nanomechanical resonator that combines two important features: high mechanical quality and piezoelectricity. This development could open doors to new possibilities in quantum sensing technologies.
Ensuring a bright future for diamond electronics and sensors
To expand the potential use of diamond in semiconductor and quantum technologies, researchers are developing improved processes for growing the material at lower temperatures that won't damage the silicon in computer chips. These advances include insights into creating protective hydrogen layers on quantum diamonds without damaging crucial properties like nitrogen-vacancy centers.
Advancing the science of superconductivity
Materials called cubic rare earth hydrides could be superconductors in everyday conditions.
Deaf male mosquitoes don't mate
Romance is a complex affair in humans. There's personality, appearance, seduction, all manner of physical and social cues. Mosquitoes are much more blunt. Mating occurs for a few seconds in midair. And all it takes to woo a male is the sound of a female's wingbeats. Imagine researchers' surprise when a single change completely killed the mosquitoes' libidos.
Defibrillation devices can save lives using 1,000 times less electricity
Researchers used an electrophysiological computer model of the heart's electrical circuits to examine the effect of the applied voltage field in multiple fibrillation-defibrillation scenarios. They discovered far less energy is needed than is currently used in state-of-the-art defibrillation techniques. The authors applied an adjoint optimization method and discovered adjusting the duration and the smooth variation in time of the voltage supplied by defibrillation devices is a more efficient mechanism that reduces the energy needed to stop fibrillation by three orders of magnitude.
Two key genes identified linking rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis
Researchers employed analysis tools and machine learning algorithms to identify two genes linked to rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis that could serve as diagnostic tools and potential targets for treatments. Drawing from a large database of genetic information, they gathered dozens of sequenced genomes from people with rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis to look for any similarities, using recently developed computational methods to narrow down their search. They identified genes ATXN2L and MMP14 as significantly associated with the progression of both rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis.
Leveraging machine learning to find promising compositions for sodium-ion batteries
Sodium-containing transition-metal layered oxides are promising electrode materials for sodium-ion batteries, a potential alternative to lithium-ion batteries. However, the vast number of possible elemental compositions for their electrodes makes identifying optimal compositions challenging. In a recent study, researchers leveraged extensive experimental data and machine learning to predict the optimal composition of sodium-ion batteries. Their approach could help reduce time and resources needed during exploratory research, speeding up the transition to renewable energy.