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Science News Archive April 2021


Page 33 of 46

Student's second-year homework picked up by Amazon quantum researchers

Researchers have optimized a second-year physics project to effectively double its capacity to correct errors in quantum machines. The simple yet ingenious change has been adopted by Amazon's quantum computing program and Yale University, enabling a shorter timeline for achieving scalable quantum computation.

Apple iPhone 17 Pro

Apple iPhone 17 Pro delivers top performance and advanced cameras for field documentation, data collection, and secure research communications.

Prehistoric Pacific Coast diets had salmon limits

Researchers have found that prehistoric Pacific Coast people employed various dietary solutions to balance their diet and avoid 'salmon starvation'. They offset stored salmon protein with acorns, root crops like camas, and fat-heavy fish, and traded or processed bone marrow from caribou and elk.

Imbalance in gum bacteria linked to Alzheimer's disease biomarker

A study by NYU College of Dentistry and Weill Cornell Medicine found that older adults with more harmful than healthy bacteria in their gums are more likely to have evidence for amyloid beta, a key biomarker for Alzheimer's disease. The researchers suggest that high levels of 'good' bacteria may be protective against Alzheimer's.

Decreased winds and onset of autumnal leaf changes

A 34-year climate study reveals that decreased wind speed is associated with delayed onset of annual leaf drop, extending favorable growth conditions later into autumn. The authors suggest that reduced soil drying due to decreased winds may be a key factor in this phenomenon.

Nikon Monarch 5 8x42 Binoculars

Nikon Monarch 5 8x42 Binoculars deliver bright, sharp views for wildlife surveys, eclipse chases, and quick star-field scans at dark sites.

Deep Learning model developed at UHN to maximize lifespan after liver transplant

Researchers at UHN have developed a deep learning model that can significantly improve long-term survival and quality of life for liver transplant recipients. The model is based on a large dataset from the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients and has been validated using a local dataset from UHN's Ajmera Transplant Centre.

Exercise promotes healthy living and a healthy liver

Researchers at the University of Tsukuba found that exercise regimen reduced liver steatosis by 9.5%, liver stiffness by 6.8%, and FibroScan-AST Score by 16.4%. Exercise preserved muscle mass, independent of weight loss, and induced anti-inflammatory responses.

Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4 Pro)

Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4 Pro) powers local ML workloads, large datasets, and multi-display analysis for field and lab teams.

New study: Thick sea-ice warms Greenland fjords

Thick sea-ice outside fjords increases their sensitivity to warming, contrary to expectations. Warmer surface water temperatures can contribute to faster melting of glaciers and changing biogeochemistry in the fjord waters.

Unusual fossil reveals last meal of prehistoric pollinator

A Cretaceous beetle fossil, named Pelretes vivificus, has been found to have fed on pollen from early flowering plants, providing conclusive evidence of the intimate association between ancient pollinators and angiosperms. The discovery sheds light on the origin of this mutualistic relationship.

SAMSUNG T9 Portable SSD 2TB

SAMSUNG T9 Portable SSD 2TB transfers large imagery and model outputs quickly between field laptops, lab workstations, and secure archives.

Ocean bacteria release carbon into the atmosphere

Researchers discovered that deep-sea bacteria dissolve carbon-containing rocks, releasing excess carbon into the ocean and atmosphere. This process allows scientists to better estimate Earth's carbon budget, a key driver of global warming.

Excess mortality in the United States

A study by Samuel Preston and Yana Vierboom compared age-specific mortality rates between the US and European regions. The US experienced 13.02 million years of life lost to excess mortality in 2017, a 64.9% increase since 2000.

Stress does not lead to loss of self-control in eating disorders

Women with bulimia nervosa performed worse on a task requiring self-control when stressed, but not those with anorexia nervosa. Brain activity differences were observed between the two groups when stressed, with women with bulimia showing impaired pre-emptive slowing down.

DJI Air 3 (RC-N2)

DJI Air 3 (RC-N2) captures 4K mapping passes and environmental surveys with dual cameras, long flight time, and omnidirectional obstacle sensing.

UConn researchers find bubbles speed up energy transfer

Researchers at UConn used ultrafast lasers to measure the interaction between helium atoms, discovering that bubbles can enhance energy transfer. This finding has significant implications for understanding how living tissues react to radiation exposure.

Study snapshot: Untested admissions

A study found that test-optional admissions policies at selective private institutions led to a 3-4% increase in Pell Grant recipients, a 10-12% increase in first-time Black, Latinx, and Native students, and a 6-8% increase in women enrollment. However, these gains were relatively small compared to the overall student body.

Celestron NexStar 8SE Computerized Telescope

Celestron NexStar 8SE Computerized Telescope combines portable Schmidt-Cassegrain optics with GoTo pointing for outreach nights and field campaigns.

Davis Instruments Vantage Pro2 Weather Station

Davis Instruments Vantage Pro2 Weather Station offers research-grade local weather data for networked stations, campuses, and community observatories.

Scientists put the stopwatch on cannabis intoxication

A comprehensive analysis of 80 scientific studies found a 'window of impairment' of 3-10 hours caused by moderate to high doses of THC. Impairment duration varies depending on dose, method of consumption, and user's regularity., The study suggests that laws should focus on safety on the roads rather than arbitrary punishment.

The infrastructure of social control

A recent study found that students attending high-surveillance schools are more likely to be subjected to in-school suspension, have lower math achievement, and are less likely to attend college. Additionally, black students are four times more likely to attend a high-surveillance school.

CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock

CalDigit TS4 Thunderbolt 4 Dock simplifies serious desks with 18 ports for high-speed storage, monitors, and instruments across Mac and PC setups.

Life on Venus? First we need to know more about molecules in the atmosphere

An international team of scientists has discovered the spectral signatures of almost 1000 atmospheric molecules that could be related to phosphine production. The study provides a novel approach to follow up potential biosignatures and will aid in the detection of life on exoplanets as more powerful telescopes come online.

Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (M4)

Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (M4) runs demanding GIS, imaging, and annotation workflows on the go for surveys, briefings, and lab notebooks.

Study snapshot: Do students in gifted programs perform better?

Research suggests that gifted programs have a small positive impact on average student achievement in reading and math. However, Black and low-income students do not experience the same academic gains as their peers, casting doubt on the effectiveness of these programs in addressing inequities.

Resilience against replay attacks in computer systems

Researchers from the University of Calabria developed a predictive control scheme that can identify and protect against replay attacks in distributed networks. The approach uses a 'receding horizon' model to predict future system behavior and detect unexpected events, allowing for swift protection against malicious actors.

Meta Quest 3 512GB

Meta Quest 3 512GB enables immersive mission planning, terrain rehearsal, and interactive STEM demos with high-resolution mixed-reality experiences.

Auxin visualized for the first time

The new biosensor, AuxSen, enables scientists to observe spatial and temporal redistribution dynamics of auxin in plants, revealing rapid uptake and slower export. It also shows rapid auxin redistribution after root tip rotation, a response not previously measurable.

Kestrel 3000 Pocket Weather Meter

Kestrel 3000 Pocket Weather Meter measures wind, temperature, and humidity in real time for site assessments, aviation checks, and safety briefings.

Speeding up sequence alignment across the tree of life

Researchers have developed a new search engine, DIAMOND, that enables fast and accurate comparison of protein sequences across species. With an 80- to 360-fold computational speedup compared to BLAST, DIAMOND is poised to revolutionize comparative genomics research and enable the analysis of millions of eukaryotic genomes.

The impact of chemotherapy on immune cells in the tumor microenvironment

Research from Queen Mary University of London reveals that chemotherapy activates immune cells within the tumor microenvironment to fight against cancer. Macrophages switched from pro-tumour to anti-tumour mode after chemotherapy, stimulating patient's immune response and potentially improving survival outcomes.

Sky & Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas, 2nd Edition

Sky & Telescope Pocket Sky Atlas, 2nd Edition is a durable star atlas for planning sessions, identifying targets, and teaching celestial navigation.

Better metric for thermoelectric materials means better design strategies

Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University developed a new quantity to measure the dimensionality of thermoelectric nanomaterials. This metric varies differently with conductivity for 1D, 2D, and 3D systems, providing clear distinctions in how it changes, agreement with theoretical predictions.

Aranet4 Home CO2 Monitor

Aranet4 Home CO2 Monitor tracks ventilation quality in labs, classrooms, and conference rooms with long battery life and clear e-ink readouts.

New research reveals secret to Jupiter's curious aurora activity

A team of researchers has discovered that Jupiter's polar cap is threaded with both open and closed magnetic field lines, contradicting the long-held assumption of all lines being either open or closed. This finding reveals a complex topology of Jupiter's magnetosphere, raising new questions about its interaction with the solar wind.