News on open-access publishing and its reach. Covers journal launches, open-access agreements, and research made freely available.
Researchers developed a video game-based therapy, Recovery Rapids, to aid stroke patients in improving their motor skills from home. The game helped patients adhere to exercises and showed similar outcomes to traditional constraint-induced therapy.
A multicenter study found relatively high interobserver agreement for chronic pancreatitis findings in children using both CT and MRI. However, subjective findings like atrophy showed moderate agreement, emphasizing the need for standardized criteria.
Researchers at Bielefeld University have identified five key characteristics of mitosis in the microalga Volvox carteri, including a porous nuclear envelope and crucial centrosome function. They used confocal laser scanning microscopy to capture high-resolution images of live cell division and gain insights into the complex process.
Researchers developed a new technique called dual-detection impulsive vibrational spectroscopy (DIVS) to measure two distinct types of vibrational signals. DIVS enables synchronous measurement of THz- and fingerprint region vibrations, offering high temporal resolution for real-time chemical analysis.
A new study from Georgia Tech's School of Public Policy found that nearly half of the reports were downloaded for academic purposes, while even more were accessed by people outside educational settings. The analysis revealed strong demand among users for open-access scientific information to improve their lives, with downloads categori...
The FORRT community has developed a glossary of terms to clarify terminology in open science, ensuring effective communication among newcomers and experts. The glossary reflects the principles of Open Scholarship, including social justice, diversity, and accessibility.
The 'Prize Papers' Project has made available online court documents related to the capture of approximately 1,500 ships between 1793 and 1815. Researchers can access digital copies of case books, trial records, and other materials, providing unique discoveries on global maritime history.
A recent online survey found that pandemic-related school closures have a disproportionate negative impact on students with autism. The study reveals differences in the psychological impact of the pandemic on neurotypical and autistic children, highlighting the need for alternative ways to support autistic children's educational goals.
Researchers have discovered that altering the interface between two materials in time can lead to new opportunities for wave manipulation. This breakthrough enables novel concepts and applications in photonics, including nonreciprocal gain, power steering, and optical drag.
Researchers investigated the effects of insulin aggregation on human health, finding strategies to prevent it. Additionally, a study revealed that amphiphilic membrane environments can regulate enzymatic behaviors in Salmonella proteins.
A study by Academic Analytics Research Center found a significant increase in journal article publications (64%) and decrease in book publications (34-54%) across 12 Social Sciences disciplines from 2010 to 2020. This shift may impact library acquisitions strategies and affect humanities-related fields.
Researchers analyzed fMRI studies on healthy individuals and stroke survivors to understand the neural mechanisms underlying prism adaptation therapy. The study found differences in brain activity patterns between healthy individuals and those with spatial neglect, suggesting a shift in spatial processing to the left hemisphere.
The MIT Press has released a white paper on its Direct to Open (D2O) model, a collective framework for supporting open access monographs. The report examines the context and logic behind the model's design, which balances private benefits with mission-aligned support for open business models.
Research reveals organic aggregates can emit polychromic and white light with high efficiency, opening up new avenues for OLEDs and encryption. However, more work is needed to fully understand the underlying mechanisms and improve performance.
The University of Texas at El Paso is implementing a multi-phased plan to re-enroll students who have dropped out for a semester or longer. The grant will help address financial, academic, and personal issues that prevent students from completing their degrees.
Researchers found fecal transplants increase IL-25, reducing tissue inflammation and boosting immune system response to C. difficile infections. The transplants also promote beneficial microbial diversity, helping patients heal from life-threatening diarrhea.
The Natural History Museum's digital collection has been downloaded over 28 billion times, contributing to advancements in food security, biodiversity conservation and medicine discovery. The museum's digitisation efforts are expected to have a tenfold return on investment, with benefits exceeding £2 billion over 30 years.
A study found that racial disparities in mammography screening worsened after COVID-19 closures, with non-white patients facing reduced access to facilities. Early interventions aimed at expanding access to these facilities helped to recover late recovery volumes for patients of races other than white.
Convolutional neural networks trained to identify abnormalities on upper extremity radiographs are susceptible to a ubiquitous confounding image feature: radiograph labels. Covering these labels increases accuracy, while using them alone leads to decreased performance.
A study of 5.9 million radiological examinations found no significant difference in major and minor discrepancy rates for acute community setting exams between concordant and discordant with radiologists' fellowship training. However, advanced examination discrepancies were higher when concordant with radiologists' fellowship training.
Researchers have developed a superconducting silicon-photonic chip for quantum communication, enabling optimal Bell-state measurement of time-bin encoded qubits. This breakthrough enhances the key rate of secure quantum communication and removes detector side-channel attacks, significantly increasing security.
The Tanenbaum Open Science Institute at The Neuro has partnered with the Hotchkiss Brain Institute to promote collaboration and information sharing in brain research. This partnership aims to accelerate the pace of discovery and bring novel treatments to patients with neurological disorders.
A team of scientists developed a free VR tool called singlecellVR, allowing users to explore single-cell datasets in VR. The program is built on previous advancements and enables users to visualize their own precomputed data directly from commonly used single-cell analysis tools.
Researchers discovered a novel topological edge soliton that inherits topological protection from its linear counterpart, enabling robust and localized light beams. This breakthrough is achieved through nonlinear photorefractive lattices harnessing the valley Hall effect, without requiring an external magnetic field.
A pilot study examines graph-theoretical properties of brain networks in traumatic brain injury and controls, showing association with balance impairment and structural damage. The study uses EEG-based functional connectivity measures during a balance perturbation task to explore underlying neural mechanisms.
Chronic P. vivax infections cause significant damage to kidneys, brain, and circulatory system, affecting impoverished communities. The parasite can hide at low levels, making diagnosis difficult and treatment efforts challenging.
A new analysis of 134 studies found that color-coded nutrition labels and warnings encourage more healthful purchases. The study suggests that these labeling systems are beneficial in nudging consumers towards foods with lower levels of energy, sodium, fat, and saturated fat.
A PLOS study found that low-frequency magnetic stimulation can improve episodic memory by reducing beta-waves in the brain. The study, led by Mircea van der Plas and Simon Hanslmayr, used slow rTMS over the left prefrontal cortex to enhance verbal memory formation.
The BiCIKL project links biodiversity data types and classes across 14 European institutions, creating a Biodiversity Knowledge Hub for seamless access. This initiative streamlines Open Science and FAIR practices, empowering researchers with efficient tools to explore and utilize biodiversity data.
A study published in PLOS Biology found that Asian elephants successfully cooperated in 80% of trials, using strategies like fighting back or moving sides to prevent cheating. However, cooperation quickly broke down when one partner could monopolize the reward, revealing a complex dynamic in their social behavior.
Female vampire bats with close social bonds leave the roost separately but reunite when hunting, indicating a preference for cooperative foraging. The study also reveals three distinct call types used during foraging trips, including one that may help identify friends and foes.
A new study suggests that autobiographical memories of authentic and inauthentic experiences serve specific purposes, such as defining identity and enhancing self-fulfilment. Reflecting on these experiences can also improve problem-solving skills and promote a more authentic response.
The Science Communication Lab has received a 3-year NSF grant to create new films and virtual workshops about novel breakthroughs and techniques in science. The lab aims to expand its work across filmmaking and education to reach broad and diverse audiences, emphasizing diversity, equity, and inclusion.
A lidar mapping study of ancient Teotihuacan shows that the city's engineers reshaped the landscape for construction, rerouted rivers to align with astronomical significance, and identified hundreds of previously unknown architectural features. The study confirms how these modifications continue to influence modern activities in the area.
A team of researchers has discovered a new group of coral-infecting microbes called Corallicolida. Despite lacking photosynthetic genes, they express chlorophyll genes and may still play a role in their host cells. The authors propose that Corallicolida could be an ancient parasite that lost its photosynthetic machinery.
A study published in PLOS Genetics found that smoking-related DNA methylation patterns explain around 1/5 of the variation in body mass index between individuals. The study analyzed genomic sequence data from over 390,000 participants and found that genetics accounted for 50% of the variation in BMI.
A new analysis suggests that the pace of vaccination should directly dictate the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions to boost freedoms and minimize new waves of infection. The study's findings suggest that further severe waves can be avoided if restrictions are lifted no faster than the pace dictated by vaccination progress.
The Canadian Research Knowledge Network (CRKN) has partnered with the MIT Press to manage central licensing and invoicing for Direct to Open (D2O), a framework for open access monographs. Twenty-eight libraries have elected to participate, earning exclusive benefits such as archive access and discounting on trade books.
A study found that palm phytoplasmas in Florida were transmitted by the American palm cixiid bug, originating from Jamaica. The research revealed a network of movement across the Caribbean basin, with distinct groups of insects found in different countries.
Thanks to a 3-year grant from the Arcadia Fund, IUCN will promote and improve researchers' open access to high-quality conservation knowledge. A lack of access to scientific literature is a major obstacle for roughly half of surveyed conservation experts.
A new species of wood lizard, Enyalioides feiruzae, has been described from the premontane forest of the Huallaga river basin in Peru. The lizard features stunning color variations and is believed to have established as a separate species due to geographical separation from a similar lizard.
A new 3D spiral gradient recalled echo (GRE) sequence has been developed to overcome conventional challenges in head and neck MRI. This sequence achieves improved image quality and contrast-to-noise ratio compared to traditional Cartesian sequences, while reducing scan time by up to 44.6%.
A new commentary paper highlights the need for more research into the microbes living in and on sea creatures. The authors propose a research agenda to fill knowledge gaps and improve our understanding of beneficial microbes' roles in marine ecosystems.
A new approach to modeling COVID-19 spread incorporates real-time data on people's movements, showing promise for optimal lockdown policies. The study suggests a balance between controlling the pandemic and minimizing economic costs can be achieved through mathematical models and Google mobility data.
A single-center retrospective study found that AI-CAD reduced recall rates and improved accuracy compared to digital mammography (DM) and DBT. The study showed lower recall rates and higher accuracy for DM with AI-CAD, indicating a practical addition to lowering false-positive findings.
A new study reveals that just 42% of nations have expanded their scientific understanding of bird species distributions in the last decade. The researchers developed two new metrics to assess biodiversity data coverage and effectiveness, finding that regions like Asia and South America are closing knowledge gaps.
A study published in PLOS Biology found that shark diversity remained relatively constant during the mass extinction event at the end of the Cretaceous period. However, some groups of apex predators suffered selective extinctions, while others increased in diversity after the K-Pg boundary.
A new study demonstrates that artificial intelligence networks based on human brain connectivity can perform cognitive tasks efficiently. Researchers created a brain connectivity pattern and applied it to an artificial neural network, which performed cognitive memory tasks more flexibly and efficiently than other benchmark architectures.
The Covid-19 pandemic had a mixed impact on the EU labour market, with some countries experiencing significant increases in unemployment and inactivity rates. Notably, the Baltic States saw substantial growth in inactive citizens, while Poland was a 'unique case' where both unemployment and inactivity fell slightly.
Researchers created a new open-access database to speed up the repurposing of old drugs as new treatments for various conditions. The NICEdrug.ch database includes information on 250,000 potential drug molecules and shows promising results in predicting drug behavior.
A new study published in the Social Bulletin of Psychology found that right-wing authoritarianism is more closely tied to how people acquire positive attitudes than changing them. The researchers suggest that individuals with RWA tend to be more sensitive to negative information, leading them to stick to positive information and avoid ...
Lehigh University researcher Roberto Palmieri aims to make RDMA technology even faster by revisiting a long-held theory. His goal is to enable all machines to interact with local memory, reducing latency and improving performance.
A 48-year record of Australian collecting trips has been made publicly available, providing accurate details on specimen collection dates and locations. The data is now accessible via the Zenodo open-data repository in Darwin Core format.
The MIT Press has partnered with Jisc to provide central licensing and invoicing for Direct to Open, a framework that moves books from a market-based model to a library-supported open access model. Libraries committing to D2O before September 30 will earn exclusive benefits, including term access to an archive of gated titles.
Researchers have identified a recurring trend of elevated blood glucose levels among those with severe Covid-19, which impairs lung immune defense and facilitates cytokine storm. Tight control and management of glycemia may be crucial for better outcomes, and metformin shows potential as a treatment option.
A significant minority of people in Kentucky's indoor public areas fail to wear masks correctly during the pandemic. The study found higher compliance rates in larger stores and affluent city districts. Men aged 40-60 are most likely to be unmasked or incorrectly masked.
A new study published in PLOS Biology elucidates a female sex pheromone pathway in cockroaches, revealing that blocking an enzyme reduces pheromone production and female attractiveness. The study provides valuable insights into insect sexual behavior regulation.
A recent study published in BMC Medicine found that drinking moderate amounts of alcohol daily can decrease the risk of heart attacks, strokes, angina, or death among individuals with cardiovascular disease (CVD). Those who consumed between six and eight grams of alcohol per day had significantly lower risks compared to non-drinkers.
The Royal Astronomical Society has launched a new gold open access journal, RAS Techniques and Instruments, to bridge the gap between generalist and specialist journals in these fields. The journal will publish high-quality papers on instrumentation, data science, machine learning, software, and numerical methods.
A study found that Airbnb listings were associated with increased violence in Boston neighborhoods, but not with public social disorder or private conflict. The researchers suggest that the presence of short-term rentals may erode local social dynamics and lead to increased violence over time.