Top Story: Researchers create “decoy” coatings to trick infrared cameras.
Views expressed in this science and technology update are those of the reporters and correspondents.
Content provided by “Phys.org”–an official publication of the Space X Network.
Accessed on 27 July 2020, 1437 UTC.
Source: https://phys.org/. Please click link or scroll down to read your selections.
Researchers create ‘decoy’ coatings that trick infrared cameras
Light can sometimes play tricks on our eyes. If you look at a shiny surface, what you see will largely depend on the surrounding environment and lighting conditions.
22 MINUTES AGO
0
0
Novel gas-capture approach advances nuclear fuel management
Nuclear energy provides about 20 percent of the U.S. electricity supply, and over half of its carbon-free generating capacity.
35 MINUTES AGO
0
0
ExoMars finds new gas signatures in the martian atmosphere
ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter has spotted new gas signatures at Mars. These unlock new secrets about the martian atmosphere, and will enable a more …
SPACE EXPLORATION
35 MINUTES AGO
0
0
Testing Chernobyl fungi as a radiation shield for astronauts
A team of researchers from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and Stanford University has tested the viability of using a type of fungus found …
Team develops computational method to explore evolution’s influence on preterm birth
Human pregnancy can easily be taken for granted as a natural and regularly occurring event, but it is the product of the complex, coordinated function …
EVOLUTION
16 MINUTES AGO
0
0
Two new high-redshift red quasars discovered
Using the Subaru Telescope, astronomers have identified two new dust-reddened (red) quasars at high redshifts. The finding, detailed in a paper published July 16 on the arXiv pre-print server, could improve the understanding …
Designer nanozymes for reactive-oxygen species scavenging anti-inflammatory therapy
In a recent report, Yufeng Liu and a team of interdisciplinary researchers in China developed an integrated nanozyme cascade to eliminate excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS; oxygen free radicals). The nanozyme mimicked …
Taking the guesswork out of twistronics
The twist has been taking the field of condensed matter physics by storm. No, not the 1960s dance craze made famous by Chubby Checker— the stunning discovery that two sheets of graphene, a flat honeycomb-shaped lattice …
NANOMATERIALS
1 HOUR AGO
0
13
A deep dive into shallow quakes
New research from the Australian National University (ANU) has shown that Australia is prone to shallow and potentially destructive earthquakes.
EARTH SCIENCES
1 HOUR AGO
0
0
New technique sheds light on the mysteries of complex chemical reaction networks
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Ames Laboratory and their colleagues have discovered a way to untangle the mysteries of complex reaction networks by employing a measurement tool in a unique way.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
1 HOUR AGO
0
0
New study provides valuable historical dataset for Yellow River water management
The Yellow River (YR) is the fifth-longest and the most sediment-laden river in the world. Although the YR accounts for only 3% of China’s water resources, it irrigates 13% of its cropland.
EARTH SCIENCES
1 HOUR AGO
0
0
Report linking 5G to COVID-19 swiftly debunked
“This paper made my jaw drop.”
Psychologists show that embedding primes in a person’s speech can influence people’s decision making
A pair of psychologists at Goldsmiths, University of London has found that embedding primes in a person’s speech and gestures can influence people’s decision-making. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National …
Medical Xpress
Report linking 5G to COVID-19 swiftly debunked
Coronavirus: how countries aim to get the vaccine first by cutting opaque supply deals
Review into deaths of London bus drivers suggests earlier lockdown would have saved lives
Lockdown led to happiness rebound after wellbeing plunged with onset of pandemic
Tips to keep ticks under control this summer
Evidence of exposure to SARS-CoV-2 in cats and dogs from households in Italy
Viral hepatitis treatment and policy must place affected communities at centre
Engineers develop a ventilator-sharing device
Eight things you need to know about the worldwide hunt for a COVID-19 vaccine
Same-day IUD placements hard to come by in Ohio, study finds
Video: Why should masks cover your nose?
Drug target for aggressive breast cancer found
Virus vaccine put to final test in thousands of volunteers
Cancer mutations caused by bacterial toxin preventable
Here’s what we know so far about the long-term symptoms of COVID-19
Internet searches provide real-time estimate of Lyme disease risk
More questions than answers as Canada’s immunity task force releases initial results
Link between kidney dysfunction and premature births
COVID-19 antibodies can decline over time, research suggests
Autonomous wayfinding device for visually impaired people unable to home a guide dog
AsEH enzyme: A new pharmacological target against Alzheimer’s disease
Researchers propose studying COVID-19’s envelope protein
Women in health care at increased risk for stress, burnout and depression during COVID-19
Mental health impact of coronavirus pandemic hits marginalized groups hardest
The coronavirus exposes the perils of profit in seniors’ housing
It’s easy to judge. But some people really can’t wear a mask
Tech Xplore
Facebook bots to combat bad behavior
How AI systems use Mad Libs to teach themselves grammar
Scientists build machine learning model for detecting early signs of depression in text
Deep-belief networks detect glioblastoma tumors from MRI scans
Can wearables like Fitbit devices be used to help detect COVID-19?
Proposed framework for integrating chatbots into health care
Corning says its new Gorilla Glass unlikely to break as easily
China’s energy infrastructure mapped
Innovative tools offer reproducibility for Deep Learning
Twitter mirrors attitudes and feelings about COVID-19
Targeting the perfect metal-organic framework cooling combination
Apple to issue hackable iPhones
Best of Last Week: Active volcanoes on Venus, heart impacts of COVID-19, and blood sugar and aerobic exercise
It was a good week for space research, as a team studying data from the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope reported the first image taken of a multi-planet system around a sun-like star, TYC 8998-760-1. …
OTHER
Wrong number of fingers leads down wrong track
Have you ever wondered why human hands have five fingers? And what about amphibians? They usually only have four. Until now, researchers assumed that this was the case with the early ancestors of today’s frogs and salamanders, …
ARCHAEOLOGY & FOSSILS
2 HOURS AGO
0
22
Discovery of disordered nanolayers in intermetallic alloys
Intermetallic alloys potentially have high strength in a high-temperature environment. But they generally suffer poor ductility at ambient and low temperatures, hence limiting their applications in aerospace and other engineering …
NANOMATERIALS
2 HOURS AGO
0
26
How microscopic scallops wander
All microscopic objects, from enzymes to paint particles, are jittering constantly, bombarded by solvent particles: this is called Brownian motion. How does this motion change when the object is flexible instead of rigid? …
GENERAL PHYSICS
1 HOUR AGO
0
5
Researchers quantify, characterize and identify functions of collagen, its subtypes
Found in cartilage, bones, blood vessels, skin, and other connective tissues, collagens are the most abundant proteins by weight in the human body. In an article published recently in Nature Reviews Materials, UCI biomedical …
BIOCHEMISTRY
1 HOUR AGO
0
13
Researchers develop an optical fiber made of gel derived from marine algae
An optical fiber made of agar has been produced at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP) in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. This device is edible, biocompatible and biodegradable. It can be used in vivo for body structure …
MATERIALS SCIENCE
3 HOURS AGO
0
176
How the zebrafish got its stripes
Animal patterns—the stripes, spots and rosettes seen in the wild—are a source of endless fascination, and now researchers at the University Bath have developed a robust mathematical model to explain how one important …
PLANTS & ANIMALS
3 HOURS AGO
0
58
Life in the pits: Scientists identify the key enzyme behind body odor
Scientists have discovered a unique enzyme responsible for the pungent characteristic smell we call body odor or BO.
CELL & MICROBIOLOGY
5 HOURS AGO
0
110
‘Selfish and loveless’ society in Uganda really is not
A mountain people in Uganda—branded as selfish and loveless by an anthropologist half a century ago—really is not, according to a study led by a Baylor University anthropologist.
EVOLUTION
7 HOURS AGO
2
57
Researchers build first AI tool capable of identifying individual birds
New research demonstrates for the first time that artificial intelligence (AI) can be used to train computers to recognize individual birds, a task humans are unable to do. The research is published in the British Ecological …
ECOLOGY
7 HOURS AGO
0
188
Heat smarter, not harder: How microwaves make catalytic reactions more efficient
Many reactions that we use to produce chemical compounds in food, medical, and industrial fields would not be feasible without the use of catalysts. A catalyst is a substance that, even in small quantities, accelerates the …
Cycad plants provide an important ‘ecosystem service’
A study published in the June 2020 edition of the peer-reviewed journal Horticulturae shows that cycads, which are in decline and among the world’s most threatened group of plants, provide an important service to their neighboring …
Video: Single cells have their own defenses against pathogens
In the fight against pathogens, most researchers have focused on the diverse immune system arsenal that protects people against infection. However, the lab of Yale microbiologist Jorge Galan explored an evolutionarily ancient …
Novel cutting mechanism devised for automated, robotic apple-tree pruning system
The first robotic cutting mechanism—or “end-effector”—for a fully automated, computerized pruning system for modern apple orchards has been designed by a Penn State research team, an early step in the creation of a technology …
Agonizing over school-reopening plans? Think Marie Kondo
Her advice has helped millions declutter their lives. Now organizing expert Marie Kondo’s philosophy of letting go of nonessentials can help K-12 educators scrambling to design creative back-to-school plans in the age of …
Scientists publish seminal study into impact of nanoparticles on living species
An international team of scientists has completed the first ever study into the potential impact of naturally occurring and man-made nanoparticles on the health of all types of the major living species of animals.
New study shows men are more likely than women to endorse COVID-19 conspiracies
A study published earlier this year found that in the United States Republicans were more likely than Democrats to believe coronavirus (COVID-19) related conspiracy theories.
Studying interactions between ground-nesting bees and soils
Many living creatures live in soil. Though their sizes range from microscopic soil microbes to larger animals like gopher turtles, they all call soil their “home.” Included in these ground-dwelling species are bees—vital …
Video: Slowing deforestation is the key to preventing the next pandemic – but what does that cost?
In a recent journal article, a team of biologists, medical scientists, environmental scientists and conservationists proposed a number of measures to reduce the likelihood of future pandemics, many of which originate with …
‘Inchworm’ pattern of Indonesian earthquake rupture powered seismic boom
Earthquakes are often imagined as originating from a single point where the seismic waves are strongest, the hypocenter underground or the epicenter at the Earth’s surface, with seismic energy radiating outward in a circular …
How a scientific spat over how to name species turned into a big plus for nature
Taxonomy, or the naming of species, is the foundation of modern biology. It might sound like a fairly straightforward exercise, but in fact it’s complicated and often controversial.
We know by Year 11 what mark students will get in Year 12: A stressful exam might no longer be needed
By the end of Year 11 we know almost exactly how well New South Wales students will perform on the state’s senior school exams. We used predictive analytics to reliably predict a student’s HSC (Higher School Certificate) …
Historic carbon dioxide decline could hold clues for future climate
A new study led by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) provides a clearer snapshot of conditions during the last ice age—when global ice sheets were at their peak—and could even lead to better models …
ENVIRONMENT
JUL 24, 2020
18
1054
Alaska is getting wetter. That’s bad news for permafrost and the climate
Alaska is getting wetter. A new study spells out what that means for the permafrost that underlies about 85% of the state, and the consequences for Earth’s global climate.
ENVIRONMENT
JUL 24, 2020
21
1053
Quantum loop: US unveils blueprint for ‘virtually unhackable’ internet
US officials and scientists have begun laying the groundwork for a more secure “virtually unhackable” internet based on quantum computing technology.
QUANTUM PHYSICS
JUL 24, 2020
18
3894
If relaxed too soon, physical distancing measures might have been all for naught
If physical distancing measures in the United States are relaxed while there is still no COVID-19 vaccine or treatment and while personal protective equipment remains in short supply, the number of resulting infections could …
DISEASES, CONDITIONS, SYNDROMES
JUL 24, 2020
11
788
An origin story for a family of oddball meteorites
Most meteorites that have landed on Earth are fragments of planetesimals, the very earliest protoplanetary bodies in the solar system. Scientists have thought that these primordial bodies either completely melted early in …
SPACE EXPLORATION
JUL 24, 2020
8
180
Facebook bots to combat bad behavior
As the world’s largest social network, Facebook provides endless hours of discussion, entertainment, news, videos and just good times for the more than 2.6 billion of its users.
Paper describing hummingbird-sized dinosaur retracted
The journal Nature has issued a retraction for a paper it published March 11th called “Hummingbird-sized dinosaur from the Cretaceous period of Myanmar.” The editorial staff was alerted to a possible misclassification of …
Tandem catalytic system efficiently converts carbon dioxide to methanol
Converting carbon dioxide to methanol, a potentially renewable alternative fuel, offers an opportunity to simultaneously form an alternative fuel and cut down on carbon dioxide emissions.
MATERIALS SCIENCE
JUL 24, 2020
5
1015
Antiviral method against herpes paves the way for combatting incurable viral infections
Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have discovered a new method to treat human herpes viruses. The new broad-spectrum method targets physical properties in the genome of the virus rather than viral proteins, which have …
DISEASES, CONDITIONS, SYNDROMES
JUL 24, 2020
3
213
Designing a freestanding, supercharged polypeptide proton-conducting membrane
Protons are subatomic particles with a positive electric charge. Proton translocation plays a significant role in natural phenomena and manmade technologies. But it remains challenging to control proton conduction and fabrication …
It really is different for young people: It’s harder to climb the jobs ladder
Our memories of the job market prior to COVID have become rosier: the last decade was a period of fairly low unemployment, even if wage growth was less than stellar.
Redefining life expectancy and maximum lifespan for wildlife management
A new study has developed a method to determine the life expectancy and maximum lifespan of wild animal populations.
The moons of Uranus are fascinating enough on their own that we should send a flagship mission out there
What’s the most interesting fact you know about Uranus? The fact that its rotational axis is completely out of line with every other planet in the solar system? Or that Uranus’ magnetosphere is asymmetrical, notably tilted …
Mapping the Oaxaca earthquake from space
On the morning of 23 June 2020, a strong earthquake struck the southern state of Oaxaca, Mexico. The 7.4-magnitude earthquake prompted evacuations in the region, triggered a tsunami warning and damaged thousands of houses. …
Butterflies wing their way into the garden with the proper room and board
Fragile, beautiful, and fascinating, butterflies flutter their way into our gardens and seem to just as quickly wing their way out.
Coronavirus and its impact on carbon emissions
The emergence of a novel coronavirus towards the end of 2019 that has led to the major ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has already taken its toll on people’s lives, healthcare systems, and the commercial world.
Scientists develop novel transparent broadband electromagnetic interference shielding materials
The Flexible Optoelectronic Material Group led by Prof. Song Weijie at the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering (NIMTE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) has proposed and successfully fabricated …
High-capacity oil-adsorbing mats could be deployed in oil spill emergencies to limit ecological damage
An intrinsically porous polymer with a very high internal surface area could be an ideal material for soaking up spilled oil. Researchers from KAUST have identified a polymer that can be formed into robust, reusable mats …
Ocean features and changes in the past are explored to anticipate future climate
The climate represents the set of atmospheric conditions that characterize a region. Yet these conditions are the result of global interaction between dry land, vegetation, ice, atmosphere, and ocean. “Bearing in mind that …
Solving the jigsaw puzzle of regional carbon budgets
Accurate regional carbon budgets are critical for informing land-based mitigation policy and tracking mitigation progress. For nine regions covering the globe, inventory estimates of carbon stock changes were collected and …
In vivo imaging of the human cornea at high speed and high resolution
If the eyes are the mirror of the soul, then thanks to the translucent corneas, we can look deep into that soul. And thanks to the work of scientists from the Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences, …
Photochromic bismuth complexes show great promise for optical memory elements
Russian chemists have obtained a new photochromic complex composed of of bismuth (III) and viologen cations and used the new compound to create optical memory elements which were shown to be highly efficient and stable. The …
For the latest trends in science, technology, medicine, health, the environment, and artificial intelligence, please check the blog sidebars and links. These news feeds are updated daily. Thanks for joining us today.
Until next time,
Russ Roberts (https://atomic-temporary-155977078.wpcomstaging.com and https://hawaiisciencedaily.com)