In a paper published this week in the journal Frontiers of Physics, a duo of researchers from Italy investigated the similarities between the network of neurons in the human brain and the cosmic network of galaxies. Top: neurons and glial cells. Bottom: the Millennium Simulation of the Universe. Image credit: Center for Brain Injury and Repair, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine / Springel…

Mars was once a wet planet, but it has lost most of its water through reactions that produce hydrogen. In standard models, molecular hydrogen produced from water in the lower atmosphere diffuses into the upper atmosphere where it is dissociated, producing atomic hydrogen, which is lost. Using NASA’s MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) spacecraft, a team of researchers has now found that…

Archaeologists digging in the Tzurim Valley National Park in Jerusalem, Israel, have found a small gem seal, dating from the first century CE, with a portrait of the ancient Greek deity Apollo. The 2,000-year-old gem seal found in Jerusalem, Israel. Image credit: Eliyahu Yanai, City of David. “Although Apollo is an Olympian deity of the Greek and Roman cultures, it is highly probable that the person…

A new analysis of non-avian dinosaur diversity shows they were not in decline and were still capable of generating new species at the time of their extinction by the Chicxulub asteroid hit 66 million years ago (Cretaceous period). Bonsor et al. refute claim that non-avian dinosaurs were in decline before the Chicxulub asteroid impact. Image credit: Sergey Krasovskiy. Dinosaurs were widespread globally…

Humans, mice, zebrafish, and most likely other animals, share enhancers — DNA regions that help to regulate gene expression and evolve rapidly — with Amphimedon queenslandica, a species of sea sponge from the Great Barrier Reef, according to new research. Amphimedon queenslandica. Image credit: University of Queensland. “Some elements of the human genome — an organism’s complete…

An international team of researchers has proposed and demonstrated an efficient approach for triggering, trapping and guiding electrical discharges in air. Their technology is based on the use of a low-power laser beam that traps and transports light-absorbing particles in mid-air. Experimental configuration and principles of optical vortex beam for discharge control and guidance: at first, microparticles…

Regular consumption of chili pepper is associated with a significant reduction in all-cause, cardiovascular, and cancer-related mortalities, according to a systematic review of previous studies. Chili peppers contain a phenolic compound called capsaicin. Image credit: Hans Braxmeier. “Chili pepper is well known for its anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, anticancer, and blood glucose regulation effects…

Humans, mice, zebrafish, and most likely other animals, share enhancers — DNA regions that help to regulate gene expression and evolve rapidly — with Amphimedon queenslandica, a species of sea sponge from the Great Barrier Reef, according to new research. Amphimedon queenslandica. Image credit: University of Queensland. “Some elements of the human genome — an organism’s complete…

A team of researchers in Europe has identified a new high-pressure mineral in a lunar meteorite called Oued Awlitis 001. Fragments of Oued Awlitis 001. Image credit: Ludovic Ferrière, NHM Vienna. Oued Awlitis 001 is a feldspatic lunar meteorite that was found in 2014 in Western Sahara, Africa. The main fragment of the space rock, originally 382 g, was found on January 15, 2014 by a group of eight…

In a paper published this week in the journal Frontiers of Physics, a duo of researchers from Italy investigated the similarities between the network of neurons in the human brain and the cosmic network of galaxies. Top: neurons and glial cells. Bottom: the Millennium Simulation of the Universe. Image credit: Center for Brain Injury and Repair, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine / Springel…