Science

Earlier this year, researchers found a deposit of rare-earth minerals off the coast of Japan that could provide the world for centuries, according to a research study. The study, released in the journal Nature in April 2018, says the deposit consists of 16 million heaps of the valuable metals. Rare-earth …

On January 1st, 2019, at 12:33 a.m. EST (5:33 a.m. GMT), NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft will fly past a Kuiper Belt object known as 2014 MU69 (nicknamed Ultima Thule). A schedule of New Horizons Ultima Thule flyby events. Image credit: NASA. Ultima Thule is orbiting in the heart of Kuiper …

Abdominal (belly) fat is harmful to metabolic health. Exercise training reduces abdominal fat mass, but the underlying mechanisms have not been clear. According to a new study, published in the journal Cell Metabolism, a signaling molecule called interleukin-6 plays a key role in this process. Wedell-Neergaard et al show that …

Paleontologists from the University of Portsmouth have discovered the fossilized remains of a new species of ancient flying reptile. Klobiodon rochei. Image credit: Mark Witton. The newfound species, named Klobiodon rochei, belongs to an ancient order of flying creatures known as pterosaurs. The winged reptile lived approximately 167 million years …

Neuronal loss in Alzheimer’s disease may be the result of a cell quality control mechanism trying to protect the brain from the accumulation of malfunctioning neurons, according to new research published in the journal Cell Reports. Multicellular organisms eliminate abnormal but viable cells based on their fitness status through cell …

A team of theoretical physicists at Uppsala University, Sweden, has devised a new model for our Universe — one that may solve the mystery of dark energy, a factor that appears to be causing the Universe’s expansion. Banerjee et al propose a new model with dark energy and our Universe …

Researchers have for the first time mapped the genome of the Himalayan marmot (Marmota himalayana), a hibernating mammal that inhabits the high-elevation regions of the Himalayan mountains. Published in the journal iScience, the results hint at the genetic mechanisms underlying high-altitude adaptation and hibernation. The Himalayan marmot (Marmota himalayana). Image …

The Pumapunku (Gateway of the Puma or Jaguar), a highly damaged pre-Columbian monument at the ancient archaeological site of Tiwanaku, Bolivia, has been reconstructed using 3D printed miniature models of architectural fragments. Historic photograph of the architecture on the east side of the Pumapunku platform taken by Max Uhle in …

A team of researchers from the United Kingdom and the Netherlands has identified a mechanism that enables angiosperms (flowering plants) to sense and remember changes in their environment. Histochemical staining of Arabidopsis thaliana: (i) 7-day-old seedling primary root tip, (ii) rosette leaf, (iii) cauline leaf and (iv) inflorescence of Col-0 …

Physicists from the NPDGamma Experiment at the DoE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have measured the weak interaction between protons and neutrons in the atom’s core, predicted in the Standard Model that describes the elementary particles and their interactions. The findings appear in the journal Physical Review Letters (arXiv.org preprint). …