Science

Scientists Use X-rays to Peer inside Fossilized Dinosaur Eggs Powerful X-ray beams at the European Synchrotron in France allowed an international team of researchers to study some of the world’s oldest and well-preserved dinosaur embryos and reconstruct them in 3D. The clutch of Massospondylus carinatus eggs. Image credit: Brett Eloff. …

Researchers Spot Ozone Mini-Hole over Arctic Researchers Spot Ozone Mini-Hole over ArcticUsing data from the Tropomi instrument on ESA’s Copernicus Sentinel-5 Precursor satellite (also known as Sentinel-5P), a team of scientists from the German Aerospace Center (DLR) has noticed a strong reduction of ozone concentrations over the Arctic. DLR researchers …

Study Sheds New Light on Antimicrobial Activity of Silver As ‘superbug’ bacteria resistant to commonly prescribed antibiotics have become a global threat to public health in recent years, noble metals, such as silver, in various forms have been attracting broad attention due to their antimicrobial activities. While it is still …

Genetic Study Identifies Three Variants of SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus In a phylogenetic network analysis of the first 160 complete genomes of SARS-CoV-2 to be sequenced from human patients, an international team of scientists found three distinct variants of SARS-CoV-2: A, B and C: the A and C types are found in …

Experimental Drug Has Broad Spectrum Antiviral Activity against Multiple Coronaviruses An orally bioavailable prodrug called EIDD-2801 (β-D-N4-hydroxycytidine-5’-isopropyl ester) has broad spectrum antiviral activity against SARS-CoV-2, MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV, and related zoonotic coronaviruses in primary human airway epithelial cells, according to a new study published in the journal Science Translational Medicine. The …

Earliest Inhabitants of Amazon Created Thousands of Artificial Forest Islands, Study Shows A University of Bern-led study shows that, starting at around 10,850 years ago, inhabitants of the Llanos de Moxos region in northern Bolivia began to create a landscape that ultimately comprised 4,700 artificial ‘forest islands’ within a treeless, …

Pole-to-Pole Map of Saturn’s Thermosphere Reveals Likely Reason Why It’s So Hot A team of planetary researchers from the United States and the United Kingdom has created a 2D map of densities and temperatures in Saturn’s thermosphere (upper atmosphere). Composite of a true color image of Saturn, observed by Cassini …

Boeing Will Refly the Uncrewed Starliner Mission After December Failure Boeing has decided to take a mulligan and will launch a second uncrewed Starliner demo mission after the first one ended in failure. In its first flight late last year, the Starliner made it into orbit, but it was the …

New Measurements Show Evidence for Presence of Majorana Quasiparticles in Uranium Ditelluride An international team of physicists has used high-resolution microscopy tools to peer at the inner-workings of the recently-discovered heavy-fermion superconductor, uranium ditelluride (UTe2). The measurements reveal strong evidence that this material may be a natural home to an …

COVID-19: Suffering from Skin Damage from Protective Masks? Researchers Offer Remedies to Heal Healthcare professionals on the COVID-19 frontline are spending many hours a day wearing face masks, and many members of the general public are doing the same. But although the devices offer invaluable protection, they can be the …