Cyclists navigate a snow-covered sidewalk on in Iowa City, Iowa. Swaths of the United States braced for more snow and punishingly low temperatures Wednesday as millions in the east dug out from a previous round of severe winter weather that left at least five people dead. The latest storm, already bringing precipitation to the West, … Read more
Since 2021, all dominant Covid variants have descended from Omicron. The 2023–2024 booster was tailored for the XBB.1.5 strain of Omicron, but JN.1 is about as different from XBB.1.5 as Omicron was from Delta. Even so, researchers from China and the US have posted preliminary analyses suggesting that the newest vaccines still effectively defend against … Read more
This graphical abstract outlines how the pioneer transcription factor FOXA works with another transcription factor PRDM1 during liver formation to prevent cells from following incorrect development pathways. Credit: Cincinnati Children’s and Molecular Cell One of the important breakthroughs that made it possible to program or reprogram cell fate more efficiently and with higher fidelity in … Read more
Researchers have demonstrated that qubits (represented by the spheres and arrows) can “talk” to each other through a magnet (represented by the rectangular solid) rather than through air. This technology enables the qubits to be situated farther apart than is typical and allows for selective interaction between qubits. Credit: Peter Allen Researchers have begun to … Read more
.jpg "Why Humans Are Putting a Bunch of ‘Coal’ and ‘Oil’ Back in the Ground")
In addition to burying solid carbon or sprinkling it on fields, researchers are also turning waste biomass into liquid carbon—oil, essentially, that they pump back into the ground instead of pumping the fossil variety up. “What we do at the highest level is we make barbecue sauce—or liquid smoke for barbecue sauce—and then we inject … Read more
Astrobotic began reporting technical malfunctions, starting with an inability to orient Peregrine’s top-mounted solar panel towards the Sun. A private US lunar lander mission is doomed to fail, and NASA pushes back plans to return astronauts to the moon. The twin developments Tuesday represent blows to America’s ambitions to stimulate a commercial space economy, develop … Read more
This artist concept portrays the brown dwarf W1935, which is located 47 light-years from Earth. Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope found infrared emission from methane coming from W1935. This is an unexpected discovery because the brown dwarf is cold and lacks a host star; therefore, there is no obvious source of energy to … Read more
In this photoreleased by Xinhua News Agency, the Chang’e 4 lunar probe launches from the the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China’s Sichuan province, on Dec. 8, 2018. China’s space agency said Wednesday, Jan. 10, 2024 that its latest lunar explorer had arrived at the launch site in preparation for a mission to the … Read more
John Slapcinsky, manager of the Florida Museum of Natural History’s invertebrate zoology collection, named nine new species of carnivorous land snails found in Papua New Guinea. Credit: Florida Museum/Jeff Gage Nine new species of carnivorous land snails have been found in the remote forests of Papua New Guinea, a biodiversity hot spot. A new study … Read more
Three-dimensional model of the only known picrodontid skull in top (left) and bottom (right) views. CT scan technology revealed previously unknown bones of the skull (colored on the right) that helped demonstrate that picrodontids are not primates as previously believed. Credit: Jordan Crowell A new research paper published in Biology Letters has revealed that picrodontids—an … Read more
