On the way to lifelike robots

In order for robots to be able to achieve more than simple automated machines in the future, they must not only have their own “brain”. Empa researchers postulate that artificial intelligence must be expanded to include the capabilities of a Physical Artificial Intelligence, PAI. This will redefine the field of robotics and the relationship between man and machine.

Genetic Risk for Fatal Blood Clots Identified in IBD Patients

Blood clots are the biggest cause of death in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) ─ ulcerative colitis or Crohn’s disease. In a retrospective study recently published in the journal Gastroenterology, Cedars-Sinai investigators found that a combination of rare and common genetic variants in some IBD patients significantly increased their risk of developing clot-causing thromboembolic diseases.

More Young Adults Are Thinking About Suicide and Death, National Survey Finds

More than one-third of young adults in the United States report having thoughts of death and suicide, while nearly half show at least moderate symptoms of depression, according to a nationwide survey led by researchers from Rutgers University–New Brunswick, Harvard Medical School, Northeastern, Harvard and Northwestern universities.

Professional Athletes May Not Suffer More Severe Cognitive Impairment Than Others, Study Indicates

DALLAS – Nov. 11, 2020 – Even though repeated hits to the head are common in professional sports, the long-term effects of concussions are still poorly understood. While many believe that professional athletes who experience multiple concussions will end up with severe cognitive impairment later in life, a UT Southwestern study suggests that may not necessarily be the case.

Mount Sinai Develops Machine Learning Models to Predict Critical Illness and Mortality in COVID-19 Patients

Mount Sinai researchers have developed machine learning models that predict the likelihood of critical events and mortality in COVID-19 patients within clinically relevant time windows.

Smart Devices to Schedule Electricity Use May Prevent Blackouts

Power plants generate electricity and send it into power lines that distribute energy to nodes where it can be used. But if the electricity load is more than the system’s capacity, transmission can fail, leading to a cascade of failures throughout the electric grid. In the journal Chaos, researchers show demand side control may be an effective solution to stabilizing the reliability of power grids that use a mix of energy generation sources.

Plasma Treatments Quickly Kill Coronavirus on Surfaces

Researchers from UCLA believe using plasma could promise a significant breakthrough in the fight against the spread of COVID-19. In Physics of Fluids, modeling conducted showed strains of the coronavirus on surfaces like metal, leather, and plastic were killed in as little as 30 seconds of treatment with argon-fed, cold atmospheric plasma. The researchers used an atmospheric pressure plasma jet they built with a 3D printer to spray surfaces that were treated with SARS-CoV-2 cultures.

Improving High-Energy Lithium-Ion Batteries with Carbon Filler

Lithium-ion batteries are the major rechargeable power source for many portable devices as well as electric vehicles, but their use is limited, because they do not provide high power output while simultaneously allowing reversible energy storage. Research reported in Applied Physics Reviews aims to offer a solution by showing how the inclusion of conductive fillers improves battery performance.

Valves on N95 Masks Do Not Filter Exhaled Droplets

Matthew Staymates, fluid dynamicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, is studying different mask types to determine which are the most effective at reducing disease transmission. In Physics of Fluids, he describes exploring the basic flow dynamics of N95 masks with or without exhalation valves. To do this, he generates stunning video from his schlieren imaging, a method to visualize the fluid flow away from the surface of an object, and light scattering.

Study: Crop diversification can improve environmental outcomes without sacrificing yields

Diversifying agricultural systems beyond a narrow selection of crops leads to a range of ecosystem improvements while also maintaining or improving yields, according to a new study that analyzed thousands of previously conducted experiments. Diversification practices such as crop rotations and planting prairie strips can lead to “win-win” results that protect the environment without sacrificing yields, according to the analysis.

Mindfulness interventions can change health behaviors – Integrated model helps to explain how they work

A growing body of evidence supports the effectiveness of mindfulness approaches to promote positive changes in health behaviors. New neurobiologically based models of “mindful self-regulation” help to explain the how mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) work to help people make healthy behavior changes, according to a review in the November/December issue of Harvard Review of Psychiatry. The journal is published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer.

Making 3-D Nanosuperconductors with DNA

Scientists developed a platform for making 3-D superconducting nano-architectures with a prescribed organization.

Urban gulls adapt foraging schedule to human activity patterns

If you’ve ever seen a seagull snatch some fries or felt their beady eyes on your sandwich in the park, you’d be right to suspect they know exactly when to strike to increase their chances of getting a human snack.

A new study by the University of Bristol is the most in-depth look to date at the foraging behaviours of urban gulls and how they’ve adapted to patterns of human activity in a city.

Sweet taste reduces appetite?

The sweet taste of sugar, energy intake and the regulatory process of hunger and satietyTo date, very little is known about how sweetness perception contributes to satiety. This study, conducted by an Austrian-German team led by chemists Veronika Somoza and Barbara Lieder, provides new insights into the relationship between the sweet taste of sugar, energy intake and the regulatory process of hunger and satiety.

‘Pinprick’ biomarker blood test offers diagnostic potential for HPV-related cancers – clinical study shows rising antibody levels predict the course of cancer

A potential breakthrough in the early detection of the neck, head and anal cancers linked to human papilloma viruses (HPV) has emerged. It is based on a highly specific diagnostic test that appears to indicate cancer, and predict its course, from just a pinprick of blood.

Microbe “Rewiring” Technique Promises a Boom in Biomanufacturing

Berkeley Lab researchers have achieved unprecedented success in modifying a microbe to efficiently produce a compound of interest using a computational model and CRISPR-based gene editing. Their approach could dramatically speed up the research and development phase for new biomanufacturing processes, getting advanced bio-based products, such as sustainable fuels and plastic alternatives, on the shelves faster.

Uncovering Novel Genomes from Earth’s Microbiomes

Reported in Nature Biotechnology, the known diversity of bacteria and archaea has been expanded by 44% through a publicly available collection of more than 52,000 microbial genomes from environmental samples resulting from a JGI-led collaboration involving more than 200 scientists around the world.