Thursday 9 May 2019

Egg yolk precursor protein regulates mosquitoes' attraction to humans

Feeding mosquitoes sugar makes them less attracted to humans, a response that is regulated by the protein vitellogenin, according to a study publishing May 9 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Jessica Dittmer, Paolo Gabrieli and colleagues at the Università degli Studi di Pavia in Italy.

* This article was originally published here

She asked Google for story about coast guard stroke survivor and found her soulmate

Tara MacInnes sat at her dining room table, flipped open her laptop and asked Google for help.

* This article was originally published here

For teens, online bullying worsens sleep and depression

Teens who experience cyberbullying are more likely to suffer from poor sleep, which in turn raises levels of depression, found a University at Buffalo study.

* This article was originally published here

Coca-Cola spent 8 mn euros to influence research in France: report

US beverage giant Coca-Cola paid more than eight million euros in France to health professionals and researchers in a bid to influence research, according to an investigation by French newspaper Le Monde published on Thursday.

* This article was originally published here

Gravitational waves leave a detectable mark, physicists say

Gravitational waves, first detected in 2016, offer a new window on the universe, with the potential to tell us about everything from the time following the Big Bang to more recent events in galaxy centers.

* This article was originally published here

Researchers document the oldest known trees in eastern North America

A recently documented stand of bald cypress trees in North Carolina, including one tree at least 2,624 years old, are the oldest known living trees in eastern North America and the oldest known wetland tree species in the world.

* This article was originally published here

Just add water: Salt battery could help renewable energy use

Amid the hum and heat of Berlin's Reuter thermal power station stands a shining contraption that looks out of place in the decades-old machine hall.

* This article was originally published here

China Mobile blocked from offering phone service in US

U.S. communications regulators on Thursday rejected a Chinese telecom company's application to provide service in the U.S. due to national security risks amid an escalation in tensions between the two countries.

* This article was originally published here

Scientists introduce novel perspective in robotic capability

University of Illinois researcher Amy LaViers has introduced a new point of view from which to observe robotic capabilities in her paper, "Counts of Mechanical, External Configurations Compared to Computational, Internal Configurations in Natural and Artificial Systems," published today in PLOS ONE, a leading interdisciplinary research journal.

* This article was originally published here

Design work on 'brain' of world's largest radio telescope completed

An international group of scientists led by the University of Cambridge has finished designing the 'brain' of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), the world's largest radio telescope. When complete, the SKA will enable astronomers to monitor the sky in unprecedented detail and survey the entire sky much faster than any system currently in existence.

* This article was originally published here

Pixel 3a vs. Pixel 3: Great camera for the price makes Google's $399 phone the better buy

Google's launch Tuesday of the $399 Pixel 3a and $479 Pixel 3a XL smartphones only seven months after the release of the pricier Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL handsets likely has you asking: "Why would I want to spend at least $400 more for Google's premium flagships, when these latest mid-priced devices offer so many overlapping features?"

* This article was originally published here

Older adults with obesity may have fewer years of healthy life

A team of researchers at Duke-NUS Medical School found that older adults with obesity could expect fewer years of remaining life, at age 60, 70 and 80, with no limitation in physical function and no limitation in activities of daily living compared to individuals of normal weight. The results of this study are published in the International Journal of Obesity.

* This article was originally published here

Researchers advance understandings of the cellular mechanisms driving rheumatoid arthritis

Newly identified subsets of cell types present in joint tissue in people with rheumatoid arthritis and how they interact may explain why only some people respond to existing medications, according to two studies by co-senior author Laura Donlin, Ph.D., Co-Director of the Derfner Foundation Precision Medicine Laboratory at Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) and collaborating colleagues. The findings suggest exciting new targets for developing precision medicine strategies in the future.

* This article was originally published here

Transparent and flexible battery for power generation and storage

Various uses of electronics and skin-attachable devices are expected with the development of a transparent battery that can both generate and store power. DGIST announced on Tuesday, April 23 that Senior Researcher Changsoon Choi's team in the Smart Textile Research Group have developed film-type, graphene-based multifunctional transparent energy devices.

* This article was originally published here

VisiBlends, a new approach to disrupt visual messaging

Visual blends, which join two objects in an unusual, eye-catching way, are an advanced graphic design technique used in advertising, marketing, and the media to draw attention to a specific message. These visual marriages are designed to precipitate an "aha!" moment in the viewer who grasps one idea from the union of two images. For instance, blending an image of an orange with an image of the sun could convey a beverage with Vitamin C.

* This article was originally published here

HIV epidemic stubbornly persists despite proven tool to prevent spread

The nation's HIV epidemic remains stubbornly persistent, with almost 40,000 new infections annually in the United States. That's despite the fact that physicians have a proven tool to prevent the spread of the virus among high-risk individuals. The question is: Why isn't pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, more widely prescribed?

* This article was originally published here

Box of Pain: A new tracer and fault injector for distributed systems

In computer science, distributed systems are systems with components located on different devices, which communicate with one another. While these systems have become increasingly common, they are typically filled with bugs.

* This article was originally published here

Disney profit up as Fox joins the fold

Disney on Wednesday reported that its profit soared in the recently-ended quarter as it merged with 21st Century Fox.

* This article was originally published here

Researchers make soft, actuated objects using commercial knitting machines

Carnegie Mellon University researchers have used computationally controlled knitting machines to create plush toys and other knitted objects that are actuated by tendons. It's an approach they say might someday be used to cost-effectively make soft robots and wearable technologies.

* This article was originally published here

Design flaws create security vulnerabilities for 'smart home' internet-of-things devices

Researchers at North Carolina State University have identified design flaws in "smart home" Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices that allow third parties to prevent devices from sharing information. The flaws can be used to prevent security systems from signaling that there has been a break-in or uploading video of intruders.

* This article was originally published here