Latest News

Seed dormancy may hold the key to fighting weeds

Researchers are studying rice genes as a model to understand germination

Weeds flourish in agricultural, urban, and natural settings because they have certain characteristics, such as seed dormancy, that provide for their persistence. Dormant weed seeds in the soil avoid exposure to control practices that target emerging weed seedlings.

Scientists from the USDA-Agricultural Research Service and North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, are focusing their research on underst

Circadian influence in plants more widespread than previously thought

While picking apart the genetic makeup of the plant Arabidopsis, two Dartmouth researchers made a startling discovery. They found that approximately 36 percent of its genome is potentially regulated by the circadian clock, which is three and a half times more than had previously been estimated.

The study, which appears in the June issue of Plant Physiology, was conducted by C. Robertson McClung, Dartmouth professor of biological sciences, and Todd Michael, a former Dartmouth graduate studen

Protecting vessel loss in the eyes of premature infants

As premature infants often have under-developed lungs, oxygen is administered following birth. One devastating side effect, however, is the development of retinopathy of prematurity (ROP), whereupon oxygen administration to the infant suppresses the expression of essential growth factors that promote the development of retinal blood vessels, resulting in blindness. In the July 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, a study by researchers at Harvard Medical School and Children’s Hospit

ESA’s Mars Express first check-out nearly complete

ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft is progressing further every day on its journey to the Red Planet. Everything is set for arrival at Mars on the night of 25 December 2003, after a journey of about 400 million kilometres. In the weeks since its launch, engineers have started to thoroughly test the spacecraft and its equipment.

This testing phase is standard for all spacecraft on the way to their destination. Known as commissioning, it began 3 weeks after the launch. During this time, ground cont

Pitt researchers find genes for depression; Play role in mood disorders, shorter lifespan

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh have completed the first survey of the entire human genome for genes that affect the susceptibility of individuals to developing clinical depression.

George S. Zubenko, M.D., Ph.D., professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and adjunct professor of biological sciences at Carnegie Mellon University and his team have located a number of chromosomal regions they say hold the genetic keys to a variety of mental illness

Simulation software beats traditional approach in online course

Students in an online class who learned networking through a commercially available simulation scored higher and retained more course information than students taught with a traditional network-diagramming software package, says a Penn State researcher.

“Those students also demonstrated better understanding of the networking concepts and indicated they spent more time on course assignments,” said Brian Cameron, instructor in Penn State’s School of Information Sciences and Technology (I

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Physics and Astronomy

A new way of entangling light and sound

For a wide variety of emerging quantum technologies, such as secure quantum communications and quantum computing, quantum entanglement is a prerequisite. Scientists at the Max-Planck-Institute for the Science of Light…

Telescope for NASA’s Roman Mission complete, delivered to Goddard

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is one giant step closer to unlocking the mysteries of the universe. The mission has now received its final major delivery: the Optical Telescope…

Mysterious ‘Red Monster’ galaxies in the early Universe discovered

An international team that includes the University of Bath has discovered three ultra-massive galaxies (‘Red Monsters’) in the early Universe forming at unexpected speeds, challenging current models of galaxy formation….

Life Sciences and Chemistry

Pinpointing hydrogen isotopes in titanium hydride nanofilms

Although it is the smallest and lightest atom, hydrogen can have a big impact by infiltrating other materials and affecting their properties, such as superconductivity and metal-insulator-transitions. Now, researchers from…

‘Entirely unanticipated’ role of protein netrin1 in spinal cord development

Known for its axon guidance properties, new research suggests protein is critical in guiding neural development. Scientists at the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research…

AI tool ‘sees’ cancer gene signatures in biopsy images

AI tool reads biopsy images… To determine the type and severity of a cancer, pathologists typically analyze thin slices of a tumor biopsy under a microscope. But to figure out…

Materials Sciences

Sensitive ceramics for soft robotics

Most people think of coffee cups, bathroom tiles or flower pots when they hear the word “ceramic”. Not so Frank Clemens. For the research group leader in Empa’s Laboratory for…

Bringing Quantum Mechanics to Life

New ISTA assistant professor Julian Léonard makes abstract quantum properties visible. From the realm of the abstract to the tangible, the new assistant professor at the Institute of Science and…

Carpet fibers stop concrete cracking

Engineers in Australia have found a way to make stronger and crack-resistant concrete with scrap carpet fibres, rolling out the red carpet for sustainability in the construction sector. The research…

Information Technology

AI headphones create a ‘sound bubble’

…quieting all sounds more than a few feet away. Imagine this: You’re at an office job, wearing noise-canceling headphones to dampen the ambient chatter. A co-worker arrives at your desk…

Future AR/VR controllers could be the palm of your hand

Carnegie Mellon University’s EgoTouch creates simple interfaces for virtual and augmented reality. The new generation of augmented and virtual reality controllers may not just fit in the palm of your…

Storm in a laser beam

Physicists create “light hurricanes” that could transport huge amounts of data. Much of modern life depends on the coding of information onto means of delivering it. A common method is…