Lifeboat Foundation: Safeguarding Humanity
Toggle light / dark theme

Blog – Page 4

Get the latest international news and world events from around the world.

Log in for authorized contributors

Seasonal influenza

Seasonal influenza activity has increased globally in recent months, and influenza A(H3N2) viruses are predominant. This rise coincides with the onset of winter in the northern hemisphere. Epidemics and outbreaks of seasonal influenza and other circulating respiratory viruses can place significant pressure on healthcare systems. Although global activity remains within expected seasonal ranges, early increases and higher activity than typical at this time of year have been observed in some regions. Seasonal influenza could place significant pressure on healthcare systems even in non-temperate countries. Genetically drifted influenza A(H3N2) viruses, known as subclade K viruses, have been detected in many countries. While data on how well the vaccine works against clinical disease this season are still limited, vaccination is still expected to protect against severe illness and remains one of the most effective public health measures.

Surveillance

Due to the constantly evolving nature of influenza viruses, WHO continues to stress the importance of year-round global surveillance to detect and monitor virological, epidemiological and clinical changes associated with emerging or circulating influenza viruses that may affect human health and timely virus sharing for risk assessment. Countries are encouraged to remain vigilant to the threat of influenza viruses and review any unusual epidemiological patterns.

A blood DNA methylation test reveals how quickly each organ system is aging

We developed a single blood-based methylation test that estimates biological aging across 11 physiological systems. This multisystem measure predicts mortality and health outcomes more precisely than existing epigenetic clocks, and reveals distinct aging patterns that could guide personalized gerotherapeutic and geroprotective interventions.

Reining In a Chaotic Fluid

Fluid flows mimicking biological flows can be controlled in the lab using a feedback system, which could be useful in robotics and other technologies.

Ordinary fluids can flow when driven by pressure or gravity, but biological fluids, such as those inside cells, generate complex flows through internal sources of chemical energy. Flows of such “active fluids” could be extremely useful in robotics and other areas of engineering, but controlling them remains difficult. Now researchers have demonstrated a method of control that maintains a constant fluid speed despite changing conditions [1]. They hope that the approach can be used to stabilize active-matter flows in future technologies.

Life depends on biochemical processes that respond to many situations while maintaining fixed chemical conditions despite external and internal disruptions. Inspired by this impressive stability, researchers have been developing analogous artificial systems by assembling active fluids from key biochemical components akin to those inside cells. For example, they have created fluids that can generate their own bulk contractions or undergo spontaneous flows. Although these rudimentary designs mimic some features of living matter, researchers have so far failed to demonstrate techniques that keep properties such as fluid flow speeds stable over time.

Two ancient human species came out of Africa together, not one, suggests new study

The textbook version of the “Out of Africa” hypothesis holds that the first human species to leave the continent around 1.8 million years ago was Homo erectus. But in recent years, a debate has emerged suggesting it wasn’t a single species, but several. New research published in the journal PLOS One now hopes to settle the matter once and for all.

First beta-delayed neutron emission observed in rare fluorine-25 isotope

A research team at the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams (FRIB) is the first ever to observe a beta-delayed neutron emission from fluorine-25, a rare, unstable nuclide. Using the FRIB Decay Station Initiator (FDSi), the team found contradictions in prior experimental findings. The results led to a new line of inquiry into how particles in exotic, unstable isotopes remain bound under extreme conditions. Led by Robert Grzywacz, professor of physics at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), the team included Jack Peltier, undergraduate student at UTK, Zhengyu Xu, postdoctoral researcher at UTK, Sean Liddick, professor of chemistry at FRIB and interim chairperson of MSU’s Department of Chemistry, and Rebeka Lubna, scientist at FRIB.

The team published its results in Physics Letters B.

“The different results on decay lifetime we obtained for fluorine-25 were similar to previously measured decay of oxygen-24. And while we are not entirely certain why we found this difference between previously published results, we have conducted numerous checks on our results and are confident in our findings,” Grzywacz said.

The simulation hypothesis: Mathematical framework redefines what it means for one universe to simulate another

The simulation hypothesis—the idea that our universe might be an artificial construct running on some advanced alien computer—has long captured the public imagination. Yet most arguments about it rest on intuition rather than clear definitions, and few attempts have been made to formally spell out what “simulation” even means.

A new paper by SFI Professor David Wolpert aims to change that. In Journal of Physics: Complexity, Wolpert introduces the first mathematically precise framework for what it would mean for one universe to simulate another—and shows that several longstanding claims about simulations break down once the concept is defined rigorously.

His results point to a far stranger landscape than previous arguments suggest, including the possibility that a universe capable of simulating another could itself be perfectly reproduced inside that very simulation.

Kolmogorov-Arnold networks bridge AI and scientific discovery by increasing interpretability

AI has successfully been applied in many areas of science, advancing technologies like weather prediction and protein folding. However, there have been limitations for the world of scientific discovery involving more curiosity-driven research. But that may soon change, thanks to Kolmogorov-Arnold networks (KANs).

A recent study, published in the journal Physical Review X, details how this new kind of neural network architecture might help scientists discover and understand the physical world in a way that other AI can’t.

Vast freshwater reserves found beneath salinity-stressed coastal Bangladesh

Despite its tropical climate and floodplain location, Bangladesh—one of the world’s most densely populated nations—seasonally does not have enough freshwater, especially in coastal areas. Shallow groundwater is often saline, a problem that may be exacerbated by rising sea levels.

Rainfall is highly seasonal and stored rainwater often runs out by the end of the dry season. And contamination by naturally occurring arsenic deposits and other pollutants farther inland further depletes supplies of potable water, which can run desperately short during annual dry seasons. According to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, 41% of Bangladeshis do not have consistent access to safe water.

Hoping to ease the crisis, researchers from Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, which is part of the Columbia Climate School, led an exploration for new freshwater sources along the Pusur River in the Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta. They recently published their results in the journal Nature Communications.

/* */