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Sep 24, 2020

Novel cell membrane model could be key to uncovering new protein properties

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, health

The cell membrane, the wall-like boundary between the cell interior and its outside environment, is primarily made up of two kinds of biomolecules: lipids and proteins. Different lipid species closely pack together to form a double layer, or “bilayer,” the membrane’s fundamental structure, while proteins are embedded within or attached to the bilayer.

Membrane proteins are responsible for various important cellular activities, and their dysfunction can lead to serious health issues. Studying protein structures and how they behave will help scientists better understand their connection to diseases and aid in developing therapeutics.

A team of researchers led by Vanderbilt University has recently shed light on how membrane proteins could be influenced by the lipids around them. By developing a novel type of membrane model, the scientists were able to show that the shape and behavior of a protein can be altered by exposure to different compositions.

Sep 24, 2020

Space Coast gearing up for three rocket launches before end of the month

Posted by in category: space travel

After a brief hiatus, the Space Coast appears to be on course to host a spate of rocket launches from three separate pads before the end of the month.

The latest Eastern Range schedule has both United Launch Alliance and SpaceX launching three missions starting early Saturday through late Tuesday, all of which will be handled by Delta IV Heavy and Falcon 9 rockets, respectively.

Two of the launches come after several delays due to weather and technical issues while the third is a last-minute addition by the Space Force.

Sep 24, 2020

There’s a new weapon against COVID-19. And it’s dogs

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

That’s a good boy.

Sep 24, 2020

Tesla is getting into the mining business, buys lithium claim on 10,000 acres in Nevada

Posted by in categories: business, engineering, sustainability

Tesla is now officially getting into the mining business with a lithium claim on 10,000 acres in Nevada.

At the Battery Day event yesterday, as part of its entire new battery supply strategy, Tesla announced that it is developing its own lithium processing method.

Drew Baglino, SVP of engineering at Tesla, said:

Sep 24, 2020

Diabetes Drug Metformin May Protect Aging Brains

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, life extension, neuroscience

WEDNESDAY, Sept. 23, 2020 (HealthDay News) — A common type 2 diabetes drug called metformin may have an unexpected, but positive, side effect: New research suggests that people taking the drug appear to have significantly slower declines in thinking and memory as they age.

“Our six-year study of older Australians with type 2 diabetes has uncovered a link between metformin use and slower cognitive [mental] decline and lower dementia rates,” said study author Dr. Katherine Samaras. She’s the leader of the healthy aging research theme at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research in New South Wales, Australia.

“The findings provide new hope for a means of reducing the risk of dementia in individuals with type 2 diabetes, and potentially those without diabetes,” Samaras said.

Sep 24, 2020

Northrop Grumman’s CRS-14 Mission to the International Space Station: What’s on Board

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, virtual reality

On Sept. 29, we are launching science, tech demos, & products to the International Space Station!

🌱 Growing radishes in space
🧬 Cancer therapies
🚽 Space toilet
🌊 Water recovery
🎥 A Felix & Paul Studios Virtual Reality camera
💫 An Estee Lauder serum.

Sep 24, 2020

Who was the first astronaut in space?

Posted by in category: space

Watch yourself!! #SpaceExploration

Sep 23, 2020

Swedish technology aims to allow truck drivers to work from home

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

A Swedish company is developing technology that could allow truck drivers to work from home.
Al Jazeera’s Paul Rhys reports from Sandhult in southern Sweden.

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Sep 23, 2020

Programming Without Code: The Rise of No-Code Software Development

Posted by in category: futurism

Microsoft’s Power Apps, Oracle’s Visual Builder, and other tools let you create software without needing to code.

Sep 23, 2020

Nanostructures with a unique property

Posted by in categories: computing, nanotechnology, particle physics, quantum physics

Nanoscale vortices known as skyrmions can be created in many magnetic materials. For the first time, researchers at PSI have managed to create and identify antiferromagnetic skyrmions with a unique property: critical elements inside them are arranged in opposing directions. Scientists have succeeded in visualizing this phenomenon using neutron scattering. Their discovery is a major step towards developing potential new applications, such as more efficient computers. The results of the research are published today in the journal Nature.

Whether a material is magnetic depends on the spins of its atoms. The best way to think of spins is as minute bar magnets. In a where the atoms have fixed positions in a lattice, these spins can be arranged in criss-cross fashion or aligned all in parallel like the spears of a Roman legion, depending on the individual material and its state.

Under certain conditions it is possible to generate tiny vortices within the corps of spins. These are known as skyrmions. Scientists are particularly interested in skyrmions as a key component in future technologies, such as more efficient data storage and transfer. For example, they could be used as memory bits: a could represent the digital one, and its absence a digital zero. As skyrmions are significantly smaller than the bits used in conventional storage media, data density is much higher and potentially also more energy efficient, while read and write operations would be faster as well. Skyrmions could therefore be useful both in classical data processing and in cutting-edge quantum computing.