Lifeboat Foundation

An element that could hold the key to the long-standing mystery around why there is much more matter than antimatter in our universe has been discovered in Physics research involving the University of Strathclyde.

The study has discovered that an isotope of the element thorium possesses the most pear-shaped nucleus yet to be discovered.

Nuclei similar to thorium-228 may now be able to be used to perform new tests to try find the answer to the mystery surrounding matter and antimatter.

Magnetic materials have been a mainstay in computing technology due to their ability to permanently store information in their magnetic state. Current technologies are based on ferromagnets, whose states can be flipped readily by magnetic fields. Faster, denser, and more robust next-generation devices would be made possible by using a different class of materials, known as antiferromagnets. Their magnetic state, however, is notoriously difficult to control.

Now, a research team from the MPSD and the University of Oxford has managed to drive a prototypical antiferromagnet into a new magnetic state using terahertz frequency light. Their groundbreaking method produced an effect orders of magnitude larger than previously achieved, and on ultrafast time scales. The team’s work has just been published in Nature Physics.

The strength and direction of a magnet’s ‘north pole’ is denoted by its so-called magnetization. In ferromagnets, this easily reversible magnetization can represent a ‘bit’ of information, which has made them the materials of choice for magnet-based technologies. But ferromagnets are slow to operate and react to stray magnetic fields, which means they are prone to errors and cannot be packed very closely together.

Yan McMullen had never heard of the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences when he started casting about for a graduate chemistry program. But on the recommendation of one of his professors, he sent an email to the College’s Professor of Chemistry Stephen Bradforth proposing an experiment to tease out what makes a metal really a metal.

The proposal would not only turn into his Ph.D. thesis but a major scientific breakthrough.

Continue reading “An experiment suggested by a Ph.D. student may rewrite chemistry textbooks” »

The role genetics and gut bacteria play in human health has long been a fruitful source of scientific enquiry, but new research marks a significant step forward in unraveling this complex relationship. Its findings could transform our understanding and treatment of all manner of common diseases, including obesity, irritable bowel syndrome, and Alzheimer’s disease.

The international study, led by the University of Bristol and published today in Nature Microbiology, found specific changes in DNA — the chains of molecules comprising our genetic make-up — affected both the existence and amount of particular bacteria in the gut.

Lead author Dr David Hughes, Senior Research Associate in Applied Genetic Epidemiology, said: “Our findings represent a significant breakthrough in understanding how genetic variation affects gut bacteria. Moreover, it marks major progress in our ability to know whether changes in our gut bacteria actually cause, or are a consequence of, human disease.”

A newly discovered Alzheimer’s gene may drive the first appearance of amyloid plaques in the brain, according to a study led by researchers at Columbia University Irving Medical Center.

Some variants of the gene, RBFOX1, appear to increase the concentration of protein fragments that make up these plaques and may contribute to the breakdown of critical connections between neurons, another early sign of the disease.

The finding could lead to new therapies that prevent Alzheimer’s and better ways of identifying people with the greatest risk of developing the disease.

Intelligence — real or artificial — is supposed to be a big advantage. But we’ve had millions of years to evolve real intelligence and dumbness is rampant. Which raises the question: If intelligence is so good, why aren’t we more like Mr. Spock and less like Captain Kirk?

Rust, a language developed by Mozilla with enthusiastic backers across the software community, wants to save developers from making their biggest mistakes.

“The local government units and the public are strongly reminded that entry into the 4-km radius permanent danger zone must be strictly prohibited due to the further possibilities of sudden and hazardous steam-driven or phreatic eruptions,” the institute warned.

The Phivolcs said that it has recorded 136 volcano-tectonic earthquakes—earthquakes caused by the movement of magma beneath the surface of the Earth—on the western flanks during the 24-hour observation period.

It added that four of these earthquakes recorded between 1 a.m. to 2.06 a.m. on Monday were felt in La Carlota City and Bago City in Negros Occidental province and Canlaon City in Negros Oriental province.

A 7.4 magnitude earthquake was felt off the southern coast of Mexico in the state of Oaxaca, prompting a forecast of potential tsunami waves, the country’s National Seismological Service reported Tuesday afternoon.

The quake occurred at 10:29 a.m. central time, with an epicenter near El Coyul, 6.8 miles southwest of Santa María Zapotitlán in Oaxaca. The damage in the state is considered light to moderate according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

The USGS estimates the earthquake itself could result in as many as 100 fatalities and $100 million in damage.