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Nov 7, 2018

Astronomers discover new luminous high-redshift quasar

Posted by in categories: cosmology, evolution

An international team of astronomers has detected a new luminous quasar at a redshift of 7.02. The newly found quasi-stellar object (QSO), designated DELS J003836.10–152723.6, is the most luminous quasar known at a redshift of over 7.0. The discovery is reported in a paper published October 29 on the arXiv pre-print repository.

Powered by the most , bright at high redshift are important for astronomers as they are perceived as the brightest beacons highlighting the chemical evolution of the universe most effectively. They are the most luminous and most distant, compact objects in the observable universe and their spectrum can be used, for instance, to estimate the mass of supermassive (SMBHs).

However, QSOs are extremely rare and difficult to find. So far, only two quasars with redshifts over 7.0 have been identified. This limits our understanding of SMBH growth mechanism and reionization history.

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Nov 7, 2018

There’s No Such Thing As A “Man’s Brain” Or A “Woman’s Brain”

Posted by in category: neuroscience

Scientists can’t see a disembodied brain and know whether it belonged to a man or a woman. So what’s up with stereotypes about men’s and women’s abilities?

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Nov 7, 2018

NASA ICON spacecraft launches Wednesday to explore ionosphere

Posted by in categories: solar power, space travel, sustainability

On Wednesday, November 7, NASA will launch its Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON) spacecraft to study the ionosphere. This boundary lies between space and Earth, being home to a “sea” of charged electrons and ions; it reacts to both lower atmosphere weather and solar energy, the result being space weather. NASA’s ICON will study this, offering unprecedented scientific data.

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Nov 7, 2018

Trapped In 99-Million-Year-Old Amber, A Beetle Reveals The History Of Modern-Day Continents

Posted by in category: futurism

A tiny fossil rove beetle helps to reconstruct the breakup of the former supercontinent Gondwana 99 million years ago and the formation of our modern world.

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Nov 7, 2018

How The Netherlands Is A Leader In Sustainable And Eco-Friendly Agriculture

Posted by in categories: food, sustainability

The Netherlands exports more crops than almost any other country in the world and places a lot of value on sustainable, eco-friendly agriculture.

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Nov 7, 2018

Samsung Foldable Phone Launching This Week, Developer Conference Reveals

Posted by in categories: futurism, mobile phones

The smartphone of the future is rolling out soon.

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Nov 7, 2018

A venture under pressure

Posted by in categories: economics, innovation

“The problems the Bay Area is facing are the problems of success,” says Grant. The northern California metropolis is among the top 50 science cities in the Nature Index, measured by its contribution to the authorship of 82 high-quality research journals. When assessed solely on the output of its corporate institutions, it ranks number one. The question is whether the Bay Area can, in the face of mounting social problems, retain these companies and the brilliant researchers whose work they depend on.


Scientific innovation has long powered the San Francisco Bay Area’s economy, but community and political challenges could undermine progress.

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Nov 6, 2018

Could Solar Radiation Pressure Explain ‘Oumuamua’s Peculiar Acceleration?

Posted by in category: space

Abstract: ‘Oumuamua (1I/2017 U1) is the first object of interstellar origin observed in the Solar system.

Recently, Micheli et al. (2018) reported that ‘Oumuamua showed deviationsfrom a Keplerian orbit at a high statistical significance.

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Nov 6, 2018

Japan Develops World’s First Test to Detect Cancer via Urine Samples

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, engineering

Scientists in Japan have developed the world’s first test that can detect cancers in patient urine samples. The breakthrough technology by Japanese researchers from engineering firm Hitachi has been in development for two years and it may be made available by 2020.

According to Agence France-Presse, the research team will work with Nagoya University to analyze 250 urine samples to check for breast, colon, and childhood forms of the disease in central Japan. The experiments will begin this month and end in September.

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Nov 6, 2018

The Way We Define a Kilogram Could Change Next Week

Posted by in category: futurism

The future of mass depends on a conference vote next week.

A long-discussed resolution for next week’s General Conference on Weights and Measures would toss out the international prototype of the kilogram—a hunk of platinum and iridium in Paris that everyone agrees weighs 1 kilogram. Instead, the International Bureau of Weights and Measures (BIPM) would redefine the International System of Units to ensure that kilograms are based on things that can’t change over time. It would require an entire rethinking of how kilograms work.

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