Lifeboat Foundation

Almost half the people known to have contracted COVID-19 in Africa are now living with the effects of long COVID, according to a comprehensive review of previous studies and analysis, covering data from a total of 29,213 people.

Officially, long COVID means persisting symptoms three months after infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Worldwide, at least 10 percent of infected people are thought to suffer from the condition, with recently published research indicating higher rates in multiple countries.

Incidence rates in Africa, though, are well above any of these other estimates. Why that is the case is unclear. In low-income countries, estimates of the incidence of long COVID vary greatly, due to hidden infections and the difficulty of accessing tests.

A pair of astrophysicists at Tianjin University, in China, has proposed ways that humans in the distant future might use black holes as an energy source. In their paper published in the journal Physical Review D, Zhan-Feng Mai and Run-Qiu Yang outline two possible scenarios in which energy could potentially be harvested from primordial black holes.

As scientists continue to look for ways to meet the energy needs of a growing global population, some have begun to look for options that may not have been considered in the past. In this new effort, the researchers consider the possibility of tapping black holes as a way to power human needs of the future by turning them into batteries.

The first option suggests future astro-engineers could “charge” a primordial black hole (a very small black hole with no spin that formed soon after the Big Bang) by feeding it electrically charged particles until the black hole begins to repel them, signaling it is fully charged, like a battery. Energy could then be collected from the black hole through the use of superradiance, whereby some of the electromagnetic or gravitational waves carrying more energy than was fed in are deflected into the black hole, captured first and converted into a usable energy source.

Summary: A recent study highlights the cognitive benefits of Interlingual Respeaking (IRSP), where language professionals collaborate with speech recognition software to create live subtitles in another language. This process, which combines simultaneous translation with the addition of punctuation and content labels, was the focus of a 25-hour upskilling course involving 51 language professionals.

The course showed significant improvements in executive functioning and working memory. Researchers emphasize that such training not only enhances cognitive abilities but also equips language professionals for the rapidly evolving AI-driven language industry.

This whirling Hubble Space Telescope image features a bright spiral galaxy known as MCG-01–24-014, which is located about 275 million light-years from Earth. In addition to being a well-defined spiral galaxy, MCG-01–24-014 has an extremely energetic core, known as an active galactic nucleus (AGN), so it is referred to as an active galaxy.

Even more specifically, it is categorized as a Type-2 Seyfert galaxy. Seyfert galaxies host one of the most common subclasses of AGN, alongside quasars. Whilst the precise categorization of AGNs is nuanced, Seyfert galaxies tend to be relatively nearby ones where the host galaxy remains plainly detectable alongside its central AGN, while quasars are invariably very distant AGNs whose incredible luminosities outshine their host galaxies.

Deep learning AI models could be used to screen for autism and check on the severity of the condition, according to new research – and all the AI might need is a photo of the subject’s retina.

Previous studies have linked changes in retinal nerves with altered brain structures, and from there to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The evidence suggests the eye really is a window to the brain, via the interconnectedness of the central nervous system.

“Individuals with ASD have structural retinal changes that potentially reflect brain alterations, including visual pathway abnormalities through embryonic and anatomic connections,” researchers write in their new paper.

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They really just don’t want to get caught.

A team of researchers led by Professor Young S. Park at UNIST’s Department of Chemistry has achieved a significant breakthrough in the field of organic semiconductors. Their successful synthesis and characterization of a novel molecule called “BNBN anthracene” has opened up new possibilities for the development of advanced electronic devices.

The paper is published in the journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition.

Organic semiconductors play a crucial role in improving the movement and light properties of electrons in carbon-centered organic electronic devices. The team’s research focused on enhancing the chemical diversity of these semiconductors by replacing carbon-carbon (C−C) bonds with isoelectronic boron-nitrogen (B−N) bonds. This substitution allows for precise modulation of the electronic properties without significant structural changes.

Kaiserslautern physicists in the team of Professor Dr. Herwig Ott have succeeded for the first time in directly observing pure trilobite Rydberg molecules. Particularly interesting is that these molecules have a very peculiar shape, which is reminiscent of trilobite fossils. They also have the largest electric dipole moments of any molecule known so far.

The researchers used a dedicated apparatus that is capable of preparing these fragile molecules at ultralow temperatures. The results reveal their chemical binding mechanisms, which are distinct from all other chemical bonds. The study was published in the journal Nature Communications.

For their experiment, the physicists used a cloud of rubidium atoms that was cooled down in an ultra-high vacuum to about 100 microkelvin—0.0001 degrees above absolute zero. Subsequently, they excited some of these atoms into a so-called Rydberg state using lasers. “In this process, the outermost electron in each case is brought into far-away orbits around the atomic body,” explains Professor Herwig Ott, who researches ultracold quantum gases and quantum atom optics at University of Kaiserslautern-Landau.