We are starting to crack the mystery of how lightning and thunderstorms work

Imagine lying on a green hill watching the clouds go by on a beautiful day. The clouds you're probably thinking of are cumulous clouds, the ones that resemble fluffy balls of cotton wool. They seem innocent enough. But they can grow into the more formidable cumulonimbus, the storm cloud. These are the monsters that produce thunder and lightning. They are powerful, destructive and intensely mysterious. They may also be getting a lot more common, which makes understanding their workings—and their effects on the human world, including how we construct buildings or power lines—more important than ever.

Herd immunity approaches to COVID-19 control are a 'dangerous fallacy'

A group of 80 researchers warn that a so-called herd immunity approach to managing COVID-19 by allowing immunity to develop in low-risk populations while protecting the most vulnerable is "a dangerous fallacy unsupported by the scientific evidence".

Researchers mine data and connect the dots about processes driving neuroblastoma

October 14, 2020) Researchers have used insight from a comprehensive genomic analysis of neuroblastoma to learn about the process driving one of the most common childhood solid tumors. The findings revealed possible approaches for developing precision medicines to improve patient outcomes. St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists led the study, which appears today in the journal Nature Communications.

Beak bone reveals pterosaur like no other

A new species of small pterosaur—similar in size to a turkey—has been discovered, which is unlike any other pterosaur seen before due to its long slender toothless beak.

Single laser produces high-power dual comb femtosecond pulses

Researchers have developed a new approach that uses a single laser cavity to create two high-power optical frequency combs emitting high-power femtosecond pulses. The new development paves the way for portable dual-comb light sources for applications such as spectroscopy and precision distance measurement.

How leaves reflect light reveals evolutionary history of seed plants

The way leaves reflect light can illuminate the evolutionary history of seed plants, according to an international team of scientists led by a University of Maine researcher. 

COVID-19 lockdowns averted tens of thousands of premature deaths related to air pollution

Lockdowns initiated to curb the spread of the coronavirus in China and Europe at the beginning of the pandemic improved air quality, averting tens of thousands of deaths in regions where air pollution has a significant impact on mortality, a new study shows.

Cows prefer "live" co-moo-nication, study reveals

After months of technology-based communication enforced by COVID-19, many of us are missing a "live" human voice. But we're not the only ones—a new study reveals that cows also prefer a face-to-face chat. The research, published in Frontiers in Psychology, discovers that cows are actually more relaxed when spoken to directly by a live human, rather than when listening to a recorded voice via a loudspeaker.

Research finds biodegradable alternatives are no better for the environment

New research indicates that glitter could be causing ecological damage to our rivers and lakes.

Is English the lingua franca of science? Not for everyone

English has become the de facto language of science: International conferences are held in English, the world's top scientific journals are in English and academics in non-English speaking countries get promoted based on their publications in English language journals. Even scientific jargon is in English—most non-English speakers use English terms and don't bother inventing equivalent words in their native languages.

Removal of dairy cows may reduce essential nutrient supply with little effect on greenhouse gas emissions

The US dairy industry contributes roughly 1.58 percent of the total US greenhouse gas emissions; however, it also supplies the protein requirements of 169 million people, calcium requirements of 254 million people, and energy requirements of 71.2 million people. A suggested solution to increasing food production worldwide while reducing greenhouse gas emissions has been to eliminate or reduce animal production in favor of plant production. In an article appearing in the Journal of Dairy Science, scientists from Virginia Tech and the US Dairy Forage Research Center studied the effects of dairy product removal on greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient availability in US diets under various removal scenarios.

Researchers unravel the healing mechanisms of extracellular vesicles

Extracellular vesicles (EVs)—nanometer sized messengers that travel between cells to deliver cues and cargo—are promising tools for the next generation of therapies for everything from autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases to cancer and tissue injury. EVs derived from stem cells have already been shown to help heart cells recover after a heart attack, but exactly how they help and whether the beneficial effect is specific to EVs derived from stem cells has remained a mystery.

Fossil footprints tell story of prehistoric parent's journey

Hungry giant predators, treacherous mud and a tired, probably cranky toddler—more than 10,000 years ago, that was the stuff of every parent's nightmare.

Australian carp virus plan 'dead in the water'

Plans to release a virus to reduce numbers of invasive Common Carp in Australia are unlikely to work and should be dropped, researchers say.

Does science have a plastic problem? Microbiologists take steps to reducing plastic waste

Led by Dr. Amy Pickering and Dr. Joana Alves, the lab replaced single-use plastics with re-useable equipment. Where alternatives were not available, the group decontaminated and re-used plastic equipment which would have usually been thrown away after one use. "We knew that we were using plastic daily in our research, but it wasn't until we took the time to quantify the waste that the volumes being used really hit home. That really emphasized the need for us to introduce plastic reducing measures," said Dr. Pickering.

Thinning and prescribed fire treatments reduce tree mortality

To date in 2020, 1,217 wildfires have burned 1,473,522 million acres of National Forest System lands in California; 8,486 wildfires have burned over 4 million acres across all jurisdictions in California. This current fire activity comes after forests in the region experienced an extreme drought accompanied by warmer than normal temperatures from 2012 to 2015, resulting in the deaths of over 147 million trees, mostly from bark beetles. These dead trees are now adding more fuel to this summer's wildfires, especially in the southern and central Sierra Nevada, where tree mortality was the heaviest.

Strategic interventions in dairy production in developing countries can help meet growing global demand for milk

Low dairy consumption is common among low- and middle-income countries (LMICs); however, with the demand for milk in these countries projected to increase over the next few decades, there is an opportunity to improve the lives of millions of people from the nutritional benefits of dairy products. Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems hosted the "MILK Symposium: Improving Milk Production, Quality, and Safety in Developing Countries" at the 2019 American Dairy Science Association Annual Meeting to address factors that cause low dairy consumption in LMICs and discuss strategies to address them. The Journal of Dairy Science invited speakers to submit articles on topics from the symposium to reach a wider audience.

Protein that keeps immune system from freaking out could form basis for new therapeutics

The immune response to infections is a delicate balance. We need just enough action to clear away the offending bacteria or viruses, but not so much that our own bodies suffer collateral damage.

Research finds that blue-light glasses improve sleep and workday productivity

During the pandemic, the amount of screen time for many people working and learning from home as well as binge-watching TV has sharply increased. New research finds that wearing blue-light glasses just before sleeping can lead to a better night's sleep and contribute to a better day's work to follow.

Exosomal lncRNA PCAT-1 promotes Kras-associated chemoresistance

Oncotarget Volume 11, Issue 29 reported that Immunosuppressive chemoresistance is a major burden in lung cancer.

Scientists prove cell-cultured meat products can offer enhanced nutrition compared to conventionally produced meat

A group of researchers at Tufts University have genetically engineered cow muscle cells to produce plant nutrients not natively found in beef cells. Using the same carotenoid pathway exploited in golden rice, they coaxed bovine cells into producing beta carotene—a provitamin usually found in carrots and tomatoes.

Young adults face higher risk of severe disease from infections than school-age children

The first systematic review of how the severity of infectious diseases changes with age suggests that the human immune system might start to lose the ability to protect against infections earlier than previously thought, according to new research published in Scientific Data.

Facebook users spread Russian propaganda less often when they know source

Russian propaganda is hitting its mark on social media—generating strong partisan reactions that may help intensify political divisions—but Facebook users are less apt to press the "like" button on content when they learn that it is part of a foreign propaganda campaign, according to a new RAND Corporation report.