So-called relativistic jets of energetic particles are stunning, destructive spectacles, and this one was “unprecedented.”
When we press our temples to soothe an aching head or rub an elbow after an unexpected blow, it often brings some relief. It is believed that pain-responsive cells in the brain quiet down when these neurons also receive touch inputs, say scientists at MIT’s McGovern Institute for Brain Research, who for the first time have watched this phenomenon play out in the brains of mice.
The team’s discovery, reported Nov. 6 in the journal Science Advances, offers researchers a deeper understanding of the complicated relationship between pain and touch and could offer some insights into chronic pain in humans.
“We’re interested in this because it’s a common human experience,” says McGovern investigator Fan Wang. “When some part of your body hurts, you rub it, right? We know touch can alleviate pain in this way.” But, she says, the phenomenon has been very difficult for neuroscientists to study.
A study in the journal Human Reproduction finds that human sperm counts fell by 62% in the last 50 years, possibly a result of poor diets and a toxic soup of forever chemicals in air and water.
Time travel makes great science fiction, but can it really be done? Travel into the future is already a reality, but visiting the past is a much tougher proposition, and may require fantastic resources such as a wormhole in space. Nevertheless, if going back in time is allowed, even in principle, then what about all those paradoxes that make time travel stories so intriguing?
Paul Davies is a physicist, cosmologist and astrobiologist at Arizona State University, where he is Director of the Beyond Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science. He is the author of many books, including “How to Build a Time Machine” and, most recently, “The Eerie Silence: are we alone in the universe?”
Time travel is one of sci-fi’s favorite tools. But is it possible to build a real time machine? Could you travel into the future or the past? Paul Davies joins John Michael Godlier to discuss the possibilities of time travel and how it would work within Einstein’s theory of general relativity.
Paul Davies is a theoretical physicist and regents professor at the department of physics at Arizona State University. He is a cosmologist, astrobiologist and best-selling science author, including the author of How to Build a Time Machine.
https://amzn.to/2Q5IKNt (affiliate link)
Continue reading “Is It Possible to Build a Time Machine? With Paul Davies” »
Viewers like you help make PBS (Thank you 😃). Support your local PBS Member Station here: https://to.pbs.org/DonateSPACE
Find out how traveling faster than light and traveling back in time are the same thing. And be sure to tell PBS what types of shows you want to see at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/pbsds2017 25 random participants in the survey will receive PBS t-shirts.
Continue reading “Superluminal Time Travel + Time Warp Challenge Answer” »
AI programs that combine sensing and action and world models might achieve fish-level intelligence, says the NeurIPS 2022 keynote speaker.
Newborns need to store vast amounts of new information quickly as they learn to navigate the world. Silent synapses – the immature connections between neurons that have no neurotransmitter activity yet – are thought to be the hardware that allow this rapid information storage to occur early in life.
First discovered decades ago in newborn mice, these potential neurological intersections were thought to disappear as the animals aged. A recent study by researchers from MIT in the US has found this vanishing act might not be as extreme as initially presumed.
The team hadn’t set out to look specifically at these potential connections. Rather, they were continuing previous work on the locations of nerve-cell extensions called dendrites.
The Second World War left many economies in tatters, yet, despite the carnage, some companies managed to thrive in the aftermath of the war.
World War II, like many other wars in history, was a time when a lot of new technology was made quickly. The war started with piston aircraft and ended with fighter planes, rockets, and nuclear weapons.
Continue reading “Some companies like Boeing survived WW2 but Focke-Wulf did not. Here’s why” »
The experiments were done to prove the effectiveness of 70mm rockets.
BAE Systems has tested its latest drone hunting missiles machine by conducting ground-to-air test firings, according to a press release by the company published on Tuesday.
Rockets fired from a containerized weapon system.
Continue reading “BAE Systems’ new drone-hunting missiles can take down unmanned aerial systems” »
