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Aug 17, 2018

A step closer to a theory of quantum gravity

Posted by in category: quantum physics

Physicists reveal a new approach to resolving different predictions from relativity and quantum physics. Phil Dooley reports.

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Aug 17, 2018

Hundreds of autism genes found to be triggered by a single key protein

Posted by in category: neuroscience

A new study is offering an exciting new clue into the origins of autism spectrum disorder finding a single dysfunctional protein may be responsible for coordinating expression in all the genes that are known to result in autism susceptibility.

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Aug 17, 2018

Hottest exoplanet ever discovered has metallic skies, rain like lava

Posted by in category: space

Scientists find vaporized iron and titanium in the atmosphere of Kelt-9b, an exoplanet in the constellation Cygnus that is the hottest ever discovered.

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Aug 17, 2018

Discovery reveals why toxic Alzheimer’s plaques don’t always lead to dementia

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, neuroscience

One of the fundamental pathological markers seen in patients suffering from Alzheimer’s disease is a build-up of two proteins — amyloid beta and tau — in the brain. It’s this action that many researchers hypothesize is the key symptomatic cause of cognitive decline associated with the disease. However, not all people with a build-up of these proteins display neurological damage and cognitive decline. New research from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston may have finally homed in on the reason behind this strange observation, and the results could lead to a whole new way to battle this devastating disease.

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Aug 17, 2018

Hitting the pause button on life

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, neuroscience, space travel

🐸 The wood frog, Rana sylvatica, is one of many animals to master the art of a reversible, coma-like state known as metabolic depression. Metabolically depressed animals use tiny amounts of energy, sometimes so little that scientists can’t tell if they have any metabolism at all. Somehow, these animals press the pause button on life, outlasting hard times in demanding environments. Could humans ever learn to imitate death like these animals? Workers from fields as diverse as medicine to space exploration are itching to know the answer… 🤔♾😴.


If other members of the animal kingdom can shut down their bodies over winter, then why can’t we?

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Aug 17, 2018

From 12/26/1965 edition of the Sunday comic strip “Our New Age”… Close enough 🙂

Posted by in category: futurism

From 12/26/1965 edition of the Sunday comic strip “Our New Age”… Close enough 🙂.

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Aug 16, 2018

SpaceX’s futuristic Crew Dragon astronaut walkway is ready for US human spaceflight revival

Posted by in categories: futurism, space travel

SpaceX has publicly revealed the sleek, minimalist design of the access arm that NASA astronauts will soon use to board Crew Dragon spacecraft, bringing to an end more than half a decade of U.S. dependency upon non-native rockets and space agencies to transport crew to the International Space Station.

After several months of concerted effort in a tent located on Pad 39A property, SpaceX engineers, welders, and technicians have nearly completed the most critical portion of the launch facility modifications and upgrades necessary to return the pad’s human spaceflight capabilities. Known as a Crew Access Arm (CAA), SpaceX will likely complete installation of the Arm by the end of August, wrapping up what is by far the most visible step yet towards returning astronauts to the ISS on American rockets and spacecraft.

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Aug 16, 2018

What will happen when the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies collide?

Posted by in category: space

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Aug 16, 2018

How cancer cells communicate — and how we can slow them down

Posted by in category: biotech/medical

When cancer cells are closely packed together in a tumor, they’re able to communicate with each other and coordinate their movement throughout the body. What if we could interrupt this process? In this accessible talk about cutting-edge science, Hasini Jayatilaka shares her work on an innovative method to stop cancer cells from communicating — and halt their fatal ability to spread.

This talk was presented at an official TED conference, and was featured by our editors on the home page.

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Aug 16, 2018

Physicists fight laser chaos with quantum chaos to improve laser performance

Posted by in categories: biotech/medical, quantum physics

To tame chaos in powerful semiconductor lasers, which causes instabilities, scientists have introduced another kind of chaos.

High-powered semiconductor lasers are used in materials processing, biomedical imaging and industrial research, but the emitted light they produce is affected by instabilities, making it incoherent.

The instabilities in the laser are caused by optical filaments; light structures that move randomly and change with time, causing chaos. Removing these instabilities has long been a goal in physics, but previous strategies to reduce filaments have usually involved reducing the power of the laser.

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