Mindfully Curated
Cutting boards are handy tools found in most homes and restaurant kitchens. But a small-scale study suggests that they are an overlooked source of micrometer-sized particles. The researchers report that chopping up carrots on wood and plastic boards co…
The endangered Antillean manatee faces a growing threat from boat strikes in Belize, according to a new study that raises concerns about the survival of what had been considered a relatively healthy population. Belize hosts a population of around 1,000…
For the first time ever, scientists have uncovered evidence that a species’ long-term adaptation to living in an extremely cold climate has led to the evolution of social behaviours including extended care by mothers, increased infant survival and the …
Whole-genomic sequencing has revolutionized the amount and detail of genetic diversity now available to researchers to study. While the researchers previously had looked at a few hundred mobile elements or ‘jumping genes,’ primarily of the Alu and L1 t…
As more and more electric cars are traveling on the roads of Europe, this is leading to an increase in the use of the critical metals required for components such as electric motors and electronics. With the current raw material production levels there…
Researchers working to improve the performance of superconducting qubits, the foundation of quantum computers, have been experimenting using different base materials in an effort to increase the coherent lifetimes of qubits. The coherence time is a mea…
There are many effects of climate change. Perhaps the most broadly known is global warming, which is caused by heat building up in various parts of the Earth system, such as the atmosphere, the ocean, the cryosphere and the land. 89 percent of this exc…
Researchers demonstrated that it’s possible to make carbon dioxide capture filters using 3D printing.
Some people live longer than others — possibly due to a unique combination of bacteria in their intestines, new research concludes.
The overfishing of codfish spanning the second half of the 20th century indicates that human action can force evolutionary changes more quickly than widely believed, according to a new study.
Young babies make many squeals, vowel-like sounds, growls, and short word-like sounds such as ‘ba’ or ‘aga.’ Those precursors to speech or ‘protophones’ are later replaced with early words and, eventually, whole phrases and sentences. While some infant…
Researchers report that in the absence of visible landmarks, desert ants increase the likelihood that foraging nest mates will find their way home quickly and safely by elevating their nest entrance. Ant colonies whose nests are found deep in the Tunis…
A team of researchers has created a new class of titanium alloys that are strong and not brittle under tension, by integrating alloy and 3D-printing process designs. They say they embedded circular economy thinking in their design, creating great promi…
Rare earth elements, like neodymium and dysprosium, are a critical component to almost all modern technologies, from smartphones to hard drives, but they are notoriously hard to separate from the Earth’s crust and from one another. Scientists have disc…
Researchers have partnered to create a first-of-its-kind open-source, reproducible analysis platform for pediatric brain tumors. With the help of thousands of genomically sequenced samples, researchers have used this platform to identify initial findin…
Scientists have taken the world’s first X-ray SIGNAL (or SIGNATURE) of just one atom. This groundbreaking achievement could revolutionize the way scientists detect the materials.
According to new research, the amount of oxygen in one of 10 breaths was made possible thanks to a newly identified cellular mechanism that promotes photosynthesis in marine phytoplankton. The new study identifies how a proton pumping enzyme (known as …
Chess grandmasters are often held up as the epitome of thinking far ahead. But can others, with a modest amount of practice, learn to think further ahead? In addressing this question, a team of cognitive scientists has created a computational model tha…
Links have been reported between schizophrenia and proteins produced by the immune system that can act against one’s own body, known as autoantibodies. Researchers have now identified autoantibodies that target a ‘synaptic adhesion protein’ in a subset…
Optical probes have led to numerous breakthroughs in applications like optical memory, nanopatterning, and bioimaging, but existing options have limited lifespans and will eventually ‘photobleach.’ New work demonstrates a promising, longer-lasting alte…