For The Better

An average of 22 adolescents 14 to 18 years of age died in the U.S. each week in 2022 from drug overdoses, raising the death rate for this group to 5.2 per 100,000 — driven by fentanyl in counterfeit pills. The researchers also found 19 ‘hotspot’ coun…

Researchers have developed a groundbreaking artificial intelligence (AI) system that can rapidly detect COVID-19 from chest X-rays with more than 98 percent accuracy.

Certain populations of mosquitoes are more heat tolerant and better equipped to survive heat waves than others, according to new research.

Astronomers have detected a three-ringed structure in the nursery of planets in the inner planet-forming disk of a young star. This configuration suggests two Jupiter-mass planets are forming in the gaps between the rings. The detailed analysis is cons…

Researchers have developed a new AI-powered algorithm to help understand how different cells organize themselves into particular tissues and communicate with one another.

Some bacterial membrane transporters work almost like freight elevators to transport substances through the cell membrane into the interior of the cell. The transporter itself spans the bacterial membrane. Like a forklift, a soluble protein outside the…

A groundbreaking study has found that evolution is not as unpredictable as previously thought, which could allow scientists to explore which genes could be useful to tackle real-world issues such as antibiotic resistance, disease and climate change. Th…

The construction industry as a CO2 sink? Researchers are working on this. By incorporating biochar into concrete, they are exploring the potential of CO2-neutral or even CO2-negative concrete. For optimal applicability, they process the biochar into pe…

Researchers have developed a sustainability metric for the ecological design of plastic products that have low persistence in the environment. Adhering to this metric could provide substantial environmental and societal benefits, according to a new study.

Mycelial fibers, the fibrous cells found in fruiting mushroom bodies, have gained momentum as a sustainable material for making faux-leather and packaging owing to their excellent formability. Recently, a team of researchers has found a simple way of o…

Researchers find that an easy-to-measure brain process may be a target or biomarker in measuring treatment outcomes in clinical trials in Batten disease.

A person’s hearing can be damaged by loud noise, aging and even certain medications, with little recourse beyond a hearing aid or cochlear implant.

To encourage fruit and vegetable consumption among youth, experiential food education programs such as gardening and cooking lessons have increased across both community and school settings. A recent research article revealed how this early learning po…

Astronomers believe they may have found the origin of the universe’s giant odd radio circles: they are shells formed by outflowing galactic winds, possibly from massive exploding stars known as supernovae.

Babies and toddlers exposed to television or video viewing may be more likely to exhibit atypical sensory behaviors, such as being disengaged and disinterested in activities, seeking more intense stimulation in an environment, or being overwhelmed by s…

Frequent visits to oil palm plantations are leading to a sharp increase in mortality rates among infant southern pig-tailed macaques (Macaca nemestrina) in the wild, according to a new study. In addition to increased risk from predators and human encou…

Hydrogen energy has emerged as a promising alternative to fossil fuels, offering a clean and sustainable energy source. However, the development of low-cost and efficient catalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction remains a crucial challenge. Scientists…

Whirligig beetles, the world’s fastest-swimming insect, achieve surprising speeds by employing a strategy shared by fast-swimming marine mammals and waterfowl, according to a new study that rewrites previous explanations of the physics involved.

Climate change could pose a big risk to Australians’ reproductive health with a new, large-scale study revealing a possible link between extreme bioclimatic exposure during pregnancy and babies’ birthweights for gestational age. Researchers examined mo…

Two types of experiences affect the behavioral skills of animals: the animal’s environment during its early development and acquired experience. Researchers followed Egyptian vultures during migration, a critical and challenging period for them, and in…