Delegates are gathering in Campo Grande, Brazil, for the 15th Conference of the Parties (COP15) on the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals. The meeting aims to address growing threats to migratory animals—from birds and whales to large land mammals. [...]
Archaeology is not just a powerful tool for revealing insights into the ancient past, but it can also be applied to more recent events. In a new paper published in the journal Antiquity, scientists reveal how archaeological techniques have helped document and preserve material evidence of the 2022 Yahidne war crime. [...]
The internet has become a battleground, writes the author of a new article in the Journal of Anthropological Research, and particularly so in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which has been called the first "TikTok war." In "Social Media Warfare: Monetization and Materiality in the Ukrainian Armed Forces Since February 24, 2022," Marcello Fantoni uses ethnographic interviews with former and current members of the Ukrainian military to analyze the role of social media in the conflict, and how social media helps create a "feedback loop" in which combat operations funded by donations incur the need for even more financial support. [...]
Infants' helplessness demonstrates unique social implications for human development. In a new paper developmental psychology researchers from the University of Ottawa explored human infants' helplessness as a key to human nature, delving into questions of why humans evolved unlike other mammals with strong sensory systems and weak motor systems for an extended period. And they looked at what this means for human development and the survival of our species. [...]
In an era of nonstop headlines and growing political division, many workplaces still follow a familiar rule of thumb: Don't talk politics at work. New research from Washington State University suggests the issue is more nuanced, and talking about politicized news at work may help employees better manage stress and foster improved well-being. [...]
Schools, families, and social pressures are channeling young people—especially girls and poorer students—away from studying creative subjects because they are considered low-status or financially "risky," a new report says. The University of Cambridge study argues that the underrepresentation of women and people from lower-income backgrounds in the creative industries reflects a "narrowing pathway" that begins at school, and steers students away from subjects like art, music, and drama as their education progresses. [...]
Astronomers at the University of Warwick have validated over 100 exoplanets, including 31 newly detected planets, using a new artificial intelligence tool applied to data from NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), a space mission that monitors the sky for the subtle dimming of starlight caused when planets pass in front of their host stars. [...]
Current World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines typically recommend two to seven days of abstinence before taking semen samples or assisted reproduction. However, a new study led by Oxford University researchers suggests that regular ejaculation—whether through sexual activity or masturbation—results in higher quality sperm, with less DNA damage. The paper is published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. [...]
Materials scientist Dr. Yige Sun, from the Department of Materials and Linacre College at the University of Oxford, and the Faraday Institution, argues that as space becomes critical infrastructure for the global digital economy, its long-term viability depends on urgently transitioning from a linear to a circular model of development. [...]
People often downplay being offended during online arguments to appear more rational, according to new research from the University of East Anglia (UEA). The study reveals how social media users navigate, negotiate and often reject accusations of being offended during heated online exchanges, even when their language suggests strong emotional involvement. [...]
We can learn a great deal about the lives and social structures of civilizations thousands of years ago by studying what they ate. While actual food remains are few and far between, scientists can reconstruct ancient menus by studying chemical signatures in human remains, typically bone collagen or tooth enamel. Collagen rarely survives the harsh, salty heat of the Iraqi desert, so researchers studying ordinary families in the ancient Sumerian city of Abu Tbeirah turned instead to tooth enamel. And the results revealed a fascinating story. [...]
A new study conducted by researchers from the University of Potsdam and the University of Cologne has deciphered the step-by-step assembly of the eukaryotic proteasome. Eukaryotes are organisms whose cells have a clearly defined nucleus and different compartments within the cell. The proteasome is one of the key molecular machines responsible for the degradation of proteins that are defective or no longer needed within cells. [...]
Rising sea surface temperatures in coastal waters are driving 50 to 64 percent of the increase in large-scale humid heat waves, according to new research. The study, from researchers at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), Princeton University and Sun Yat-sen University, implies that coastal sea surface temperatures could be a potential early warning indicator for widespread humid heat extremes. The paper is published in the journal Nature Geoscience. [...]
Deep below the surface in coastal sediments, microorganisms use conductive particles as tiny natural "wires" to exchange electrons. This enables them to convert organic carbon into methane in a way not previously documented. The mechanism is described in a new study in Nature Communications led by researchers from the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) in collaboration with Aarhus University. [...]
Most people have experienced it: when you're moving, engaged, and focused, pain fades into the background, then flares when you're immobilized with nothing to do. That isn't imagination; it's biology. A comprehensive review published in Frontiers in Animal Science shows that barren captive housing removes exactly those pain-dampening inputs—movement, exploration, social contact—while triggering stress-driven mechanisms that amplify pain. Drawing on decades of evidence from neuroscience, immunology, veterinary medicine, and animal welfare science, the study reveals that an animal's environment doesn't just provide the backdrop to pain; it actively shapes how pain is processed, amplified, or suppressed at the biological level. [...]
Amino acids are like Lego blocks—they can be linked together to form complex structures called proteins. Unlike Legos, however, there are only 20 different types of amino acids available to build a protein. Proteins depend on posttranslational modifications, or chemical changes to an amino acid that happen after the protein is built, to achieve many of their forms and functions by expanding how an amino acid can behave. [...]
The word "nemotia" is a neologism, a newly coined term that in this case, describes the sense of overwhelmingness and disconnect accompanying the thought that nothing you do will ever make a difference. If this describes your current frame of mind, you might find some comfort in a recent discovery made by researchers at the Florida Museum of Natural History. [...]
Researchers from several Parisian institutions have worked together to develop a non-destructive approach to study how unicellular organisms respond to stress, focusing on cell-to-cell differences. Working together, the researchers combined custom fluorescence microscopy with machine learning. Together, they measured how individual algae cells protect their photosynthetic machinery from excess light. This revealed unexpected coordination between protective mechanisms that remains invisible when measuring cell populations in bulk. [...]
A new study by Victoria University (VU) reveals volunteers involved in community sport need more support when recognizing and responding to disclosures of abuse in sport (psychological, physical, sexual and neglect). The study, titled "The Capabilities, Opportunities and Motivations of Sport Volunteers to Respond to Child Abuse: Results From a National Survey in Australia," led by VU's Dr. Mary Woessner and Dr. Aurélie Pankowiak (a VicHealth Early Career Research Fellow) and published in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence, assessed how prepared volunteers are to respond to and report abuse in community sport. [...]
Biological membranes of cells and their subunits (organelles) are organized into tiny regions (nanodomains) made up of fats (lipids) and proteins. Those specialized regions carry out important tasks for the cell, such as signaling, sorting, or transport. While proteins in these domains are well understood, the lipid distribution and behavior within them remain a bit of a mystery, as lipids move very quickly and existing methods struggle to visualize individual lipid species at high resolution. [...]
Urban stormwater ponds provide important habitats for birds, including both resident and migrating species, according to research led by the University of Toronto. For the study, researchers placed audio recorders at 16 stormwater ponds in Brampton, Ont., and used AI-based sound identification software to identify birds by their calls. The work is published in the journal Urban Ecosystems. [...]
Could the rules of the options market be quietly costing you ten times more than your stock trades? A recent study in The Review of Financial Studies uncovers how current market rules protect high profits for option wholesalers and create significant financial incentives for brokers to favor option trading over stocks. The work is titled "Payment for Order Flow and Option Internalization." [...]
A new QUT-led study has found both grazing mammals and plant-eating insects together play a major role in maintaining the health of Australia's endangered grassy woodlands. The three-year study, conducted in lowland grassy woodlands of New South Wales' Bega Valley, found that removing all herbivores, including insects, caused a shift in plant dominance. [...]
The technology used to predict sand and dust storm (SDS) severity has for decades systematically overestimated when and where sediment is transported across Earth's surface, a new study shows. Existing models, which draw on satellite, surface, Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) and weather data, make emission predictions and underpin early warning systems to try and reduce the health and climate impacts of SDS events globally. [...]
An international research team has successfully synthesized oriented belt-shaped vanadium dioxide (VO2(B)) single crystals via a hydrothermal reduction method, using one-dimensional vanadium pentoxide (V2O5) nanofibers as the starting material. This work, published in the journal ACS Sensors, provides a new material platform and design guidelines for the development of next-generation low-power gas sensors capable of operating at room temperature. [...]
Invasive species cost Canada billions of dollars each year. Now, a team led by UBC researchers has developed a new genomic test that can trace the Asian spongy moth—one of the biggest threats to North America's forests—back to its source, giving officials a better chance of stopping infestations before they spread. The findings are published in the journal BMC Genomics. [...]
Social Security's trust funds are projected to run out by 2035, but that doesn't mean retirees will be left with nothing. New research from the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business reveals that most Americans misinterpret what happens when the funds reach zero, and the way information is presented plays a significant role in this confusion. [...]
Self-driving laboratories (SDLs) powered by artificial intelligence (AI) are rapidly accelerating materials discovery, but can they also explain their results? Researchers from the Theory Department of the Fritz Haber Institute, in collaboration with BASF, and BasCat—UniCat BASF JointLab, show that they can. [...]
Toward the right side of the periodic table below oxygen, are the chalcogens, or "ore-forming" elements. The chalcogens that occur naturally, including sulfur, selenium and tellurium, are all somehow involved in biological processes. Molecules containing sulfur, like the antioxidant glutathione, play a central role in redox regulation, the balance between oxidation and reduction that is essential for maintaining cellular health. [...]
New research led by scientists at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography is shining a spotlight on one of the ocean's most overlooked habitats: seagrass. Led by Scripps Oceanography Ph.D. candidate Rilee Sanders, the study documented the first successful restoration of open-coast seagrass (common eelgrass). The findings offer promising insight into the feasibility of restoring high-value coastal habitats in the future. The work is published in the journal Estuaries and Coasts. [...]