Current Science Tech Medical News - click here
Science Tech Medical News Archive - from 2019 and earlier
Developments in a vaccine for coronavirus
The first vaccine to make it into clinical trials in mid-March is a lipid-encapsulated mRNA vaccine. For this vaccine, a short piece of the genetic material from the virus (mRNA) is coated with an oily layer (lipid). This vaccine is now being given to volunteers in a phase I clinical trial in Seattle.
Cancer acts like bacteria to resist drugs
This resulted in more genetic variation, ultimately fuelling resistance to treatment.
How quickly is the Universe expanding?
One possibility is that both measurements are essentially correct, but they're not actually measuring the same thing, which would mean our big picture is incomplete, and the evolution of the cosmos is more complicated than we thought.
Explaining an uncertain law of physics
Like the bow wave of a rowboat on the ocean, the energy is quickly diluted and dissipated. If it would be possible for a butterfly, it would be possible for an ocean-going rowboat; yet clearly it is not. QED
Early fossil evidence of humans in Europe
More research is needed to understand human filtration of Europe and cultural impact on Neanderthals and how this may have impacted that species' disappearance.
A simple song but listening to it is complex
"Humans have developed two means of auditory communication: speech and music, [...] with a complementary specialization of two parallel neural systems."
Boeing 737 MAX certification flight test expected soon
A key step in the return to service of the grounded Boeing 737 MAX could take place as soon as early next week.
Too big to be a neutron star, too small to be a black hole; which is it?
Perseverance is just about ready to launch
A Breathtaking 'Ring of Fire' Solar Eclipse Will Adorn Our Skies This Weekend
Astronauts: Falcon 9 rocket was 'totally different' ride than the space shuttle
"What I thought was really neat was how sensitive we were to the throttling of the Merlin engines."
Coronavirus: Dexamethasone proves first life-saving drug
About 19 out of 20 patients with coronavirus recover without being admitted to hospital.
SpaceX Mars city: Elon Musk confirms he's sticking to ambitious launch date
From these two initial missions, the plan would be to continue sending rockets to the red planet until there were enough resources to become a self-sustaining civilization. This, he suggested Thursday, would take "about a dozen transfer windows." Earth and Mars align approximately every 26 months, meaning this process could take around 25 years. That would mean that a self-sustaining Mars city could emerge before 2050.
Transit of the ISS with the Moon as backdrop
NASA astronauts describe their historic SpaceX ride to International Space Station
Dinosaur-killing asteroid created massive magma chamber that lasted millions of years
The blast was enough to melt part of Earth's crust.
Astronauts enter space station on historic SpaceX missionat 1:22 p.m.
SpaceX, NASA to try again for landmark launch of two astronauts from Florida
Check the Kennedy Space Center weather forecast.
Meet NASA SpaceX astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley
They will head to the International Space Station to join the Expedition 63 crew today.
SpaceX, NASA, astronauts making final preparations: 'We're go for launch'
Hurley and Behnken are scheduled to launch at 4:33 p.m. EDT from launch pad 39A of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, which was also used for the Apollo and space shuttle programs. The launch will be the first time a private company, rather than a national government, sends astronauts into orbit.
The Mysterious Anomaly Weakening Earth's Magnetic Field Seems to Be Splitting
In the last two centuries, Earth's magnetic field has lost about 9 percent of its strength on average.
NASA Invites Public to Be Its Guests to Celebrate Historic 'Launch America'
NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 test flight, which is targeted for lift off at 4:33 p.m. EDT Wednesday, May 27, this mission will send NASA astronauts Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley to the International Space Station as part of the agency's Commercial Crew Program. Members of the public can attend the launch virtually, receiving mission updates and opportunities normally received by on-site guests.
SpaceX will use this rocket for its first manned space launch on May 27th
Army researchers may have discovered new coronavirus-killing antibodies
Dead Sea Scrolls discovery: Fragments thought to be blank reveal text
Moderna stock jumps after a positive vaccine trial
Moderna is aiming to have a vaccine ready for emergency use in the fall - a timeline that has never been seen for vaccine development.
Evidence suggests sun entering 'solar minimum' stage
The sun's magnetic field has become weak, allowing extra cosmic rays into the solar system. Excess cosmic rays pose a health hazard to astronauts and polar air travelers, affect the electro-chemistry of Earth's upper atmosphere and may help trigger lightning.
Ozone's Effectiveness in Killing SARS Coronavirus Leads to Theory on COVID-19
Using ozonated water for handwashing kills bacteria and viruses on impact. Ozone is created by special generators that release it in the air for purification or infuse it into water for disinfecting surfaces. More information about ozone generators and how they work can be found here.
See this build-it-yourself virus-killing ozone generator.
Latest news:
See this virus-killing ozone generator being developed for use in shared vehicles, from Autonomous Vehicle Engineering magazine, by the Tech Briefs Media Group.
EPA recommendations on ozone generators that are sold as air cleaners
Ozone breaks down into Oxygen fairly quickly
Why are there so few antivirals?
Different viruses vary from each other much more than different bacteria do. There is extreme diversity between different viruses. Some have DNA genomes while others have RNA genomes, and some are single-stranded while others are double-stranded. This makes it practically impossible to create a broad spectrum antiviral drug that will work across different virus types...
After recovering from coronavirus, are you immune?
Black hole only 1,000 light-years from Earth discovered
Vitamin D levels may impact COVID-19 mortality rates
Patients from countries with high COVID-19 mortality rates, such as Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, had lower levels of vitamin D compared to patients in countries that were not as severely affected.
Pancreatic cancer hidden in plain sight
Pancreatic cancer does not respond to certain anticancer treatments that boost immune responses.  A mechanism active in tumour cells that contributes to this evasion of immune targeting has been uncovered.
Mars helicopter to fly on NASA's next rover mission to the Red Planet
FDA allows emergency use of remdesivir to treat coronavirus patients after promising study
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert and the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, praised the drug Wednesday.
Comet disintegrates in remarkable pictures captured by Hubble space telescope
WHO: 102 potential coronavirus vaccines in the works
Seven possible vaccines had been given the green light for testing.  One of the groups approved for clinical trials on humans is from the United States.  Four are from China, one is from England and the last is made up of both Americans and Europeans.
Gilead touts 'positive data' on drug as coronavirus treatment
There is no proven COVID-19 treatment yet, though hundreds of clinical trials are ongoing all around the world to find one. Scientists have high hopes for remdesivir, which was originally developed as a potential treatment for Ebola.
The Hubble Space Telescope turns 30 years old
Thirty years of remarkable achievements
Heartburn meds tapped in coronavirus treatment
Pepcid heartburn drug as a possible coronavirus treatment in combination with hydroxychloroquine.
The Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Dashboard
Gilead disputes report that its coronavirus drug failed in China trial
"We believe the post included inappropriate characterizations of the study. The study was terminated early due to low enrollment and, as a result, it was underpowered to enable statistically meaningful conclusions," according to a Gilead statement. "As such, the study results are inconclusive, though trends in the data suggest a potential benefit for remdesivir, particularly among patients treated early in disease."
Study finds most New York's hospitalized COVID-19 patients had one or more underlying health issues
People with a serious chronic disease should take special precaution and seek medical attention early, should they start showing signs and symptoms of being infected, or know that they've been exposed to someone who has this virus.
See the Emory University COVID-19 self-triage tool
For more information, see this news release, Emory helps build free online tool to assess COVID-19 risk.
Coronavirus has mutated into at least 30 different strains
Medical officials have vastly underestimated the overall ability of the virus to mutate, in finding that different strains have affected different parts of the world, leading to potential difficulties in finding an overall cure.
What is remdesivir, Gilead's possible coronavirus drug that's in trials?
Thus far, no drugs have been approved for treating the virus.
NASA, SpaceX to Launch First Astronauts to Space Station from U.S. Since 2011
NASA and the exciting history of Spaceflight
Visualizing what COVID-19 does to your body
Antibody points to potential weak spot on novel coronavirus
"The antibody binds to a spot on the novel coronavirus that is usually hidden, except for when [the] virus shapeshifts its structure in order to infect a cell."
Two-thirds of patients showing improvement after treatment with Remdesivir
Coronavirus has 'reactivated' in more than 100 South Koreans who recovered
More than 100 South Koreans who fully recovered from coronavirus have tested positive for a second time. Last week there were 51 cases of patients testing positive after being cleared of the virus. There have been no cases of the relapsed patients spreading the virus to anyone else.
From the Wall Street Journal:
A: Experts say remedies such as DayQuil are helpful for controlling the virus's symptoms. But they aren't a cure and won't prevent you from infecting others.
ISS crew blast off after long quarantine
Can UV from the Sun kill the coronavirus? Better read this.
Immunologist says he has a possible cure for the coronavirus
"We've engineered neutralizing antibodies that go and block the virus. The coronavirus, if you were to zoom in on it, you would see a series, a ring of spikes, and it uses those spikes to invade human cells. We've identified a series of super potent antibodies that block those spikes and therefore make the virus no longer infectious."
New Coronavirus Test Provides Results in as Few as Five Minutes
Actual tracing and virtual dating of COV-19
A digest of COVID-19 science, data, reporting and optimism as of 3 April.
Australia begins testing 2 potential coronavirus vaccines, including one from US
Top NY Blood Center doctor says plasma coronavirus treatment looking 'promising'
Army researchers at Fort Detrick who helped discover Ebola treatment seek coronavirus vaccine
"We're going to find this vaccine and we're gonna win in the end."
FDA Authorizes Use of Malaria Drugs for Coronavirus
As of early Monday morning, the coronavirus has infected more than 143,000 people in the U.S. and at least 2,513 people have died from the respiratory illness.
Up to 10 percent of recovered coronavirus patients test positive again, China reports
Additionally, health officials around the world are testing the concept of taking plasma from someone who has been infected, processing it, and injecting the antibodies into a sick person to stimulate their immune system.
How seeing the molecular machinery of the coronavirus will help scientists design a treatment.
Another twist in the dark matter story
Electromagnetic signals don't provide the evidence physicists were hoping for.
Keeping the Wuhan virus away - recommended practices from Johns Hopkins University:
Is the Coronavirus as Deadly as They Say?
"The real fatality rate could in fact be closer to 0.06%."
Death in the U.S. by the numbers
For 2017, the latest year for which there are numbers, there were 2,813,503 deaths.
That means there were an average of 7,708 deaths per day in the U.S.
From the first Wuhan virus death in the U.S., on February 29th, to date, there have been 624 deaths due to the Wuhan virus.
That means there were an average of 24.88 deaths per day in the U.S. due to the Wuhan virus.
Deaths from the Wuhan virus are 00.32 % of the total deaths per day in the U.S.
To put that number in perspective, the infant mortality rate in the U.S. is 00.58 %
- almost twice as high.
See the CDC Deaths and Mortality webpage for more information.
The date of the first U.S. Wuhan virus mortality was taken from this news article, and the total number of deaths in the U.S. was taken from here.
The coronavirus did not escape from a lab. Here's how we know.
Message on Coronavirus (COVID-19) Neither From UNICEF Nor Accurate
The Hidden Epidemic Behind COVID-19: Myths & Misinformation
In any case, death is NOT imminent with this virus.
Chloroquine for the 2019 novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2
France makes 'massive' discovery that old medicines work against coronavirus
Researchers are turning to existing medication for potential use in a new coronavirus treatment.
Chloroquine: What to know about potential coronavirus treatment
Early symptom of coronavirus might be digestive issues
Digestion issues, not respiratory, may be indicator
Coronavirus swab test from UNC gets results in 4 hours, approved by FDA
University doctors believe they can test 300 patients a day
Recent fossil discovery sheds light on the origin of modern birds
and how they survived the last mass extinction
Coronavirus and the Sun: a Lesson from the 1918 Influenza Pandemic
Fresh air, sunlight and improvised face masks seemed to work a century ago; and they might help us now. Open air therapy reduced deaths among hospital patients from 40 per cent to about 13 per cent.
The simple protein that started all life
Why outbreaks like coronavirus spread exponentially, and how to "flatten the curve"
Even a small nuclear war could cause severe global food shortages
Coronavirus: Biotech company ships first batches of vaccine, to be tested on humans
Roughly 35 companies and academic institutions are rushing to create a vaccine and at least four have tested it on animals. Moderna, a biotech company in Massachusetts, has already shipped the first batches of its COVID-19 vaccine to the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. It was said to be ready for human trials in April, but the first patient will receive an experimental dose today.
Our Solar System Is Even Stranger Than We Thought
New research shows a pattern of exoplanet sizes and spacing around other stars unlike what we see in our own system.
EPA publishes a list of potent ammunition against coronavirus
You can see the complete list here, courtesy of the EPA.
See also
Researchers in U.S., China uncover how coronavirus hijacks human cells
Tracking chart for the current status on the Coronavirus
Coronavirus vaccine development: Where does it stand?
Ireland and Britain aren't part of Trump's coronavirus travel ban. This is why.
Trump's travel ban applies only to countries within the "Schengen area"
Apple says reopening all its branded stores in China
Earth's tilt angle key trigger for ending ice ages
Scientists crack 58-year-old quantum mystery
The discovery will simplify the control of individual atoms placed in nano electric devices, with implications for overhauling nuclear magnetic resonance - a technique used in a diverse range of fields such as modern physics, medicine, chemistry, and mining.
Tiny bird-like dinosaur smallest ever found
Coronavirus becomes a pandemic: What to know about the classification
Coronavirus in the U.S.: Map of where cases have been confirmed across the country
Over 50,000 People Have Recovered From Coronavirus Around the World, According to Johns Hopkins
Giant asteroid apocalypse 13K years ago was witnessed by ancient humans
Scientists made a surprise discovery of an enormous crater hiding beneath Greenland's ice sheets
2,400 in U.S. dead from flu
        vs.
21 in U.S. dead from coronavirus
(3 plus 18 in nursing home in Wa. state)
COVID-1 - Coronavirus Q&A with Dr. Harish Moorjani
New Research Explains How Solar Panels Could Soon Be Generating Power at Night
Faster-Than-Light Speeds Could Be Why Gamma-Ray Bursts Seem to Go Backwards in Time
Skulls and skills varied in archaic Homo erectus
Homo erectus was possibly the most successful and longest surviving of any early human. They first popped into the fossil record some 2 million years ago and only went extinct in the last 50,000-100,000 years.
Medical breakthrough in Israel:
       
a lung was removed from the body of a cancer patient, cleaned and returned
The coronavirus outbreak has an unexpected silver lining
The coronavirus has infected close to 90,000 people around the world so far. 45,000 patients have recovered so far, and over 3,000 patients have died.
Footage of the Apollo 16 'Lunar Rover Grand Prix' Upscaled to 4K and 60fps
Here's how to apply to be a NASA astronaut!
How COVID-19 (Corona virus) Spreads
Behavioural immunisation against the coronavirus
The evolution of a faraway star system
Scientists seize the rare chance to watch it unfold.
Innovation thrives in partially connected populations
       
The finding that looser connections are better is counter-intuitive.
Lyrics and melody receive separate attention once they enter the brain
       
"Humans have developed two means of auditory communication: speech and music."
Billion-year-old green algae is an ancestor of all plants on Earth
'Hidden Figure' Katherine Johnson Dead At 101
       
Don't miss
her famous quote on page 245 of the book.
 
Physicists Take Their Closest Look Yet at an Antimatter Atom
SpaceX will launch humans to space for the first time
Researchers make solar efficiency breakthrough
How planetary building blocks were constructed
Maths and the art of topology
Topology is a branch of mathematics concerned with space and deformation.
See also
How art merges with maths
to explore continuity, change, and exotic states
New research explains the strange electron flow in future materials
Watching on as Betelgeuse dims
       
The star is down to about a third of its normal brightness, and its shape is changing.
NASA's New Horizons mission sheds new light on how planets form
SpaceX to launch 60 internet Starlink satellites in one day
       
The launch will be SpaceX's third one for 2020 already
Expedition reveals the violent birth of Zealandia
       
for more, read about the
discovery of Zealandia continent
       
Earth's hidden continent was shaped by two tectonic events.
Magnetic field moves electrons into concentric circles
Humans not to blame for genetic diversity loss
       
Same old story - diversity loss caused by the need to adapt to differing habitats.
Siberian cave yields trove of Neanderthal blades linked to eastern Europe
A mega library of nanoparticles
NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which uses infrared light to study the cosmos,
       
will be formally retired today after 16 years
The new Inouye Solar Telescope has produced the most detailed solar images
       
ever taken, showing structures as small as 30 kilometres.
The Hubble Constant - calculating it different ways gives different answers
The five worst mass extinctions
Java Man - First human species out of Africa - reached Asia later than thought
Earth's oldest known impact structure coincides with the end of Snowball Earth
   
After Snowball Earth there is no record of large-scale glaciation for 400 million years
Children's graves reveal genetic diversity of ancient West Africa
Unusual gravitational waves hit Earth
40-ton whale jumps completely out of the water
SpaceX blew up a rocket and this time it's great news
Neandertal birch tar-hafted tool proves abstract conceptualization ability
"The production of birch tar adhesives was a major technological development, demonstrating complex Neandertal technology and advanced cognitive ability."
Summary:
A tar-backed tool from the present-day North Sea reveals the use of complex technology by Neandertals.   This article reports the discovery of a 50,000-year-old birch tar-hafted flint tool found off the present-day coastline of The Netherlands.   The production of birch tar adhesives and multicomponent tools was a major technological development.   It is considered complex technology and has a prominent place in discussions about the evolution of human behavior.   This find provides evidence on the technological capabilities of Neandertals and illuminates the currently debated conditions under which these technologies could be maintained.   The find demonstrates that birch tar was a routine part of the Neandertal technological repertoire.   Dating the geological provenance of the artifact firmly associates it with a host of Middle Paleolithic stone tools and a Neandertal fossil.  
The object is a piece of birch tar, encompassing one-third of a flint flake.   This find demonstrates that Neandertals mastered complex adhesive production strategies and composite tool use.   The discovery also shows that a large population size is not a necessary condition for complex behavior and technology.
In a related article, the author states that "Neandertals used artificial adhesives to haft, or better handle, stone tools across their entire geographic range and since at least 200,000 years ago."   That is almost 130,000 years prior to H. Sapiens' final mental evolutionary change 70,000 years ago, and about 145,000 years before H. Sapiens made their way into the parts of Eurasia where H. Neanderthalis lived.
This is clear evidence that Neandertals possessed the ability for abstract conceptualization.   Abstract conceptualization is the mental capability that makes possible reasoning and thinking, which replaces the instinctual behavior that is otherwise universal among animals.   This discovery also makes clear that abstract conceptualization at some level preceded H. Sapiens.
7 Billion-Year-Old Stardust Is Oldest Material Found on Earth
       
Some of these ancient grains are billions of years older than our sun.
       
See the
research article
in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Cancer Metastasis Has More to Do with Wound Healing than You Might Think
       
"Metastasis is wound healing gone wrong."
New image of the Milky Way's center could help explain why its heart is missing stars
How protons and neutrons behave inside an atom
       
That behavior is different from their behavior as individual particles
NASA's alien planet hunter discovers its first Earth-sized planet in 'habitable-zone'
2020's first meteor shower seen from space
4,000-year-old guide to Egyptian underworld could be oldest illustrated 'book'
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