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Global deforestation peaked in the 1980s
There was a marked acceleration in deforestation in the 20th century. But, global deforestation peaked in the 1980s. Since then, it has slowed.
Topics /
Science & Space
The most popular blog posts about science & space on Hacker News. 240 posts.
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Neuroscientists discover molecular mechanism that allows memories to form (2020)
Encoding memories in engram cells is controlled by large-scale remodeling of the proteins and DNA that make up cells’ chromatin, according to an MIT study. This chromatin remodeling, which allows specific genes involved in storing memories to become more active, takes place in multiple stages spread out over several…
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Why are our brains shrinking?
As promised, here is the first post in our “The Student of Life” series. This essay, focusing on the fascinating subject of the shrinkage of our brain over the last 70,000 years, was masterfully penned by USF student Savannah Robison during the Fall 2017 semester of BIOL100. It is a wonderful example of student…
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Sustainable Energy without the Hot Air (Revised, Community Edition)
A community edition of David MacKay's book — the original text, opened up so it can be updated.
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Soil bacteria could improve crop yields, via fungi
The findings from Boyce Thompson Institute researchers could point the way to cost-effective, eco-friendly ways of enriching soil and reducing reliance on conventional fertilizers.
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2,050-year-old Roman tomb offers insights on ancient concrete resilience
The unique mineral composition of the 2,050-year-old Roman tomb of Caecilia Metella could point the way toward more resilient and sustainable modern concrete structures.
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Plunge in lithium-ion battery costs
The cost of lithium-ion batteries for phones, laptops, and cars has plunged over the years, and an MIT study shows just how dramatic that drop has been. The change is akin to that of solar and wind energy, and further declines may yet be possible, the researchers say.
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Sustainable coffee grown in Finland with cellular agriculture
VTT has successfully produced coffee cells in a bioreactor through cellular agriculture. The innovation can help to make the production of coffee more sustainable. The first batches produced by VTT in a laboratory in Finland smell and taste like conventional coffee.
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First Ever Image of a Multi-Planet System Around a Sun-Like Star (2020)
The European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) has taken the first ever image of a young, Sun-like star accompanied by two giant exoplanets. Images of systems with multiple exoplanets are extremely rare, and — until now — astronomers had never directly observed more than one planet orbiting a…
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Scientists discover a highly potent antibody against SARS-CoV-2
Scientists at Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and EPFL have discovered a highly potent monoclonal antibody that targets the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and is effective at neutralizing all variants of concern identified to date, including the delta variant. Their findings are published in the prestigious journal Cell…
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Intermittent fasting in mice improves long-term memory retention
Intermittent Fasting is an effective means of improving long term memory retention and generating new adult hippocampal neurons in mice
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Ultra-high-density hard drives made with graphene store ten times more data
Graphene can be used for ultra-high density hard disk drives (HDD), with up to a tenfold jump compared to current technologies, researchers at the Cambridge Graphene Centre have shown.
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Researchers shrink camera to the size of a salt grain
Researchers at Princeton University and the University of Washington have developed an ultracompact camera the size of a coarse grain of salt. The new system can produce crisp, full-color images on par with a conventional compound camera lens 500,000 times larger in volume.
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Mealworms can compost styrofoam
Within our living systems, we have been raising several types of mealworms in order to compost polystyrene (styrofoam). We recently came across the study by 2015 Standard University that confirms our suspicions that they are indeed turning styrofoam into usable organic matter! Their notes are not m
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Mouse studies show gene therapy can cause big drop in latent herpes infections
Improved gene therapy techniques cleared up to 95 percent of latent herpes virus in mice. Human trials? At least 3 years away. Fred Hutch virologist Dr. Keith Jerome hopes this study "opens up the idea that we can start thinking about cure, rather than just control of the virus."
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A long-lasting, stable solid-state lithium battery
Researchers demonstrate a solution to a 40-year problem
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Some Night-Shift Workers May Have a 300% Higher Risk of Car Crashes
Researchers at the University of Missouri College of Engineering also examined the relationship between vehicle crashes and two other sleep disorders, sleep apnea and insomnia.
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Leaky sewers are likely responsible for large amounts of medications in streams
American Chemical Society: Chemistry for Life.
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‘Vegan spider silk’ provides sustainable alternative to single-use plastics
Researchers have created a plant-based, sustainable, scalable material that could replace single-use plastics in many consumer products.
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The most powerful MRI scanner in the world delivers its first images
September 2021, the 11.7 Tesla MRI of the Iseult project, the most powerful in the world for human imaging, has just unveiled its first images.
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Common cold combats Covid-19
A new Yale-led study finds that immune system activity jump-started by rhinovirus exposure could prevent or treat the early stages of COVID-19 infection.
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Surgical masks reduce Covid-19 spread, large-scale Stanford study shows
Researchers found that surgical masks impede the spread of COVID-19 and that just a few, low-cost interventions increase mask-wearing compliance.
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Long-term study reveals harm in regular cannabis use
Regular cannabis use has harmful effects regardless of the age a person starts using, a University of Queensland-led study has found.
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General relativity passes a range of precise tests set by pair of extreme stars
The theory of general relativity passes a range of precise tests set by pair of extreme stars
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New study examines ‘Achilles heel’ of cancer tumours
Ranked among the world’s top medical schools with the fifth-largest MD enrollment in North America, the UBC Faculty of Medicine is a leader in both the science and the practice of medicine. Across British Columbia, more than 12,000 faculty and staff are training the next generation of doctors and health care…