Friday, 14 February 2020

Breakthrough Listen releases 2 petabytes of data from SETI survey of Milky Way

The Breakthrough Listen Initiative today released data from the most comprehensive survey yet of radio emissions from the plane of the Milky Way Galaxy and the region around its central black hole, and it is inviting the public to search the data for signals from intelligent civilizations.

New technologies, strategies expanding search for extraterrestrial life

Emerging technologies and new strategies are opening a revitalized era in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). New discovery capabilities, along with the rapidly-expanding number of known planets orbiting stars other than the Sun, are spurring innovative approaches by both government and private organizations, according to a panel of experts speaking at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Seattle, Washington.

Physically producing computer-generated artificial genomes to understand DNA

The molecular blueprint of life is stored in DNA within the genome. The digital revolution in biology, driven by DNA sequencing, enables scientists to read the genomes of the many microbes and multicellular organisms that populate our world. Today, DNA sequences of over 200,000 microbial genomes are deposited in digital genome databases and have exponentially increased the understanding of how DNA programs living systems. Using this incredible treasure trove of molecular building blocks, bioengineers learn to sequence and synthesize long DNA molecules and to breed useful microbes with the help of computers.

United Airlines pushes 737 MAX flights to September

United Airlines announced Friday it was pushing back to September 4 the resumption of flights using the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, grounded worldwide following two deadly crashes.

Google mulls licensing deals with news media: industry sources

Google is in discussions on deals to pay media organizations for content, a move aimed at blunting criticism that it unfairly profits from copyrighted news, according to people familiar with the talks.

Advancing an oral drug for pulmonary arterial hypertension

In pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), high blood pressure in the lungs' arteries causes the heart to work extra hard to pump blood to the lungs and around the rest of the body. The condition is rare but deadly, and current treatments are expensive and have side effects and inconvenient modes of delivery. There is no cure.

To help wildlife move, researchers map both natural and legal boundaries

Wildlife need to move to survive: to find food, reproduce and escape wildfires and other hazards. Yet as soon as they leave protected areas like national forests or parks, they often wind up on a landscape that is very fragmented in terms of natural boundaries and human ones.

NASA catches the re-birth of zombie tropical cyclone Francisco

The low-pressure area that had once been Tropical Cyclone Francisco has been lingering in the Southern Indian Ocean since Feb. 6 when it weakened below tropical cyclone status. Since then, Francisco's remnants moved into an area of warm waters and low wind shear allowing the low-pressure area to re-organize, consolidate and re-form. NASA's Aqua satellite provided forecasters with a visible image of the zombie storm.

New technology may significantly reduce diagnostic time of coronavirus

Diagnosing coronavirus takes approximately one hour using current methods. A new technology, based on a combination of optics and magnetic particles, can rapidly test 100 samples of patients potentially infected with the virus and reduce the diagnostic time to approximately 15 minutes.

Solar wind samples suggest new physics of massive solar ejections

A new study led by the University of Hawai'i (UH) at Mānoa has helped refine understanding of the amount of hydrogen, helium and other elements present in violent outbursts from the Sun, and other types of solar "wind," a stream of ionized atoms ejected from the Sun.

Team explores pathway to open up blood cancer treatments

Reversing runaway inflammation in the bone marrow could lead to major breakthroughs in treatments for some blood cancers, according to a new publication by scientists at Hackensack Meridian Health's Center for Discovery and Innovation.

Vitamin E effective, safe for fatty liver in HIV patients

A type of fatty liver disease that commonly affects patients with HIV can be safely treated with vitamin E, a McGill-led study has found.