Dangit

Category: Science

  • Spectacular bird’s-eye view? Hummingbirds see diverse colours humans can only imagine

    Spectacular bird’s-eye view? Hummingbirds see diverse colours humans can only imagine

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    To find food, dazzle mates, escape predators and navigate diverse terrain, birds rely on their excellent colour vision. Fig 1. While humans have three color cones in the retina sensitive to red, green and blue light, birds have a fourth color cone that can detect ultraviolet light. A research team led by Princeton’s Mary Caswell…

  • Origins of the beloved guinea pig

    Origins of the beloved guinea pig

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    Summary     New research sheds light on guinea pig domestication and how and why the small, furry animals became distributed around the world. Just published in the international science journal, Scientific Reports, the researchers use ancient DNA from archaeological guinea pig remains which reveals the transition from the animals being used as a wild food…

  • Human embryo-like model created from human stem cells

    Human embryo-like model created from human stem cells

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    Scientists from the University of Cambridge, in collaboration with the Hubrecht Institute in The Netherlands, have developed a new model to study an early stage of human development, using human embryonic stem cells. Fig 1. Image analysis of human gastruloid showing ‘anteroposterior’ patterning. Green is a posterior part similar to the tail-end of an embryo,…

  • Scientists develop the most heat-resistant material ever created

    Scientists develop the most heat-resistant material ever created

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    A group of scientists from NUST MISIS developed a ceramic material with the highest melting point among currently known compounds. Due to the unique combination of physical, mechanical and thermal properties, the material is promising for use in the most heat-loaded components of aircraft, such as nose fairings, jet engines and sharp front edges of…

  • Evolution of pandemic coronavirus outlines the path from animals to humans

    Evolution of pandemic coronavirus outlines the path from animals to humans

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    Summary     A team of scientists studying the origin of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that has caused the COVID-19 pandemic, found that it was especially well-suited to jump from animals to humans by shapeshifting as it gained the ability to infect human cells.           Conducting a genetic analysis, researchers from Duke University, Los Alamos National Laboratory,…

  • Microbial cyborgs: Bacteria supplying power

    Microbial cyborgs: Bacteria supplying power

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    Fig 1. The bacteria (green) are embedded in a composite made of carbon nanotubes (grey) and silica nanoparticles (violet) interwoven with DNA (blue). Electronic devices are still made of lifeless materials. One day, however, “microbial cyborgs” might be used in fuel cells, biosensors, or bioreactors. Scientists of Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have created the…

  • Mats made from nanofibers linked to a red wine chemical could help prevent oxidation

    Mats made from nanofibers linked to a red wine chemical could help prevent oxidation

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    Fig 1. New mesh-like mats created by Texas A&M researchers are strong, stable and deliver antioxidant activity for prolonged periods of time. Spoiling foods, souring wine and worsening wounds have a common culprit—a process called oxidation. Although the ill effects of these chemical reactions can be curtailed by antioxidants, creating a sturdy platform capable of…

  • Heating poppy seeds, but not baking them in muffins, reduce opiate levels

    Heating poppy seeds, but not baking them in muffins, reduce opiate levels

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    Fig 1. Opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) You might have heard the advice to avoid eating a poppy seed bagel or muffin before a drug screen, lest you test positive for opiates. This urban legend is rooted in truth because the tiny black seeds contain small amounts of morphine and codeine that can show up in…

  • Could blockchain technology be used to protect researchers working together in a pandemic?

    Could blockchain technology be used to protect researchers working together in a pandemic?

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    Fig 1. Simplified visualization of elements in a possible outbreak R&D blockchain infrastructure (ORBI), with numbers and connectors indicating how sharing between a data provider and user, could be coordinated. A small team of researchers from Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, the Triall Foundatio, the Netherlands National Institute for Public Health and the Environment and FutureLab has…

  • Lipid metabolism controls brain development

    Lipid metabolism controls brain development

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    Fig 1. With cerebral organoids produced by human embryonic stem cells, the early development of the human brain was investigated. The organ-like cell cultures consist of neural stem cells (green), progenitor cells (red) and nerve cells (white). Neural stem cells are not only responsible for early brain development—they remain active for an entire lifetime. They…