An a-maize-ing set of genomes, a durable way to keep cool, and how squirrels learn to leap and land without falling.
— Science Magazine (@ScienceMagazine) August 5, 2021
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Category Archives: Science
Front Cover Views: New Scientist Magazine – Aug 7
EDITOR’S PICK
Samir Shaheen-Hussain interview: Doctors left children to suffer
Discoveries of mass graves of Indigenous children in Canada have prompted new scrutiny of the residential school system – including the role physicians played in unethical experiments, says paediatrician Samir Shaheen-Hussain
How the fossil fuel era ends – and four possibilities for what follows
Killing fossil fuels to halt global warming is the greatest challenge we face. We now have a masterplan of what we must do when – and there’s no time to delay
Fatih Birol interview: Using energy isn’t evil – creating emissions is
People think using more energy is a bad thing, says International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol – but as long as we can make it cleanly, it needn’t be
How we can transform our energy system to achieve net-zero emissions
Killing fossil fuels to halt global warming is the greatest challenge we face. We now have a masterplan of what we must do when – and there’s no time to delay
Science: Flood Risks In High Population Areas, Selfishness, Democracy
Satellite imaging has shown population increases are 10x higher in flood prone areas than previously thought, and a new way to introduce fairness into a democratic process.
In this episode:
00:47 Calculating how many people are at risk of floods.
Researchers have used satellite imagery to estimate the number of people living in flood-prone regions. They suggest that the percentage of people exposed to floods has increased 10 times more than previously thought, and with climate change that number is only set to climb.
Research Article: Tellman et al.
News and Views: The fraction of the global population at risk of floods is growing
09:41 Research Highlights
People are happy to be selfish towards a crowd, but generous to an individual; and how wildfire smoke affects clouds’ brightness.
Research Highlight: ‘Robber’ experiment tests generosity — with sobering results
Research Highlight: Wildfire smoke creates brighter clouds — and weather changes
12:01 Making democracy fairer
Citizens’ assemblies are small groups of people invited to come together to help inform and affect policy decisions. But deciding who is in these groups is a mathematical challenge — the process needs to be random, but still reflect social demographics. This week, researchers describe a new algorithm that could offer a solution.
Research article: Flanigan et al.
News and Views: A bridge across the democracy–expertise divide
20:04 Briefing Chat
We discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, how ships could spread a deadly coral disease, and research shows that female scientists are less likely to be cited in elite medical journals.
The Guardian: Deadly coral disease sweeping Caribbean linked to water from ships
Nature News: Fewer citations for female authors of medical research
Seabirds: Scientists Save Black-Footed Albatross From Rising Sea Levels
Most black-footed albatross nest on sandy beaches in Hawaii—but rising sea levels threaten their eggs and chicks. Researchers in Mexico and the United States came up with a way to save these birds: having young albatross hatch and imprint on an island 6000 kilometers away with higher ground. Watch to see the journey of these black-footed albatross. Read the story: https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2021/…
Climate: What Is ‘Net Zero’?
More than 50 countries around the world have pledged to become net zero. But what does net zero actually mean—and is it achievable?
Medicine: Understanding ‘Long Covid’ Syndrome
Neuroscience: Ardem Patapoutian On Human Sense Of Touch (Podcast)
Science: Metabolic Health Markers & Obesity, Type 1 Diabetes, “Bone Rooms”
First this week, Staff Writer Jennifer Couzin-Frankel joins host Sarah Crespi to discuss the paradox of metabolically healthy obesity. They chat about the latest research into the relationships between markers of metabolic health—such as glucose or cholesterol levels in the blood—and obesity. They aren’t as tied as you might think.
Next, Colin Dayan, professor of clinical diabetes and metabolism at Cardiff University and senior clinical researcher at the Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics at the University of Oxford, joins Sarah to discuss his contribution to a special issue on type 1 diabetes. In his review, Colin and colleagues lay out research into how type 1 diabetes can be detected early, delayed, and maybe even one day prevented. Finally, in the first of a six-patrt series of book interviews on race and science, guest host Angela Saini talks with author and professor of history at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Samuel Redman, about his book Bone Rooms: From Scientific Racism to Human Prehistory in Museums. The two discuss the legacy of human bone collecting and racism in museums today.
Top Journals: Science Magazine – July 30, 2021
Science: 890 Million-Year-Old Sponge, Caffeinated Bees, Greenland Glaciers
Researchers debate whether an ancient fossil is the oldest animal yet discovered, and a new way to eavesdrop on glaciers.
In this episode:
01:04 Early sponge
This week in Nature, a researcher claims to have found a fossil sponge from 890-million-years-ago. If confirmed, this would be more than 300-million-years older than the earliest uncontested animal fossils but not all palaeontologists are convinced.
Research Article: Turner
10:13 Research Highlights
A caffeine buzz appears to improve bees’ memory, and reconstructing an Iron Age man’s final meal.
Research Highlight: A caffeine buzz gives bees flower power
Research Highlight: The guts of a ‘bog body’ reveal sacrificed man’s final meal
12:34 Eavesdropping on a glacier’s base
We hear about one researcher’s unorthodox attempt to listen in to the seismic-whisper at the foot of a Greenland glacier – a method that might reveal more about conditions under these enormous blocks of ice.
Research Article: Podolskiy et al.
