Oumuamua Was a Comet After All, a Study Suggests

Astronomers offer “a surprisingly simple explanation” for the curious behavior of the interstellar visitor in 2017.

#asteroids, #comets, #ice, #nature-journal, #solar-system, #space-and-astronomy, #university-of-california-berkeley, #your-feed-science

Report of Wuhan Market Samples Found Covid and Raccoon Dog Genetic Material

In a much-anticipated study, experts described a swab that was positive for the coronavirus and contained loads of genetic material from raccoon dogs.

#animals, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #coronavirus-risks-and-safety-concerns, #genetics-and-heredity, #raccoon-dogs, #science-and-technology, #viruses, #wildlife-trade-and-poaching, #your-feed-science

‘We Were Helpless’: Despair at the CDC as the Covid Pandemic Erupted

Current and former employees recall rising desperation as Trump administration officials squelched research into the new coronavirus.

#atlanta-ga, #centers-for-disease-control-and-prevention, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #coronavirus-risks-and-safety-concerns, #disease-rates, #epidemic-intelligence-service, #epidemics, #masks, #protective-clothing-and-gear, #science-and-technology, #travel-warnings, #united-states, #united-states-politics-and-government, #viruses, #your-feed-science

Lab Leak or Not? How Politics Shaped the Battle Over Covid’s Origin

A lab leak was once dismissed by many as a conspiracy theory. But the idea is gaining traction, even as evidence builds that the virus emerged from a market.

#coronavirus-2019-ncov, #laboratories-and-scientific-equipment, #science-and-technology, #united-states-politics-and-government, #viruses, #wuhan-institute-of-virology-china, #your-feed-science

What Are Raccoon Dogs?

The monogamous, hibernating canids, which are related to foxes, are sold for meat and fur.

#agriculture-and-farming, #animals, #china, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #raccoon-dogs, #sars-severe-acute-respiratory-syndrome, #viruses, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Facing Extinction, but Available for Selfies in Japan’s Animal Cafes

Critically endangered species and ones banned from international trade are among the hundreds of types birds, reptiles and mammals that researchers identified at 142 animal cafes.

#animal-abuse-rights-and-welfare, #breeding-of-animals, #conservation-science-and-practice-journal, #endangered-and-extinct-species, #japan, #regulation-and-deregulation-of-industry, #research, #restaurants, #wildlife-trade-and-poaching, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

Black Widows Are Losing to Brown Widows in the Fight for Your Attic and Garage

The arachnids, which likely migrated to the United States from South Africa, seem to be attacking black widow spiders in some parts of the country.

#animal-behavior, #annals-of-the-entomological-society-of-america-journal, #internal-open-access, #research, #south-africa, #southern-states-us, #spiders, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

New Data Links Pandemic’s Origins to Raccoon Dogs at Wuhan Market

Genetic samples from the market were recently uploaded to an international database and then removed after scientists asked China about them.

#animals, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #dna-deoxyribonucleic-acid, #raccoon-dog-animal, #research, #wildlife-trade-and-poaching, #wuhan-china, #your-feed-science

Covid Worsened a Health Crisis Among Pregnant Women

In 2021, deaths of pregnant women soared by 40 percent in the United States, according to new government figures. Here’s how one family coped after the virus threatened a pregnant mother.

#babies-and-infants, #birth-rates, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #coronavirus-delta-variant, #coronavirus-risks-and-safety-concerns, #deaths-fatalities, #disease-rates, #indiana, #maternal-mortality, #national-center-for-health-statistics, #pregnancy-and-childbirth, #premature-babies, #united-states, #vaccination-and-immunization, #women-and-girls, #your-feed-science

Pregnancy and Covid: What Women Need to Know

A pregnant woman is more likely to develop serious Covid-19 and to die of it. Several factors amplify the risks.

#content-type-service, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #coronavirus-risks-and-safety-concerns, #deaths-fatalities, #maternal-mortality, #pregnancy-and-childbirth, #respiratory-diseases, #vaccination-and-immunization, #women-and-girls, #your-feed-science

Scientists Investigate a Bird Flu Outbreak in Seals

Wild birds passed the virus to seals in New England at least twice last summer, a new study suggests.

#animals, #avian-influenza, #birds, #maine, #mammals, #new-england-states-us, #north-america, #seals-animals-and-sealing, #viruses, #wildlife-die-offs, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Guidelines Warn Against Racial Categories in Genetic Research

A new report from the National Academies of Science noted that race was a poor proxy for genetic diversity.

#dna-deoxyribonucleic-acid, #genetics-and-heredity, #national-academies-of-the-united-states, #national-human-genome-research-institute, #national-institutes-of-health, #research, #science-and-technology, #your-feed-science

At Long Last, a Donkey Family Tree

In a new study, genetics and archaeology combine to reveal the ancient origins of humanity’s first beast of burden.

#agriculture-and-farming, #animals, #archaeology-and-anthropology, #dna-deoxyribonucleic-acid, #donkeys, #egypt, #genetics-and-heredity, #horn-of-africa, #horses, #internal-open-access, #sahara-desert, #science-journal, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

Killer Candy Striper Spiders Prowl Before the Sun Rises

A study of candy-striped spiders feasting on sleeping insects suggests there are many surprising arachnid behaviors still waiting to be discovered.

#animal-behavior, #insects, #research, #spiders, #wasps-insects, #your-feed-science

FDA Will Require Dense Breast Disclosure at Mammogram Clinics

The U.S. agency wants to ensure that doctors inform women that some breast anomalies require more examination.

#breast-cancer, #food-and-drug-administration, #mammography, #regulation-and-deregulation-of-industry, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-healthcare, #your-feed-science

These Morning-After Pills May Prevent STI’s, Researchers Say

Taking a common antibiotic after sex greatly reduces the chances of developing syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhea among men who have sex with men and among trans women.

#antibiotics, #bacteria, #chlamydia, #drug-resistance-microbial, #gonorrhea, #infections, #preventive-medicine, #sex, #sexually-transmitted-diseases, #syphilis, #your-feed-science

New Room-Temperature Superconductor Discovered by Scientists

After a 2020 paper by Ranga Dias and colleagues was retracted, the physicist and his team are back with a bolder finding.

#american-physical-society, #electric-light-and-power, #energy-efficiency, #ethics-and-official-misconduct, #hydrogen, #nature-journal, #physics, #research, #superconductors, #university-of-rochester, #your-feed-science

Could the Next Blockbuster Drug Be Lab-Rat Free?

Alternatives to animal testing are gaining momentum.

#animal-abuse-rights-and-welfare, #animals, #drugs-pharmaceuticals, #food-and-drug-administration, #laboratories-and-scientific-equipment, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

The Missing 24-Limbed Animals That Could Help Rescue the Ocean’s Forest

Scientists say that reintroducing the fast-moving predators to the West Coast could help control the spread of sea urchins that are devouring kelp.

#california, #conservation-of-resources, #fish-and-other-marine-life, #oregon, #pacific-ocean, #proceedings-of-the-royal-society-b-journal, #research, #san-juan-islands-wash, #seaweed, #starfish, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

New Treatment Could Help Fix the Heart’s ‘Forgotten Valve’

Patients with leaking tricuspid valves in a research trial saw improvements with a procedure that does not require a risky open-heart surgery.

#abbott-laboratories, #american-college-of-cardiology, #clinical-trials, #edwards-lifesciences-corporation, #heart, #medical-devices, #new-england-journal-of-medicine, #research, #surgery-and-surgeons, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Walgreens Says It Won’t Offer the Abortion Pill Mifepristone in Conservative States

The decision applies to 21 states whose attorneys general threatened Walgreens and other pharmacies with legal action if they dispensed the pill there.

#abortion, #abortion-drugs, #cvs-caremark-corporation, #drugs-pharmaceuticals, #drugstores, #mifeprex-ru-486, #states-us, #walgreen-co, #your-feed-science

In Chernobyl’s Stray Dogs, Geneticists Find Nuclear Families

A new study is the first step in an effort to understand how exposure to chronic, low-level radiation has affected the area’s dogs.

#animals, #chernobyl-ukraine, #dna-deoxyribonucleic-acid, #dogs, #genetics-and-heredity, #mousseau-timothy-a, #radiation, #ukraine, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Who’s Using Vocal Fry in the Ocean? Dolphins and Whaaaaales.

Be right back, diving for a giant squiiiiiid.

#anatomy-and-physiology, #dolphins-and-porpoises, #research, #science-journal, #voice-and-speech, #whales-and-whaling, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

Premature Births Fell During Some Covid Lockdowns, Study Finds

Nearly 50,000 preterm births may have been averted across a group of mostly high-income countries in one month alone.

#coronavirus-2019-ncov, #coronavirus-risks-and-safety-concerns, #nature-medicine-journal, #pregnancy-and-childbirth, #premature-babies, #research, #your-feed-healthcare, #your-feed-science

Opioid Distributors Cleared of Liability to Georgia Families Ravaged by Addiction

The case illustrates the enormous challenges that victims of the opioid crisis have had in getting compensation from the pharmaceutical industry, despite its pledge of billions of dollars to state and local governments.

#cardinal-health-inc, #decisions-and-verdicts, #drug-abuse-and-traffic, #drugs-pharmaceuticals, #georgia, #mckesson-corporation, #opioids-and-opiates, #suits-and-litigation-civil, #your-feed-science

Is There an Ethical Way to Kill Rats?

Welcome to the rat trapper’s dilemma.

#animal-behavior, #animal-cognition, #animals, #cognition-journal, #culver-city-calif, #internal-sub-only, #munshi-south-jason, #new-york-city, #rats, #rodents, #society-for-the-prevention-of-cruelty-to-animals, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Rural Hospitals Are Shuttering Their Maternity Units

Citing costs, many hospitals are closing labor and delivery wards, expanding so-called maternity care deserts.

#babies-and-infants, #birth-rates, #discrimination, #finances, #hospitals, #insurance, #maternal-mortality, #medicaid, #minorities, #miscarriages, #native-americans, #nursing-and-nurses, #parenting, #poverty, #pregnancy-and-childbirth, #rural-areas, #washington-state, #women-and-girls, #yakama-indian-reservation-wash, #yakima-wash, #yakima-river-valley-wash, #your-feed-science

Take Water. Add Sodium Chloride. Chill and Squeeze Into Salty Ices.

The lab-created compounds — never seen before — might exist naturally on icy moons in the outer solar system.

#ice, #national-academy-of-sciences, #oceans-and-seas, #research, #salt, #solar-system, #space-and-astronomy, #water, #your-feed-science

After Long Delay, Moderna Pays N.I.H. for Covid Vaccine Technique

Moderna has paid $400 million to the government for a chemical technique key to its vaccine. But the parties are still locked in a high-stakes dispute over a different patent.

#colleges-and-universities, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #dartmouth-college, #drugs-pharmaceuticals, #moderna-inc, #national-institutes-of-health, #research, #royalties, #science-and-technology, #vaccination-and-immunization, #your-feed-science

Global Declines in Maternal Mortality Have Stalled

Death rates in the United States have increased in recent years, as they have in Europe, the W.H.O. reported.

#abortion, #australia, #birth-rates, #black-people, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #deaths-fatalities, #developing-countries, #europe, #far-east-south-and-southeast-asia-and-pacific-areas, #maternal-mortality, #native-americans, #new-zealand, #north-america, #pregnancy-and-childbirth, #south-asia, #world-health-organization, #your-feed-science

We Regret the Fossil Error. It Wasn’t the First.

A recent announcement that a fossil discovery in India was just residue from a bee’s nest was a reminder of the importance of science correcting itself.

#canada, #dinosaurs, #fossils, #india, #mars-planet, #paleontology, #research, #rumors-and-misinformation, #space-and-astronomy, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

Cocaine Bear, Meet Cannabis Raccoon and McFlurry Skunk

Wild animals eat the strangest things. That can be a problem, for them and for us.

#animal-behavior, #animals, #bears, #birds, #cocaine-and-crack-cocaine, #cocaine-bear-movie, #drug-abuse-and-traffic, #fish-and-other-marine-life, #marijuana, #skunks, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

Helping Stroke Patients Regain Movement in their Hands

The results of an innovative study suggest electrical stimulation of the spinal cord could eventually help some of the many people disabled by strokes.

#paralysis, #research, #stroke, #therapy-and-rehabilitation, #your-feed-healthcare, #your-feed-science

Genetically Modified Trees Planted in U.S. Forest for First Time

Living Carbon, a biotechnology company, hopes its seedlings can help manage climate change. But wider use of its trees may be elusive.

#genetic-engineering, #genetically-modified-food-gmos, #global-warming, #living-carbon-pbc, #research, #trees-and-shrubs, #venture-capital, #your-feed-science

Narcan Is Safe to Sell Over the Counter, Advisers to the FDA Conclude

The overdose reversal drug has been administered mostly by emergency responders and outreach workers. If the agency approves a nonprescription version, it could become as easily available as aspirin.

#drug-abuse-and-traffic, #drugs-pharmaceuticals, #drugstores, #emergent-biosolutions-inc, #food-and-drug-administration, #naloxone-drug, #opioids-and-opiates, #united-states-politics-and-government, #your-feed-healthcare, #your-feed-science

A Link Between Hearing Voices and Hearing Your Own Voice

An experiment with bone-conduction headphones suggests a way for neuroscientists to better understand some hallucinations.

#audio-recordings-downloads-and-streaming, #brain, #hallucinations, #headphones-and-headsets, #mental-health-and-disorders, #research, #royal-society-open-science-journal, #voice-and-speech, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

After U.S. Downs UFOs, More Awareness of Balloons All Over Our Skies

As more unidentified objects were shot down by the U.S. Air Force in recent days, experts warned that there were an “endless” array of potential targets.

#alaska, #aviation-accidents-safety-and-disasters, #balloons-aeronautics, #china, #lake-huron, #united-states-defense-and-military-forces, #weather, #your-feed-science, #yukon-territory

Cockatoos Know How to Pick the Right Tools for the Job

The job, in these experiments, was getting a cashew out of a puzzle box.

#animal-behavior, #animal-cognition, #current-biology-journal, #parrots, #research, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

The Biggest Penguin That Ever Existed Was a ‘Monster Bird’

Fossils found in New Zealand highlight an era after the dinosaurs when giant flightless birds prowled the seas for prey.

#endangered-and-extinct-species, #fossils, #journal-of-paleontology, #new-zealand, #paleontology, #penguins, #research, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

Bird Flu Outbreak Puts Mink Farms Back in the Spotlight

A new variant of avian influenza appears capable of spreading among mammals, highlighting the need for more proactive surveillance, experts said.

#agriculture-and-farming, #animals, #avian-influenza, #centers-for-disease-control-and-prevention, #minks-animals, #netherlands, #spain, #utah, #viruses, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Neanderthal Crab Roast Leftovers Are Found in a Portuguese Cave

Researchers said the paleontological remains were another sign that our early human cousins had intelligence.

#archaeology-and-anthropology, #caves-and-caverns, #crabs, #neanderthal-man, #portugal, #research, #your-feed-science

New Form of Ice Discovered Unexpectedly During Experiment

The research illustrates how much scientists still have to learn about a molecule as simple as water.

#europa-moon-of-jupiter, #ice, #physics, #research, #science-journal, #space-and-astronomy, #water, #your-feed-science

These Extinct Elephants Were Neanderthals’ ‘Biggest Calorie Bombs’

A study of butchered bones from 125,000 years ago offers what researchers call “the first clear-cut evidence of elephant-hunting in human evolution.”

#animals, #archaeology-and-anthropology, #bones, #elephants, #endangered-and-extinct-species, #europe, #germany, #hunting-and-trapping, #mammoths-animals, #neanderthal-man, #paleontology, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-science

To Prevent Cancer, More Women Should Consider Removing Fallopian Tubes, Experts Say

A top research group is urging even women without genetic risks to have their fallopian tubes removed under certain circumstances.

#cancer, #genetics-and-heredity, #ovarian-cancer, #preventive-medicine, #research, #surgery-and-surgeons, #women-and-girls, #your-feed-science

The Navy’s Dolphins Have a Few Things to Tell Us About Aging

In her youth, Blue was a standout mine-hunter for the U.S. military. She and her colleagues are now at the vanguard of geriatric marine mammal medicine.

#age-chronological, #animal-abuse-rights-and-welfare, #dolphins-and-porpoises, #internal-sub-only, #national-marine-mammal-foundation, #research, #san-diego-calif, #united-states-defense-and-military-forces, #united-states-navy, #veterinary-medicine, #your-feed-animals, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Eight Thousand Years of Bog Bodies Reveal a Grim Burial Tradition

The first comprehensive survey of a 7,000-year-old burial tradition reveals an often violent final ritual.

#antiquity-journal, #archaeology-and-anthropology, #cadavers, #england, #ireland, #mummies-and-mummification, #peat, #skeletons, #wetlands, #your-feed-science

Students Lost One-Third of a School Year to Pandemic, Study Finds

Learning delays and regressions were most severe in developing countries and among children from low-income backgrounds. And students still haven’t caught up.

#children-and-childhood, #coronavirus-2019-ncov, #education-k-12, #environmental-sciencetechnology-journal, #epidemics, #harvard-university, #income-inequality, #institut-detudes-politiques-de-paris, #nature-journal, #poverty, #shutdowns-institutional, #third-world-and-developing-countries, #your-feed-health, #your-feed-science

Expert Panel Votes for Stricter Rules on Risky Virus Research

The White House will decide whether to adopt the panel’s recommendations on so-called gain of function experiments.

#coronavirus-2019-ncov, #national-science-advisory-board-for-biosecurity, #regulation-and-deregulation-of-industry, #research, #security-and-warning-systems, #united-states-politics-and-government, #viruses, #your-feed-science

How Rare Island Bunnies Do a Parasitic Plant’s Bidding

The world’s only wild black-furred rabbit has a very important job — distributing seeds for a parasitic plant.

#amami-oshima-japan, #animal-behavior, #balanophora-yuwanensis, #ecology-journal, #endangered-and-extinct-species, #flowers-and-plants, #forests-and-forestry, #fruit, #oshima-island-japan, #pentalagus-furnessi, #rabbits, #tokunoshima-island-japan, #your-feed-science

Ukraine’s Scientists Receive a Funding Lifeline From Abroad

The Simons Foundation in New York is providing annual grants to the country’s chemists, biologists, physicists and mathematicians.

#grants-corporate-and-foundation, #philanthropy, #physics, #research, #russian-invasion-of-ukraine-2022, #science-and-technology, #simons-foundation, #ukraine, #your-feed-science