Science X Newsletter.

"Spotlight Stories:  Today's Top Science-Technology News."

Views expressed in this science and technology update are those of the reporters and correspondents.  Accessed on 03 April 2024, 1247 UTC.

Content and Source:  https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?tab=rm&ogbl#inbox/FMfcgzGxSblBKvrddRchldvCvSflbVjr/Science X Newsletter.

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Russ Roberts (https://hawaiisciencejournal.blogspot.com).

Spotlight Stories Headlines

Spain's giant hail event worsened by marine heat waves, study finds

Astronomers find 10 new millisecond pulsars in globular cluster Terzan 5

Study unveils a new family of quantum anomalous Hall insulators

Exploring the factors that influence people's ability to detect lies online

100 kilometers of quantum-encrypted transfer

'Zombie neurons' shed light on how the brain learns

New research reveals that chickens were widely raised across southern Central Asia from 400 BCE

Scientists link certain gut bacteria to lower heart disease risk

Gene analysis generates spatial map of intestinal cells and traces their trajectories during gut inflammation

Infant gut microbes have their own circadian rhythm: Study finds diet has little impact on how the microbiome assembles

Wound treatment hydrogel infused with amino acid kills bacteria naturally and promotes cell growth

World's most powerful MRI scans first images of human brain

Study finds triple-negative breast cancer tumors with increased immune cells have lower risk of recurrence after surgery

Study finds AI empowers patients before and after seeing physicians for radiation oncology treatment

New insights into how tumors on adrenal glands develop

Earth news

Spain's giant hail event worsened by marine heat waves, study finds

Hail is a semi-frequent visitor to winter, and occasionally summer, seasons across the globe and tends to pass by in a short but sharp downpour that can often be overlooked. However, sometimes these meteorological phenomena are hard to ignore. This was the case on 30 August 2022, when Gerona, north-eastern Spain, experienced a severe event in which individual hailstones reached a massive 12cm—the largest ever documented in the country. This led to serious damage to buildings, cars and agricultural areas, as well as 67 injuries and one fatality.

A new estimate of US soil organic carbon to improve Earth system models

Soil contains about twice as much carbon as the atmosphere and plants combined. It is a major carbon sink, capable of absorbing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it releases. Management of soil carbon is key in efforts to mitigate climate change, in addition to being vital to soil health and agricultural productivity.

Sediment discovery unlocks Australia's hidden net-zero resource potential

A new method of measuring sediment thickness across Australia's interior offers a cost-effective and straightforward solution for estimating seismic hazard and resource potential while reducing carbon footprint, according to the largest study of its kind from The Australian National University (ANU), published in the Geophysical Journal International.

Australia on track for unprecedented decades-long megadroughts, finds modeling study

Australia could soon see megadroughts that last for more than 20 years, according to new modeling from The Australian National University (ANU) and the ARC Center of Excellence for Climate Extremes.

Why we need to rethink what we know about dust

You may think of dust as an annoyance to be vacuumed and disposed of, but actually, on a grander scale, it is far more important than most people realize. Globally, dust plays a critical role in regulating our climate, radiation balance, nutrient cycles, soil formation, air quality and even human health.

Ocean forests: How 'floating' mangroves could provide a broad range of ecological and social benefits

The 2022 report "The State of the World's Mangroves" estimates that since 1996, 5,245 square kilometers of mangroves have been lost due to human activities such as agriculture, logging, tourism development, coastal aquaculture and climate change, and that only 147,000 km2 remain. It is a well-known fact that mangrove forests are among the most productive marine ecosystems in the world, located at the very start of the marine food web (the productivity of biomass by plants is called primary productivity). They serve as a natural nursery for fish and also provide protection against coastal erosion.

South Australian coastal dunes are on the march

Coastal transgressive dunefields are on the march in South Australia—retreating inland from an angry ocean at an alarming rate. Yet while this occurs in plain sight, communities are largely oblivious to long-term coastal changes, and Flinders University's Professor Patrick Hesp, strategic professor of coastal studies at Flinders University's College of Science and Engineering, is concerned this is all happening in a geological blink of the eye.

From data to decisions: AI and IoT for earthquake prediction

The study of earthquakes remains a main interest worldwide as it is one of the least predictable natural disasters. In a new review published in Artificial Intelligence in Geosciences, a team of researchers from France and Turkey explored the role of conventional tools like seismometers and GPS in understanding earthquakes and their aftermath.

Scientists' urgent call: End destruction and forge a just, sustainable future

An international team of scientists has published a study in PNAS Nexus, emphasizing the urgent need to align political will, economic resources, and societal values to ensure a more sustainable and equitable world. Led by University of Hawai'i at Mānoa researchers, the 18 authors combine their expertise in Earth and ocean sciences, politics, law, public health, renewable energy, geography, communications, and ethnic studies to assess causes, impacts, and solutions to a multitude of worldwide crises.

Hundreds of Philippine schools suspend classes over heat danger

Hundreds of schools in the Philippines, including dozens in the capital Manila, suspended in-person classes on Tuesday due to dangerous levels of heat, education officials said.