Friday, March 10, 2023

New asteroid heading for Earth, Bruce Willis's dementia explained, telescopes on the moon

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March 09, 2023

Planetary Science

Newfound Asteroid May Strike Earth in 2046, NASA Says

Preliminary estimates suggest that a 50-meter space rock called 2023 DW has a roughly one-in-600 chance of colliding with our planet in 23 years

By Brandon Specktor,LiveScience

Neurology

Understanding Frontotemporal Dementia, the Leading Cause of Dementia in People under Age 60

There is no cure for FTD, the disease that actor Bruce Willis was recently diagnosed with, but new research suggests some future therapies

By Diana Kwon

Astronomy

Are Telescopes on the Moon Doomed?

Booming exploration and commercial activity could ruin the quiet, astronomy-friendly environment of the lunar far side

By Davide Castelvecchi,Nature magazine

Oceans

A Historic Deal to Protect the High Seas Makes Researchers 'Ecstatic'

The historic High Seas Treaty aims to preserve marine biodiversity in what has been considered the "Wild West" of the oceans while still encouraging research

By Nicola Jones,Nature magazine

Epidemiology

Vaccine Makers Are Preparing for Bird Flu

Although most experts say bird flu is not an immediate threat to humans, efforts are underway to produce vaccines for H5N1 or another potential pandemic virus

By Hannah Docter-Loeb

Conservation

Pablo Escobar's 'Cocaine Hippos' Spark Conservation Fight

Researchers worry the Colombian environmental ministry will side with animal-rights activists rather than curb the spread of invasive hippos once kept by drug-cartel leader Pablo Escobar

By Emiliano Rodríguez Mega,Nature magazine

Artificial Intelligence

These Researchers Used AI to Design a Completely New 'Animal Robot'

"Xenobots" are living, swimming self-powered robots that measure less than a millimeter across. They are evolved by artificial intelligence and built out of frog stem cells—and they could open new medical frontiers.

By Luke Groskin

Climate Change

Old Bomber Plane Will Sniff the Sky for Geoengineering Particles

NOAA will use a converted Air Force bomber to search the upper atmosphere for substances that could help the U.S. reflect sunlight away from Earth

By John Fialka,E&E News
FROM THE STORE

Human Migration: How We Populated the Planet

Millennia ago, early humans walked out of Africa and spread across the world in a way that few other species have. In this eBook, we examine how and why this happened, tracing insights from genome analyses as well as studies of footprints, tools, cave art and oral histories. We also look at the forces driving current human migration and where our journey might take us in the future.

Buy Now
FROM THE ARCHIVE

The Asteroid Blast That Shook the World Is Still Making an Impact

The Chelyabinsk asteroid slammed into Earth's atmosphere 10 years ago, the largest impact in more than a century

WHAT WE'RE READING

Watch: The Troubled History of BMI, the Body Mass Index

Despite the ubiquity of the BMI in medicine, many argue that it is a flawed tool, with a strange history

By Hyacinth Empinado | STAT | Mar. 9, 2023

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Scientist Pankaj

Day in Review: NASA’s EMIT Will Explore Diverse Science Questions on Extended Mission

The imaging spectrometer measures the colors of light reflected from Earth's surface to study fields such as agriculture ...  Mis...