Новости за 21.01.2021

Ed Cara, Gizmodo

A common treatment for chronic back pain may not provide much soothing after all. A new review released Wednesday suggests that antidepressants on average provide little to no back pain relief, though they could have a modest benefit for osteoarthritis and sciatica.

Zoe Cormier, Sci American

Six months ago, as the northern hemisphere was still battling the coronavirus pandemic's first wave, all eyes turned to the COVID-19 vaccines in late-stage clinical trials. Now, a year after the pandemic first erupted, three COVID vaccines have been given emergency authorization by either the U.S. or U.K., as well as other countries.

Harry Baker, Live Science

Around 3 billion years ago, Earth's crust ballooned during a massive growth spurt, geoscientists have found.

John Timmer, Ars Technica

For applications like robotics, there's usually a clear division of labor between the processors that control the robot's body and the actuators that actually control the physical changes of that body. But a new paper being released today blurs the lines between the two, using a magnetic switch in a way that both stores a bit representing the hardware's state and alters the physical conformation of the hardware.

Caitlyn Buongiorno, Astronomy

Mars is a harsh world compared to Earth — and even robots struggle to thrive there. One such example is the small heat probe that recently ventured to the Red Planet with NASA's InSight lander. The probe, appropriately dubbed the ‘mole,' was designed to burrow 16 feet (5 meters) into the martian surface, where it would then collect unprecedented data on the planet's internal temperature.

Tracie White, TS

About 10 years ago, Stanford University genomicist Ronald W. Davis began a new investigation into a mysterious disease that had disabled his son, Whitney Dafoe. A photographer and avid traveller in his 20s, Dafoe could no longer care for himself. He slowly lost the ability to eat and eventually even to speak.

Viviane Callier, Quanta

More than a decade ago, plant geneticists noticed something peculiar when they looked at grafted plants. Where two plants grew together, the cells of each plant showed signs of having picked up substantial amounts of DNA from the other one.

Helen Santoro, Knowable Magazine

On a crisp September day, Zoe Aldrich walked onto a rugby pitch on a college campus in upstate New York. With her teammates surrounding her, she got ready for the kickoff and the pitch became a blur of colored jerseys. A teammate passed Aldrich the ball and she started running, but an opposing player tackled her to the ground.

Steve Miller, RealClearInvestigations

On Interstate 59, a neon billboard used by the Alabama Department of Public Health advises motorists to get their flu and pneumonia vaccines. Placards placed atop gas pumps around the state also promote the flu vaccine.

Patricia Fara, iai

What counts as natural - an ambiguous and multi-faceted term - depends on cultural convictions. According to the Aristotelian texts Isaac Newton was obliged to study at Cambridge, the divine perfection of celestial motion contrasts starkly with terrestrial confusion, which allows apples to fall downwards because they have a natural tendency to do so.

Ross Pomeroy, RCS

In October, Tulare City School District in California announced it would spend more than $400,000 to install needlepoint bipolar ionization technology into the ventilation systems of its 15 schools. Gloucester County Schools in Virginia completed a similar undertaking in all of its buildings in December.

Amelia Nichele, Cosmos Magazine

From cowrie shells to native resources and animals, currency in some shape or form has long been a part of human history.

Northwestern University

A new Northwestern University study reaffirms the importance of getting a good night's sleep.

Stanford University

Suppose Smokey Bear were to lose it and start setting forest fires instead of putting them out. That roughly describes the behavior of certain cells of our immune system that become increasingly irascible as we grow older. Instead of stamping out embers, they stoke the flames of chronic inflammation.

ACS

Renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power, could help decrease the world's reliance on fossil fuels. But first, power companies need a safe, cost-effective way to store the energy for later use. Massive lithium-ion batteries can do the job, but they suffer from safety issues and limited lithium availability.

University of Bristol

With over 3,500 described species, light-producing beetles are the most diverse bioluminescent terrestrial animals. Fireflies, fire beetles, glow-worm beetles and their kin use light to ward off predators, attract mates, and some females even use it to attract unsuspecting males to eat. Historically, despite their diversity, the evolution of bioluminescence in beetles has been poorly understood.