scientificinquirer-blog
scientificinquirer-blog
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 1 day ago
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The meditation app revolution is here, and it’s backed by science
Do you have a meditation app on your smartphone, computer or wearable device? Well, you’re not alone. There are now thousands of meditation apps available worldwide, the top 10 of which have been collectively downloaded more than 300 million times. What’s more, early work on these digital meditation platforms shows that even relatively brief usage can lead to benefits, from reduced depression,…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 1 day ago
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How immune cells switch into attack mode
Fighting off pathogens is a tour de force that must happen with speed and precision. A team of researchers at CeMM and MedUni Vienna led by Christoph Bock and Matthias Farlik has investigated how macrophages—immune cells that are the body’s first responders—master this challenge. Their study, published in Cell Systems (DOI: 10.1016/j.cels.2025.101346), offers a time-resolved analysis of the…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 1 day ago
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The Big Picture: Rivers of Fire - Columnar Basalt at Jaujac, Ardèche, France
Basalt columns near Jaujac in Ardèche, France—an exposed lava flow showing dramatic hexagonal jointing formed as molten rock cooled and contracted. (CREDIT: Herbythyme) When a thick basaltic lava flow cools uniformly and slowly, physical stresses cause it to crack into regular, often hexagonal columns—a process known as columnar jointing. The basalt cliffs visible here near Jaujac in Ardèche,…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 1 day ago
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DAILY DOSE: NASA races to plant a 100-kW nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030; DeepMind unveils “Genie 3” AI that renders interactive simulations.
NASA races to plant a 100-kW nuclear reactor on the Moon by 2030 A directive from NASA’s interim administrator Sean Duffy orders development of a fission surface-power system to safeguard U.S. interests at the lunar south pole. The 100-kilowatt reactor—about enough juice for 80 U.S. homes—would eclipse the watt-level radioisotope generators used on probes and enable permanent Artemis bases, ISRU…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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An interstellar mission to a black hole? Astrophysicist thinks it’s possible.
It sounds like science fiction: a spacecraft, no heavier than a paperclip, propelled by a laser beam and hurtling through space at the speed of light toward a black hole, on a mission to probe the very fabric of space and time and test the laws of physics. But to astrophysicist and black hole expert Cosimo Bambi, the idea is not so far-fetched.    Reporting in the Cell Press journal iScience,…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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With just a few messages, biased AI chatbots swayed people’s political views
If you’ve interacted with an artificial intelligence chatbot, you’ve likely realized that all AI models are biased. They were trained on enormous corpuses of unruly data and refined through human instructions and testing. Bias can seep in anywhere. Yet how a system’s biases can affect users is less clear. So a University of Washington study put it to the test. A team of researchers recruited…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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New study links 2023 Maui wildfire to spike in suicide, overdose
Deaths by suicide and drug overdose significantly increased in the aftermath of the August 2023 Maui wildfire, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The study, led by Alex Ortega, dean of the Thompson School of Social Work and Public Health, and Keawe‘aimoku Kaholokula, chair of the Department of Native Hawaiian Health, in the John A. Burns…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Complicated pregnancies linked to higher risk of early stroke
Experiencing complications during pregnancy is linked with a higher risk of stroke before age 50, according to a study published August 6, 2025, in Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Researchers found female participants who had certain pregnancy complications were more likely to have an early stroke. These included preeclampsia, preterm birth, gestational…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Potatoes may increase risk of type 2 diabetes—depending on their preparation
French fries were associated with an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D), while other forms of potatoes—including baked, boiled, and mashed—were not, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study also found that swapping any form of potato for whole grains may lower the risk of T2D. The study will be published July 30 in the BMJ. According…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Nanoparticles that self-assemble at room temperature could transform vaccine delivery
In a discovery that could broaden access to next-generation biologic medicines and vaccines, researchers at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (UChicago PME) have engineered polymer-based nanoparticles that form with a simple temperature shift—no harsh chemicals, no specialized equipment, and no processing needed.  The new nanoparticles, described in Nature…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Urbanization linked to a 43 per cent drop in pollinating insects
Increasing urbanisation is linked to a decline in crucial pollinator populations, including nocturnal moths, hoverflies, and bees, according to a new study from the University of Sheffield. The research, which paints a concerning picture for biodiversity, is published today (August 6, 2025) in the Royal Society’s flagship biological research journal. On allotment sites in Sheffield, Leeds and…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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New term for systematic, deliberate attacks on healthcare as acts of war: ‘healthocide’
The deliberate destruction of health services and systems as an act of war should be termed ‘healthocide’ and medical practitioners should call out and stand firm against this weaponisation of healthcare, insists a thought-provoking commentary published in the open access journal BMJ Global Health. Silence implies complicity and approval, and undermines international humanitarian law as well as…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Networks of long-distance female friends help gorillas move between groups
“I’m not going if I don’t know anyone” — sound all too familiar? Well it’s not just humans. Socialising in a new group can be tricky. We often rely on word of mouth and friends-of-friends connections. New research on gorillas suggests they may be using a similar strategy: when moving to a new social group, female gorillas seek out groups containing females they have lived with in the past. In…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Chagos study highlights value of vast Marine Protected Areas
Large ocean animals can be protected throughout much of their lifecycle by huge Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), new research shows. Scientists tracked sea turtles, manta rays and seabirds – all of which travel far and wide to forage, breed and migrate – in the Chagos Archipelago MPA in the Indian Ocean. In total, 95% of tracking locations were recorded inside the MPA’s 640,000 square kilometre…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Why birds on the edge stay there: Study sheds light on murmuration mysteries
They twist and turn across the sky in dense, whirling formations—murmurations of birds that seem to move as one, captivating watchers and puzzling scientists for decades. Now, a new analysis suggests that one of the most mysterious features of these aerial displays—the behaviour of birds at the edges—may stem from accident rather than intent. A study examining the flocking patterns of jackdaws…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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The Panic Gospels of Suburbia.
There are novels that peer into the mind. Then there are novels that live there—twitching, mutating, electrocuted with perception. Michael Clune’s debut Pan does the latter, with the devotion of a mystic and the relish of a heretic. It is a book that doesn’t simply render adolescence as a phase, a corridor, a hormone storm; it renders it as a metaphysical condition, a permanent thought…
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scientificinquirer-blog ¡ 2 days ago
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Researchers discover universal laws of quantum entanglement across all dimensions
A team of theoretical researchers used thermal effective theory to demonstrate that quantum entanglement follows universal rules across all dimensions. Their study was published online on August 5, in Physical Review Letters as an Editors’ Suggestion. “This study is the first example of applying thermal effective theory to quantum information. The results of this study demonstrate the usefulness…
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