NBC News calls it “the ghostly signal that reveals the engine of the universe.” Long-time Slashdot reader fahrbot-bot shares their report: In research published Wednesday in the journal Nature, scientists reported that they’ve made the first detection of almost-ethereal particles called neutrinos that can be traced to carbon-nitrogen-oxygen fusion, known as the CNO cycle, inside the sun. It’s a landmark finding…
Tag: chamber
Is Mars still volcanically active?
A new study of geologically young lava flows in Elysium Planitia suggests that Mars might still have residual volcanic activity below its surface. The finding could also correlate with seismic activity detected by the InSight lander in the same region and may have implications for possible martian life. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/mars-cerberus-fossae-young-lava-flows-volcanic-activity…
How Powerful Forces Collaborated to Peddle Misinformation about the Origins of the Coronavirus
There’s “an overwhelming body of evidence” for scientists’ belief that the coronavirus originated in an animal before making the leap to humans, reports the New York Times. (Alternate URL here.) They add that U.S. intelligence agencies also “have not found any proof” for a fringe theory it somehow leaked from a lab. Yet as recently as September, a Hong Kong researcher…
GPS and Water Don’t Mix. So Scientists Have Found a New Way To Navigate Under the Sea
An anonymous reader quotes a report from ZDNet: [E]ven today’s most sophisticated GPS systems are still unable to map a huge chunk of the Earth: that which is located under oceans, seas, or rivers. The technology, in effect, doesn’t mix well with water, which breaks down the radio waves GPS relies on to function. MIT scientists have been looking at ways…
Finnish Startup Unveils Machine That Takes Office-Air CO2 and Converts It Into Fuel
Over a video call, Finnish start-up Soletair Power showed Ars Technica their machine that converts office-air carbon dioxide into fuel. Scott K. Johnson reports: The value proposition for the first part of the device is pretty straightforward. Carbon dioxide accumulates in buildings full of people, and higher CO2 concentrations may impact your ability to think clearly. The usual way to manage…
James Webb Space Telescope passes environmental testing
The James Webb Space Telescope – successor to the Hubble – just passed a series of environmental testing trials, designed to simulate the rigors of its anticipated launch in 2021. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/james-webb-space-telescope-passes-environmental-testing…
Stone Age people in Ireland had dark skin and were lactose-intolerant
Bone fragments from a mountain chamber in Ireland belonged to Stone Age people, and genetic analysis has revealed they had moderately dark skin and couldn’t digest raw milk Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2256812-stone-age-people-in-ireland-had-dark-skin-and-were-lactose-intolerant/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…
EU Parliament Votes For 60% Greenhouse Gas Emissions Cut By 2030
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: EU capitals have been put under pressure to agree to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 60% by 2030 compared with 1990, after the European parliament voted in favor of an “ambitious” climate law that would also oblige each member state to be carbon neutral by 2050. The vote, which sets the chamber’s…
Scientists Slow Down and Steer Light With Resonant Nanoantennas
New submitter HotSyncer shares a report from Phys.Org: [I]n a paper published on Aug. 17, in Nature Nanotechnology, Stanford scientists demonstrate a new approach to slow light significantly, much like an echo chamber holds onto sound, and to direct it at will. Researchers in the lab of Jennifer Dionne, associate professor of materials science and engineering at Stanford, structured ultrathin silicon…
Nancy Pelosi Mandates Masks On House Floor
Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she will require all House members and aids to wear masks on the floor, after Texas Rep. Louie Gohmert who has at times flouted the health recommendation tested positive for COVID-19 earlier in the day. The Hill reports: “Members and staff will be required to wear masks at all times in the hall of the House except…