Author archives: César Tomé

MI weekly selection #488

MI weekly selection #488

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Layered rocks may be Earth’s oldest known fossils Researchers have found fossil evidence of what may be the first known life on Earth with the discovery of stromatolites, layered rocks formed by photosynthetic microbes, in Western Australia’s Dresser Formation that date back 3.48 billion years. Full Story: Live Science Sharks face rising extinction risk, other […]

MI weekly selection #487

MI weekly selection #487

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Gene editing to combat the negative effect of climate change in plants Plant biology experts agree that gene editing is a tool that has great potential for use in combating the negative effect of climate change in plants and that the technology “will be a relevant approach as soon as the genetic determinants of this […]

Neuroplasticity: Word and face recognition with half a brain

Neuroplasticity: Word and face recognition with half a brain

NeurobiologyNeuroscience

By César Tomé

An unprecedented study of brain plasticity and visual perception found that people who, as children, had undergone surgery removing half of their brain correctly recognized differences between pairs of words or faces more than 80% of the time. Considering the volume of removed brain tissue, the surprising accuracy highlights the brain’s neuroplasticity– and its limitations […]

MI weekly selection #486

MI weekly selection #486

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Magma may bubble below Mars’ surface A new study of quake data from Mars rover InSight suggests the red planet may experience underground volcanism. Characteristics of 20 quakes in the Cerberus Fossae region of the planet are consistent with movement generated in a warm subsurface locale. Full Story: Space Spiderwebs do more than simply catch […]

MI weekly selection #485

MI weekly selection #485

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Mutation found to affect circadian rhythm Researchers have discovered genetic mutations in hamsters that speed up the animals’ internal clock and affect circadian rhythms. “We suspect this might be relevant in understanding the effects of jet lag and shift work,” said neurobiologist Eric Bittman, a co-author of the study. Full Story: ScienceDaily Viruses found active […]

Disposable papertronics

Disposable papertronics

Materials

By César Tomé

Discarded electronic devices, such as cell phones, are a fast-growing source of waste. One way to mitigate the problem could be to use components that are made with renewable resources and that are easy to dispose of responsibly. Now, researchers have created disposable papertronics, a prototype circuit board that is made of a sheet of […]

MI weekly selection #484

MI weekly selection #484

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Black hole collision behaves as Einstein predicted Scientists studying the collision of two huge black holes observed massive gravitational waves and a phenomenon known as precession, which resembles the wobbling motion of a spinning top. Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity predicted a century ago that precession would occur in massive objects — but this […]

MI weekly selection #483

MI weekly selection #483

Weekly Selection

By César Tomé

Long-lost moon may have been cause of Uranus’ stark tilt Astronomers have long suspected that a series of giant impacts early in the planet’s formation flipped Uranus on its side, but new research suggests the planet’s 98-degree-tilt could have been caused by a long-lost moon. It is possible that the tilt was caused by the […]