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The first major update to resistance training recommendations in 17 years delivers a straightforward message. Even small amounts of resistance training can improve strength, increase muscle size, enhance power, and support overall physical function. The updated guidance, released by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) as a Position Stand,…
Scientists from The University of Manchester have played a key role in identifying a previously unknown subatomic particle at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The particle, called the Ξcc⁺ (Xi-cc-plus), is a heavy proton-like particle made up of two charm quarks and one down quark. This marks the first particle…
The malaria parasite is packed with tiny crystals that spin nonstop, a strange behavior that puzzled scientists for decades. Researchers have now discovered that these crystals are powered by the breakdown of hydrogen peroxide, a reaction similar to the one used in rocket engines. This constant spinning may help the…
A new clinical trial found that adjusting how sweet a person’s diet is does not affect how much they enjoy sweet foods. Whether people ate more or less sweet-tasting items, their preference for sweetness stayed the same. The study also found no meaningful differences in markers linked to heart disease…
For years, preventing diabetes has been closely tied to one main goal: losing weight. However, new research challenges that long-standing assumption. People diagnosed with prediabetes — a condition affecting up to one in three adults depending on age — have traditionally been advised to eat healthier and shed pounds to…
A new study has found a sharp and unusual rise in wildfires in tropical peatlands during the 20th century, marking a clear departure from long-term historical patterns. Peatlands are massive underground carbon reservoirs, storing more carbon than all of the world’s forests combined. When these areas burn, they release large…
How oviraptors, bird-like but flightless dinosaurs, hatched their eggs has long been unclear. Did they depend on heat from their surroundings like crocodiles, or did they warm their eggs directly like birds? A new study in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution explores this question by examining oviraptor nesting behavior and…
The first large-scale analysis of multiple cancer types in cats has uncovered genetic changes that may help guide new treatments for both animals and people. Researchers examined tumors from nearly 500 pet cats across five countries. The work involved scientists from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the Ontario Veterinary College in…
The first large-scale analysis of multiple cancer types in cats has uncovered genetic changes that may help guide new treatments for both animals and people. Researchers examined tumors from nearly 500 pet cats across five countries. The work involved scientists from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the Ontario Veterinary College in…
In Japan, many older adults rely on bicycles for daily transportation, far more than seniors in Europe or the United States. Earlier research has shown that people who cycle tend to be more physically active and socially engaged. While cycling has long been viewed as a habit that can reduce…
A large prospective cohort study conducted by researchers from Mass General Brigham, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard examined data from 131,821 participants in the Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (HPFS). The findings showed that moderate intake…
Bright pink granite boulders scattered across the dark volcanic peaks of the Hudson Mountains in West Antarctica have led scientists to a remarkable discovery. Beneath Pine Island Glacier lies an enormous buried granite mass, nearly 100 km wide and 7 km thick, roughly half the size of Wales in the…
Dinosaur fossils preserved with their feathers suggest that some of these animals had already lost the ability to fly. As the research team explains, “Feather molting seems like a small technical detail — but when examined in fossils, it can change everything we thought about the origins of flight, highlighting…
Artificial intelligence is often blamed for driving up energy use and worsening climate change, but new research suggests its overall impact on global emissions is surprisingly small. The findings even point to potential environmental and economic benefits as AI continues to expand. Researchers from the University of Waterloo and the…
Humans cannot survive without lungs. Yet one patient managed to live for 48 hours without them. In a report published in the Cell Press journal Med, surgeons detail how they removed a man’s severely infected lungs and used an “artificial lung” system to keep him alive until a double lung…
When sections of the small intestine become diseased or die, surgeons often must remove the damaged tissue. This procedure, known as a radical small bowel resection, can save lives. However, it comes with a major downside. Many patients later develop serious liver problems, including long-term damage or even liver failure…
A newly studied exoplanet, Kepler-51d, is wrapped in an unusually dense layer of haze that may be hiding both what it is made of and how it formed. Using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), a team led by Penn State researchers took a closer look at this so-called “super-puff”…
Farm labor shortages are pushing agriculture toward greater automation, especially when it comes to harvesting. But not all crops are easy for machines to handle. Tomatoes, for example, grow in clusters, which means a robot must carefully select ripe fruit while leaving unripe ones untouched. This requires precise control and…
The kind of light used to examine a material can reveal very different details. Visible light shows what’s happening on a surface, X-rays expose what lies inside, and infrared detects heat being emitted. Now, researchers at MIT have taken a major step forward by using terahertz light to uncover quantum-level…
Creating detailed computer models of quantum chips helps scientists predict how they will behave before manufacturing begins. This approach allows researchers to catch potential issues early and confirm that designs will perform as expected. At Berkeley Lab, Quantum Systems Accelerator (QSA) researchers Zhi Jackie Yao and Andy Nonaka from the…
Washington State University professor Mesut Cicek and his research team repeatedly tested ChatGPT by giving it hypotheses taken from scientific papers. The goal was to see if the AI could correctly determine whether each claim was supported by research or not — in other words, whether it was true or…
A new study published in Gastroenterology suggests that stress during early life may increase the risk of digestive problems later on. Researchers found that these effects are linked to changes in both the gut and the sympathetic nervous system. “Our research shows that these stressors can have a real impact…
New research reveals that bull sharks form social relationships with specific “friends,” challenging the long-standing belief that these predators live mostly solitary lives. The study — conducted at the Shark Reef Marine Reserve in Fiji — found that bull sharks do not simply mix randomly. Instead, they display “active social…
A research team led by the University of Oxford has uncovered evidence for a previously unknown kind of planet beyond our Solar System — one that locks away large quantities of sulfur deep inside a long lasting ocean of molten rock. The results were published on March 16 in Nature…
Lecanemab, marketed as Leqembi, is a monoclonal antibody treatment for Alzheimer’s disease that targets and removes harmful amyloid plaques while slowing cognitive decline. Scientists from VIB and KU Leuven have now uncovered exactly how it works. Their research shows that a specific part of the antibody, known as the ‘Fc…
More than two centuries after asteroid 16 Psyche was first identified, scientists are still trying to determine how it formed. Located in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, Psyche ranks as the 10th-most massive asteroid and the largest known object made primarily of metal, measuring about 140 miles…
A new study published in JNeurosci explores how brief bursts of sleep like brain activity during wakefulness affect a person’s ability to stay focused. Elaine Pinggal of Monash University and her team investigated whether this type of brain activity plays a role in attention challenges, particularly in adults with ADHD.…
New images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope are providing a clearer look at a mysterious and rarely studied nebula surrounding a dying star. The observations reveal new details about the structure of this unusual cloud of gas and dust and how it is changing over time. Called Nebula PMR…
The COVID-19 pandemic brought messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines into the global spotlight. After completing clinical trials, the first COVID-19 mRNA vaccine was given on December 8, 2020. Researchers later estimated through modeling that these vaccines prevented at least 14.4 million deaths worldwide during their first year. Because of their strong…
Astronomers may be getting closer to understanding one of the biggest mysteries in cosmology: dark energy, the unknown force believed to be driving the accelerating expansion of the universe. Dark energy is thought to account for about 68% of the universe. Despite its enormous influence, scientists still do not know…
