Scientists recreate life’s first step: Linking amino acids to RNA

Chemists at UCL have shown how two of biology’s most fundamental ingredients, RNA (ribonucleic acid) and amino acids, could have spontaneously joined together at the origin of life four billion years ago. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, the “workhorses” of life essential to nearly every living process.…

A tiny chip may have solved one of clean energy’s biggest problems

For decades, researchers around the world have searched for alternatives to iridium, an extremely rare, incredibly expensive metal used in the production of clean hydrogen fuels. Now, a powerful new tool has found one — within a single afternoon. Invented and developed at Northwestern University, that tool is called a…

Cannabis for coping? Why it may trigger paranoia

New research from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN) at King’s College London, in partnership with the University of Bath, has found that the reasons why a person chooses to use cannabis can increase their risk of developing paranoia. The use and potency of cannabis is increasing worldwide,…

This simple diet could help protect memory, even with Alzheimer’s genes

Researchers found dietary changes may help improve cognitive health and stave off dementia. A new study led by investigators from Mass General Brigham, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard suggests that a Mediterranean-style diet may help reduce dementia risk. The study,…

In corso il digiuno dei sanitari per Gaza, 9 mila iscritti – Notizie – Ansa.it

È iniziata oggi la giornata nazionale di digiuno per Gaza promossa dalla rete #digiunogaza, da Sanitari per Gaza e dalla campagna BDS “Teva? No grazie. La mobilitazione, che coinvolge operatori sanitari, associazioni e sindacati, punta a sensibilizzare l’opinione pubblica sulla situazione umanitaria a Gaza. Partita dalla Toscana e rapidamente estesa…

Why most whale sharks in Indonesia are scarred by humans

Whale sharks, the largest living fish species, are classified as endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Over the past 75 years, populations have declined by more than 50% worldwide, and by up to 63% in the Indo-Pacific region. Because whale sharks take up to 30 years to…

Spiders turn fireflies into glowing traps

Ecologists have observed a species of nocturnal spider attracting prey to its web using the bioluminescent beacons of already trapped fireflies. This rare example of a predator exploiting its prey’s mating signal for its own gain is documented in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Animal Ecology. Researchers at Tunghai…