On July 2 the detectors of Planck’s High Frequency Instrument reached their amazingly low operational temperature of -273°C, making them the coldest known objects in space. The spacecraft has also just entered its final orbit around the second Lagrange point of the Sun-Earth system, L2.
Continue reading about Coolest Spacecraft Ever In Orbit Around L2 (-273 Degrees Celsius)
On July 2 the detectors of Planck’s High Frequency Instrument reached their amazingly low operational temperature of -273°C, making them the coldest known objects in space. The spacecraft has also just entered its final orbit around the second Lagrange point of the Sun-Earth system, L2.
Continue reading about Coolest Spacecraft Ever In Orbit (-273 Degrees Celsius)
Research has identified a new gene associated with diabetes, together with a mechanism that makes obese mice less susceptible to diabetes. A genomic fragment that occurs naturally in some mouse strains diminishes the activity of the risk gene Zfp69. The researchers also found that the corresponding human gene (ZNF642) is especially active in overweight individuals [...]
Continue reading about ‘Jumping Gene’ Diminishes The Effect Of New Type 2 Diabetes Risk Gene
New research uses the Ras protein to fight its own malign effects.
Continue reading about Cancer-causing Protein Can Also Help Fight The Tumors It Causes
Coronary artery bypass surgery provides “excellent” long-term survival for children who have severe inflammatory heart and blood vessel damage caused by Kawasaki disease. While post-operative problems may increase over time, these can be managed with proper follow-up care. Most of the young patients have normal lives, including participation in sports.
Scientists have found evidence of an important similarity between the behavior of polycrystalline materials — like metals and ceramics — and glasses, research that could lead to better predictions of how many valuable materials behave under stress.
Continue reading about ‘A Touch Of Glass’ In Metal, Settles Century-old Question
Mental stress causes carotid artery dilation and increases brain blood flow. A series of ultrasound experiments also found that this dilatory reflex was absent in people with high blood pressure.
Continue reading about Rush Of Blood To The Head: Anger Increases Blood Flow
Combining gamma-ray telescopes with the supersharp radio ‘vision’ of the Very Long Baseline Array showed astronomers the location from which very-high-energy gamma rays are emerging from the core ot the giant galaxy M87.
Continue reading about Super-energetic Bursts Discovered Near Giant Black Hole
Existing drugs used in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease could be repositioned for use in the treatment of extreme drug-resistant tuberculosis, which kills about 2 million people each year, according to a new study. The rise of these strains of TB throughout the world, including industrialized countries, poses a great threat to human health.
Continue reading about Existing Parkinson’s Disease Drug May Fight Drug-resistant TB
Chemists have developed novel compounds that show promise for photodynamic cancer therapy, which uses light-activated drugs to kill tumor cells. The new compounds, called dye-sensitized ruthenium nitrosyls, are absorbed by cancer cells and respond to specific wavelengths of light by releasing nitric oxide, which triggers cell death.
Continue reading about Novel Light-sensitive Compounds Show Promise For Cancer Therapy