News flash: The Digital Age is over. As we transition from the era of digital domination, where technology led the march of progress, we are entering a fundamentally different epoch. This new era—the Cognitive Age—pivots on a central, transformative theme: The essence of being human—our thoughts, our consciousness, our very cognitive processes—are becoming the [...]
Electrons move through a conducting material like commuters at the height of Manhattan rush hour. The charged particles may jostle and bump against each other, but for the most part, they're unconcerned with other electrons as they hurtle forward, each with their own energy. But when a material's electrons are trapped together, they can settle [...]
A large Australian team led by Monash University has devised a new approach to killing antibiotic-resistant bacteria using lipid nanoparticles that target specific layers on the surface of the bacterial cell. Research published in the journal Small has demonstrated that antibacterial lipids can be successfully used in combination with nanocarrier lipids to form nanoparticles that kill gram-negative bacteria. [...]
Most cancers become deadly by maintaining a low profile, only showing symptoms when they’re too advanced to treat. Ovarian and gastroesophageal cancers are among the most notorious for this sly disease progression, often leading to late-stage diagnoses. Now an international team of researchers, including from The Rockefeller University’s Laboratory of Cellular and Structural Biology, have [...]
Much like the Coronavirus did during the pandemic, the monkeypox (mpox) virus has begun to evolve into new deadlier strains, according to a new study released on November 2. The peer-reviewed study, published in the American Association for the Advancement of Science, records how the mpox virus is diverging into new lineages from continued interactions with the [...]
Certain diseases transmitted from animals to humans could kill 12 times as many people in 2050 than they did in 2020, researchers have claimed. Experts from U.S. biotech company Ginkgo Bioworks called for "urgent action" to address the risk to global public health. Epidemics caused by zoonotic diseases—also known as spillovers—could be more frequent in [...]
There are many creatures on our planet with more advanced senses than humans. Turtles can sense Earth's magnetic field. Mantis shrimp can detect polarized light. Elephants can hear much lower frequencies than humans can. Butterflies can perceive a broader range of colors, including ultraviolet (UV) light. Inspired by the enhanced visual system of the [...]
Northwestern Medicine scientists have developed a more effective way of creating nanotherapeutic vaccines and medicines, according to a new study published in ACS Nano. "Over the last decade, spherical nucleic acid, or SNA, technology has emerged as a broad therapeutic platform for a wide variety of diseases, including cancer and other illnesses," said Chad Mirkin, Ph.D., professor [...]
One question has relentlessly followed ChatGPT in its trajectory to superstar status in the field of artificial intelligence: Has it met the Turing test of generating output indistinguishable from human response? Two researchers at the University of California at San Diego say it comes close, but not quite. ChatGPT may be smart, quick and [...]
Mountains of used plastic bottles get thrown away every day, but microbes could potentially tackle this problem. Now, researchers report in ACS Central Science that they've developed a plastic-eating E. coli that can efficiently turn polyethylene terephthalate (PET) waste into adipic acid, which is used to make nylon materials, drugs and fragrances. Previously, a team of researchers including [...]
