Scientists are using artificial intelligence technology to analyzed a database of earthquakes from around the world in an effort to predict where aftershocks might occur. Using deep learning algorithms, they developed a system that, while still imprecise, was able to forecast aftershocks significantly better than random assignment.
Immersing city dwellers in the traditional lifestyle and diet of a rainforest village for two weeks increases the diversity of the visiting children's — but not the adults' — gut microbiota. In a small pilot study, researchers show that the immersion visit did little to shift the adults' skin, oral, nasal and fecal microbiota.
Compared with the rest of the animal kingdom, mammals have the biggest brains and produce some of the smallest litters of offspring. A newly described fossil of an extinct mammal relative — and her 38 babies — is among the best evidence that a key development in the evolution of mammals was trading brood power for brain power.
Ancient animal herders added to the ecological richness and diversity of the African savanna thousands of years ago — an effect that persists to the present day, a new study finds. The herders' practice of penning their cattle, goats and sheep at night created nutrient-rich grassy glades that still attract wildlife and have increased habitat diversity in the region, researchers report.
Scientists have designed a three-stepped recipe for regenerating electro-physiologically active nerve fibers across complete spinal cord lesions in rodents. Rehabilitation is still required to make these new nerve fibers functional for walking.
Astronomers obtained the most detailed anatomy chart of a monster galaxy located 12.4 billion light-years away. Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), the team revealed that the molecular clouds in the galaxy are highly unstable, which leads to runaway star formation.
Researchers have shown that during drier years the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere rises faster because stressed ecosystems absorb less carbon. This global effect is so strong that it must be integrated in the next generation of climate models.
A group of researchers has designed and built specialized hardware for their research using an in-house 3-D printer. The new lab instrument is capable of collecting massive amounts of data that will help these researchers in their quest to discover new antibiotics.
When it comes to teen dating violence, boys are more likely to report being the victim of violence — being hit, slapped, or pushed — than girls. That's the surprising finding of new research from British Columbia, Canada.
With threats of sea level rise, storm surge and other natural disasters, researchers are turning to nature to protect humans from nature. Using bioinspired materials that mimic mangrove trees, they are creating mangrove-like structures that can be used for erosion control, coastal protection, and habitat reconstruction. Structures like seawalls are expensive to build, raise environmental concerns, and obstruct the natural landscape. The prototype they have developed is scalable, smaller, simpler to use and cost effective.