The Life Technology™ News Blog: 10/07/20

Wednesday, October 07, 2020

Five things to know about the Big Tech antitrust report

After years of calling Big Tech too big, Democratic lawmakers are calling for Congress to rein in Facebook, Google, Amazon and Apple by breaking them up, limiting future mergers and blocking self-dealing that could hurt competitors.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-10-big-tech-antitrust.html

Government probes Microsoft's effort to boost diversity

Microsoft says the U.S. Labor Department is scrutinizing its efforts to boost Black employment and leadership at the tech company.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2020-10-probes-microsoft-effort-boost-diversity.html

Panel to announce 2020 Nobel Prize for chemistry

The 2020 Nobel Prize for chemistry is being announced Wednesday, an award that has frequently honored work which led to practical applications in wide use today—such as last year's win for the brains behind the lithium-ion battery.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-panel-nobel-prize-chemistry.html

Hurricane Delta bears down on Mexico's Caribbean coast

Hurricane Delta churned towards Mexico's Caribbean coast on Wednesday as thousands of tourists hunkered down in emergency shelters in a string of major beach resorts.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-hurricane-delta-mexico-caribbean-coast.html

California's August Complex largest fire in state's history

NOAA/NASA's Suomi NPP satellite captured another startling image of the August Complex of fires that has grown to over 1,000,000 acres burned (1,006,140 acres total) and because of that grim milestone the complex has been dubbed a "gigafire." The August Complex is only 58% contained. Inciweb reports that: "In the northeast zone, active behavior continues. Structures in Hidden Valley, Trinity Pines/Post Mountain, Wildwood and Platina are threatened by fire spread. Short range spotting and fire spread toward Hidden Valley has increased potential for impact to structures."

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-california-august-complex-largest-state.html

Study finds 'missing link' in the evolutionary history of carbon-fixing protein rubisco

A team of scientists has discovered an ancient form of rubisco, the most abundant enzyme on Earth and critical to life as we know it.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-link-evolutionary-history-carbon-fixing-protein.html

New study rebuts 75-year-old belief in reptile evolution

Challenging a 75-year-old notion about how and when reptiles evolved during the past 300 million-plus years involves a lot of camerawork, loads of CT scanning, and, most of all, thousands of miles of travel. Just check the stamps in Tiago R. Simões ' passport.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-rebuts-year-old-belief-reptile-evolution.html

New 3-D model could explain the formation of a hexagon storm on Saturn

With its dazzling system of icy rings, Saturn has been a subject of fascination since ancient times. Even now the sixth planet from the sun holds many mysteries, partly because its distance away makes direct observation difficult and partly because this gas giant (which is multiple times the size of our planet) has a composition and atmosphere, mostly hydrogen and helium, so unlike that of Earth. Learning more about it could yield some insights into the creation of the solar system itself.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-d-formation-hexagon-storm-saturn.html

NASA catches development of Tropical Storm Norbert as Marie declines

NASA-NOAA's Suomi NPP satellite passed over the Eastern Pacific Ocean and captured the birth of a depression that became Tropical Storm Norbert while Marie continued weakening while headed toward the Central Pacific.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-nasa-tropical-storm-norbert-marie.html

Infrared NASA imagery finds Chan-hom organizing, consolidating

NASA's Aqua satellite analyzed the large Tropical Storm Chan-hom as it tracked through the Northwestern Pacific Ocean. Aqua imagery showed the storm was consolidating, indicating a strengthening trend.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-infrared-nasa-imagery-chan-hom.html

Fighting pandemics with plasma

Most types of personal protective equipment, like N95 masks, gowns, and gloves, are designed for single use, which has led to both scarcity and waste during the COVID-19 pandemic. But new research suggests these vital supplies can be safely disinfected and reused.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-pandemics-plasma.html

Plasma scientists optimize plant growth and yield

Ever since scientists discovered that plasma treatment leads to faster growth and higher yields of some agricultural crops, physicists, chemists, and biologists have been working together to tease out the mechanisms driving this phenomenon.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-plasma-scientists-optimize-growth-yield.html

Factors that increase or decrease suicidal behavior risk in adolescents

An analysis of relevant studies published to date has identified certain risk factors associated with suicidal behavior in adolescents. The analysis also revealed certain protective factors that may reduce the likelihood of suicidal behavior.

Prevalence of suicide-related behaviors among physicians

An analysis of published studies has found a relatively high prevalence of suicidal behaviors among physicians. The findings are published in Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior.

Protective factors against suicidal behaviors among black college students

Having a strong ethnic identity was linked with a lower risk of suicidal behaviors among Black college students in a recent study published in the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development.

Risk of human-to-wildlife transmission of the COVID-19 virus

There's considerable risk that humans transmit SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, to wildlife, according to a perspective article published in Mammal Review.

This 'squidbot' jets around and takes pics of coral and fish

Engineers at the University of California San Diego have built a squid-like robot that can swim untethered, propelling itself by generating jets of water. The robot carries its own power source inside its body. It can also carry a sensor, such as a camera, for underwater exploration.

Applying artificial intelligence to science education

A new review published in the Journal of Research in Science Teaching highlights the potential of machine learning—a subset of artificial intelligence—in science education. Although the authors initiated their review before the COVID-19 outbreak, the pandemic highlights the need to examine cutting-edge digital technologies as we re-think the future of teaching and learning.

Protective factors against suicidal behaviors among black college students

Having a strong ethnic identity was linked with a lower risk of suicidal behaviors among Black college students in a recent study published in the Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-factors-suicidal-behaviors-black-college.html

Risk of human-to-wildlife transmission of the COVID-19 virus

There's considerable risk that humans transmit SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, to wildlife, according to a perspective article published in Mammal Review.

source https://phys.org/news/2020-10-human-to-wildlife-transmission-covid-virus.html