Scientists create first computational model of entire virus responsible for COVID-19

Researchers at the University of Chicago have created the first usable computational model of the entire virus responsible for COVID-19—and they are making this model widely available to help advance research during the pandemic.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-scientists-entire-virus-responsible-covid-.html

Researchers develop broadband X-ray source needed to perform new measurements at NIF

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) researchers have developed an X-ray source that can diagnose temperature in experiments that probe conditions like those at the very center of planets.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-broadband-x-ray-source-nif.html

Supercomputer models describe chloride's role in corrosion

Researchers have been studying chloride's corrosive effects on various materials for decades. Now thanks to high-performance computers at the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) at UC San Diego and the Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC), detailed models have been simulated to provide new insight on how chloride leads to corrosion on structrual metals, resulting in economic and environmental impacts.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-supercomputer-chloride-role-corrosion.html

'Massive-scale mobilization' necessary for addressing climate change, scientists say

A year after a global coalition of more than 11,000 scientists declared a climate emergency, Oregon State University researchers who initiated the declaration released an update today that points to a handful of hopeful signs, but shares continued alarm regarding an overall lack of progress in addressing climate risks.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-massive-scale-mobilization-climate-scientists.html

Photo-sharing blockchain-based social network

A new photo-sharing social network based on the blockchain could enhance the authenticity and credibility of data as well as precluding data tampering, according to research published in the International Journal of Technology Management.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-01-photo-sharing-blockchain-based-social-network.html

Research: Poorer pupils most likely to be away from school at the end of 2020

Poorer pupils were most likely to be away from school at the end of 2020, experts analyzing the learning loss caused by coronavirus have found.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-poorer-pupils-school.html

Optical network shapes pulses of light

A team of UCLA engineers and researchers has developed a new method to shape light pulses by creating physical networks that are composed specially engineered layers. These layers are designed using deep learning and then fabricated using 3-D printing and stacked together, one following another, forming an optical network that is capable of performing various computational tasks using optical waves and diffraction of light. Earlier studies demonstrated all-optical classification and recognition of images using these deep learning-designed diffractive networks.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-optical-network-pulses.html

Genome study of people living Asia from Stone Age through Medieval period

An international team of researchers has conducted a genomic study of 40 human remains recovered from parts of upper east Asia in what is now mostly Siberia. In their paper published in the journal Science Advances, the group describes their study and what it demonstrated about population shifts and migration in the region.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-genome-people-asia-stone-age.html

Speeding up machine learning by means of light

Scientists have developed a pioneering new approach that will rapidly speed up machine learning—using light.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-machine.html

France steps up duck cull as bird flu hits foie gras farms

French authorities plan to expand their culls of ducks reared for the controversial delicacy foie gras as an outbreak of bird flu rips through the southwest of the country, a producers' federation said Thursday.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-france-duck-cull-bird-flu.html

7 things to know about the NASA rover about to land on Mars

With only about 50 million miles (80 million kilometers) left to go in its 293-million-mile (471-million-kilometer) journey, NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover is nearing its new planetary home. The spacecraft has begun its approach to the Red Planet and in 43 days, on Feb. 18, 2021, Perseverance will blaze through Mars' atmosphere at about 12,100 mph (19,500 kph), touching down gently on the surface about seven minutes later.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-nasa-rover-mars.html

A new NASA space telescope, SPHEREx, is moving ahead

NASA's upcoming space telescope, the Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer, or SPHEREx, is one step closer to launch. The mission has officially entered Phase C, in NASA lingo. That means the agency has approved preliminary design plans for the observatory, and work can begin on creating a final, detailed design, as well as on building the hardware and software.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-nasa-space-telescope-spherex.html

Oldest hominins of Olduvai Gorge persisted across changing environments

Olduvai (now Oldupai) Gorge, known as the Cradle of Humankind, is a UNESCO World Heritage site in Tanzania, made famous by Louis and Mary Leakey. New interdisciplinary field work has led to the discovery of the oldest archaeological site in Oldupai Gorge as reported in Nature Communications, which shows that early human used a wide diversity of habitats amidst environmental changes across a 200,000 year-long period.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-oldest-hominins-olduvai-gorge-persisted.html

Image: A good GRASP on the New Year

NASA astronaut Mike Hopkins performs the Grasp experiment in the Columbus module of the International Space Station ahead of the New Year. The experiment studies how the central nervous system, specifically hand-eye coordination, adapts to microgravity.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-image-good-grasp-year.html

Ryanair slashes annual traffic forecast on virus

Irish no-frills airline Ryanair on Thursday slashed its annual traffic forecast after axing more flights due to the coronavirus fallout.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-01-ryanair-slashes-annual-traffic-virus.html

Research explains why crocodiles have changed so little since the age of the dinosaurs

New research by scientists at the University of Bristol explains how a 'stop-start' pattern of evolution, governed by environmental change, could explain why crocodiles have changed so little since the age of the dinosaurs.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-crocodiles-age-dinosaurs.html

Campaigners hail Mexican ban on genetically modified corn

Environmental campaigners have welcomed a Mexican ban on growing genetically modified maize and the phasing out of a controversial weedkiller—a step that has met opposition in the private sector.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-campaigners-hail-mexican-genetically-corn.html

Tesla market value tops $700 bn for first time

Electric carmaker Tesla closed trading on Wednesday with a market value topping $700 billion for the first time.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-01-tesla-tops-bn.html

Tech titans Alibaba, Tencent dive in Hong Kong on US ban fears

Shares in China's two biggest companies Alibaba and Tencent tumbled in Hong Kong on Thursday in response to the media reports that the Trump administration plans to press ahead with a ban on Americans investing in them.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-01-tech-titans-alibaba-tencent-hong.html

Beijing freezes as temperature hits five decade lows

Temperatures in the Chinese capital plunged to their lowest for more than five decades on Thursday, as Beijing was hit by gale-force winds and bitter conditions.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-beijing-temperature-decade-lows.html

Indonesia's Merapi volcano spews hot clouds, 500 evacuate

Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano spewed avalanches of hot clouds Thursday morning as hundreds more residents were evacuated from its fertile slopes.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-indonesia-merapi-volcano-spews-hot.html

Human migration patterns connected to vitamin D deficiencies today

A new study in the Oxford Economic Papers finds that migration flows the last 500 years from high sunlight regions to low sunlight regions influence contemporary health outcomes in destination countries.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-01-human-migration-patterns-vitamin-d.html