What makes some ads more shareable than others?

In one of the more memorable commercials of Super Bowl 2020, rapper Lil Nas X and actor Sam Elliott face off in a dance duel for Cool Ranch Doritos. The cost was arguably worthwhile, considering the millions of times the spot was viewed and shared across social media platforms for free.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-ads-shareable.html

Researchers engineer a tiny antibody capable of neutralizing the coronavirus

At 2 a.m. one night last April, Michael Schoof triple-checked the numbers on his screen, took a deep breath, and fired off an email he'd been waiting all day to send.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-tiny-antibody-capable-neutralizing-coronavirus.html

Chemistry and computer science join forces to apply artificial intelligence to chemical reactions

In the past few years, researchers have turned increasingly to data science techniques to aid problem-solving in organic synthesis.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-chemistry-science-artificial-intelligence-chemical.html

Researchers study black carbon aerosol in urban Beijing

Black carbon (BC) is the product of incomplete combustion of fossil fuels, biofuel and biomass. By strongly absorbing solar radiation, BC can heat the atmosphere, affect its stability, and further deteriorate air quality.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-black-carbon-aerosol-urban-beijing.html

Role of WOX1 in compound leaf development revealed

Plant-specific WOX family transcription factors play important roles ranging from embryogenesis to lateral organ development. The WOX1 transcription factors, which belong to the modern clade of the WOX family, are known to regulate outgrowth of the leaf blade specifically in the mediolateral axis; however, the role of WOX1 in compound leaf development remains unknown.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-role-wox1-compound-leaf-revealed.html

Biologically inspired, high-performance polyurethane developed for stretchable electronics

A research group led by Prof. Zhu Jin at the Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering (NIMTE) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) developed a polyurethane with excellent properties of stretchability, toughness, self-healing and even thermal repair, which mimics the biological functionalities of human muscles. The study was published in Advanced Functional Materials.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-biologically-high-performance-polyurethane-stretchable-electronics.html

SPIRou carries out first ever measurement of a very young exoplanet's density

A research team led by scientists from IRAP (CNRS/CNES/Université Toulouse III—Paul Sabatier) and IPAG (CNRS/UGA) has for the first time measured the internal density of a very young exoplanet orbiting a newly formed, extremely active star. Despite the 'noise' generated by the star's activity, they successfully achieved this using the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT)'s planet hunting instrument SPIRou. The findings are published in MNRAS on 2 February 2021.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-spirou-young-exoplanet-density.html

Quantum systems learn joint computing

Today's quantum computers contain up to several dozen memory and processing units, the so-called qubits. Severin Daiss, Stefan Langenfeld, and colleagues from the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching have successfully interconnected two such qubits located in different labs to a distributed quantum computer by linking the qubits with a 60-meter-long optical fiber. Over such a distance they realized a quantum-logic gate—the basic building block of a quantum computer. It makes the system the worldwide first prototype of a distributed quantum computer.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-quantum-joint.html

CRISPR editing of mitochondria: Promising new biotech?

Although the CRISPR/Cas9 system has seen widespread application in editing the nuclear genome, using it to edit the mitochondrial genome has been problematic. The main hurdles have been a lack of suitable editing sites in the small mtDNA, and the traditional difficulty of importing the guide RNA into the mitochondrial matrix where nucleoids can be accessed.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-crispr-mitochondria-biotech.html

NASA satellites help quantify forest impacts on the global carbon budget

Scientists have created a new method for measuring carbon fluctuations in forests; it is expected to improve the accuracy of global carbon estimates.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-nasa-satellites-quantify-forest-impacts.html

Can a miniscule worm hold the secret to genetically reversing brain damage?

A team of Hebrew University researchers have successfully used genetic engineering as a first step to what one day may allow scientists to genetically repair damaged brain circuits. The process, which was performed in tiny translucent C. elegans worms, saw the introduction of synthetically engineered connections (or synapses), as a means for bypassing missing connections between neurons in an impaired brain.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-miniscule-worm-secret-genetically-reversing.html

Scientists reveal synergistic effects in dual single-atom catalyst

Single-atom catalysts (SACs) are applied in heterogeneous catalysis. Instead of one type of single atom, dual single-atom catalysts (DSACs) deliver superior catalytic performance than SACs due to cooperation between the dual metal-atoms.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-scientists-reveal-synergistic-effects-dual.html

Climate change may have driven the emergence of SARS-CoV-2

Global greenhouse gas emissions over the last century have made southern China a hotspot for bat-borne coronaviruses, by driving growth of forest habitat favoured by bats.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-climate-driven-emergence-sars-cov-.html

Crystalline polymers for the rapid detection and efficient degradation of ozone

Ozone is a problematic air pollutant that causes serious health problems. A newly developed material not only quickly and selectively indicates the presence of ozone, but also simultaneously renders the gas harmless. As reported by Chinese researchers in Angewandte Chemie, the porous "two-in-one systems" also function reliably in very humid air.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-crystalline-polymers-rapid-efficient-degradation.html

Neanderthal gut microbiota and the bacteria helping our health

Neanderthals' gut microbiota included beneficial microorganisms that are also found in the modern human microbiome. An international research group led by the University of Bologna achieved this result by extracting and analyzing ancient DNA from 50,000-year-old fecal sediments sampled at the archaeological site of El Salt, near Alicante (Spain).

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-neanderthal-gut-microbiota-bacteria-health.html

Silicon anode structure generates new potential for lithium-ion batteries

New research conducted by the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) has identified a specific building block that improves the anode in lithium-ion batteries. The unique properties of the structure, which was built using nanoparticle technology, are revealed and explained today in Communications Materials.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-silicon-anode-potential-lithium-ion-batteries.html

Bimeronium: A new member of the topological spin textures family

Topological spin textures in magnetic systems are intriguing objects that exhibit exotic physics and have potential applications in information storage and processing. The most fundamental and exemplary topological spin texture is called the skyrmion, which is a nanoscale circular domain wall carrying a nonzero integer topological charge. The skyrmion texture in magnetic materials was theoretically predicted in the late 1980s, and it was experimentally observed in chiral magnets a decade ago. Since the first observation of magnetic skyrmions, the skyrmion community has focused on a series of topological spin textures evolved from the skyrmion, such as the skyrmionium and bimeron.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-bimeronium-member-topological-textures-family.html

Pushed to the limit: A CMOS-based transceiver for beyond 5G applications at 300 GHz

Scientists at Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) and NTT Corporation (NTT) have developed a novel CMOS-based transceiver for wireless communications at the 300 GHz band, enabling future beyond-5G applications. Their design addresses the challenges of operating CMOS technology at its practical limit and represents the first wideband CMOS phased-array system to operate at such elevated frequencies.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-limit-cmos-based-transceiver-5g-applications.html

$43 bn deal for 'world's biggest' offshore wind farm in South Korea

A $43 billion deal was signed Friday to build what the South Korean government said will be the world's biggest offshore wind power complex, as it seeks to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-bn-world-biggest-offshore-farm.html

US market regulators to study recent trading frenzy

US financial market regulators will study the trading frenzy last week that saw shares like GameStop soar, and ensure investors are protected, the Treasury Department said Thursday.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-frenzy.html

Chinese TikTok rival Kuaishou nearly triples on Hong Kong debut

Shares in Chinese video app company Kuaishou almost tripled on their Hong Kong debut Friday, following a $5.4 billion initial public offering for the TikTok rival that was the biggest for an internet firm in nearly two years.

source https://techxplore.com/news/2021-02-chinese-tiktok-rival-kuaishou-triples.html

Mapping hotspots of undersized fish and crustaceans may aid sustainable fishing practices

A new study in Frontiers in Marine Science provides a first-of-its-kind evaluation of which regions of southern European seas are in the most need of fishing restrictions. These areas have persistently shown high numbers of undersized fish and crustaceans, which are typically discarded because they are below the allowable size limit for collection. These findings may offer a strategy for prioritizing conservation efforts and ensuring more sustainable fishery management in the future.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-hotspots-undersized-fish-crustaceans-aid.html

SSRgenotyper: A new tool to digitally genotype simple sequence repeats

SSRgenotyper is a newly developed, free bioinformatic tool that allows researchers to digitally genotype sequenced populations using simple sequence repeats (SSRs), a task that previously required time-consuming lab-based methods.

source https://phys.org/news/2021-02-ssrgenotyper-tool-digitally-genotype-simple.html