1,033 news posts in Featured news

Featured news

31 Jan 2023

Nobel Prize winners publish new scientific articles just for kids

Latest Nobel Collection articles offer fresh excitement to young scientists Photo credit: Frontiers Frontiers for Young Minds, a unique, completely free kids’ science journal launched its second Nobel Collection today. It features five new articles in which top scientists connected directly with young reviewers to ensure their articles are clear, educational, and fascinating to read for young people before they were published in the journal. This is the second volume within the Nobel Collection, with articles written by Nobel Laureates and reviewed by children aged 8 to 15. It promises to be an exciting and educational experience for both kids and adults alike. Volume 1, which is complete, already showcases 10 amazing Nobel Prize-winning authors, writing about their world-changing discoveries in fields from neuroscience to crystallography, from computer simulations to behavioral economics. This time, highly valued Nobelists provide insights and inspiration from their amazing work on the following topics: The Olfactory System: It Smells Good to Be Alive, written by Richard Axel, awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2004. How many odors (smells) in the world around you do you think you can recognize? In this article, find out how your brain recognizes different odors and […]

Featured news

31 Jan 2023

Songbird species work together to mob predator owls, but only strike when the time is right

By Mischa Dijkstra, Frontiers science writer Northern pygmy owl, Glaucidium gnoma. Image credit: W Douglas Robinson Scientists have now shown that songbirds don’t just flee from their predator, the northern pygmy owl: they sometimes actively seek them out to aggressively mob them. But the likelihood of mobbing wasn’t constant: it was highest during late summer and autumn when the owls mostly prey on young birds instead of mammals, and at low altitudes, where the owls are most common. The likelihood of mobbing also increased when there were more songbirds around to dilute the individual risk. The authors conclude that songbirds can tell when the risk of predation from northern pygmy owls is greatest, and mostly ignore these owls at other times of the year. Fleeing isn’t the only way by which songbirds can protect themselves against predators. Many songbird species are known to engage in mobbing, where they gather aggressively around a bird of prey, flying rapidly while making stereotypic movements and loud vocalizations. Mobbing is risky for both parties: birds of preys have been observed to attack their mobbers, while cases are known of birds of prey getting injured by mobbing songbirds. Read original article Download original article (pdf) […]

Featured news

30 Jan 2023

$1 smart glove could help prevent dangerous births by sensing fetal position

by Conn Hastings, science writer Image/Shutterstock.com Low-resource regions often lack the medical technology to assess when things are going wrong during birth. A new study has revealed an inexpensive sensing glove that can transmit data on fetal position and force applied to the fetal head. The technology could be invaluable in identifying obstructed birth in low-resource regions, providing real-time data on a smartphone app. Can inexpensive technologies provide a helping hand during birth? A new study in open-access journal Frontiers in Global Women’s Health has revealed a low-cost sensing glove that could do just that. The researchers created the device to assist healthcare staff in identifying fetal position and the force applied to the fetal head during labor, factors that can contribute to obstructed labor and poor birth outcomes. The technology can provide real-time data during vaginal examinations, potentially improving birth outcomes in low-resource regions. Birth outcomes in low-resource regions When labor is not going as it should, clinicians can use a wide array of medical technologies to determine what is wrong. However, in low- and middle-income countries, these technologies and skilled staff who can use them are not always available. The researchers behind this latest study reported that 98% […]

Featured news

25 Jan 2023

Frontiers’ Volunteers: Thinking globally, acting locally

The growth mindset guiding Frontiers to support solutions for healthy lives on a healthy planet once again came to life through our annual volunteer efforts. At Frontiers, we believe each of us plays an important role in having a positive impact on society. That is why we are committed to contributing to communities in a meaningful and sustainable way. We encourage our people – affectionately referred to as Frontons – to participate in volunteering activities with charity partners. To make this possible, each Fronton receives three working days per year that they can dedicate to volunteer efforts. Photo credit: Frontiers Every Fronton is empowered to volunteer, and our volunteering platform Alaya makes it particularly convenient to get involved. Alaya compiles available opportunities with vetted organizations into a digital catalog, allowing Frontons to filter these based on a variety of criteria, including cause, skills, and location, in order find the right match. The platform also gives Frontons a space to connect over these volunteering activities and encourages further participation, be it individual outputs or group initiatives. Over the past year, Frontons spent 662 hours, or the equivalent of 27.5 days, volunteering, donated 241 goods, and raised CHF 625 in monetary donations. Their […]

Featured news

25 Jan 2023

Using running to escape everyday stresses may lead to exercise dependence instead of mental wellbeing

By Angharad Brewer Gillham, Frontiers science writer Image/Shutterstock.com Different kinds of escapism can motivate people to take part in running, but using running to escape from negative experiences rather than using it to escape to positive ones may lead to exercise dependence. Recreational running offers a lot of physical and mental health benefits – but some people can develop exercise dependence, a form of addiction to physical activity which can cause health issues. Shockingly, signs of exercise dependence are common even in recreational runners. A study published in Frontiers in Psychology investigated whether the concept of escapism can help us understand the relationship between running, wellbeing, and exercise dependence. “Escapism is an everyday phenomenon among humans, but little is known regarding its motivational underpinnings, how it affects experiences, and the psychological outcomes from it,” said Dr Frode Stenseng of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, lead author of the paper. Running to explore or to evade? “Escapism is often defined as ‘an activity, a form of entertainment, etc. that helps you avoid or forget unpleasant or boring things’. In other words, many of our everyday activities may be interpreted as escapism,” said Stenseng. “The psychological reward from escapism is […]

Featured news

24 Jan 2023

‘Golden boy’ mummy was protected by 49 precious amulets, CT scans reveal

By Mischa Dijkstra, Frontiers science writer The ‘Golden boy’ digitally unwrapped, stepwise. Image credit: SN Saleem Scientists used CT scans to ‘digitally unwrap’ the approximately 2,300-year-old undisturbed mummy of a teenage boy of high socioeconomic status. The body was equipped with 49 amulets of 21 different types, many of which were made of gold, which had been carefully placed on or inside the body. These included a two-finger amulet next to the uncircumcised penis, a golden heart scarab placed inside the thoracic cavity, and a golden tongue inside the mouth. He was clad in sandals and garlanded with ferns, with ritual significance. This mummy is a showcase of Egyptian beliefs about death and the afterlife during the Ptolemaic period. The ancient Egyptians believed that when we died, our spiritual body sought out an afterlife similar to this world. But entry into this afterlife wasn’t guaranteed: it first required a perilous journey through the underworld, followed by an individual last judgment. For this reason, relatives and embalmers did everything they could to ensure that their loved one might reach a happy destination. Here, scientists from Egypt used computerized tomography (CT) to ‘digitally unwrap’ the intact, never-opened mummy of a 2,300-year-old teenage […]

Featured news

19 Jan 2023

Microalgae could be the future of sustainable superfood in a rapidly changing world, study finds

By Peter Rejcek, science writer The global population recently hit eight billion people. Yet climate change and human environmental impacts threaten our long-term food security. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego, recently published a scientific review demonstrating that microalgae and other microscopic, plant-like organisms could help feed the world’s growing population more sustainably than current agricultural systems. Algae. It’s what’s for dinner. This variation on the iconic US advertising slogan from the beef industry may sound funny, but it’s no joke that the current agriculture system is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions and environmental pollution. In turn, the climate crisis and ecosystem degradation threaten long-term food security for billions of people around the world. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), believe algae could be a new kind of superfood thanks to its high protein and nutrition content. They make their case in a paper recently published in the journal Frontiers in Nutrition that examines the current scientific literature on microalgae, a catch-all term for the thousands of microscopic algal species and other photosynthetic organisms like cyanobacteria found in various aquatic environments. A more efficient food source The review highlights the current technologies for […]

Featured news

17 Jan 2023

Rare fossilized feathers reveal secrets of paleontology hotspot during Cretaceous period

by Angharad Brewer Gillham, Frontiers science writer Fossil STM 15-36, photographed by Xuwei Yin at the Shangdong Tianyu Museum of Natural History. Photograph courtesy of the authors. Rare preserved soft tissue – feathers from early Cretaceous birds at Jehol Biota – sheds new light on the world in which they died, millions of years ago. The site of Jehol Biota in China is famous for stunning fossils which preserve soft tissue – skin, organs, feathers, and fur. These fossils offer rare insights into the evolution of characteristics like flight, but they need careful interpretation to understand what the soft tissue looked and behaved like in life, and how decomposition may have affected it. A study published in Frontiers in Earth Science analyzed five fossils of an early Cretaceous bird, Sapeornis chaoyangensis, in order to study how the environment they were buried in changed the preservation of their soft tissue. “Jehol Biota provides the most informative source for understanding Mesozoic ecology,” said corresponding author Dr Yan Zhao, based at the Institute of Geology and Paleontology, Linyi University. “Better understanding of the diverse taphonomy of Jehol terrestrial vertebrates can help us finally understand more about the past and future of biological evolution.” […]

Featured news

16 Jan 2023

Frontiers in Chemical Engineering 2022 Awards

We are very happy to announce the Frontiers in Chemical Engineering Awards for its second edition. These Awards are meant to highlight our editorial board and its members who have significantly contributed to the growth of Frontiers in Chemical Engineering by safeguarding the quality of the published articles, as well as by leading article collections to shape the future of the journal. We are incredibly proud of our journal community; we want to express our gratitude for each member’s support in growing a robust journal regarding Chemical Engineering and helping us in our mission to make science open. Many congratulations to our finalists and a big thank you to all our Editors! Frontiers in Chemical Engineering – 2022 Outstanding Editors Awards Yan Li Biochemical Engineering Florida State University associate editor Jingwen Zhou Biochemical Engineering Jiangnan University review editor Florent Allais Catalytic Engineering AgroParisTech Institut des Sciences et Industries du Vivant et de L’environnement associate editor Qineng Xia Catalytic Engineering Jiaxing University review editor Juan Gabriel Segovia Hernandez Separation Processes University of Guanajuato associate editor Emma Kendrick Electrochemical Engineering University of Birmingham associate editor Luis Fernando Arenas Electrochemical Engineering Clausthal University of Technology review editor Stefania Specchia Chemical Reaction Engineering Polytechnic University of Turin review editor Rosa Turco Chemical Reaction Engineering University of Naples Federico II associate editor Costas Tsouris Sustainable Process Engineering Oak Ridge National Laboratory associate editor Aditya Kumar Surface and Interface Engineering Indian Institute of Technology Dhanbad associate editor Priya Varshney Surface and Interface Engineering National Institute of Technology […]

Featured news

16 Jan 2023

Frontiers in Nanotechnology 2022 Awards

We are delighted to announce the second edition of Frontiers in Nanotechnology Awards. With these Awards, we want to highlight members of our editorial board, who have significantly contributed to the growth of Frontiers in Nanotechnology going above and beyond in safeguarding the quality of the published articles, as well as by suggesting and leading article collections in the journal. We are very proud of our journal community and grateful for each member’s support in growing a robust Nanotechnology journal and helping us in our mission to make science open. Many congratulations to our finalists and a big thank you to all our Editors! Frontiers in Nanotechnology – 2022 Outstanding Editors Awards Ying-Chen ChenComputational Nanotechnology Northern Arizona University associate editor Jiyong Woo Computational Nanotechnology Kyungpook National University review editor Yogendra Kumar Mishra Biomedical Nanotechnology Mads Clausen Institute, Faculty of Engineering, University of Southern Denmark associate editor Suresh K. Verma Biomedical Nanotechnology School of Biotechnology, KIIT University review editor Soubantika Palchoudhury Nanotechnology for Energy Applications Department of Chemical, Materials and Bioengineering, School of Engineering, University of Dayton review editor Karthik Ramasamy Nanotechnology for Energy Applications UbiQD Inc. associate editor Andreas Rosenkranz Nanomaterials University of Chile guest associate editor Cristina Satriano Nanomaterials University of Catania associate editor Takeaki Yajima Nanoelectronics Kyushu University review editor Manoj Saxena Nanoelectronics Department of Electronics, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya College, University of Delhi associate editor Min Wang Environmental Nanotechnology Northeastern University review editor Shu Zhang Environmental Nanotechnology Nanjing Forestry University associate editor Dimitra G. Georgiadou Nanodevices University of Southampton associate editor Robert A. Nawrocki Nanodevices Polytechnic […]

Featured news

16 Jan 2023

Our toilets can yield excellent alternatives for widespread polluting fertilizers

By Mischa Dijkstra, Frontiers science writer Scientists show that the yield of cabbages grown on soils supplied with two modern nitrified urine fertilizers recycled from human urine is approximately equal to the yield when soils are fertilized with commercial vinasse. The exclusive use of compost recycled from human feces gave a slightly lower yield, but such compost is expected to give extra carbon to soils when combined with nitrified urine fertilizers. Importantly, pharmaceuticals in feces ended up in the edible plant parts only in negligible amounts, implying that fertilizers recycled from human excreta are not only productive but also safe. To tackle the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and pollution, humanity will need to move to a circular economy, where all resources are recycled. Why not recycle our own body waste too as fertilizer, provided there is no risk that harmful microbes or traces from pharmaceuticals end up in the consumed crops? Most nutrients needed for plant growth occur in human urine and feces. Urine is especially rich in nitrogen and potassium, and also contains trace amounts of metals such as boron, zinc, and iron. Feces could in theory supply other nutrients such as phosphorus, calcium, and magnesium or valuable organic […]

Featured news

12 Jan 2023

Simple blood test shows promise for screening common and dangerous pregnancy complications

By Angharad Brewer Gillham, Frontiers science writer Image/Shutterstock.com Scientists find that short-chain fatty acids in blood can be used as biomarkers in testing for dangerous pregnancy complications such as pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes and intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy. Scientists at Ningbo University, China have identified biomarkers that could provide an early warning system for three common and dangerous pregnancy complications: pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes, and a liver condition called intrahepatic cholestasis. All three conditions are dangerous; early diagnosis and treatment is key to preventing poor outcomes and lifelong consequences. Their causes are not fully understood, and nor is their connection to the gut microbiome, which is affected by pregnancy and pregnancy-related conditions. A team led by Dr Siqian Chen at the Affiliated Hospital of Medical School decided to investigate whether specific changes in the microbiome — detected using levels of short-chain fatty acids, metabolites which are produced following the fermentation of microbiota — could be used as biomarkers for pregnancy complications. “We analyzed and correlated the distribution of short-chain fatty acids during normal pregnancy and during three specific types of complicated pregnancy, gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, and intrahepatic cholestasis,” said Dr Rongrong Xuan, senior author of the study, published today in Frontiers in […]

Featured news

10 Jan 2023

Technische Universität Clausthal forms publishing agreement with Frontiers

Technische Universität Clausthal (TU Clausthal) formed an institutional membership agreement for open access publishing with Frontiers. This institutional agreement means that TU Clausthal supported researchers may publish in any Frontiers journal at no cost to them and with a simplified process. The university library TU Clausthal its researchers in making their research more widely available. This agreement will further encourage TU Clausthal researchers to publish open access, increasing the volume of research openly available. While this reduces costs for the researcher, it also benefits the wider research community and the public at large. For more information on Frontiers’ institutional agreements please visit our institutional memberships page or contact institutions@frontiersin.org to discuss the possibilities for your own organization. Information for researchers If you are a TU Clausthal researcher, please select Technische Universität Clausthal in the payment information section (“Frontiers institutional members”) when submitting your article. Frontiers will verify your eligibility with the library and, if confirmed, the APC will be paid by TU Clausthal upon acceptance. For information on whether your article is eligible under this agreement, or if you require any further details, please visit TU Clausthal open access page or contact florian.strauss@tu-clausthal.de.

Featured news

09 Jan 2023

Science platform Frontiers at the World Science Forum in Cape Town

Inaugurated in 2003, the World Science Forum series fosters and maintains a dialogue between the scientific community, society, policymakers, and industry. Arriving from over 100 countries, around a thousand leading scientists, decision-makers from the world of politics, industry, representatives of civil society, and the media express their views on the new challenges facing science in the 21st century. In December, the World Science Forum 2022 was hosted in Cape Town under the theme “Science for Social Justice”. Taking place in Africa for the first time, the gathering deliberated on the social and economic relevance, influence, and responsibilities of science and covered the topics like climate change, science for human dignity, the Sustainable Development Goals, science for Africa, and science diplomacy. The list of notable speakers included, among others, the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation in South Africa Dr Blade Nzimande, co-chair of the Global Young Academy Prof Roula Inglesi-Lotz, president of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences Prof Tamás Freund, president of the African Academy of Sciences Prof Felix Dakora, president of the International Science Council Sir Peter Gluckman, assistant director-general for Natural Sciences at UNESCO Dr Shamila Nair-Bedouelle, and president of Jordan’s Royal Scientific Society Princess Sumaya […]

Featured news

09 Jan 2023

Eating almonds daily boosts exercise recovery molecule by 69% among ‘weekend warriors’

By Mischa Dijkstra, Frontiers science writer A new randomized controlled trial showed that participants who daily ate 57g almonds over four weeks had a 69% higher level of the beneficial oxylipin molecule 12,13-dihydroxy-9Z-octadecenoic acid in their blood after a 90 minute session of eccentric exercise than control volunteers. In contrast, they had a 40% lower level of the mildly toxic 9,10-Dihydroxy-12-octadecenoic acid in their blood after exercise than control participants. The authors conclude that daily consumption of almonds changes the metabolism to recover faster after strenuous exercise. For those who exercise regularly, eating almonds each day might be the ideal new year’s resolution. A randomized controlled trial in Frontiers in Nutrition showed that female and male participants who ate 57g almonds daily for one month had more of the beneficial fat 12,13-dihydroxy-9Z-octadecenoic acid (12,13-DiHOME) in their blood immediately after a session of intense exercise than control participants. This molecule, a so-called oxylipin (oxidized fat) is synthetized from linoleic acid by brown fat tissue, and has a beneficial effect on metabolic health and energy regulation. Corresponding author Dr David C Nieman, a professor and director of the Appalachian State University Human Performance Laboratory at the North Carolina Research Campus, said: “Here […]