ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Robotic 'Third Thumb' use can alter brain representation of the hand
• Brain stimulation evoking sense of touch improves control of robotic arm
• Hubble tracks down fast radio bursts to galaxies' spiral arms
• Swifts set new record for swiftness
• Origins of life researchers develop a new ecological biosignature
• Not all theories can explain the black hole M87*
• An inconstant Hubble constant? Research suggests fix to cosmological cornerstone
• New role for strange organisms in ocean food web
• Study on bizarre rodent genetics solves a mystery and reveals another
• Heavy metal vapors unexpectedly found in comets throughout our Solar System -- and beyond
• Magnetically propelled cilia power climbing soft robots and microfluidic pumps
• An illuminating possibility for stroke treatment: Nano-photosynthesis
• How moths find their flame: Genetics of mate attraction discovered
• New screening method could lead to microbe-based replacements for chemical pesticides
• Is the past (and future) there when nobody looks?

Robotic 'Third Thumb' use can alter brain representation of the hand Posted: 20 May 2021 01:03 PM PDT Using a robotic 'Third Thumb' can impact how the hand is represented in the brain, finds a new study.

Brain stimulation evoking sense of touch improves control of robotic arm Posted: 20 May 2021 11:53 AM PDT The brain-computer interface user was able to transfer objects with a robotic arm at twice the speed of doing it without the tactile feedback.

Hubble tracks down fast radio bursts to galaxies' spiral arms Posted: 20 May 2021 10:39 AM PDT Astronomers have traced the locations of five brief, powerful radio blasts to the spiral arms of five distant galaxies.

Swifts set new record for swiftness Posted: 20 May 2021 10:39 AM PDT Swifts aren't called 'swifts' for nothing. They're known for being among the fastest migrating small birds around. When they aren't breeding, common swifts stay in the air most of the time -- up to 10 months of the year. Scientists had thought they travel about 500 kilometers per day on average. Now, new evidence shows that's a conservative estimate.

Origins of life researchers develop a new ecological biosignature Posted: 20 May 2021 10:37 AM PDT In groundbreaking work, a team has developed a new ecological biosignature that could help scientists detect life in vastly different environments.

Not all theories can explain the black hole M87* Posted: 20 May 2021 10:37 AM PDT Theoretical physicists have analyzed data from the black hole M87* as part of the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration to test Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity. According to the tests, the size of the shadow from M87* is in excellent agreement being from a black hole in general relativity, but sets constraints on the properties of black holes in other theories.

An inconstant Hubble constant? Research suggests fix to cosmological cornerstone Posted: 20 May 2021 10:37 AM PDT More than 90 years ago, astronomer Edwin Hubble observed the first hint of the rate at which the universe expands, called the Hubble constant.

New role for strange organisms in ocean food web Posted: 19 May 2021 01:36 PM PDT Researchers have more insight into salps -- a strange sea creature found in oceans around the world -- and what their presence means for the health of a marine ecosystem.

Study on bizarre rodent genetics solves a mystery and reveals another Posted: 19 May 2021 01:26 PM PDT Researchers uncover what one co-author describes as 'the weirdest sex chromosome system known to science': an unassuming vole species whose X and Y chromosomes have fused, switched roles and swapped smaller pieces of DNA. The discovery is a rare exception to mammals' remarkably stable sex determination system.

Heavy metal vapors unexpectedly found in comets throughout our Solar System -- and beyond Posted: 19 May 2021 09:08 AM PDT A new study has shown that iron and nickel exist in the atmospheres of comets throughout our Solar System, even those far from the Sun. A separate study reported that nickel vapor is also present in the icy interstellar comet 2I/Borisov. This is the first time heavy metals have been found in the cold atmospheres of distant comets.

Magnetically propelled cilia power climbing soft robots and microfluidic pumps Posted: 19 May 2021 09:06 AM PDT The rhythmic motions of hair-like cilia move liquids around cells or propel the cells themselves. In nature, cilia flap independently, and mimicking these movements with artificial materials requires complex mechanisms. Now, researchers have made artificial cilia that move in a wave-like fashion when a rotating magnetic field is applied, making them suitable for versatile, climbing soft robots and microfluidic devices.

An illuminating possibility for stroke treatment: Nano-photosynthesis Posted: 19 May 2021 05:05 AM PDT Blocked blood vessels in the brains of stroke patients prevent oxygen-rich blood from getting to cells, causing severe damage. Plants and some microbes produce oxygen through photosynthesis. What if there was a way to make photosynthesis happen in the brains of patients? Now, researchers have done just that in cells and in mice, using blue-green algae and special nanoparticles, in a proof-of-concept demonstration.

How moths find their flame: Genetics of mate attraction discovered Posted: 14 May 2021 10:41 AM PDT Biologists have revealed the genetics linking pheromone signals produced by female moths and the neuronal response driving male attraction to females. The ability to predict mate choice will help in understanding how species diverge, and how to control agricultural pests.

New screening method could lead to microbe-based replacements for chemical pesticides Posted: 14 May 2021 10:41 AM PDT Some nonpathogenic microorganisms can stimulate plant immune responses without damaging the plants, which allows them to act like plant vaccines, but screening microorganisms for such properties has traditionally been time-consuming and expensive. Now, a team of scientists has developed a screening method based on cultured plant cells that makes such testing easier. This may lead to microorganism-based crop protection methods that reduce the need for chemical pesticides.

Is the past (and future) there when nobody looks? Posted: 14 May 2021 10:40 AM PDT Quantum mechanics is famous for its indeterminism, but we can usually use probabilities to quantify our uncertainty about future observations. However, researchers have recently shown that in certain extreme quantum scenarios it is not possible to make such probabilistic predictions, provided that certain key assumptions of quantum mechanics hold true.

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