livescience--2020-11-19--CDC urges Americans not to travel for Thanksgiving

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) strongly recommends against travel for Thanksgiving this year , as cases of COVID-19 soar throughout the country .
`` We 're alarmed with the exponential increase in cases , hospitalizations and deaths '' in the United States , Dr. Henry Walke , the CDC 's COVID-19 incident manager , said in a news briefing Thursday ( Nov. 19 ) .
In just the last week , the country has logged more than 1 million COVID-19 cases .
`` The safest way to celebrate Thanksgiving is to celebrate at home with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the agency said in posted Thursday on its website .
Related : Thanksgiving with family and friends is a bad idea , health experts warn Travel is of particular concern because of `` the opportunity to translocate disease or infection from one part of the country to another , '' Walke said .
In addition , there 's concern about the spread of the virus not only on trains , buses and planes , but also in the transportation hubs where people tend to crowd together in lines or waiting areas , Walke @ @ @ @ @ @ @ family they do not live with , there is a risk of further spreading COVID-19 .
`` What 's at stake is … the increased chance of one of your loved ones becoming sick , being hospitalized and dying , '' Walke said .
If people do decide to travel , the CDC recommends that people always in public settings , stay at least 6 feet apart from others and wash their hands often .
People should also check whether there are restrictions or entry requirements ( such as a 14-day quarantine ) @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to , the agency said .
The CDC 's new guidance also clarifies the definition of a `` household , '' which it defines as people who have lived with you for the last 14 days .
People who have been living away from home , such as college students , would not be considered part of their parents ' household .
If you are hosting members from outside your household ( such as college students ) , the CDC advises people to take extra precautions , such as wearing masks within their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a separate bathroom , if possible .
`` People want to see their relatives and their friends in the way they 've always done it , '' Walke said .
But this year , `` we 're asking people to be as safe as possible and limit their travel . ''

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) strongly recommends against travel for Thanksgiving this year, as cases of COVID-19 soar throughout the country.
"We're alarmed with the exponential increase in cases, hospitalizations and deaths" in the United States, Dr. Henry Walke, the CDC's COVID-19 incident manager, said in a news briefing Thursday (Nov. 19). In just the last week, the country has logged more than 1 million COVID-19 cases.
"The safest way to celebrate Thanksgiving is to celebrate at home with the people you live with," the agency said in new guidance posted Thursday on its website.
Related: Thanksgiving with family and friends is a bad idea, health experts warn
Travel is of particular concern because of "the opportunity to translocate disease or infection from one part of the country to another," Walke said. In addition, there's concern about the spread of the virus not only on trains, buses and planes, but also in the transportation hubs where people tend to crowd together in lines or waiting areas, Walke said. And when people gather with family they do not live with, there is a risk of further spreading COVID-19.
"What's at stake is … the increased chance of one of your loved ones becoming sick, being hospitalized and dying," Walke said.
If people do decide to travel, the CDC recommends that people always wear a mask in public settings, stay at least 6 feet apart from others and wash their hands often.
People should also check whether there are restrictions or entry requirements (such as a 14-day quarantine) in the areas they plan to travel to, the agency said.
The CDC's new guidance also clarifies the definition of a "household," which it defines as people who have lived with you for the last 14 days. People who have been living away from home, such as college students, would not be considered part of their parents' household. If you are hosting members from outside your household (such as college students), the CDC advises people to take extra precautions, such as wearing masks within their own home and having overnight guests use a separate bathroom, if possible.
Walke acknowledged, "these times are tough."
"People want to see their relatives and their friends in the way they've always done it," Walke said. But this year, "we're asking people to be as safe as possible and limit their travel."
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-19--Antarctica's blue whales return to South Georgia a century after they were nearly wiped out

The critically-endangered — the largest animal known to have ever existed — has returned to the waters near the remote island of South Georgia near Antarctica , almost 100 years after the mega-mammal was nearly made extinct by industrial whaling .
Researchers say a recent survey of the waters around the sub-Antarctic island — a center for industrial whaling until it was banned in the 1960s — recorded dozens of blue whales where only a single whale had been seen between 1998 and 2018 .
`` We 've had indications in previous years that there might be more blue whales @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' marine mammal ecologist Susannah Calderan told Live Science .
`` But we were very favorably surprised by quite how many we did see this year . ''
Related : 15 of the largest animals of their kind Calderan , a research fellow at the Scottish Association for Marine Science ( SAMS ) , is the lead author of a study into the resurgence of blue whales near South Georgia published Thursday ( Nov. 19 ) in the journal .
In January and February this year , she was on board the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expedition into the waters around South Georgia led by whale biologist Jen Jackson of the British Antarctic Survey , a co-author of the new research .
The scientists , she said , were amazed to find numerous blue whales in a region where they were once eradicated — — 38 sightings on the surface over a few weeks , comprising a total of 58 individual whales , along with many acoustic detections by `` sonobuoys '' equipped to monitor underwater whale songs .
South Georgia is the largest island in a remote South @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the South Sandwich Islands .
The island is about 2,500 miles ( 4,000 kilometers ) from the coast of Antarctica , but it is situated within the Antarctic convergence — the hydrological boundary between the cold waters around and the warmer waters farther north .
It 's now only inhabited by people for a few months every summer , but South Georgia had a prominent role in the .
In the early 20th century , it became a center for industrial whaling — effectively the of whaling , first for humpbacks , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : 50 of the most endangered species on the planet According to Calderan 's study , more than 42,000 blue whales were killed around South Georgia between 1904 and 1971 , most of them before the mid-1930s .
`` In the early 1900s , South Georgia waters thronged with blue whales ; within a little over 30 years , they were all but gone , '' the researchers wrote .
`` It was just a matter of luck that they were n't wiped out altogether , '' Calderan said .
`` By the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that blue whale populations were 0.15 % of their pre-whaling levels .
They could n't have hung on much longer . ''
Although populations of blue whales have been increasing in other parts of the Antarctic in recent decades , the majestic ocean dwellers were almost unseen in the waters around South Georgia until the recent expedition , she said .
The near-extinction of blue whales around South Georgia in the early 20th century may have resulted in the loss of their `` cultural memory '' of the abundance there of Antarctic krill @ @ @ @ @ @ @ swarms in the Southern Ocean and the only food of blue whales.Knowledge of whale feeding grounds may be passed on from mother whales to their calves .
`` There was a cultural memory , maybe , of animals that used to come to South Georgia that was lost because they were wiped out , '' Calderan said .
`` They could n't pass on the knowledge of the feeding grounds because there were n't any of them left . ''
But the evidence of the recent survey suggested at least some blue whales @ @ @ @ @ @ @ krill .
`` I think we may well be seeing evidence of site fidelity to certain feeding areas , which would be an explanation for why [ blue whale ] numbers started recovering in the wider Antarctic , but has taken longer to recover at South Georgia , '' Calderan said .
The increase in blue whales around South Georgia comes after BAS research indicating the population of in the region has also increased — like blue whales , humpbacks were all but driven to extinction by industrial whaling .
`` It 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` This was an area that was particularly hard hit by whaling , and it is really encouraging that we 're starting to see whales there again . ''

The critically-endangered blue whale — the largest animal known to have ever existed — has returned to the waters near the remote island of South Georgia near Antarctica, almost 100 years after the mega-mammal was nearly made extinct by industrial whaling.
Researchers say a recent survey of the waters around the sub-Antarctic island — a center for industrial whaling until it was banned in the 1960s — recorded dozens of blue whales where only a single whale had been seen between 1998 and 2018.
"We've had indications in previous years that there might be more blue whales starting to come back to South Georgia," marine mammal ecologist Susannah Calderan told Live Science. "But we were very favorably surprised by quite how many we did see this year."
Related: 15 of the largest animals of their kind
Calderan, a research fellow at the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS), is the lead author of a study into the resurgence of blue whales near South Georgia published Thursday (Nov. 19) in the journal Endangered Species Research .
In January and February this year, she was on board the New Zealand research ship Braveheart for an expedition into the waters around South Georgia led by whale biologist Jen Jackson of the British Antarctic Survey, a co-author of the new research.
The scientists, she said, were amazed to find numerous blue whales in a region where they were once eradicated — — 38 sightings on the surface over a few weeks, comprising a total of 58 individual whales, along with many acoustic detections by "sonobuoys" equipped to monitor underwater whale songs.
Subpolar island
South Georgia is the largest island in a remote South Atlantic archipelago, known as South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.
The island is about 2,500 miles (4,000 kilometers) from the coast of Antarctica, but it is situated within the Antarctic convergence — the hydrological boundary between the cold waters around Antarctica and the warmer waters farther north.
It's now only inhabited by people for a few months every summer, but South Georgia had a prominent role in the history of Antarctic exploration .
In the early 20th century, it became a center for industrial whaling — effectively the "Ground Zero" of whaling, first for humpbacks, and later for blue whales.
Related: 50 of the most endangered species on the planet
According to Calderan's study, more than 42,000 blue whales were killed around South Georgia between 1904 and 1971, most of them before the mid-1930s. "In the early 1900s, South Georgia waters thronged with blue whales; within a little over 30 years, they were all but gone," the researchers wrote.
"It was just a matter of luck that they weren't wiped out altogether," Calderan said. "By the end of whaling, it was estimated that blue whale populations were 0.15% of their pre-whaling levels. They couldn't have hung on much longer."
Although populations of blue whales have been increasing in other parts of the Antarctic in recent decades, the majestic ocean dwellers were almost unseen in the waters around South Georgia until the recent expedition, she said.
Whale resurgence
The near-extinction of blue whales around South Georgia in the early 20th century may have resulted in the loss of their "cultural memory" of the abundance there of Antarctic krill — tiny swimming crustaceans found in huge swarms in the Southern Ocean and the only food of blue whales.Knowledge of whale feeding grounds may be passed on from mother whales to their calves. "There was a cultural memory, maybe, of animals that used to come to South Georgia that was lost because they were wiped out," Calderan said. "They couldn't pass on the knowledge of the feeding grounds because there weren't any of them left."
But the evidence of the recent survey suggested at least some blue whales have rediscovered South Georgia's abundance of krill.
"I think we may well be seeing evidence of site fidelity to certain feeding areas, which would be an explanation for why [blue whale] numbers started recovering in the wider Antarctic, but has taken longer to recover at South Georgia," Calderan said.
The increase in blue whales around South Georgia comes after BAS research indicating the population of humpback whales in the region has also increased — like blue whales, humpbacks were all but driven to extinction by industrial whaling.
"It's a good sign," Calderan said. "This was an area that was particularly hard hit by whaling, and it is really encouraging that we're starting to see whales there again."
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-19--Arecibo radio telescope, an icon of astronomy, is lost

The National Science Foundation ( NSF ) will decommission 's massive radio dish after damage has made the facility too dangerous to repair , the agency announced today ( Nov. 19 ) .
The announcement came as scientists awaited a verdict about the fate of the iconic observatory after damage to the complex cabling supporting a 900-ton science platform suspended over the dish .
In August , a cable slipped out of its socket , but engineers evaluating the situation deemed it stable ; earlier this month , a , leaving Arecibo 's fate much more perilous .
After considering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , which owns the property , has decided the facility is unstable enough that there is no way to repair the damage that does not put personnel at undue risk .
`` Our goal has been to find a way to without placing anyone 's safety at risk , '' Sean Jones , assistant director for the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate at the NSF , said in a news conference today .
`` However , after receiving and reviewing the engineering assessments , we have found no path forward that would allow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we know that a delay in decision making leaves the entire facility at risk of an uncontrolled collapse , unnecessarily jeopardizing people and also the additional facilities . ''
Related : Losing Arecibo Observatory would create a hole that ca n't be filled , scientists say '' The telescope is currently at serious risk of an unexpected , uncontrolled collapse , '' Ralph Gaume , director of NSF 's Division of Astronomical Sciences , said .
`` According to engineering assessments , even attempts of stabilization or testing the cables could result in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not tell us the safety margin of the structure , but they have advised NSF that the structure will collapse in the near future on its own . ''
During the news conference , officials emphasized that the decision was based on prioritizing safety , not a reflection of the that Arecibo has done over the past decades or could continue to do in the future , and that some hoped-for science will be lost with the facility .
`` This decision has nothing to do with the scientific merits of Arecibo Observatory @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is not a consideration .
It 's all about safety . ''
Guame added that the agency will work with scientists who had been planning to use the Arecibo telescope and its other facilities in order to relocate those planned research projects wherever possible .
However , the facility was unique , particularly in its radar capability , which was heavily used to study and other solar system objects .
`` Some of the Arecibo science will transfer ; some of it will not , '' Gaume said .
The officials also emphasized @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the telescope in a controlled manner , the other assets at Arecibo Observatory — primarily , the visitor center , an atmospheric science instrument on site and a second atmospheric tool on the neighboring island of Culebra — should survive .
Both of the failed cables on Arecibo were connected to the same support tower .
An engineering analysis completed after the second cable failed in November found that if one more cable on that tower , dubbed Tower 4 , failed , the platform would collapse into the dish and likely cause @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the cable support system is already so fragile , the engineers did n't see any way to safely evaluate the situation in more detail , much less stabilize it .
`` What we 're challenged with is a structure for which we do n't understand the safety margins , the engineering approaches to better understand the safety margins involve considerable risk , and the engineering approach to repair the structure appears to be highly unsafe . ''
That means the situation is volatile enough that the NSF ca n't guarantee the telescope will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Gaume and Ashley Zauderer , the program director for Arecibo Observatory at the NSF , said that the agency has hired engineers to develop a plan for a controlled decommissioning .
Creating that plan and gathering the necessary approvals for it will take multiple weeks , they added .
The officials also declined to provide an idea of what that strategy would look like , although they mentioned the potential for helicopters or explosives to be considered .
In conjunction with the news conference , the NSF provided an engineering report from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after the second failure , which offers little more detail about the facility 's fate .
`` We believe the structure will collapse in the near future if left untouched , '' John Abruzzo , managing principal of Thornton Tomasetti , wrote .
`` Controlled demolition , designed with a specific collapse sequence determined and implemented with the use of explosives , will reduce the uncertainty and danger associated with collapse . ''
The severity of the situation stems from both the fact that two cables have already failed , and the way @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by the second failure .
`` The three expert companies that we brought in did n't provide any input or any inkling that there was an issue , '' Gaume said of the main cables after the August failure .
`` It is , I think , just truly unfortunate that this main cable failed before we had a chance to get things stabilized , '' Zauderer said .
The NSF officials said that right now , their priority is focused on safely decommissioning the radio dish and protecting as much of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they did emphasize that they are not decommissioning Arecibo Observatory as a whole , that they recognize the facility 's importance in Puerto Rico , and that in the long term , they want to ensure the future of the site and the science that it has fostered for decades .
`` We 're discussing the decommissioning of a structure made of steel and cables , but it truly is the people on that have the ideas , '' Zauderer said .
`` It 's the idea of discovery that led to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the passion of the people that work at the observatory … to continue to explore , to learn , that is the true heart and soul of Arecibo . ''
`` It 's not the telescope that 's the heart and soul , it 's the people . ''
Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels @ space.com or follow her on Twitter @ meghanbartels .
Follow us on Twitter @ Spacedotcom and on Facebook .

The National Science Foundation (NSF) will decommission Arecibo Observatory 's massive radio dish after damage has made the facility too dangerous to repair, the agency announced today (Nov. 19).
The announcement came as scientists awaited a verdict about the fate of the iconic observatory after damage to the complex cabling supporting a 900-ton science platform suspended over the dish. In August, a cable slipped out of its socket , but engineers evaluating the situation deemed it stable; earlier this month, a second cable unexpectedly snapped , leaving Arecibo's fate much more perilous. After considering three separate engineering reports, the NSF, which owns the property, has decided the facility is unstable enough that there is no way to repair the damage that does not put personnel at undue risk.
"Our goal has been to find a way to preserve the telescope without placing anyone's safety at risk," Sean Jones, assistant director for the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate at the NSF, said in a news conference today. "However, after receiving and reviewing the engineering assessments, we have found no path forward that would allow us to do so safely. And we know that a delay in decision making leaves the entire facility at risk of an uncontrolled collapse, unnecessarily jeopardizing people and also the additional facilities."
Related: Losing Arecibo Observatory would create a hole that can't be filled, scientists say
"The telescope is currently at serious risk of an unexpected, uncontrolled collapse," Ralph Gaume, director of NSF's Division of Astronomical Sciences, said. "According to engineering assessments, even attempts of stabilization or testing the cables could result in accelerating the catastrophic failure. Engineers cannot tell us the safety margin of the structure, but they have advised NSF that the structure will collapse in the near future on its own."
Safety concerns loom
During the news conference, officials emphasized that the decision was based on prioritizing safety, not a reflection of the scientific work that Arecibo has done over the past decades or could continue to do in the future, and that some hoped-for science will be lost with the facility.
"This decision has nothing to do with the scientific merits of Arecibo Observatory," Gaume said. "That is not a consideration. It's all about safety."
Guame added that the agency will work with scientists who had been planning to use the Arecibo telescope and its other facilities in order to relocate those planned research projects wherever possible. However, the facility was unique, particularly in its radar capability, which was heavily used to study near-Earth asteroids and other solar system objects.
"Some of the Arecibo science will transfer; some of it will not," Gaume said.
The officials also emphasized that if they can manage to decommission the telescope in a controlled manner, the other assets at Arecibo Observatory — primarily, the visitor center, an atmospheric science instrument on site and a second atmospheric tool on the neighboring island of Culebra — should survive.
A drone view of damage to a cable at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico captured after a second cable failed on Nov. 6, 2020. (Image credit: Courtesy of the NAIC - Arecibo Observatory, a facility of the NSF)
Collapse threat a challenge for decommissioning
Both of the failed cables on Arecibo were connected to the same support tower. An engineering analysis completed after the second cable failed in November found that if one more cable on that tower, dubbed Tower 4, failed, the platform would collapse into the dish and likely cause the towers to topple. And because the cable support system is already so fragile, the engineers didn't see any way to safely evaluate the situation in more detail, much less stabilize it.
"What we're challenged with is a structure for which we don't understand the safety margins, the engineering approaches to better understand the safety margins involve considerable risk, and the engineering approach to repair the structure appears to be highly unsafe."
That means the situation is volatile enough that the NSF can't guarantee the telescope will be decommissioned in a controlled manner. Gaume and Ashley Zauderer, the program director for Arecibo Observatory at the NSF, said that the agency has hired engineers to develop a plan for a controlled decommissioning. Creating that plan and gathering the necessary approvals for it will take multiple weeks, they added.
The officials also declined to provide an idea of what that strategy would look like, although they mentioned the potential for helicopters or explosives to be considered.
In conjunction with the news conference, the NSF provided an engineering report from the firm leading the analysis of Arecibo Telescope after the second failure, which offers little more detail about the facility's fate.
An image showing damage to Arecibo Telescope's massive dish after a cable slipped out of its socket in August 2020. (Image credit: UCF/AO)
"We believe the structure will collapse in the near future if left untouched," John Abruzzo, managing principal of Thornton Tomasetti, wrote. "Controlled demolition, designed with a specific collapse sequence determined and implemented with the use of explosives, will reduce the uncertainty and danger associated with collapse."
The severity of the situation stems from both the fact that two cables have already failed, and the way three separate engineering consultants were caught off-guard by the second failure. "The three expert companies that we brought in didn't provide any input or any inkling that there was an issue," Gaume said of the main cables after the August failure.
"It is, I think, just truly unfortunate that this main cable failed before we had a chance to get things stabilized," Zauderer said.
The NSF officials said that right now, their priority is focused on safely decommissioning the radio dish and protecting as much of the other facilities on-site as possible. But they did emphasize that they are not decommissioning Arecibo Observatory as a whole, that they recognize the facility's importance in Puerto Rico, and that in the long term, they want to ensure the future of the site and the science that it has fostered for decades.
"We're discussing the decommissioning of a structure made of steel and cables, but it truly is the people on that have the ideas," Zauderer said. "It's the idea of discovery that led to the construction to start with, it's the passion of the people that work at the observatory … to continue to explore, to learn, that is the true heart and soul of Arecibo."
"It's not the telescope that's the heart and soul, it's the people."
Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her on Twitter @meghanbartels. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.


livescience--2020-11-19--Scientists are recreating the smell of 16th-century Europe

History is written , read , told — but rarely ever is it smelled .
Historians and scientists across Europe have now gotten together with perfumers and museums for a unique project : to capture what Europe smelled like between the 16th and early 20th centuries .
A European street today may smell like coffee , fresh-baked bread and cigarettes .
But what did it smell like hundreds of years ago ?
As part of this three-year-long project called `` Odeuropa , '' the researchers want to find all the old scents of Europe — and even recreate some of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tobacco scents and the earthy medicinal herbs , to the odors of stinky canals .
To do this , they will first build that will be trained to scan historical texts , written in seven different languages , for any descriptions of odors , according to The Guardian .
The A.I .
will also be trained to detect images of objects in the texts that might be aromatic .
The team will then use this information to create an online encyclopedia of smells from Europe 's past .
The `` Encyclopedia of Smell @ @ @ @ @ @ @ certain scents and will trace the stories behind scents , places and olfactory practices , according to a post on the Odeuropa website by project lead Ingeer Leemans , a professor of cultural history at The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam .
`` This database will become an archive for the olfactory heritage of Europe , enabling future generations to access and learn about the scented past , '' she wrote .
The researchers will then work with and perfume makers to recreate past smells and figure out how to display the smells in museums @ @ @ @ @ @ @ me , tobacco is really a central smell in European history and heritage , '' William Tullett , a lecturer in history at the Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge , England , and part of the Odeuropa team , .
`` It 's a hot , smokey , pungent smell but of course , it 's not one smell at all because perfumers and tobacconists and grocers have experimented with scenting tobacco in all kinds of ways . ''
This scent — and many others — are tangled in history .
The encyclopedia @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whom smell was important , such as physicians , Ruskin told the Guardian .
Other scents that could be included in the encyclopedia are herbs such as rosemary that people would use to protect against the or `` smelling salts '' for fits and fainting , he said .
But just as history was filled with interesting and pleasant smells , it 's also filled with stinky ones .
`` I find it particularly interesting to make the audience ( 'odience ' ) get acquainted with a whole range of scents such as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Verbeek , a scent historian at The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and member of the Odeuropa team .
`` It will make us more aware of how we relate to smell today and differently smells were appreciated in the past . ''
Foul odors also have history — and our perception of what was pleasant or stinky has changed .
For example , body odors only became taboo at the beginning of the 20th century when industrial production made perfume and soap available to lower social classes , Verbeek told Live Science in an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by writers around 1900 because it expressed a longing for the countryside but was also a way to express a dismay for the 'odorless ' and 'civilized ' bourgeoisie , '' she added .
With current technology , almost every scent can be synthesized , Verbeek said .
The more difficult part of the project will be to find descriptions of scents , because people have n't always talked or written about them , she said .
Scent plays a central role in our everyday life , even acting as a powerful time @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ability to spark long-forgotten memories .
But it 's also a key tool in telling the stories of others .
`` Scent gives us access to the past in a much more intimate , direct and emotional way than language and images , '' Verbeek said .
The project , based on a grant of 2.8 million euros ( $ 3.3 million ) , is set to begin in January .

History is written, read, told — but rarely ever is it smelled.
Historians and scientists across Europe have now gotten together with perfumers and museums for a unique project: to capture what Europe smelled like between the 16th and early 20th centuries. A European street today may smell like coffee, fresh-baked bread and cigarettes. But what did it smell like hundreds of years ago? As part of this three-year-long project called "Odeuropa," the researchers want to find all the old scents of Europe — and even recreate some of this ancient smellscape: from the dry tobacco scents and the earthy medicinal herbs, to the odors of stinky canals.
To do this, they will first build artificial intelligence that will be trained to scan historical texts, written in seven different languages, for any descriptions of odors, according to The Guardian . The A.I. will also be trained to detect images of objects in the texts that might be aromatic. The team will then use this information to create an online encyclopedia of smells from Europe's past.
Related: Why do smells trigger strong memories?
The "Encyclopedia of Smell Heritage" will include the meaning of certain scents and will trace the stories behind scents, places and olfactory practices, according to a post on the Odeuropa website by project lead Ingeer Leemans, a professor of cultural history at The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. "This database will become an archive for the olfactory heritage of Europe, enabling future generations to access and learn about the scented past," she wrote.
The researchers will then work with chemists and perfume makers to recreate past smells and figure out how to display the smells in museums and other historical sites.
"For me, tobacco is really a central smell in European history and heritage," William Tullett, a lecturer in history at the Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge, England, and part of the Odeuropa team, said in a video introducing Odeuropa . "It's a hot, smokey, pungent smell but of course, it's not one smell at all because perfumers and tobacconists and grocers have experimented with scenting tobacco in all kinds of ways."
This scent — and many others — are tangled in history.
The encyclopedia will also include descriptions of people for whom smell was important, such as physicians, Ruskin told the Guardian. Other scents that could be included in the encyclopedia are herbs such as rosemary that people would use to protect against the plague or "smelling salts" for fits and fainting, he said.
But just as history was filled with interesting and pleasant smells, it's also filled with stinky ones.
"I find it particularly interesting to make the audience ('odience') get acquainted with a whole range of scents such as a stinky canal," said Caro Verbeek, a scent historian at The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and member of the Odeuropa team. "It will make us more aware of how we relate to smell today and differently smells were appreciated in the past."
Foul odors also have history — and our perception of what was pleasant or stinky has changed. For example, body odors only became taboo at the beginning of the 20th century when industrial production made perfume and soap available to lower social classes, Verbeek told Live Science in an email. "Animal manure was glorified by writers around 1900 because it expressed a longing for the countryside but was also a way to express a dismay for the 'odorless' and 'civilized' bourgeoisie," she added.
With current technology, almost every scent can be synthesized, Verbeek said. The more difficult part of the project will be to find descriptions of scents, because people haven't always talked or written about them, she said.
Scent plays a central role in our everyday life, even acting as a powerful time machine into our own past with its ability to spark long-forgotten memories. But it's also a key tool in telling the stories of others.
"Scent gives us access to the past in a much more intimate, direct and emotional way than language and images," Verbeek said. The project, based on a grant of 2.8 million euros ($3.3 million), is set to begin in January.


livescience--2020-11-19--Prohibition-era gangster may have buried $150 million in treasure

When the notorious and gangster Dutch Schultz was gunned down in 1935 , rumors flew about the fortune that he supposedly left behind .
Legend had it Schultz had hidden valuables now worth more than $ 50 million ( and possibly as much as $ 150 million ) , including coins , thousand-dollar bills , diamonds and uncashed World War I Liberty Bonds , all stuffed into a strongbox and buried somewhere in the wilds of upstate New York .
But the existence of this treasure was never proven , and its location — if it ever existed — is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ later , Schultz 's mythical cache of riches has yet to be discovered .
But determined treasure seekers are certain that it 's out there — and they 're still looking .
In the PBS show `` , '' which premiered Nov. 18 , three teams set out to solve the 85-year-old puzzle , tracking down long-hidden tunnels and hideouts and hoping that satellite maps and ground-penetrating radar will lead them to the buried loot .
Related : 30 of the world 's most valuable treasures that are still missing Born Arthur Flegenheimer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ began a career of lawbreaking when he was still a boy in the Bronx .
He eventually earned a reputation as an exceptionally vicious criminal mastermind , using extreme violence to enforce illicit operations such as bootlegging , extortion and illegal lotteries that extended throughout New York and New Jersey , according to PBS .
When Prohibition went into effect in 1920 , Schultz quickly recognized it as a moneymaking opportunity .
He seized control of the Bronx 's illegal beer supply , running it with an iron fist , said Nate Hendley @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dutch Schultz : The Brazen Beer Baron of the Bronx `` ( Fiver Rivers Publishing , 2011 ) .
Schultz 's plan was simple : threaten and intimidate every speakeasy owner in the borough into buying only from him — or they would suffer the consequences .
One gruesome story described Schultz and his partner kidnapping a saloonkeeper who was reluctant to do business with them .
They hung the man by his thumbs , tortured him , then covered his face with fabric that had been dipped in sores , Hendley told @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ransomed and released , he went blind from the infection , '' Hendley said .
`` That sent a strong message to saloonkeepers to buy from Dutch . ''
Schultz later branched out into restaurant racketeering — extorting protection money from restaurant owners and workers — and muscled in on the numbers racket , or illegal lotteries , in Harlem .
At one point he was raking in approximately $ 12 million to $ 14 million per year from the lotteries alone , Hendley said .
`` Factor in inflation and it 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Hendley said .
`` He was making a lot of money , even by illicit gangster standards .
By all estimates , he was one of the wealthiest gangsters in New York at the time . ''
Most of Schultz 's crime empire was centered around New York City .
However , he also spent a lot of time in upstate New York , minding his breweries and visiting rural communities to distribute bribes and cultivate goodwill when he was on trial for tax evasion , according to Hendley .
After Schultz @ @ @ @ @ @ @ disregarding other powerful mobsters ' warnings to back off — gangster rivals arranged for Schultz 's murder , and a hit man shot him in a restaurant in Newark , New Jersey , on Oct. 23 , 1935 .
Rumors of Schultz 's missing treasure began circulating almost immediately after his death , because neither Schultz 's common-law wife nor anyone in his family stepped forward to claim ownership of the vast fortune he must have amassed from his criminal activities .
Schultz would likely have avoided banks and stashed his ill-gotten loot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ traced or taxed , and Schultz 's lawyer Dixie Davis claimed to have seen `` a big lockbox full of money , bonds and coins , '' adding that Schultz spoke about burying the loot so that the government would never get it , Hendley said .
But Davis ' claims about the lockbox were never verified .
`` It 's a mystery as to where his money went , '' Hendley said .
Still more rumors about the allegedly buried treasure arose from Schultz 's deathbed ravings , delivered to Newark police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bed , delirious with a fever of 106 degrees Fahrenheit ( 41 degrees Celsius ) and dosed with morphine .
A stenographer carefully recorded Schultz 's `` statements '' from the gangster 's bedside in the hours before his death ; Schultz mentioned `` my collection of papers '' and said that he had been shot `` over a million , five million dollars , '' according to a transcript published on Oct. 26 , 1935 , by .
But Schultz also muttered streams of utter nonsense , including , `` Get you @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up the truce flag '' and `` No payrolls .
No walls .
No coupons . ''
As he grew weaker , his rantings became less and less lucid .
Before Schultz lost consciousness for the last time , he called out , `` French-Canadian bean soup , '' the Times reported .
`` You could take bits and pieces of it and say he might be giving out clues , but he was dying , '' Hendley said .
`` I ca n't make any sense of it at all — but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Dead : Gangster 's Gold '' premieres Nov. 18 at 10 p.m. on PBS ( check local listings ) , and the PBS Video app .

A 1902 eagle-head coin that was found in the woods in rural New York. The mobster Dutch Schultz allegedly buried gold coins and other treasure somewhere in the region, prior to his death in 1935.
When the notorious bootlegger and gangster Dutch Schultz was gunned down in 1935, rumors flew about the fortune that he supposedly left behind. Legend had it Schultz had hidden valuables now worth more than $50 million (and possibly as much as $150 million), including gold coins, thousand-dollar bills, diamonds and uncashed World War I Liberty Bonds, all stuffed into a strongbox and buried somewhere in the wilds of upstate New York.
But the existence of this treasure was never proven, and its location — if it ever existed — is a long-standing mystery.
Almost a century later, Schultz's mythical cache of riches has yet to be discovered. But determined treasure seekers are certain that it's out there — and they're still looking. In the PBS show " Secrets of the Dead: Gangster's Gold ," which premiered Nov. 18, three teams set out to solve the 85-year-old puzzle, tracking down long-hidden tunnels and hideouts and hoping that satellite maps and ground-penetrating radar will lead them to the buried loot.
Related: 30 of the world's most valuable treasures that are still missing
Born Arthur Flegenheimer to German-Jewish parents in 1902, Schultz began a career of lawbreaking when he was still a boy in the Bronx. He eventually earned a reputation as an exceptionally vicious criminal mastermind, using extreme violence to enforce illicit operations such as bootlegging, extortion and illegal lotteries that extended throughout New York and New Jersey, according to PBS.
When Prohibition went into effect in 1920, Schultz quickly recognized it as a moneymaking opportunity. He seized control of the Bronx's illegal beer supply, running it with an iron fist, said Nate Hendley, a journalist and author of " Dutch Schultz: The Brazen Beer Baron of the Bronx " (Fiver Rivers Publishing, 2011). Schultz's plan was simple: threaten and intimidate every speakeasy owner in the borough into buying only from him — or they would suffer the consequences.
One gruesome story described Schultz and his partner kidnapping a saloonkeeper who was reluctant to do business with them. They hung the man by his thumbs, tortured him, then covered his face with fabric that had been dipped in gonorrhea sores, Hendley told Live Science.
"After he was ransomed and released, he went blind from the infection," Hendley said. "That sent a strong message to saloonkeepers to buy from Dutch."
Archival photo of Dutch Schultz, dubbed "Beer Baron of the Bronx" during Prohibition. (Image credit: Library of Congress)
Schultz later branched out into restaurant racketeering — extorting protection money from restaurant owners and workers — and muscled in on the numbers racket, or illegal lotteries, in Harlem. At one point he was raking in approximately $12 million to $14 million per year from the lotteries alone, Hendley said.
"Factor in inflation and it's worth over 10 times that today," Hendley said. "He was making a lot of money, even by illicit gangster standards. By all estimates, he was one of the wealthiest gangsters in New York at the time."
"My collection of papers"
Most of Schultz's crime empire was centered around New York City. However, he also spent a lot of time in upstate New York, minding his breweries and visiting rural communities to distribute bribes and cultivate goodwill when he was on trial for tax evasion, according to Hendley.
After Schultz tried to kill a federal prosecutor — disregarding other powerful mobsters' warnings to back off — gangster rivals arranged for Schultz's murder, and a hit man shot him in a restaurant in Newark, New Jersey, on Oct. 23, 1935. Rumors of Schultz's missing treasure began circulating almost immediately after his death, because neither Schultz's common-law wife nor anyone in his family stepped forward to claim ownership of the vast fortune he must have amassed from his criminal activities.
Schultz would likely have avoided banks and stashed his ill-gotten loot in places where it couldn't be traced or taxed, and Schultz's lawyer Dixie Davis claimed to have seen "a big lockbox full of money, bonds and coins," adding that Schultz spoke about burying the loot so that the government would never get it, Hendley said. But Davis' claims about the lockbox were never verified.
"It's a mystery as to where his money went," Hendley said.
Still more rumors about the allegedly buried treasure arose from Schultz's deathbed ravings, delivered to Newark police while he was manacled to a hospital bed, delirious with a fever of 106 degrees Fahrenheit (41 degrees Celsius) and dosed with morphine. A stenographer carefully recorded Schultz's "statements" from the gangster's bedside in the hours before his death; Schultz mentioned "my collection of papers" and said that he had been shot "over a million, five million dollars," according to a transcript published on Oct. 26, 1935, by The New York Times .
But Schultz also muttered streams of utter nonsense, including, "Get you onions up, and we will throw up the truce flag" and "No payrolls. No walls. No coupons." As he grew weaker, his rantings became less and less lucid. Before Schultz lost consciousness for the last time, he called out, "French-Canadian bean soup," the Times reported.
"You could take bits and pieces of it and say he might be giving out clues, but he was dying," Hendley said. "I can't make any sense of it at all — but who knows?"
"Secrets of the Dead: Gangster's Gold" premieres Nov. 18 at 10 p.m. on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/secrets and the PBS Video app.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-20--Happy birthday to Benoit Mandelbrot, the discoverer of fractals

French-American mathematician Mandelbrot is known as the `` father of fractal geometry , '' for having defined one of the most important patterns found in nature : fractals .
Fractals are infinitely repeating mathematical shapes ; no matter how much you zoom in on them , the same irregular shape will repeat over and over at infinitely smaller scales .
[ You can see a neat visualization of a fractal from Google . ]
This pattern can be found everywhere in the natural world , such as in snowflakes , in and in seashells .
But fractals can also be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ astronomy , computer science , economics , finance and even the stock market , .
Mandelbrot was born in 1924 in Warsaw , Poland ; his parents were Lithuanian Jews , according to a short biography .
Interested in chess and his father 's map collection , he was exposed to and geometry at a very young age .
In 1936 , his family moved to France and he later studied in Paris and the U.S. , receiving a master 's degree in aeronautics from Caltech and a doctorate degree in mathematics from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ He then did research at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton , New Jersey for a year , and then worked from 1958 to 1993 at the Watson Research Center IBM in New York , where he studied repetitions in signal noise ; that work became the inspiration for his later discoveries , according to Google .
In 1975 , he came up with the term `` fractal geometry '' and seven years later he taught it to the world with his book `` `` ( W. H. Freeman and Company , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` Why is geometry often described as cold and dry ?
One reason lies in its inability to describe the shape of a cloud , a mountain , a coastline or a tree , '' Mandelbrot wrote in his treatise .
In mathematics , the set of complex numbers ( those that contain both real and imaginary parts ) that followed this iterative pattern became known as the `` Mandelbrot set . ''
In 1987 , he began teaching at Yale University .
Throughout his life , he won many awards and honorary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Physics in 1993 for his work on fractals , according to Britannica .
His work on computer graphics also ushered in a new use of computers to solve math problems .
`` So much of science is about specializing , looking ever more closely at ever narrower parts of the world , '' Mandelbrot 's son Dr. Didier Mandelbrot told Google in honor of his dad 's birthday .
`` Benoit was a rare person who looked more broadly and by this , saw more deeply.
`` Mandelbrot died of in 2010 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ age of 85 .

Today (Nov. 20) is Benoit Mandelbrot's birthday. Mandelbrot was a renowned mathematician who defined fractals, one of the most important patterns in nature.
Renowned mathematician Benoit Mandelbrot's birthday is today (Nov. 20) and Google published a doodle in his honor .
French-American mathematician Mandelbrot is known as the "father of fractal geometry," for having defined one of the most important patterns found in nature: fractals. Fractals are infinitely repeating mathematical shapes; no matter how much you zoom in on them, the same irregular shape will repeat over and over at infinitely smaller scales. [ You can see a neat visualization of a fractal from Google .]
This pattern can be found everywhere in the natural world, such as in snowflakes, in clouds and in seashells. But fractals can also be used to describe how things work in astronomy, computer science, economics, finance and even the stock market, according to Britannica .
Related: Images: the world's most beautiful equations
Mandelbrot was born in 1924 in Warsaw, Poland; his parents were Lithuanian Jews, according to a short biography published by Google . Interested in chess and his father's map collection, he was exposed to mathematics and geometry at a very young age. In 1936, his family moved to France and he later studied in Paris and the U.S., receiving a master's degree in aeronautics from Caltech and a doctorate degree in mathematics from the University of Paris in 1952.
He then did research at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey for a year, and then worked from 1958 to 1993 at the Watson Research Center IBM in New York, where he studied repetitions in signal noise; that work became the inspiration for his later discoveries, according to Google. In 1975, he came up with the term "fractal geometry" and seven years later he taught it to the world with his book " The Fractal Geometry of Nature " (W. H. Freeman and Company, 1982), according to Google.
"Why is geometry often described as cold and dry? One reason lies in its inability to describe the shape of a cloud, a mountain, a coastline or a tree," Mandelbrot wrote in his treatise.
In mathematics, the set of complex numbers (those that contain both real and imaginary parts) that followed this iterative pattern became known as the "Mandelbrot set." In 1987, he began teaching at Yale University. Throughout his life, he won many awards and honorary degrees, including the Wolf Foundation Prize for Physics in 1993 for his work on fractals, according to Britannica. His work on computer graphics also ushered in a new use of computers to solve math problems.
"So much of science is about specializing, looking ever more closely at ever narrower parts of the world," Mandelbrot's son Dr. Didier Mandelbrot told Google in honor of his dad's birthday. "Benoit was a rare person who looked more broadly and by this, saw more deeply. "
Mandelbrot died of pancreatic cancer in 2010 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at the age of 85.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-20--Physicists built an 'anti-laser' to charge your phone from across a room

Scientists have figured out a way to perfectly beam energy across any room , thanks to a sci-fi like device they call an `` anti-laser . ''
The idea is simple : Just like a laser emits light particles , or photons , one after another in a neat and orderly row , an anti-laser sucks up photons one after another in reverse order .
Researchers have long speculated that a device like this might make wires and charging cables a thing of the past , allowing people to beam energy invisibly across a room to a laptop or phone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But though basic anti-lasers have been tested before , the real world is n't as neat and orderly as a laser pointed at a fixed receiver in a laboratory .
Electronics move around , objects get in the way , walls reflect energy in unexpected ways .
The new anti-laser demonstrated in this experiment accounts for all that , and it receives scattered energy beamed around a space in an unpredictable pattern — still receiving 99.996 % of the sent power .
The formal term for the method they used is `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
CPA uses one machine to send power across the room , and another ( the `` anti-laser '' ) to suck it back up .
Past CPA experiments , the researchers wrote in a paper published Nov. 17 in the journal , were exciting but had a fundamental limitation : the direction of time .
The experiments worked only in situations where time could flow as easily backward as forward , which rarely exist in our day-to-day lives .
Related : 8 ways you can see Einstein 's theory of relativity in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anti-laser setup , involving a laser pointer shooting photons one after another into a receiver that gobbles them up , would look basically the same whether you played a tape of its action forward or backward : Photon pops out of one device , travels across space and enters the other device .
Setups like this , in physics terms , are said to have `` time reversal symmetry . ''
Time-reversal symmetry only pops up in systems without much entropy , or the inherent tendency of systems to descend into disorder .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ CPA experiments have had time reversal symmetry .
Some were more complex than the laser pointer aimed at a receiver .
But even complicated projects have that symmetry if they 're set up such that the process can be reversed .
But for this new work , the researchers used to jostle the photons so aggressively that time reversal symmetry was lost .
The process of transferring power — shooting the photons — was like stirring soup : It does n't work backward .
( Imagine trying to un-stir soup . )
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ This `` proves that the concept of CPA goes far beyond its initial conception as a 'time-reversed laser , ' '' the researchers wrote in their paper , suggesting it might one day have practical applications in the real world .
That 's because the real world is n't as neat as a time-reversible laboratory experiment .
It 's messy and unpredictable , and never time-reversible over the long term .
For CPA to work in those challenging conditions , it has to be able to deal with it .
The researchers pulled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ experimental setups , both using energy .
The first was a `` labyrinth '' of wires that photons had to navigate to reach a receiver .
The second was a small , irregular `` brass cavity '' with a receiver in the middle , which the photons reached after scattering and traversing the open space in the cavity .
To pull this off , the researchers emitted microwaves of different properties , and tested which combination of frequencies , amplitudes and phases ( three features of any electromagnetic wave ) was most likely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ absorbed — even after passing through the magnetic fields and the labyrinth or irregular open space .
In each case , they determined an ideal `` tuning '' of the microwave emitter that caused most of the microwaves to get absorbed ( 99.999 % in the labyrinth , 99.996 % in the open space ) .
In real-world applications ( like your living room ) , the emitter would test and retest the different frequencies , amplitudes and phases to transfer photons to its receiver .
There are three major potential applications of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ energy transfer at a distance , the researchers wrote .
( Goodbye to plugging in your laptop . )
Another is a sensing device that could detect subtle changes in any room where the photons are scattered .
( Imagine a security camera that can feel an intruder moving through a room . )
The third is a messaging system that could securely transfer information to a hidden receiver ; signals sent over CPA could use the constantly-changing tuning numbers as a sort of password to encrypt data .
Only the receiver or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ behavior from moment to moment could decrypt the message .
Any such real-world uses are still a long way off .
But this experiment shows they 're at least possible , the researchers wrote .

An image shows arcs of electricity generated with a Tesla coil, an earlier experiment in shooting energy across open space that unfortunately would not effectively charge your phone.
Scientists have figured out a way to perfectly beam energy across any room, thanks to a sci-fi like device they call an "anti-laser."
The idea is simple: Just like a laser emits light particles, or photons, one after another in a neat and orderly row, an anti-laser sucks up photons one after another in reverse order. Researchers have long speculated that a device like this might make wires and charging cables a thing of the past, allowing people to beam energy invisibly across a room to a laptop or phone and power it without plugging it in. But though basic anti-lasers have been tested before, the real world isn't as neat and orderly as a laser pointed at a fixed receiver in a laboratory. Electronics move around, objects get in the way, walls reflect energy in unexpected ways. The new anti-laser demonstrated in this experiment accounts for all that, and it receives scattered energy beamed around a space in an unpredictable pattern — still receiving 99.996% of the sent power.
The formal term for the method they used is "coherent perfect absorption" (CPA). CPA uses one machine to send power across the room, and another (the "anti-laser") to suck it back up. Past CPA experiments, the researchers wrote in a paper published Nov. 17 in the journal Nature Communications , were exciting but had a fundamental limitation: the direction of time. The experiments worked only in situations where time could flow as easily backward as forward, which rarely exist in our day-to-day lives.
Related: 8 ways you can see Einstein's theory of relativity in real life
The simplest model of an anti-laser setup, involving a laser pointer shooting photons one after another into a receiver that gobbles them up, would look basically the same whether you played a tape of its action forward or backward: Photon pops out of one device, travels across space and enters the other device. Setups like this, in physics terms, are said to have "time reversal symmetry." Time-reversal symmetry only pops up in systems without much entropy, or the inherent tendency of systems to descend into disorder.
Until now, even the most complex CPA experiments have had time reversal symmetry. Some were more complex than the laser pointer aimed at a receiver. But even complicated projects have that symmetry if they're set up such that the process can be reversed.
(Here's an example of how a complicated event can be time reversal symmetric: Imagine a videotape of a hobbyist picking up Lego pieces from a neatly organized case and using them to build a model Eiffel Tower. The result would look complicated, but the tape would record where every piece had gone, so playing the tape backward would just show the hobbyist taking apart the pieces and organizing them again.)
But for this new work, the researchers used magnetic fields to jostle the photons so aggressively that time reversal symmetry was lost. The process of transferring power — shooting the photons — was like stirring soup: It doesn't work backward. (Imagine trying to un-stir soup.) But the device still received the power.
This "proves that the concept of CPA goes far beyond its initial conception as a 'time-reversed laser,'" the researchers wrote in their paper, suggesting it might one day have practical applications in the real world. That's because the real world isn't as neat as a time-reversible laboratory experiment. It's messy and unpredictable, and never time-reversible over the long term. For CPA to work in those challenging conditions, it has to be able to deal with it.
The researchers pulled off this non-time reversed CPA in two experimental setups, both using microwave energy. The first was a "labyrinth" of wires that photons had to navigate to reach a receiver. The second was a small, irregular "brass cavity" with a receiver in the middle, which the photons reached after scattering and traversing the open space in the cavity.
To pull this off, the researchers emitted microwaves of different properties, and tested which combination of frequencies, amplitudes and phases (three features of any electromagnetic wave) was most likely to land on the receiver and get absorbed — even after passing through the magnetic fields and the labyrinth or irregular open space. In each case, they determined an ideal "tuning" of the microwave emitter that caused most of the microwaves to get absorbed (99.999% in the labyrinth, 99.996% in the open space). In real-world applications (like your living room), the emitter would test and retest the different frequencies, amplitudes and phases to transfer photons to its receiver.
There are three major potential applications of this technology. The first is wireless energy transfer at a distance, the researchers wrote. (Goodbye to plugging in your laptop.) Another is a sensing device that could detect subtle changes in any room where the photons are scattered. (Imagine a security camera that can feel an intruder moving through a room.)
The third is a messaging system that could securely transfer information to a hidden receiver; signals sent over CPA could use the constantly-changing tuning numbers as a sort of password to encrypt data. Only the receiver or someone who knew the receiver's exact behavior from moment to moment could decrypt the message.
Any such real-world uses are still a long way off. But this experiment shows they're at least possible, the researchers wrote.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-20--Could COVID-19 immunity last decades? Here’s the science.

The body builds a protective fleet of immune cells when infected with COVID-19 , and in many people , those defenses linger for more than six months after the infection clears , according to a new study .
The cells appear so stable , in fact , that immunity to the virus may last at least several years , the study authors said .
`` That amount of [ immune ] memory would likely prevent the vast majority of people from getting hospitalized disease , severe disease , for many years , '' co-author Shane Crotty , a virologist at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ California , told , which first reported on the study .
That said , making predictions about how long immunity to the coronavirus lasts can be `` tricky , '' Nicolas Vabret , an assistant professor of medicine at the Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine , who was not involved in the study , told Live Science .
`` It would be surprising to see the ... immune cells build up in patients over six months and suddenly crash after one year , '' Vabret said in an email .
But `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ immunity will last decades is to study the patients over the same period of time . ''
In other words , we wo n't know exactly how long immunity lasts without continuing to study those who have recovered from COVID-19 .
However , the new study , posted Nov. 16 to the preprint database , does provide strong hints that the protection is long-lived — although clearly not in all people , as there have been several cases of individuals being reinfected with the coronavirus after recovering .
Related : 20 of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ research dives into the ranks of the human immune system , assessing how different lines of defense change after a COVID-19 infection .
These defenses include , which bind to the virus and either summon immune cells to destroy the bug or neutralize it themselves .
Memory B cells , a kind of white blood cell , `` remember '' the virus after an infection clears and help quickly raise the body 's defenses , should the body be reexposed .
Memory T cells , another kind of white blood cell , also @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of infected cells .
Specifically , the authors looked at T cells called CD8+ and CD4+ cells .
The authors assessed all these immune cells and antibodies in 185 people who had recovered from COVID-19 .
A small number of participants never developed symptoms of the illness , but most experienced mild infections that did not require hospitalization .
And 7 % of the participants were hospitalized for severe disease .
The majority of participants provided one blood sample , sometime between six days and eight months after the onset of their infections @ @ @ @ @ @ @ between those time points , allowing the authors to track their immune response through time .
Ultimately , `` one could argue that what they found is not so surprising , as the immune response dynamics they measure look like what you would expect from functioning immune systems , '' Vabret said .
The authors found that antibodies specific to the spike protein — a structure on the surface of the virus — remain stable for months and begin to wane about six to eight months after infection .
At five months post-infection @ @ @ @ @ @ @ antibodies .
The volume of these antibodies differed widely between people , though , with an up to 200-fold difference between individuals .
Antibody counts normally fall after an acute infection , Vabret noted , so the modest drop-off at six to eight months came as no surprise .
By comparison , memory T and B cells that recognize the virus appear extremely stable , the authors noted .
`` Essentially no decay of ... memory B cells was observed between days 50 and 240 , '' or eight months later , Marc @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Minnesota Medical School , who was not involved in the study , said in an email .
`` Although some decay of memory T cells was observed , the decay was very slow and may flatten out at some point , '' Jenkins added .
There 's reason to believe that the number of memory T cells may stabilize sometime after infection , because T cells against a related coronavirus , SARS-CoV , have been found in recovered patients up to 17 years later , according to a study published July 15 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic , scientists raised concerns that immunity to the virus may wear off in about a year ; this trend can be seen with the four coronaviruses that cause the common cold , .
However , studies suggest that the body 's reaction to common coronaviruses may differ from that to viruses like SAR-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 , which hopped from animals to humans .
`` We do n't really know why seasonal coronaviruses do not induce lasting protective immunity , '' Vabret said .
But the new study , along with other , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ robust , said Jason Cyster , a professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of California , San Francisco , who was not involved in the study .
That said , a few participants in the new study did not mount long-lasting immune responses to the novel virus .
Their transient responses may come down to differences in how much virus they were initially exposed to , or may explain the difference , Cyster said .
For instance , genes known as differ widely between individuals and help alert the immune system @ @ @ @ @ @ @ differences between people may help explain cases of COVID-19 reinfection , which have been relatively rare but are increasing in number , .
Again , to really understand how long COVID-19 immunity lasts , scientists need to continue to study recovered patients .
`` Certainly , we need to look six months down the road , '' and see whether the T and B cell counts remain high , Cyster said .
Should immunity be long-term , one big question is whether that durability carries over to .
But natural immunity and vaccine-generated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Vabret noted .
`` The mechanisms by which vaccines induce immunity are not necessarily the same as the ones resulting from natural infection , '' Vabret said .
`` So the immune protection resulting from a vaccine could last longer or shorter than the one resulting from natural infection . ''
For example , the and vaccines use a molecular messenger called mRNA to train the body to recognize and attack the coronavirus .
No mRNA-based vaccine has ever been approved before , so `` we practically know nothing about the durability of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` I think [ that 's ] the big unknown for me , among the many , '' he said .
But while some unanswered questions remain , the main takeaway from the new study is that `` immune memory to SARS-CoV-2 is very stable , '' Jenkins said .
And — fingers crossed — perhaps those hopeful results will hold well into the future .

The body builds a protective fleet of immune cells when infected with COVID-19, and in many people, those defenses linger for more than six months after the infection clears, according to a new study.
The immune cells appear so stable, in fact, that immunity to the virus may last at least several years, the study authors said. "That amount of [immune] memory would likely prevent the vast majority of people from getting hospitalized disease, severe disease, for many years," co-author Shane Crotty, a virologist at the La Jolla Institute of Immunology in California, told The New York Times , which first reported on the study.
That said, making predictions about how long immunity to the coronavirus lasts can be "tricky," Nicolas Vabret, an assistant professor of medicine at the Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study, told Live Science.
"It would be surprising to see the ... immune cells build up in patients over six months and suddenly crash after one year," Vabret said in an email. But "the only way to know whether SARS-CoV-2 immunity will last decades is to study the patients over the same period of time."
In other words, we won't know exactly how long immunity lasts without continuing to study those who have recovered from COVID-19. However, the new study, posted Nov. 16 to the preprint database bioRxiv , does provide strong hints that the protection is long-lived — although clearly not in all people, as there have been several cases of individuals being reinfected with the coronavirus after recovering.
Related: 20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history
The research dives into the ranks of the human immune system, assessing how different lines of defense change after a COVID-19 infection.
These defenses include antibodies , which bind to the virus and either summon immune cells to destroy the bug or neutralize it themselves. Memory B cells, a kind of white blood cell, "remember" the virus after an infection clears and help quickly raise the body's defenses, should the body be reexposed. Memory T cells, another kind of white blood cell, also learn to recognize the coronavirus and dispose of infected cells. Specifically, the authors looked at T cells called CD8+ and CD4+ cells.
The authors assessed all these immune cells and antibodies in 185 people who had recovered from COVID-19. A small number of participants never developed symptoms of the illness, but most experienced mild infections that did not require hospitalization. And 7% of the participants were hospitalized for severe disease.
The majority of participants provided one blood sample, sometime between six days and eight months after the onset of their infections. Thirty-eight participants gave several blood samples between those time points, allowing the authors to track their immune response through time.
Ultimately, "one could argue that what they found is not so surprising, as the immune response dynamics they measure look like what you would expect from functioning immune systems," Vabret said.
The authors found that antibodies specific to the spike protein — a structure on the surface of the virus — remain stable for months and begin to wane about six to eight months after infection. At five months post-infection, nearly all the participants still carried antibodies. The volume of these antibodies differed widely between people, though, with an up to 200-fold difference between individuals. Antibody counts normally fall after an acute infection, Vabret noted, so the modest drop-off at six to eight months came as no surprise.
Related: 11 surprising facts about the immune system
By comparison, memory T and B cells that recognize the virus appear extremely stable, the authors noted. "Essentially no decay of ... memory B cells was observed between days 50 and 240," or eight months later, Marc Jenkins, an immunologist at the University of Minnesota Medical School, who was not involved in the study, said in an email.
"Although some decay of memory T cells was observed, the decay was very slow and may flatten out at some point," Jenkins added. There's reason to believe that the number of memory T cells may stabilize sometime after infection, because T cells against a related coronavirus, SARS-CoV, have been found in recovered patients up to 17 years later, according to a study published July 15 in the journal Nature .
Early in the pandemic, scientists raised concerns that immunity to the virus may wear off in about a year; this trend can be seen with the four coronaviruses that cause the common cold, Live Science previously reported . However, studies suggest that the body's reaction to common coronaviruses may differ from that to viruses like SAR-CoV and SARS-CoV-2, which hopped from animals to humans.
"We don't really know why seasonal coronaviruses do not induce lasting protective immunity," Vabret said. But the new study, along with other recent evidence , suggests that SARS-CoV-2 immunity may be more robust, said Jason Cyster, a professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of California, San Francisco, who was not involved in the study.
That said, a few participants in the new study did not mount long-lasting immune responses to the novel virus. Their transient responses may come down to differences in how much virus they were initially exposed to, or genetics may explain the difference, Cyster said. For instance, genes known as human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes differ widely between individuals and help alert the immune system to foreign invaders, Live Science previously reported .
These inherent differences between people may help explain cases of COVID-19 reinfection, which have been relatively rare but are increasing in number, Science Magazine reported .
Again, to really understand how long COVID-19 immunity lasts, scientists need to continue to study recovered patients. "Certainly, we need to look six months down the road," and see whether the T and B cell counts remain high, Cyster said.
Should immunity be long-term, one big question is whether that durability carries over to vaccines . But natural immunity and vaccine-generated immunity cannot be directly compared, Vabret noted.
"The mechanisms by which vaccines induce immunity are not necessarily the same as the ones resulting from natural infection," Vabret said. "So the immune protection resulting from a vaccine could last longer or shorter than the one resulting from natural infection."
For example, the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines use a molecular messenger called mRNA to train the body to recognize and attack the coronavirus. No mRNA-based vaccine has ever been approved before, so "we practically know nothing about the durability of those responses," Cyster said.
"I think [that's] the big unknown for me, among the many," he said.
But while some unanswered questions remain, the main takeaway from the new study is that "immune memory to SARS-CoV-2 is very stable," Jenkins said. And — fingers crossed — perhaps those hopeful results will hold well into the future.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-21--Watch a bright fireball explode over the Tasman Sea (video)

A bright green meteor streaked across the southern coast of Tasmania , Australia , and researchers caught the fireball on camera as it broke up over the ocean .
The meteor lit up the night sky on Wednesday ( Nov. 18 ) at 9:21 p.m. local Tasmanian time ( 5:21 a.m. EST and 1021 GMT ) .
A livestream camera on the research vessel Investigator , which is operated by Australia ’ s national science agency , , captured incredible views of the fireball as it descended from space and disintegrated above the Tasman Sea .
`` What we saw @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; the size and brightness of the meteor was incredible , '' John Hooper , CSIRO voyage manager on board Investigator , .
`` The meteor crosses the sky directly in front of the ship and then breaks up — it was amazing to watch the footage , and we were very fortunate that we captured it all on the ship livestream.
” The livestream camera on board Investigator operates 24 hours a day , seven days a week .
The was captured when the ship was approximately 62 miles ( 100 kilometers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ where it is stationed to map the seafloor of the Huon Marine Park , conduct oceanographic studies and run sea trials for a variety of marine equipment , according to CSIRO ( which stands for `` Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation '' ) .
Meteors are chunks of space rock that enter Earth ’ s atmosphere , and they often go unnoticed in unpopulated areas such as the Southern Ocean .
`` Many meteors were once , travelling through space on their own trajectory .
This changes as they pass close to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by its gravitational pull , '' Glen Nagle , a researcher from CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science , said in the statement .
`` As they enter our atmosphere , they become meteors — and their entry can be visually spectacular . ''
Footage of the meteor streaking across the night sky was captured in black and white , but observers said the bright flash of light appeared green to the naked eye .
While there have been reports of additional sightings in the area , no other photos or videos have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are everywhere , in our pockets and around our cities , but they have to be pointed in the right place at the right time — RV Investigator was in that place and time , '' Nagle said in the statement .
Follow Samantha Mathewson @ Sam_Ashley13 .
Follow us on Twitter @ Spacedotcom and on Facebook .

A bright green meteor streaked across the southern coast of Tasmania, Australia, and researchers caught the fireball on camera as it broke up over the ocean.
The meteor lit up the night sky on Wednesday (Nov. 18) at 9:21 p.m. local Tasmanian time (5:21 a.m. EST and 1021 GMT). A livestream camera on the research vessel Investigator, which is operated by Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO , captured incredible views of the fireball as it descended from space and disintegrated above the Tasman Sea.
"What we saw on reviewing the livestream footage astounded us; the size and brightness of the meteor was incredible," John Hooper, CSIRO voyage manager on board Investigator, said in a statement . "The meteor crosses the sky directly in front of the ship and then breaks up — it was amazing to watch the footage, and we were very fortunate that we captured it all on the ship livestream.”
Related: Perseid meteor shower 2020 brings celestial fireworks to the night sky (photos)
On Nov. 18, 2020, a bright green meteor streaked across the night sky near CSIRO’s research vessel Investigator, which is currently stationed in the Tasman Sea, off the southern coast of Tasmania, Australia. (Image credit: CSIRO)
The livestream camera on board Investigator operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The meteor was captured when the ship was approximately 62 miles (100 kilometers) south of the Tasmanian coast, where it is stationed to map the seafloor of the Huon Marine Park, conduct oceanographic studies and run sea trials for a variety of marine equipment, according to CSIRO (which stands for "Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation").
Meteors are chunks of space rock that enter Earth’s atmosphere, and they often go unnoticed in unpopulated areas such as the Southern Ocean.
"Many meteors were once asteroids , travelling through space on their own trajectory. This changes as they pass close to Earth, where they can be affected by its gravitational pull," Glen Nagle, a researcher from CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science, said in the statement. "As they enter our atmosphere, they become meteors — and their entry can be visually spectacular."
Footage of the meteor streaking across the night sky was captured in black and white, but observers said the bright flash of light appeared green to the naked eye. While there have been reports of additional sightings in the area, no other photos or videos have been shared of the meteor.
"Cameras are everywhere, in our pockets and around our cities, but they have to be pointed in the right place at the right time — RV Investigator was in that place and time," Nagle said in the statement.
Follow Samantha Mathewson @Sam_Ashley13. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.