livescience--2020-09-18--Scientists find 'secret molecule' that allows bacteria to exhale electricity

For mouthless , lungless bacteria , breathing is a bit more complicated than it is for humans .
We inhale oxygen and exhale ; Geobacter — a ubiquitous , groundwater-dwelling genus of bacteria — swallow up organic waste and `` exhale '' electrons , generating a tiny in the process .
Those waste electrons always need somewhere to go ( usually into a plentiful underground mineral like oxide ) , and Geobacter have an unconventional tool to make sure they get there .
`` Geobacter breathe through what is essentially a giant snorkel , hundreds of times their size , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at Yale University 's Microbial Science Institute in Connecticut , told Live Science .
That `` snorkel '' is called a nanowire .
Though these tiny , conductive filaments are 100,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair , they are capable of shuttling electrons hundreds to thousands of times the length of an individual Geobacter microbe 's body .
Thanks to this adaptation , Geobacter are some of the most impressive respirators on Earth .
( `` You ca n't exhale 1,000 feet [ 300 meters ] in front of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said ) .
Related : The bacteria in your gut produce electricity At any given time , billions of the bacteria are buzzing with electricity beneath the seafloor .
Now , in a new study published Aug. 17 in the journal , Malvankar and his colleagues have figured out how to combine that energy into a potent , microbial power grid .
Using advanced microscopy techniques , the researchers have uncovered the `` secret molecule '' that allows Geobacter to breathe over tremendously long distances previously unseen in .
The team also found @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with an electric field , the microbes conducted electricity 1,000 times more efficiently than they do in their natural environment .
Understanding these innate , electrical adaptations could be a crucial step in transforming Geobacter colonies into living , breathing batteries , the researchers said .
`` We believe this [ discovery ] could be used to make electronics out of the bacteria beneath your feet , '' Malvankar said .
At home deep underground in soggy , oxygen-starved soil , Geobacter can survive in harsh environments that few other microbes can , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ which allow them to breathe in the absence of , are crucial for keeping Geobacter microbes alive in the ground , where electron acceptors like iron oxide are rarely more than a few millionths of a meter away .
However , Geobacter colonies grown in the lab do n't always have the luxury of living near abundant minerals .
In , Malvankar and colleagues found that lab-grown Geobacter sulfurreducens microbes display another clever survival trick when exposed to a small electrode , or a disk that conducts electricity .
Stimulated by the electric @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — interlinked piles of hundreds of individual microbes , moving electrons through a single shared network .
`` They stack up like high-rise apartments , hundreds of stories tall , '' Malvankar said .
`` And they can all share the same electric grid , constantly dumping electrons . ''
The big question that vexed Malvankar and his colleagues is how microbes on the `` 100th floor of the high-rise , '' as he put it , are able to shoot electrons all the way down to the bottom of the pile , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ exhaling electrons over a distance thousands of times the original microbe 's body length .
Such distances are `` previously unseen '' in microbial respiration , Malvankar said , and emphasize just how unique Geobacter are when it comes to surviving harsh environments .
To discover the nanowire 's secrets , the new study 's authors analyzed cultures of lab-grown Geobacter using two cutting-edge microscopy techniques .
The first , called high-resolution atomic force microscopy , gathered detailed information about the structure of nanowires by touching their surface with an extremely sensitive mechanical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ like reading Braille , but the bumps are a billionth of a meter , '' lead study author Sibel Ebru Yalcin , a research scientist at Yale 's Microbial Sciences Institute , told Live Science .
Through the second technique , called infrared nanospectroscopy , the researchers identified specific molecules in the nanowires based on the way they scattered incoming light .
With these two methods , the researchers saw the `` unique fingerprint '' of each amino acid in the proteins that make up Geobacter 's signature nanowires , Yalcin said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ by an electric field , Geobacter produce a previously unknown kind of nanowire made of a called OmcZ .
Made of tiny , metallic building blocks called hemes , this protein created nanowires that conducted electricity 1,000 times more efficiently than the typical nanowires Geobacter create in the soil , allowing the microbes to send electrons across unprecedented distances .
`` It was known that bacteria can make electricity , but nobody knew the molecular structure , '' Malvankar said .
`` Finally , we have found that molecule . ''
Researchers have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ electronics for more than a decade .
A big perk of these so-called microbial fuel cells is their longevity .
Bacteria can repair and reproduce themselves nearly indefinitely , creating a small but constant electric charge ; in one , conducted in 2008 , researchers used a Geobacter fuel cell to power a small weather buoy in Washington , D.C. 's Potomac River for more than nine months without showing any signs of weakening .
However , the charge provided by these fuel cells is extremely small ( the Navy buoy ran on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a watt , of power ) , severely limiting the types of electronics they can power .
With this new research , scientists now know how to manipulate microbial nanowires to make them stronger and more conductive .
This information could make the production of bio-electronics both cheaper and easier , Malvankar said , hopefully ushering in a new generation of environmentally friendly , bacteria-powered batteries .
We 're still a long way from charging up our iPhones with a handful of Geobacter , he added , but the power of the microscopic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a little easier to grasp .

The electricity conducted by Geobacter's nanowires can be used to power small electronics, as this illustration shows.
For mouthless, lungless bacteria, breathing is a bit more complicated than it is for humans. We inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide ; Geobacter — a ubiquitous, groundwater-dwelling genus of bacteria — swallow up organic waste and "exhale" electrons, generating a tiny electric current in the process.
Those waste electrons always need somewhere to go (usually into a plentiful underground mineral like iron oxide), and Geobacter have an unconventional tool to make sure they get there.
"Geobacter breathe through what is essentially a giant snorkel, hundreds of times their size," Nikhil Malvankar, an assistant professor at Yale University's Microbial Science Institute in Connecticut, told Live Science.
That "snorkel" is called a nanowire. Though these tiny, conductive filaments are 100,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair, they are capable of shuttling electrons hundreds to thousands of times the length of an individual Geobacter microbe's body. Thanks to this adaptation, Geobacter are some of the most impressive respirators on Earth. ("You can't exhale 1,000 feet [300 meters] in front of you, can you?" Malvankar said).
Related: The bacteria in your gut produce electricity
At any given time, billions of the bacteria are buzzing with electricity beneath the seafloor. Now, in a new study published Aug. 17 in the journal Nature Chemical Biology , Malvankar and his colleagues have figured out how to combine that energy into a potent, microbial power grid.
Using advanced microscopy techniques, the researchers have uncovered the "secret molecule" that allows Geobacter to breathe over tremendously long distances previously unseen in bacteria . The team also found that, by stimulating colonies of Geobacter with an electric field, the microbes conducted electricity 1,000 times more efficiently than they do in their natural environment.
Understanding these innate, electrical adaptations could be a crucial step in transforming Geobacter colonies into living, breathing batteries, the researchers said.
"We believe this [discovery] could be used to make electronics out of the bacteria beneath your feet," Malvankar said.
Hundreds of Geobacter bacteria clump together so they can dump excess electrons into 'giant snorkels' called nanowires (red). (Image credit: Yangqi Gu and Vishok Srikanth)
A most shocking microbe
At home deep underground in soggy, oxygen-starved soil, Geobacter can survive in harsh environments that few other microbes can, the study authors said. Nanowires, which allow them to breathe in the absence of oxygen , are crucial for keeping Geobacter microbes alive in the ground, where electron acceptors like iron oxide are rarely more than a few millionths of a meter away. However, Geobacter colonies grown in the lab don't always have the luxury of living near abundant minerals.
In previous research , Malvankar and colleagues found that lab-grown Geobacter sulfurreducens microbes display another clever survival trick when exposed to a small electrode, or a disk that conducts electricity. Stimulated by the electric field, the microbes assemble into dense biofilms — interlinked piles of hundreds of individual microbes, moving electrons through a single shared network.
"They stack up like high-rise apartments, hundreds of stories tall," Malvankar said. "And they can all share the same electric grid, constantly dumping electrons."
The big question that vexed Malvankar and his colleagues is how microbes on the "100th floor of the high-rise," as he put it, are able to shoot electrons all the way down to the bottom of the pile, then out through a nanowire — effectively exhaling electrons over a distance thousands of times the original microbe's body length. Such distances are "previously unseen" in microbial respiration, Malvankar said, and emphasize just how unique Geobacter are when it comes to surviving harsh environments.
Related: Extreme life on Earth: 8 bizarre creatures
To discover the nanowire's secrets, the new study's authors analyzed cultures of lab-grown Geobacter using two cutting-edge microscopy techniques. The first, called high-resolution atomic force microscopy, gathered detailed information about the structure of nanowires by touching their surface with an extremely sensitive mechanical probe.
"It's sort of like reading Braille, but the bumps are a billionth of a meter," lead study author Sibel Ebru Yalcin, a research scientist at Yale's Microbial Sciences Institute, told Live Science.
Through the second technique, called infrared nanospectroscopy, the researchers identified specific molecules in the nanowires based on the way they scattered incoming infrared light. With these two methods, the researchers saw the "unique fingerprint" of each amino acid in the proteins that make up Geobacter's signature nanowires, Yalcin said.
The team found that, when stimulated by an electric field, Geobacter produce a previously unknown kind of nanowire made of a protein called OmcZ. Made of tiny, metallic building blocks called hemes, this protein created nanowires that conducted electricity 1,000 times more efficiently than the typical nanowires Geobacter create in the soil, allowing the microbes to send electrons across unprecedented distances.
"It was known that bacteria can make electricity, but nobody knew the molecular structure," Malvankar said. "Finally, we have found that molecule."
Living, breathing batteries
Researchers have been using Geobacter colonies to power small electronics for more than a decade. A big perk of these so-called microbial fuel cells is their longevity. Bacteria can repair and reproduce themselves nearly indefinitely, creating a small but constant electric charge; in one U.S. Navy experiment , conducted in 2008, researchers used a Geobacter fuel cell to power a small weather buoy in Washington, D.C.'s Potomac River for more than nine months without showing any signs of weakening. However, the charge provided by these fuel cells is extremely small (the Navy buoy ran on about 36 milliwatts, or thousandths of a watt, of power), severely limiting the types of electronics they can power.
With this new research, scientists now know how to manipulate microbial nanowires to make them stronger and more conductive. This information could make the production of bio-electronics both cheaper and easier, Malvankar said, hopefully ushering in a new generation of environmentally friendly, bacteria-powered batteries.
We're still a long way from charging up our iPhones with a handful of Geobacter, he added, but the power of the microscopic electric grid beneath our feet just got a little easier to grasp.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-18--Facial reconstruction reveals Egyptian 'mummy portrait' was accurate except for one detail

Just after the turn of the first millennium A.D. , a young child living in Egypt contracted a deadly illness — most likely — and died .
His tiny body was prepared for and burial ; some of his organs were removed , his remains were wrapped in criss-crossed linen bindings and a portrait of his face was affixed to the front of his mummy .
This so-called `` mummy portrait '' was part of a popular tradition among some Egyptians in Greco-Roman times , from about the first through the third centuries A.D .
But how accurate were these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ team of scientists in Austria and Germany this little boy 's body and created a 3D digital reconstruction of his face .
The results show that the portrait was fairly accurate , except for one aspect — the artist made the youngster look older than his 3 or 4 years .
`` The portrait shows slightly 'older ' traits , which may have been the results of an artistic convention of that time , '' study lead researcher Andreas Nerlich , the director of the Institute of Pathology at the Academic Clinic Munich-Bogenhausen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an email .
This single portrait , however , does n't reveal whether it was a common practice for ancient Egyptian artists to make younger people look older in their mummy portraits .
Of the roughly 1,000 recovered mummy portraits from Greco-Roman Egypt , only about 100 are still attached to the mummy .
For the project — the first of its kind to compare the mummy portrait of a young child from with its facial reconstruction — the researchers chose this boy 's mummy , found in the 1880s in a cemetery @ @ @ @ @ @ @ southwest of Cairo .
The 30-inch-long ( 78 centimeters ) mummy , which dates to sometime between 50 B.C .
to A.D. 100 , is now housed at Egyptian Museum Munich .
The team CT scanned the mummy — and examined taken of the mummy in 1984 — so they could create a 3D digital image of the boy 's body .
The CT scan revealed that the boy 's brain and some of his abdominal organs had been removed , a common practice during mummification in ancient Egypt .
development revealed the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ probably from pneumonia , according to the researchers , who noticed `` residues of condensed lung tissue '' on the CT scan , Nerlich said .
Next , the researchers focused on the boy 's face .
The boy 's portrait shows `` woven into two hair strands running from the crest to the ears , '' the researchers wrote in the study .
`` The individual has large of brown color , a long , thin and a small mouth with full lips .
A necklace with a small medallion hangs around @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appropriate thickness of the skin , the researchers relied on standards taken from modern children between 3 and 8 years of age .
Much of the recreated face was based on the shape of his skull and teeth , while the boy 's skin and hair color and hair style were based on the painting , the researchers said .
The facial reconstruction was `` very similar '' to the portrait , as the dimensions of the forehead to the eye line , and the distance from the nose to the mouth `` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reconstruction , '' the researchers wrote in the study .
`` However , differences existed between the width of the nasal bridge and the size of the mouth opening , with both being more slender and 'narrow ' in the portrait than the virtual reconstruction . ''
Related : In photos : The life and death of King Tut The two are so similar , the portrait `` must have been prepared briefly before or after his death , '' Nerlich said .
This was n't always the case for mummy portraits .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ were affixed with portraits shows that while some are very similar to reality , others are not ; one mummy , this one of an older man with a white beard , showed a portrait of the man when he was young , while another known as `` `` had a portrait of a different person , based on the proportions of the skull , previous research revealed .
The study was published online Sept. 16 in the journal .

The ancient Egyptian boy's "mummy portrait" (left) next to the newly created 3D facial reconstruction (right).
Just after the turn of the first millennium A.D., a young child living in Egypt contracted a deadly illness — most likely pneumonia — and died. His tiny body was prepared for mummification and burial; some of his organs were removed, his remains were wrapped in criss-crossed linen bindings and a portrait of his face was affixed to the front of his mummy.
This so-called "mummy portrait" was part of a popular tradition among some Egyptians in Greco-Roman times, from about the first through the third centuries A.D. But how accurate were these portraits? To find out, a team of scientists in Austria and Germany CT scanned this little boy's body and created a 3D digital reconstruction of his face.
The results show that the portrait was fairly accurate, except for one aspect — the artist made the youngster look older than his 3 or 4 years.
Related: Image gallery: The faces of Egyptian mummies revealed
"The portrait shows slightly 'older' traits, which may have been the results of an artistic convention of that time," study lead researcher Andreas Nerlich, the director of the Institute of Pathology at the Academic Clinic Munich-Bogenhausen in Germany, told Live Science in an email.
This single portrait, however, doesn't reveal whether it was a common practice for ancient Egyptian artists to make younger people look older in their mummy portraits.
Child-size mummy
Of the roughly 1,000 recovered mummy portraits from Greco-Roman Egypt, only about 100 are still attached to the mummy. For the project — the first of its kind to compare the mummy portrait of a young child from ancient Egypt with its facial reconstruction — the researchers chose this boy's mummy, found in the 1880s in a cemetery close to the pyramid of Hawara, southwest of Cairo. The 30-inch-long (78 centimeters) mummy, which dates to sometime between 50 B.C. to A.D. 100, is now housed at Egyptian Museum Munich.
The team CT scanned the mummy — and examined X-rays taken of the mummy in 1984 — so they could create a 3D digital image of the boy's body. The CT scan revealed that the boy's brain and some of his abdominal organs had been removed, a common practice during mummification in ancient Egypt. Bone and tooth development revealed the boy's age at his death, probably from pneumonia, according to the researchers, who noticed "residues of condensed lung tissue" on the CT scan, Nerlich said.
Image 1 of 13 The mummy of the young boy, who lived sometimes between 50 B.C. and A.D. 100 . (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) A close-up of the boy's mummy portrait. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) Researchers placed the boy's mummy in a CT scanner. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) An X-ray of the boy's mummy, taken in 1984. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) The CT scan showed that the boy's brain and several of his organs were missing. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) A 3D reconstruction of the boy's skull. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) This step of the facial reconstruction shows how the scientists configured the thickness of skin on the boy's face. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) The reconstruction of the boy's nose (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) This virtual mesh helped the researchers configure the facial reconstruction. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) The remodeled face, without coloration (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) The "raw model" of the facial reconstruction. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) The final version of the boy's facial reconstruction. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0) This series shows the mummy portrait, facial reconstruction and the digitally recreated skull and face. (Image credit: Nerlich AG, et al. PLOS One (2020); CC BY 4.0)
Next, the researchers focused on the boy's face. The boy's portrait shows " curled hair woven into two hair strands running from the crest to the ears," the researchers wrote in the study. "The individual has large eyes of brown color, a long, thin nose and a small mouth with full lips. A necklace with a small medallion hangs around its neck."
To reconstruct the appropriate thickness of the skin, the researchers relied on standards taken from modern children between 3 and 8 years of age. Much of the recreated face was based on the shape of his skull and teeth, while the boy's skin and hair color and hair style were based on the painting, the researchers said.
The facial reconstruction was "very similar" to the portrait, as the dimensions of the forehead to the eye line, and the distance from the nose to the mouth "were exactly the same between portrait and reconstruction," the researchers wrote in the study. "However, differences existed between the width of the nasal bridge and the size of the mouth opening, with both being more slender and 'narrow' in the portrait than the virtual reconstruction."
Related: In photos: The life and death of King Tut
The two are so similar, the portrait "must have been prepared briefly before or after his death," Nerlich said.
This wasn't always the case for mummy portraits. Previous studies of adult individuals whose mummies were affixed with portraits shows that while some are very similar to reality, others are not; one mummy, this one of an older man with a white beard, showed a portrait of the man when he was young, while another known as " The Glyptothek Mummy " had a portrait of a different person, based on the proportions of the skull, previous research revealed.
The study was published online Sept. 16 in the journal PLOS One .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-18--Helium-huffing alligators and reluctant hitmen win big at the Ig Nobel awards

What do alligators on have in common with , hitmen who wo n't do their jobs and earthworms that vibrate at high frequencies ?
These peculiar topics all inspired research that earned a unique science accolade : a 2020 Ig Nobel Prize .
The Ig Nobel Prize ceremony is an annual event to honor weird science in a diverse range of disciplines .
The awards are organized by the magazine Annals of Improbable Research ( AIR ) and co-sponsored by the Harvard-Radcliffe Society of Physics Students and the Harvard-Radcliffe Science Fiction Association , and it 's definitely an evening to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ handed their trophies ( along with a 10-trillion dollar bill from Zimbabwe ) by Nobel laureates ; professional singers trill an original mini-opera ; and audience members gleefully fling paper airplanes at the stage , in a celebration of scientific achievements `` that make people laugh , then think , '' according to .
Now in its 30th year , the Ig Nobels usually take place at Harvard University 's Sanders Theatre in Cambridge , Massachusetts .
But for the 2020 presentation , the organizers had to get even more creative than usual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ceremony was prerecorded and debuted online yesterday ( Sept. 17 ) .
Related : In photos : The science and silliness of the 2017 Ig Nobels One big winner was research on bellowing that huffed helium for science .
Scientists enclosed a female Chinese alligator ( Alligator sinensis ) in a chamber , then pumped in a mixture of helium and and measured acoustic changes in her bellows , to see if they could detect resonances in alligator vocals that were similar to human speech ; their experiments earned them an Ig Nobel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ team that generated waves in the liquid-filled bodies of live ( anesthetized ) earthworms through high-frequency vibrations , to see how that would affect the shape of their bodies ( Ig Nobel in Physics ) ; researchers who found that narcissistic personality traits could be revealed by a person 's eyebrows ( Ig Nobel in Psychology ) ; and scientists who identified diagnostic criteria for a psychiatric disorder that causes stress and aggression in response to the ( Ig Nobel in Medicine ) .
`` We just want to dedicate this award to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ found themselves somewhere they never expected , '' said Nick Rule , one of the co-winners of the Psychology prize and a psychology professor and associate chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto .
A special Ig Nobel in Management went to a group of `` reluctant hitmen '' in China ; a would-be assassin , rather than doing the job he was hired to do , subcontracted another assassin to do it for him , for a lower price .
The subcontractor then hired another hitman , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the fee was so low that the sixth hitman in the line decided to talk the victim into faking his own death .
The failed hitmen , who were sentenced in 2019 for intentional homicide , were unavailable to collect their prize .
Participants spanned six continents , yet Ig Nobel laureate presenters still handed them their prizes from their own homes , master of ceremonies and AIR co-founder and editor Marc Abrahams told Live Science .
`` We figured out a way to do that which seemed to be pretty satisfying to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' he said .
( The `` handoff '' of prizes took place on Zoom , and was mostly successful ) .
`` And then there 's the opera , which is a pretty complex undertaking anyway .
But when you ca n't have all the people in the same room , and most of them ca n't leave their homes — how do you coordinate that ?
People did a lot of clever stuff , '' Abrahams said .
Related : The 10 weirdest medical cases in the animal kingdom Every @ @ @ @ @ @ @ theme ( which does not necessarily reflect the prizewinning research topics ) and this year 's was `` bugs . ''
The prizes , emailed to presenters and winners as PDFs for assembly at home , were six-sided paper cubes ; five sides were decorated with different kinds of bugs : a flea , a cockroach , a computer bug , a norovirus stomach `` bug '' , and a Volkswagen Beetle .
`` You always want something that 's well-known to everybody , and `` bugs '' is pretty universal , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the winner of the Ig Nobel Prize for Entomology .
Richard Vetter , a retired staff research associate in the Department of Entomology at the University of California , Riverside , described the unusual predicament of entomologists who were afraid of , and were unable to overcome their negative feelings despite decades of work with other small arthropods — insects .
`` For these people , two more legs makes a big difference , '' Vettner wrote .
During the streaming ceremony , bugs also appeared in animated sequences ; as wearable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in several of the evening 's 24/7 Lectures , in which scientists summed up their research — first in 24 seconds , then in seven words .
`` Insects : You 'll be sorry when they 're gone , '' lectured May Berenbaum , a professor and head of the Entomology Department at the School of Integrative Biology in the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign .
While this is the first year that the Ig Nobel ceremony was not streamed from the Sanders Theatre , the event has been presented live online since @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were worried about too many people trying to get into the building , and we wanted to send a television signal to a lecture hall in Harvard , '' Abrahams explained .
As it turned out , the building was n't wired for TV broadcast — but it could connect to the internet .
`` A grad student there said : 'Hey , stick the signal on the internet and send it across the street , ' '' Abrahams said .
`` And as long as we 're doing that , we can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and then everybody can watch ! ''
The 2020 ceremony is available in its entirety and on .
You can find the full list of the 2020 Ig Nobel Prize winners on .

What do alligators on helium have in common with frozen poop knives , hitmen who won't do their jobs and earthworms that vibrate at high frequencies? These peculiar topics all inspired research that earned a unique science accolade: a 2020 Ig Nobel Prize.
The Ig Nobel Prize ceremony is an annual event to honor weird science in a diverse range of disciplines. The awards are organized by the magazine Annals of Improbable Research (AIR) and co-sponsored by the Harvard-Radcliffe Society of Physics Students and the Harvard-Radcliffe Science Fiction Association, and it's definitely an evening to remember. Each year, winners are handed their trophies (along with a 10-trillion dollar bill from Zimbabwe) by Nobel laureates; professional singers trill an original mini-opera; and audience members gleefully fling paper airplanes at the stage, in a celebration of scientific achievements "that make people laugh, then think," according to the contest website .
Now in its 30th year, the Ig Nobels usually take place at Harvard University's Sanders Theatre in Cambridge, Massachusetts. But for the 2020 presentation, the organizers had to get even more creative than usual; due to the COVID-19 pandemic , the ceremony was prerecorded and debuted online yesterday (Sept. 17).
Related: In photos: The science and silliness of the 2017 Ig Nobels
One big winner was research on bellowing alligators that huffed helium for science. Scientists enclosed a female Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis) in a chamber, then pumped in a mixture of helium and oxygen and measured acoustic changes in her bellows, to see if they could detect resonances in alligator vocals that were similar to human speech; their experiments earned them an Ig Nobel in Acoustics.
Other winners included a team that generated waves in the liquid-filled bodies of live (anesthetized) earthworms through high-frequency vibrations, to see how that would affect the shape of their bodies (Ig Nobel in Physics); researchers who found that narcissistic personality traits could be revealed by a person's eyebrows (Ig Nobel in Psychology); and scientists who identified diagnostic criteria for a psychiatric disorder that causes stress and aggression in response to the sounds of loud chewing (Ig Nobel in Medicine).
"We just want to dedicate this award to everyone who's done data-driven research and found themselves somewhere they never expected," said Nick Rule, one of the co-winners of the Psychology prize and a psychology professor and associate chair of the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto.
Scientists induced alligators to bellow in a sealed chamber flooded with heliox, a mixture of oxygen and helium, in a study that won the Ig Nobel in Acoustics. (Image credit: S. Reber, T. Nishimura, J. Janisch, M. Robertson and W. T. Fitch, The Journal of Experimental Biology (2015) 218, 2442-2447 doi:10.1242/jeb.119552 )
A special Ig Nobel in Management went to a group of "reluctant hitmen" in China; a would-be assassin, rather than doing the job he was hired to do, subcontracted another assassin to do it for him, for a lower price. The subcontractor then hired another hitman, who then hired yet another; eventually, the fee was so low that the sixth hitman in the line decided to talk the victim into faking his own death. The failed hitmen, who were sentenced in 2019 for intentional homicide, were unavailable to collect their prize.
Participants spanned six continents, yet Ig Nobel laureate presenters still handed them their prizes from their own homes, master of ceremonies and AIR co-founder and editor Marc Abrahams told Live Science.
"We figured out a way to do that which seemed to be pretty satisfying to everybody concerned — and was certainly goofy," he said. (The "handoff" of prizes took place on Zoom, and was mostly successful).
"And then there's the opera, which is a pretty complex undertaking anyway. But when you can't have all the people in the same room, and most of them can't leave their homes — how do you coordinate that? People did a lot of clever stuff," Abrahams said.
Related: The 10 weirdest medical cases in the animal kingdom
A buggy event
Every year, the Ig Nobels present a theme (which does not necessarily reflect the prizewinning research topics) and this year's was "bugs." The prizes, emailed to presenters and winners as PDFs for assembly at home, were six-sided paper cubes; five sides were decorated with different kinds of bugs: a flea, a cockroach, a computer bug, a norovirus stomach "bug", and a Volkswagen Beetle.
But why bugs?
"You always want something that's well-known to everybody, and "bugs" is pretty universal," Abrahams said.
In the Ig Nobel ceremony's original mini-opera, "Dream, Little Cockroach," a man dreams that he is a cockroach who has been transformed into a human. (Image credit: Annals of Improbable Research)
Bugs were certainly important to the winner of the Ig Nobel Prize for Entomology. Richard Vetter, a retired staff research associate in the Department of Entomology at the University of California, Riverside, described the unusual predicament of entomologists who were afraid of spiders , and were unable to overcome their negative feelings despite decades of work with other small arthropods — insects.
"For these people, two more legs makes a big difference," Vettner wrote.
During the streaming ceremony, bugs also appeared in animated sequences; as wearable accessories on presenters and musicians; and in several of the evening's 24/7 Lectures, in which scientists summed up their research — first in 24 seconds, then in seven words.
"Insects: You'll be sorry when they're gone," lectured May Berenbaum, a professor and head of the Entomology Department at the School of Integrative Biology in the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Early adaptors
While this is the first year that the Ig Nobel ceremony was not streamed from the Sanders Theatre, the event has been presented live online since 1995, Abrahams said.
"We were worried about too many people trying to get into the building, and we wanted to send a television signal to a lecture hall in Harvard," Abrahams explained. As it turned out, the building wasn't wired for TV broadcast — but it could connect to the internet.
"A grad student there said: 'Hey, stick the signal on the internet and send it across the street,'" Abrahams said. "And as long as we're doing that, we can just tell everybody on the internet, and then everybody can watch!"
The 2020 ceremony is available in its entirety on Live Science and on YouTube . You can find the full list of the 2020 Ig Nobel Prize winners on AIR's website .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-19--Why is space a vacuum?

Why is space a vacuum?

Space is an almost perfect vacuum , full of cosmic voids .
And in short , is to blame .
But to really understand the vacuum of our universe , we have to take a moment to understand what a vacuum really is — and what it 's not .
So , what is a vacuum , and why is n't space a true vacuum ?
First , forget the vacuum cleaner as an analogy to the vacuum of space , Jackie Faherty , a senior scientist in the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The household cleaning machine effectively fills itself with dirt and dust sucked out of your carpet .
( That is , the vacuum cleaner uses differential pressure to create suction .
Suction cleaner might be a better name than vacuum cleaner ) .
But the vacuum of space is the opposite .
By definition , a vacuum is devoid of matter .
Space is almost an absolute vacuum , not because of suction but because it 's nearly empty .
Related : What would happen if you shot a gun in space @ @ @ @ @ @ @ low pressure .
And while it 's impossible to emulate the emptiness of space on Earth , scientists can create extremely low pressure environments called partial vacuums .
Even with the vacuum cleaner analogy out , `` understanding the concept of the vacuum is almost foreign because it 's so contradictory to how we exist , Faherty said .
Our experience as humans is completely confined to a very dense , crowded and dynamic fraction of the universe .
So , it can be hard for us to really understand nothingness or emptiness @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , what 's normal for us on , is actually rare in the context of the universe , the vast majority of which is nearly empty .
On average , space would still be pretty empty even if we didn ’ t have gravity .
`` There 's just not a lot of stuff relative to the volume of the universe in which you put that stuff , '' according Caltech theoretical astrophysicist Cameron Hummels .
The average density of the universe , , is 5.9 protons ( a positively charged ) per @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the emptiness in certain regions of the universe by causing the matter in the universe to congregate .
Basically , any two objects with mass will be attracted to each other .
That 's gravity .
Put another way , `` matter likes to be around other matter , '' Faherty said .
In space , gravity draws nearby objects closer together .
Together their collective mass increases , and more mass means they can generate a stronger gravitational pull with which to draw even more matter into their cosmic clump .
Mass @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mass .
`` It 's a runaway effect , '' Hummel said .
As these gravitational hot spots pull in nearby matter , the space between them is evacuated , creating what 's known as a , Hummel said .
But the universe did n't start that way .
After the , the matter in the universe was dispersed more uniformly , `` almost like a fog , '' he said .
But over billions of years , gravity has gathered that matter into asteroids , planets , stars , solar systems and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ voids of interplanetary , interstellar and .
But even the vacuum of space is not truly pure .
Between galaxies , there 's less than one atom in every cubic meter , meaning intergalactic space is n't completely empty .
It has far less matter , however , than any vacuum humans could simulate in a lab on Earth .
Meanwhile , `` the universe keeps expanding , '' Faherty said , assuring that the cosmos will remain mostly vacant .
`` It sounds so lonely , '' she said .

Space is an almost perfect vacuum, full of cosmic voids. And in short, gravity is to blame. But to really understand the vacuum of our universe, we have to take a moment to understand what a vacuum really is — and what it's not.
So, what is a vacuum, and why isn't space a true vacuum?
First, forget the vacuum cleaner as an analogy to the vacuum of space, Jackie Faherty, a senior scientist in the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, told Live Science. The household cleaning machine effectively fills itself with dirt and dust sucked out of your carpet. (That is, the vacuum cleaner uses differential pressure to create suction. Suction cleaner might be a better name than vacuum cleaner). But the vacuum of space is the opposite. By definition, a vacuum is devoid of matter. Space is almost an absolute vacuum, not because of suction but because it's nearly empty.
Related: What would happen if you shot a gun in space?
That emptiness results in an extremely low pressure. And while it's impossible to emulate the emptiness of space on Earth, scientists can create extremely low pressure environments called partial vacuums.
Even with the vacuum cleaner analogy out, "understanding the concept of the vacuum is almost foreign because it's so contradictory to how we exist, Faherty said. Our experience as humans is completely confined to a very dense, crowded and dynamic fraction of the universe. So, it can be hard for us to really understand nothingness or emptiness, she said. But in reality, what's normal for us on Earth , is actually rare in the context of the universe, the vast majority of which is nearly empty.
Gravity is king
On average, space would still be pretty empty even if we didn’t have gravity. "There's just not a lot of stuff relative to the volume of the universe in which you put that stuff," according Caltech theoretical astrophysicist Cameron Hummels. The average density of the universe, according to NASA , is 5.9 protons (a positively charged subatomic particle ) per cubic meter. But then gravity amplifies the emptiness in certain regions of the universe by causing the matter in the universe to congregate.
Basically, any two objects with mass will be attracted to each other. That's gravity. Put another way, "matter likes to be around other matter," Faherty said. In space, gravity draws nearby objects closer together. Together their collective mass increases, and more mass means they can generate a stronger gravitational pull with which to draw even more matter into their cosmic clump. Mass increases, then gravitational pull, then mass. "It's a runaway effect," Hummels said.
As these gravitational hot spots pull in nearby matter, the space between them is evacuated, creating what's known as a cosmic void , Hummels said. But the universe didn't start that way. After the Big Bang , the matter in the universe was dispersed more uniformly, "almost like a fog," he said. But over billions of years, gravity has gathered that matter into asteroids, planets, stars, solar systems and galaxies; and leaving between them the voids of interplanetary, interstellar and intergalactic space .
But even the vacuum of space is not truly pure. Between galaxies, there's less than one atom in every cubic meter, meaning intergalactic space isn't completely empty. It has far less matter, however, than any vacuum humans could simulate in a lab on Earth.
Meanwhile, "the universe keeps expanding," Faherty said, assuring that the cosmos will remain mostly vacant. "It sounds so lonely," she said.
Editor's Note: This story was updated on Oct. 9 to correct the spelling of Cameron Hummels' name.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-20--What did people use before toilet paper was invented?

In the early days of the COVID-19 , toilet paper was nearly as hard to come by as personal protective equipment .
Though toilet paper has existed in the Western world since at least the 16th century A.D. and in China since the second century B.C.
, billions of people don ’ t use toilet paper even today .
In earlier times , toilet paper was even more scarce .
So what did ancient humans use to wipe after going to the bathroom ?
It can be difficult to tell using the record , said Susan Morrison , a medieval @ @ @ @ @ @ @ author of the book `` Excrement in the Middle Ages ; Sacred Filth and Chaucer ’ s Fecopoetics '' ( Palgrave Macmillan , 2008 ) .
`` Most of the material we do n't have because it 's organic and just disappeared , '' Morrison told Live Science .
However , experts have been able to recover some samples — including some with traces of feces — and depictions of toilet paper ’ s precursors in art and literature .
Related : Why do some men take so long to poop ?
Throughout @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their own hands to corn cobs to snow to clean up after bowel movements .
One of the oldest materials on record for this purpose is the hygiene stick , dating back to China 2,000 years ago , according to a 2016 study in the .
Hygiene sticks , also called bamboo slips , were wooden or bamboo sticks wrapped in cloth .
During the Greco-Roman period from , the Greeks and Romans cleaned their derrières with another stick called a tersorium , according to a feature in the .
The tersorium , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , was left in public bathrooms for communal use .
Some scholars argue that the tersorium may not have been used to clean people 's behinds but the bathrooms they defecated in .
People cleaned the tersorium by dumping it in a bucket of salt or vinegar water or by dipping it in running water that flowed beneath the toilet seats .
Greeks and Romans also tidied up with ceramic pieces rounded in the shape of an oval or circle , called pessoi .
Archaeologists have found pessoi relics with traces of feces @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cup features a man wiping his bum with pessoi .
Greeks may have also wiped with ostraka , ceramic pieces that they inscribed with the names of their enemies when voting to ostracize them .
After the vote , they may have wiped their feces on their enemies ’ names .
However , these ceramic materials may have damaged the butt over time , causing skin irritation and external , according to the BMJ .
In Japan in the eight century A.D. , people used another type of wooden stick called a chuugi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the anus — literally putting a stick up their buttocks .
And though sticks have been popular for cleaning the anus throughout history , ancient people wiped with many other materials , such as water , leaves , grass , stones , animal furs and seashells .
In the Middle Ages , Morrison added , people also used moss , sedge , hay , straw and pieces of tapestry .
People used so many materials that a French novelist , François Rabelais , wrote a satirical poem on the topic in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ first mention of toilet paper in the Western world , but he called it ineffective .
Rabelais instead concluded that a goose neck was the best option .
Though Rabelais was joking , `` feathers would work as well as anything organic , '' Morrison said .
Granted , even today toilet paper is n't universal .
For instance , the Australian news outlet lightheartedly mocked Westerns desperate for toilet paper early in the pandemic , urging them to `` wash not wipe '' with a gentle jet stream of water .

In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic , toilet paper was nearly as hard to come by as personal protective equipment. Though toilet paper has existed in the Western world since at least the 16th century A.D. and in China since the second century B.C., billions of people don’t use toilet paper even today. In earlier times, toilet paper was even more scarce.
So what did ancient humans use to wipe after going to the bathroom?
It can be difficult to tell using the archaeological record, said Susan Morrison, a medieval literature professor at Texas State University and author of the book "Excrement in the Middle Ages; Sacred Filth and Chaucer’s Fecopoetics" (Palgrave Macmillan, 2008). "Most of the material we don't have because it's organic and just disappeared," Morrison told Live Science. However, experts have been able to recover some samples — including some with traces of feces — and depictions of toilet paper’s precursors in art and literature.
Related: Why do some men take so long to poop?
Throughout history, people have used everything from their own hands to corn cobs to snow to clean up after bowel movements. One of the oldest materials on record for this purpose is the hygiene stick, dating back to China 2,000 years ago, according to a 2016 study in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports . Hygiene sticks, also called bamboo slips, were wooden or bamboo sticks wrapped in cloth.
During the Greco-Roman period from 332 B.C. to 642 A.D. , the Greeks and Romans cleaned their derrières with another stick called a tersorium, according to a feature in the BMJ . The tersorium, which had a sponge on one end, was left in public bathrooms for communal use. Some scholars argue that the tersorium may not have been used to clean people's behinds but the bathrooms they defecated in. People cleaned the tersorium by dumping it in a bucket of salt or vinegar water or by dipping it in running water that flowed beneath the toilet seats.
Greeks and Romans also tidied up with ceramic pieces rounded in the shape of an oval or circle, called pessoi. Archaeologists have found pessoi relics with traces of feces on them, and an ancient wine cup features a man wiping his bum with pessoi. Greeks may have also wiped with ostraka, ceramic pieces that they inscribed with the names of their enemies when voting to ostracize them. After the vote, they may have wiped their feces on their enemies’ names. However, these ceramic materials may have damaged the butt over time, causing skin irritation and external hemorrhoids , according to the BMJ.
Ostraka (also spelled ostraca) fragments from fifth century B.C. Athens. (Image credit: Shutterstock)
In Japan in the eight century A.D., people used another type of wooden stick called a chuugi to clean both the outside and inside of the anus — literally putting a stick up their buttocks. And though sticks have been popular for cleaning the anus throughout history, ancient people wiped with many other materials, such as water, leaves, grass, stones, animal furs and seashells. In the Middle Ages, Morrison added, people also used moss, sedge, hay, straw and pieces of tapestry.
People used so many materials that a French novelist, François Rabelais, wrote a satirical poem on the topic in the 16th century. His poem gave the first mention of toilet paper in the Western world, but he called it ineffective. Rabelais instead concluded that a goose neck was the best option. Though Rabelais was joking, "feathers would work as well as anything organic," Morrison said.
Granted, even today toilet paper isn't universal. For instance, the Australian news outlet SBS Punjabi lightheartedly mocked Westerns desperate for toilet paper early in the pandemic, urging them to "wash not wipe" with a gentle jet stream of water.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-21--Hurricane season is so active in 2020, we ran out of names

season has been so active this year that the number of named storms has already exceeded the number of official names .
The season officially begins on June 1 and lasts until Nov. 30 ; but this year , it was off to an early start with tropical storms Arthur and Bertha , which formed on May 16 and May 27 , respectively .
On Sept. 18 , tropical storm Wilfred claimed the list 's 21st and final name , which means that subsequent storms will `` go Greek , '' representatives with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( Atlantic storms never get Q , U , X , Y or Z names . )
Storms after Wilfred will now take their names from the Greek alphabet ; subtropical storm Alpha formed on the same day as Wilfred , and was soon followed by tropical storm Beta , which is expected to make landfall tonight ( Sept. 21 ) on the Gulf Coast , according to the ( NHC ) Related : Hurricane preparation : What to do '' This is only the second time the Greek alphabet has been used @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` The first was during the 2005 hurricane season , where the last named storm was Zeta '' — the sixth letter in the Greek alphabet list , according to NOAA .
Atlantic tropical storms have been named since the early 1950s ; only women 's names were used from 1953 until 1979 , the NHC says .
Today , storms get their names from six lists of 21 names — male and female — that are maintained and updated by the World Meteorological Organization ( WMO ) , according to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that all names are recycled every six years .
However , some names are retired if they are attached to a storm that proves to be especially deadly or destructive .
Retired names in recent years include ( 2011 ) , ( 2012 ) , ( 2017 ) and ( 2018 ) .
The Greek alphabet list , also established by the WMO , provides an additional 26 names — presumably enough to carry through to the end of hurricane season on Nov. 30 .
Alpha , the 22nd named storm in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Portugal with maximum sustained winds nearing 45 mph ( 72 km/h ) .
Tropical storm Beta currently has maximum sustained winds of 50 mph ( 80 km/h ) and is expected to drench parts of Texas and Louisiana with rainfall and coastal flooding , .

Hurricane season has been so active this year that the number of named storms has already exceeded the number of official names.
The season officially begins on June 1 and lasts until Nov. 30; but this year, it was off to an early start with tropical storms Arthur and Bertha, which formed on May 16 and May 27, respectively.
On Sept. 18, tropical storm Wilfred claimed the list's 21st and final name, which means that subsequent storms will "go Greek," representatives with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said in a statement. (Atlantic storms never get Q, U, X, Y or Z names.) Storms after Wilfred will now take their names from the Greek alphabet; subtropical storm Alpha formed on the same day as Wilfred, and was soon followed by tropical storm Beta, which is expected to make landfall tonight (Sept. 21) on the Gulf Coast, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)
Related: Hurricane preparation: What to do
"This is only the second time the Greek alphabet has been used to name storms," NOAA says. "The first was during the 2005 hurricane season, where the last named storm was Zeta" — the sixth letter in the Greek alphabet list, according to NOAA.
Atlantic tropical storms have been named since the early 1950s; only women's names were used from 1953 until 1979, the NHC says.
Today, storms get their names from six lists of 21 names — male and female — that are maintained and updated by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), according to the NHC . The lists are rotated so that all names are recycled every six years. However, some names are retired if they are attached to a storm that proves to be especially deadly or destructive. Retired names in recent years include Irene (2011), Sandy (2012), Harvey (2017) and Michael (2018).
The Greek alphabet is being used to name Atlantic tropical storms now that the regular list of 21 names ended with Tropical Storm Wilfred. Subtropical Storm Alpha received its Greek letter name on Sept. 18. (Image credit: NOAA/NHC)
The Greek alphabet list, also established by the WMO, provides an additional 26 names — presumably enough to carry through to the end of hurricane season on Nov. 30.
Alpha, the 22nd named storm in the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season, made landfall in Portugal with maximum sustained winds nearing 45 mph (72 km/h). Tropical storm Beta currently has maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (80 km/h) and is expected to drench parts of Texas and Louisiana with rainfall and coastal flooding, The Weather Channel reported .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-09-21--Coronavirus outbreak: Live updates

Coronavirus outbreak: Live updates

Refresh
90-year-old woman in the UK receives first dose of Pfizer vaccine, FDA review confirms vaccine is safe and effective A 90-year-old woman (who will turn 91 next week) became the first in the world to be given Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine outside of clinical trials, according to the BBC. Margaret Keenan, who is originally from Northern Ireland, was given the vaccine at the University Hospital in Coventry, England. She received the first of 800,000 doses expected to be administered in the U.K. in the coming weeks, according to the BBC. "I feel so privileged to be the first person vaccinated against Covid-19," Keenan said, according to the BBC."It's the best early birthday present I could wish for because it means I can finally look forward to spending time with my family and friends in the new year after being on my own for most of the year." "My advice to anyone offered the vaccine is to take it. If I can have it at 90, then you can have it too," she added. Up to four million doses of Pfizer's vaccine is expected to be given to people in the U.K. by the end of the month. Meanwhile, a 53-page Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review published Tuesday (Dec. 8) confirmed that Pfizer's vaccine is safe and effective, according to The Washington Post.
Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine starts to work just 10 days after 1st dose Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine starts to protect people from the novel coronavirus just 10 days after the first dose, according to new documents from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The documents were released on Tuesday (Dec. 8), two days before a meeting of the FDA's vaccine advisory panel, which will vote on whether to recommend authorization of the vaccine in the U.S, Live Science reported . The FDA analyzed data from Pfizer's phase 3 clinical trial, which included some 44,000 people in the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Germany and Turkey, about half of whom received the vaccine while the other half received a placebo. Both groups received two shots, 21 days apart. About 10 days after the first dose, there was a noticeable drop-off in new COVID-19 cases in the vaccine group compared with the placebo group, indicating that even one dose provides some protection, the report said. However, scientists don't know how long the protection from a single dose will last, so it will still be important for people to receive two shots, according to The New York Times . Overall, the vaccine was 52% effective after the first dose and 95% effective after the second dose, the report said.
People with significant allergies should avoid Pfizer vaccine, UK warns The U.K.'s Regulatory Agency is advising people with a history of "significant" allergic reactions to avoid Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine, after two National Health Service members developed severe allergic reactions to it on Tuesday (Dec. 8), Live Science reported. "As is common with new vaccines the MHRA (Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency) have advised on a precautionary basis that people with a significant history of allergic reactions do not receive this vaccination after two people with a history of significant allergic reactions responded adversely yesterday," Stephen Powis, the national medical director for England's National Health Service said in a statement on Wednesday (Dec. 9). Both workers have a history of severe allergies and carry adrenaline auto injectors (such as EpiPens) around with them, according to The Guardian. Shortly after receiving the vaccine, both NHS workers developed anaphylaxis-like symptoms, or severe allergic reactions, but have recovered after receiving treatment. The MHRA will investigate further and Pfizer and BioNTech will support their investigation, according to Reuters. "Allergic reaction occurs with quite a number of vaccines, and perhaps even more frequently with drugs. So it is not unexpected," Stephen Evans, a professor of pharmacoepidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine said in remarks to journalists published by Britain's Science Media Center. “What would be wise, as the MHRA have already advised, would be for anyone who has known severe allergic reaction such that they need to carry an EpiPen, to delay having a vaccination until the reason for the allergic reaction has been clarified," he said. For the general population this does not mean that they would need to be anxious about receiving the vaccination, he added. "One has to remember that even things like marmite [a quintessential British food spread] can cause unexpected severe allergic reactions.”
Canada approves Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine Canada has authorized Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine, with the first doses expected to be administered there as early as next week. Health Canada, the country's health regulatory agency, said in a statement on Wednesday (Dec. 9) that it had determined that the vaccine "meets the Department's stringent safety, efficacy and quality requirements for use in Canada," according to CTV News . "We expect vaccines to arrive maybe as early as Monday [Dec. 14]. It takes time to prepare the vaccine," said Maj.-Gen. Dany Fortin, the top military general leading the vaccine rollout for the Public Health Agency of Canada, according to CTV News. The first doses could be administered by the middle of next week, he said. Canada is the third country in the world to authorize the Pfizer vaccine, following the United Kingdom and Bahrain. The country should receive up to 249,000 doses of the vaccine by the end of December, and has purchased 20 million doses total, with the option to purchase more, CTV News reported.
Daily COVID-19 death toll in the U.S. reaches record-high, surpassed 9/11 On Wednesday (Dec. 9), the U.S. recorded 3,124 new COVID-19 deaths, the highest daily death toll to date, according to CNN . In comparison, 2,977 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks. The U.S. has now recorded 280,488 deaths related to the virus, according to The COVID Tracking Project . A forecast from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention predicts that the total death toll can increase to between 332,000 and 362,000 by January 2, according to CNN. There are currently 106,671 people hospitalized with the virus in the U.S.; 20,903 of them are currently in the ICU and 7,621 are currently on a ventilator, according to the COVID Tracking Project. On Thursday (Dec. 10), the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee is set to meet to discuss an emergency use authorization for the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine.
FDA panel recommends authorization of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine A panel of experts for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recommended that the agency authorize Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine in the United States. On Thursday (Dec. 10), the panel voted 17 to 4 to recommend that the vaccine receive emergency use authorization (EUA) for people ages 16 and older, according to The New York Times . The FDA typically follows the advice of its panels, and so today's vote is an important step towards the vaccine's authorization. It is anticipated that the agency will officially authorize the vaccine on Saturday (Dec. 12), the Times reported. Several countries have already authorized Pfizer's vaccine, including Canada, the United Kingdom and Bahrain.
Vaccine approval could come this weekend, as U.S. continues to record high daily death tolls On Thursday (Dec. 10), the U.S. recorded another 2,902 COVID-19 deaths, a day after the country set a record of 3,253 deaths, according to Reuters . “Probably for the next 60 to 90 days, we’re going to have more deaths per day than we had on 9/11 or we had at Pearl Harbor,” Dr. Robert Redfield, the director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, told the Council on Foreign Relations on Thursday, according to Reuters. "The reality is the vaccine approval this week is not going to really impact that, I think, to any degree for the next 60 days." On Thursday, the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee discussed, voted and recommended that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) should grant an emergency use authorization for Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine. The Pfizer vaccine has already been approved in the U.K. and in Canada, and FDA approval for use in the U.S. could come this weekend.
Australia abandons local COVID-19 vaccine after it caused false-positive HIV tests An Australian COVID-19 vaccine that had shown promising results in early trials is being abandoned after researchers found that the shot caused false-positive results on HIV tests. On Friday (Dec. 11), Australian officials said they had canceled an order for some 51 million doses of the vaccine, which was being developed by The University of Queensland and CSL Ltd., a local biotech company, according to The New York Times . In an early trial with 216 participants, the vaccine appeared to be safe and to produce a robust immune response against COVID-19, according to a statement from CSL . But some volunteers falsely tested positive for HIV, which officials feared would undermine trust in the vaccine, the Times reported. The vaccine contained small fragments of an HIV protein, which helped stabilize the vaccine. Some of the participants developed antibodies against these fragments, and these antibodies triggered false positive results on some HIV tests. It's important to note that there is no way for the vaccine to cause an HIV infection, because it contains harmless fragments of the virus.
ICU nurse in New York becomes first person in the US to receive a coronavirus vaccine outside of clinical trials New York, the worst-hit state at the start of the pandemic, just became the first to administer a coronavirus vaccine outside of clinical trials, kicking off a long, massive effort to vaccinate the American people, Live Science reported. Around 9 a.m. E.T. on Monday (Dec. 14), the very first dose of Pfizer and BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine was given to Sandra Lindsay, an intensive care nurse in Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Queens, New York, according to The New York Times. This comes as the U.S. continues to battle a massive wave of the virus that has more than 109,000 people currently hospitalized, according to The COVID Tracking Project. Since the start of the pandemic, New York has recorded more than 780,000 cases of COVID-19 and more than 35,100 deaths, according to The Times. "This vaccine is exciting because I believe this is the weapon that will end the war," Gov. Andrew Cuomo said during a live broadcast of the first vaccination. "It's the beginning of the last chapter of the book, but now we just have to do it."
FDA analysis confirms Moderna's vaccine is safe and effective, emergency authorization is likely to come Friday A new briefing document from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released on Tuesday (Dec. 15) confirmed that Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is safe and effective, according to NPR . Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is 94% effective and has "a favorable safety profile," according to the document. A panel of experts is set to meet on Thursday (Dec. 17) to discuss the effectiveness and safety of the vaccine and vote on whether or not the FDA should grant emergency approval to the vaccine. Last week, the same panel voted that the FDA should grant emergency approval to Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine; the authorization came a day late and the first doses were given on Monday (Dec. 15). The FDA will likely approve Moderna's vaccine for emergency use on Friday (Dec. 18), according to The New York Times .
FDA authorizes first over-the-counter COVID-19 test The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authorized the first over-the-counter COVID-19 test, which can be done at home and does not need a prescription. The test, made by the Australia-based company Ellume, provides results in as little as 20 minutes, according to a statement from the FDA . It is a "lateral flow antigen test," meaning it works in a similar way to a home pregnancy test, by running a "liquid sample along a surface with reactive molecules," the FDA said. The test works in conjunction with a smartphone app. Users take a nasal swab and place their sample in an analyzer, which communicates to the smartphone app via Bluetooth. The results are delivered through the app, and also reported to public health authorities (based on a user's zip code) through a secure cloud connection, the company said . Ellume is ramping up production of its test, and expects to produce three million tests in January 2021, and 20 million within the first half of 2021.
A wild mink tested positive for the coronavirus, it may be the first wild animal to have a confirmed case A wild mink in Utah may be the first "free-ranging, native wild animal" confirmed to be infected with SARS-CoV-2, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Live Science reported. The mink was found near a mink farm and likely picked up the infection from the farmed mink. There's no evidence that the virus spread to other minks or wild animals; but if the virus does begin circulating in wild animals, it could pick up mutations that COVID-19 vaccines may not protect well against if it spreads back to humans, according to the report. "If it does [establish a reservoir], then we've got a long-term issue here, where this virus has the potential to be with us for millennia," Sarah Olson, associate director of the health program at the Wildlife Conservation Society, told Vox. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has screened other animal species for the virus near mink farms in Utah, Michigan and Wisconsin, but all of them have tested negative so far, according to a statement.
An FDA advisory panel will meet today to vote on whether to recommend Moderna's coronavirus vaccine for emergency approval On Thursday (Dec. 17), a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory committee will meet to determine whether to recommend that Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine for emergency approval, according to The New York Times . This panel, composed of independent experts, will vote on whether to recommend the vaccine after hearing from the company, FDA scientists and the public, according to The Times. Last week, the same panel of experts met to discuss Pfizer’s coronavirus vaccine and voted to recommend emergency authorization; the authorization came the next day. There have now been more than 16.9 million cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and more than 307,000 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins dashboard . There are currently 113,090 people hospitalized across the country with more than 21,900 of them in the ICU and 7,778 on a ventilator, according to The COVID Tracking Project .
California becomes new epicenter of COVID-19 in U.S. California, once praised for its early pandemic response, is now the new U.S. hotspot for COVID-19 infections. The state has reported an alarming surge in cases, breaking previous records for daily cases. On Thursday (Dec. 17), the state reported some 50,000 COVID-19 infections in 24 hours, and nearly 100,000 in 48 hours, according to The Washington Post . That's more than the daily cases reported in many countries, including India, Germany and Britain, the Post reported. The state also set a record for daily deaths on Thursday, with 379 fatalities reported, up from the previous high of 293. Capacity in intensive care units has also dropped dramatically, with hospitals in Southern California reporting zero percent capacity on Thursday. "I want to be very clear: Our hospitals are under siege, and our model shows no end in sight," said Christina Ghaly, director of Los Angeles County's Department of Health Services, the Post reported.
FDA expected to authorize Moderna's vaccine on Friday The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is expected to authorize Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine on Friday (Dec. 18). Once authorized, it will be the second coronavirus vaccine to get the green light from the agency in just a week, with Pfizer's vaccine gaining authorization on Dec. 11. Moderna is expected to begin shipping 5.9 million doses of its vaccine on Sunday (Dec. 20), with the first deliveries arriving Monday (Dec. 21), according to The New York Times . Unlike the Pfizer vaccine, Moderna's vaccine does not require storage in extremely cold temperatures, and states are hoping to distribute the vaccine to rural hospitals and community health centers, the Times reported.
COVID-19 cases continue to surge across the U.S. There have now been more than 17 million cases of COVID-19 in the U.S. and more than 300,000 deaths, according to The COVID Tracking Project . There are currently 114,237 people hospitalized across the country and 21,900 people in the ICU. California is facing a massive surge in cases; the state reported 41,012 new COVID-19 cases and 300 new deaths on Thursday (Dec. 17), according to the state's COVID-19 dashboard . By comparison, at the start of November, California was reporting a seven-day average of 4,183 cases, compared to an average of 38,774 on Thursday, according to CNN . "We're experiencing an explosive and very deadly surge," Dr. Barbara Ferrer, Los Angeles County Public Health Director said, according to CNN. Intensive care unit beds are rapidly filling up across the state; there are only 1,234 ICU beds left available in California, according to the dashboard. Current closures across California are impacting around 98% of the state's population, according to CNN.
London and southeast England are under an emergency lockdown Following concerns of a new version of the coronavirus that might be more transmissible, London and most of southeast England are now under an emergency lockdown, according to The New York Times . Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the lockdown on Saturday (Dec. 19) citing concerns that the mutated virus — which was detected a couple of weeks ago in southeast England — may be as much as 70% more transmissible than previous versions, according to the Times. The new version of the coronavirus is detected in more than 60% of new infections in London and have also been detected in several other countries, according to the Times. But it's not yet clear if this coronavirus version is any more infectious than the last and thorough analyses will need to be conducted before conclusions are made, scientists cautioned. In South Africa, a similar version of the virus has been found in up to 90% of new cases detected since mid-November, according to The Times . It's common for viruses to mutate, and this particular coronavirus has mutated many times since the start of the pandemic. But experts told The Times that it would take years for the virus to mutate enough such that it would make the current vaccines developed to fight COVID-19 ineffective.
Biden gets Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine President-elect Joe Biden received a dose of Pfizer's new COVID-19 vaccine on Monday (Dec. 21), according to The New York Times . He received the shot on camera at the Christiana Hospital in Newark, Delaware. "I'm doing this to demonstrate that people should be prepared when it's available to take the vaccine. There's nothing to worry about," Biden said.
Antarctica has its 1st COVID-19 outbreak The first COVID-19 cases have been reported in Antarctica , meaning the disease has now spread to every continent in the world. On Tuesday (Dec. 22), Chilean officials reported an outbreak of 36 COVID-19 cases at the Chilean research base General Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme on the Antarctic Peninsula, according to the BBC . Of these, 26 cases were military personnel and 10 were maintenance workers, the BBC reported. All of these cases have been evacuated from Antarctica to Punta Arenas, Chile, according to The Guardian . Antarctica had been COVID-19 free up until the current outbreak. The continent has no permanent residents, but about 1,000 people, including scientists and other workers, stayed there this past winter, The Guardian reported.
Live updates will continue in 2021!


livescience--2020-09-21--First experimental evidence of a new type of dark boson possibly found

Two experiments hunting for a whisper of a particle that prevents whole galaxies from flying apart recently published some contradictory results .
One came up empty handed , while the other gives us every reason to keep on searching .
Dark bosons are dark matter candidates based on force-carrying particles that do n't really pack much force .
Unlike the bosons we 're more familiar with , such as the photons that bind molecules and the gluons that hold atomic nuclei together , an exchange of dark bosons would barely affect their immediate surroundings .
If they existed , on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ could be responsible for making up dark matter - the missing mass that provides the extra gravity needed to keep our Universe of stars in their familiar formations .
Unfortunately , the presence of such bosons would be about as detectable as a murmur in a storm .
For a physicist , however , a murmur might be enough to still be noticeable given the right kind of experiment .
The two studies – one led by researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ( MIT ) , the other by Aarhus University @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the positioning of an electron in an isotope as it jumped between energy levels .
If it swayed , this could be a telltale sign of a dark boson 's nudge .
That boson , in theory , would come from an interaction between the orbiting electron and the quarks making up neutrons in the atom 's nucleus .
The MIT-led team used a handful of ytterbium isotopes for their experiment , while calcium was the element of choice for the Aarhus University-led group .
Both experiments lined up their data on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ these kinds of movements in isotopes .
While the calcium-based experiment appeared as predicted , the ytterbium plot was off , with a statistically significant deviation in the plot 's linearity .
This is n't a cause for celebration of any sort .
For one thing , while a boson could explain the numbers , so could a difference in the way they carry out calculations , a type of correction called a quadratic field shift .
Exactly why one experiment might have found something odd and the other found nothing at all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
As always , we need more data .
A lot more .
But figuring out exactly what makes up more than a quarter of the Universe is one of the biggest questions in science , so any potential leads are going to be pursued with excitement .
Adding new kinds of force-carrying particles to the Standard Model is n't exactly ruled out by anything in physics , but finding one would be a huge deal .
Last year physicists were excited by particles moving away at weird angles , hinting at a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the number of electrons recoiling in the XENON1T dark matter setup got tongues wagging early this year , inviting speculation over a hypothetical dark matter candidate called an axion .
As interesting as these results are , we 've had our hearts broken before .
In 2016 , a type of dark matter candidate called a Madala Boson was rumored to have been spotted among data collected by the Large Hadron Collider in its search for the Higgs particle .
This particle could be thought of as a kind of dark version @ @ @ @ @ @ @ matter its strength without making itself clear in any other way .
CERN threw cold water over that bit of gossip , sad to say .
Which does n't mean such a particle does n't exist , or that signs are n't tempting – just that we ca n't confirm it with any real degree of confidence .
Bigger colliders , more sensitive equipment , and clever new ways to search for subtle nudges and whispers of virtually non-existent particles might one day get us the answers we need .
Dark matter sure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
This research was published in Physical Review Letters , here and here .
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert .
Read the original article here .

Two experiments hunting for a whisper of a particle that prevents whole galaxies from flying apart recently published some contradictory results. One came up empty handed, while the other gives us every reason to keep on searching.
Dark bosons are dark matter candidates based on force-carrying particles that don't really pack much force.
Unlike the bosons we're more familiar with, such as the photons that bind molecules and the gluons that hold atomic nuclei together, an exchange of dark bosons would barely affect their immediate surroundings.
If they existed, on the other hand, their collective energy could be responsible for making up dark matter - the missing mass that provides the extra gravity needed to keep our Universe of stars in their familiar formations.
Unfortunately, the presence of such bosons would be about as detectable as a murmur in a storm. For a physicist, however, a murmur might be enough to still be noticeable given the right kind of experiment.
The two studies – one led by researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the other by Aarhus University in Denmark – looked for subtle differences in the positioning of an electron in an isotope as it jumped between energy levels. If it swayed, this could be a telltale sign of a dark boson's nudge.
That boson, in theory, would come from an interaction between the orbiting electron and the quarks making up neutrons in the atom's nucleus.
The MIT-led team used a handful of ytterbium isotopes for their experiment, while calcium was the element of choice for the Aarhus University-led group.
Both experiments lined up their data on a type of plot specific to measuring these kinds of movements in isotopes. While the calcium-based experiment appeared as predicted, the ytterbium plot was off, with a statistically significant deviation in the plot's linearity.
This isn't a cause for celebration of any sort. For one thing, while a boson could explain the numbers, so could a difference in the way they carry out calculations, a type of correction called a quadratic field shift.
Exactly why one experiment might have found something odd and the other found nothing at all is also in need of an explanation.
As always, we need more data. A lot more. But figuring out exactly what makes up more than a quarter of the Universe is one of the biggest questions in science, so any potential leads are going to be pursued with excitement.
Adding new kinds of force-carrying particles to the Standard Model isn't exactly ruled out by anything in physics, but finding one would be a huge deal.
Last year physicists were excited by particles moving away at weird angles, hinting at a hitherto unknown force at work.
Similarly, the number of electrons recoiling in the XENON1T dark matter setup got tongues wagging early this year, inviting speculation over a hypothetical dark matter candidate called an axion.
As interesting as these results are, we've had our hearts broken before. In 2016, a type of dark matter candidate called a Madala Boson was rumored to have been spotted among data collected by the Large Hadron Collider in its search for the Higgs particle.
This particle could be thought of as a kind of dark version of the Higgs boson, lending dark matter its strength without making itself clear in any other way.
CERN threw cold water over that bit of gossip, sad to say. Which doesn't mean such a particle doesn't exist, or that signs aren't tempting – just that we can't confirm it with any real degree of confidence.
Bigger colliders, more sensitive equipment, and clever new ways to search for subtle nudges and whispers of virtually non-existent particles might one day get us the answers we need.
Dark matter sure isn't going to make it easy.
This research was published in Physical Review Letters, here and here.
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert. Read the original article here.


livescience--2020-09-21--Melting ice sheets will add over 15 inches to global sea level rise by 2100

If humans continue emitting greenhouse gases at the current pace , global sea levels could rise more than 15 inches ( 38 centimeters ) by 2100 , scientists found in a new study .
Greenhouse gases emitted by human activity , such as carbon dioxide , contribute significantly to climate change and warming temperatures on planet Earth , studies continue to show .
As things heat up , ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica melt .
A new study by an international team of more than 60 ice , ocean and atmospheric scientists estimates just how much these melting ice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` One of the biggest uncertainties when it comes to how much sea level will rise in the future is how much the ice sheets will contribute , '' project leader and ice scientist Sophie Nowicki , now at the University at Buffalo and formerly at NASA 's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland , said in a statement .
`` And how much the ice sheets contribute is really dependent on what the climate will do . ''
The results of this study show that , if human greenhouse gas emissions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at , Greenland and Antarctica 's melting ice sheets will contribute over 15 inches ( 28 centimeters ) to global sea levels .
This new study is part of the Ice Sheet Model Intercomparison Project ( ISMIP6 ) , which is led by NASA Goddard .
The ISMIP6 team investigated how sea levels will rise between 2015 and 2100 , exploring how sea levels will change in a variety of carbon-emission scenarios They found that , with high emissions ( like we see now ) extending throughout this time period , Greenland 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in ( 9 cm ) to global sea level rise .
With lower emissions , they estimate that number to be about 1.3 in ( 3 cm ) .
Ice sheet loss in Antarctica is a little more difficult to predict , because , while ice shelves will continue to erode on the western side of the continent , East Antarctica could actually gain mass as temperatures rise because of increasing snowfall .
Because of this , the team found a larger range of possible ice sheet loss here .
The team determined @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sea levels up to 12 in ( 30 cm ) , with West Antarctica causing up to 7.1 in ( 18 cm ) of sea level rise by 2100 with the highest predicted emissions .
However , to be clear : These increases in global sea levels are just predictions for the years 2015 to 2100 , so they do n't account for the significant ice sheet loss that has already taken place between the pre-industrial era and modern day .
`` The Amundsen Sea region in West Antarctica and Wilkes Land in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sensitive to warming ocean temperatures and changing currents , and will continue to lose large amounts of ice , '' Helene Seroussi , an ice scientist at NASA 's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California , who led the Antarctic ice sheet modeling in the ISMIP6 project , said in the same statement .
`` With these new results , we can focus our efforts in the correct direction and know what needs to be worked on to continue improving the projections , '' Seroussi said .
These results are in line with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Climate Change ( IPCC ) , whose 2019 Special Report on Oceans and the Cryosphere showed that melting ice sheets would contribute to about one-third of the total global sea level rise .
According to the 2019 IPCC report , melting ice sheets in Greenland will contribute 3.1 to 10.6 inches ( 8 to 27 cm ) to global sea level rise between the years 2000 and 2100 .
For Antarctica , the report estimates that melting ice sheets will add 1.2 to 11 inches ( 3 to 28 cm ) .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to inform the next IPCC report , the sixth overall , which is set to be released in 2022 , according to the same statement .
`` The strength of ISMIP6 was to bring together most of the ice sheet modeling groups around the world , and then connect with other communities of ocean and atmospheric modelers as well , to better understand what could happen to the ice sheets , '' Heiko Goelzer , a scientist from Utrecht University in the Netherlands who is now at NORCE Norwegian Research Centre in Norway @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` It took over six years of workshops and teleconferences with scientists from around the world working on ice sheet , atmosphere , and ocean modeling to build a community that was able to ultimately improve our sea level rise projections , '' added Nowicki , who led the Greenland ice sheet ISMIP6 project .
`` The reason it worked is because the polar community is small , and we 're all very keen on getting this problem of future sea level right .
We need to know these numbers . ''
This @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the journal The Cryosphere .
Email Chelsea Gohd at cgohd @ space.com or follow her on Twitter @ chelsea_gohd .
Follow us on Twitter @ Spacedotcom and on Facebook .

Melting from ice shelves in Greenland and Antarctica (like the Getz Ice Shelf seen here) will contribute over 15 inches to global sea level rise by 2100, scientists have found in a new study.
If humans continue emitting greenhouse gases at the current pace, global sea levels could rise more than 15 inches (38 centimeters) by 2100, scientists found in a new study.
Greenhouse gases emitted by human activity, such as carbon dioxide, contribute significantly to climate change and warming temperatures on planet Earth, studies continue to show. As things heat up, ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica melt. A new study by an international team of more than 60 ice, ocean and atmospheric scientists estimates just how much these melting ice sheets will contribute to global sea levels.
"One of the biggest uncertainties when it comes to how much sea level will rise in the future is how much the ice sheets will contribute," project leader and ice scientist Sophie Nowicki, now at the University at Buffalo and formerly at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland, said in a statement. "And how much the ice sheets contribute is really dependent on what the climate will do."
Related: The reality of climate change: 10 myths busted
The results of this study show that, if human greenhouse gas emissions continue at the pace they're currently at, Greenland and Antarctica's melting ice sheets will contribute over 15 inches (28 centimeters) to global sea levels. This new study is part of the Ice Sheet Model Intercomparison Project (ISMIP6), which is led by NASA Goddard.
The ISMIP6 team investigated how sea levels will rise between 2015 and 2100, exploring how sea levels will change in a variety of carbon-emission scenarios
They found that, with high emissions (like we see now) extending throughout this time period, Greenland's melting ice sheet will contribute about 3.5 in (9 cm) to global sea level rise. With lower emissions, they estimate that number to be about 1.3 in (3 cm).
Ice sheet loss in Antarctica is a little more difficult to predict, because, while ice shelves will continue to erode on the western side of the continent, East Antarctica could actually gain mass as temperatures rise because of increasing snowfall. Because of this, the team found a larger range of possible ice sheet loss here.
The team determined that ice-sheet loss in Antarctica could boost sea levels up to 12 in (30 cm), with West Antarctica causing up to 7.1 in (18 cm) of sea level rise by 2100 with the highest predicted emissions.
However, to be clear: These increases in global sea levels are just predictions for the years 2015 to 2100, so they don't account for the significant ice sheet loss that has already taken place between the pre-industrial era and modern day.
"The Amundsen Sea region in West Antarctica and Wilkes Land in East Antarctica are the two regions most sensitive to warming ocean temperatures and changing currents, and will continue to lose large amounts of ice," Helene Seroussi, an ice scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, who led the Antarctic ice sheet modeling in the ISMIP6 project, said in the same statement.
"With these new results, we can focus our efforts in the correct direction and know what needs to be worked on to continue improving the projections," Seroussi said.
These results are in line with estimates made by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), whose 2019 Special Report on Oceans and the Cryosphere showed that melting ice sheets would contribute to about one-third of the total global sea level rise.
According to the 2019 IPCC report, melting ice sheets in Greenland will contribute 3.1 to 10.6 inches (8 to 27 cm) to global sea level rise between the years 2000 and 2100. For Antarctica, the report estimates that melting ice sheets will add 1.2 to 11 inches (3 to 28 cm).
The results from this new work will help to inform the next IPCC report, the sixth overall, which is set to be released in 2022, according to the same statement.
"The strength of ISMIP6 was to bring together most of the ice sheet modeling groups around the world, and then connect with other communities of ocean and atmospheric modelers as well, to better understand what could happen to the ice sheets," Heiko Goelzer, a scientist from Utrecht University in the Netherlands who is now at NORCE Norwegian Research Centre in Norway, said in the same statement.
"It took over six years of workshops and teleconferences with scientists from around the world working on ice sheet, atmosphere, and ocean modeling to build a community that was able to ultimately improve our sea level rise projections," added Nowicki, who led the Greenland ice sheet ISMIP6 project. "The reason it worked is because the polar community is small, and we're all very keen on getting this problem of future sea level right. We need to know these numbers."
This work was published Sept. 17 in a special issue of the journal The Cryosphere.
Email Chelsea Gohd at cgohd@space.com or follow her on Twitter @chelsea_gohd. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.