Category: General
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UK man bitten by cat contracts previously unknown and ‘extensive’ bacterial infection
Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter A 48-year-old UK man bitten by a stray cat developed “painful” hand swelling and “extensive” infection caused by a previously unknown bacterium, a new study has revealed. The…
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Deadly Traps May Still Be Hidden in The Tomb of China’s First Emperor : ScienceAlert
Archaeologists are too scared to open up the 2,200-year-old tomb of China’s first emperor Qin Shi Huang because they fear it might harbor deadly booby traps. The mausoleum of the emperor, who ruled from 221 to 210 BCE, is located in Lintong District, Xi’an, Shaanxi. It is guarded by the iconic Terracotta Army, sculptures meant…
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Living in deprived areas associated with poorer sleep quality – study
Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter Middle-aged people living in Britain’s deprived areas have poorer sleep quality than those in affluent places, regardless of their personal wealth, research suggests. In the first large-scale UK…
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Babies with rare condition living longer thanks to advances in treatment
Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter Almost three-quarters of babies born with a rare muscle-wasting disease are living longer thanks to advances in NHS treatment. Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic condition that…
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Study reveals how muscle cells deteriorate with age, hampering injury recovery
Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter Researchers have revealed how muscle cells deteriorate with age, affecting their ability to regenerate and recover after an injury. The findings could help to shed light on why…
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‘Magnecko’ robot is like a giant mechanical spider crossed with a gecko
Engineers at Switzerland’s ETH Zurich research institute have created an intriguing and impressive little robot that they call the Magnecko. The robot is inspired by a spider’s design while also taking some inspiration from geckos. The Magnecko uses electro-permanent magnet modules on its four feet, allowing it to walk easily on walls and ceilings. Tech.…
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Scientists revived a worm that was frozen in permafrost for 46,000 years
The Siberian permafrost continues to illicit new mysteries for scientists to dig into, especially as it begins to thaw more and more. The latest discovery comes with the revival of a worm that has remained frozen in the permafrost for over 46,000 years. The worm in question is a roundworm from a previously unknown species,…
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Nuclear War Would Be Worse For Our Climate Than Predicted in The Cold War : ScienceAlert
Christopher Nolan’s biopic of J. Robert Oppenheimer has revived morbid curiosity in the destructive power of nuclear weapons. There are now an estimated 12,512 nuclear warheads. A war in which even a fraction of these bombs were detonated would create blast waves and fires capable of killing millions of people almost instantly. The radiation-induced cancers…
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How 2 Teens Accidentally Solved Charles Darwin’s Most Vexing Problem : ScienceAlert
In 1956, a teenage girl by the name of Tina Negus was summering in the United Kingdom’s Charnwood Forest with her family, when she noticed a curious imprint on an overhanging rock face. It looked like a fern. But as a budding geologist, Negus knew these 600 million year old rocks were too old to…
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Photographer captures rainbow contrails that look like something from an alien world
A photographer has captured some stunning photographs of rainbow contrails. These strange ice clouds form when water vapor generated by airplane engines condenses and freezes around dust particles or water vapor already in the air. When sunlight hits the clouds just right, the light diffracts through them, creating a rainbow-like effect that is breathtaking. Tech.…