Science Daily

A new study sheds light on the complexities of achieving optimal vitamin D status across diverse populations. Despite substantial research on the determinants of vitamin D, levels of vitamin D deficiency remain high. Researchers believe their findings have significant implications for the development of tailored recommendations for vitamin D supplementation.

Scientists have developed lubricant additives that protect both water turbine equipment and the surrounding environment.

Some of the ocean's tiniest organisms get swept into underwater currents that act as a conduit that shuttles them from the sunny surface to deeper, darker depths where they play a huge role in affecting the ocean's chemistry and ecosystem, according to new research.

The global demand for palm oil -- the most widely consumed vegetable oil on the planet, in everything from instant noodles to lipstick -- is driving worldwide tropical deforestation. While many studies have shown the loss of biodiversity when rainforests are converted to oil palm plantations, researchers have now shown the far-reaching and wide-ranging disturbances to the watersheds in which such plantations occur.

Working with human breast and lung cells, scientists say they have charted a molecular pathway that can lure cells down a hazardous path of duplicating their genome too many times, a hallmark of cancer cells.

Physicists developed a technique to arrange atoms in much closer proximity than previously possible, down to 50 nanometers. The group plans to use the method to manipulate atoms into configurations that could generate the first purely magnetic quantum gate -- a key building block for a new type of quantum computer.

Charge-recharge cycling of lithium-superrich iron oxide, a cost-effective and high-capacity cathode for new-generation lithium-ion batteries, can be greatly improved by doping with readily available mineral elements.

A new study provides compelling evidence that genome-matched treatments can provide significant patient benefit.

A breakthrough study appears to overcome difficulties that have long frustrated previous attempts to reverse a form of nerve damage that robs people with MS of motor control and gradually blunts cognitive functions for many people as they age.

Human activities account for 20% to more than 60% of toxic thallium entering the Baltic Sea over the past eight decades, according to new research. Currently, the amount of thallium, which is considered the most toxic metal for mammals, remains low in Baltic seawater. Much of the thallium in the Baltic, which is the largest human-induced hypoxic area on Earth, has been accumulated in the sediment thanks to sulfide minerals.

The use of femtosecond lasers to form glass-to-glass welds for solar modules would make the panels easier to recycle, according to a proof-of-concept study.

Researchers have successfully leveraged robotic assistance in the manufacture of wind turbine blades, allowing for the elimination of difficult working conditions for humans and the potential to improve the consistency of the product.

Scented products with relevant images on their packaging and branding, such as flowers or fruit, are more attractive to potential customers and score better in produce evaluations, new research confirms. And such images, the researchers conclude, are particularly effective if manufacturers and marketers choose pictures that are more likely to stimulate a stronger sense of the imagined smell -- for example, cut rather than whole lemons. This, they say, suggests that as well as seducing our eyes, the images are stimulating our sense of smell.

Some neurological disorders can be improved through photobiomodulation, a non-invasive technique based on the application of low-intensity light to stimulate altered functions in specific regions of the body. Now, a study reveals how photobiomodulation applied to the brain-gut axis is effective in recovering some cognitive alterations and sequelae caused by chronic stress. The study opens up new perspectives for applying the technique in future therapies for the treatment of neurological diseases in patients.

Climate change and human activities like deforestation are causing more fires in central and west Africa's wet, tropical forests, according to the first-ever comprehensive survey there. The fires have long been overlooked.

Blood vessels in the lungs aren't like the others in the body. This difference becomes clear in pulmonary hypertension, in which only the lungs' blood vessels stiffen progressively, leading to chronic lung disease, heart failure and death. The underlying reasons for this organ-specific vessel stiffening remained a mystery until researchers made a surprising discovery about these blood vessel cells in patients with pulmonary hypertension -- they're hungry.

A new study reports on a deep new probe into the interface between the theories of gravity and quantum mechanics, using ultra-high energy neutrino particles detected by a particle detector set deep into the Antarctic glacier at the south pole.

An asteroid discovered last November is in fact a solar system toddler -- just 2-3 million years old, a Cornell University-led research team estimates using novel statistical calculations.

Consistent adherence to physical activity guidelines throughout middle-age is associated with a higher health-related quality of life in women, according to a new study.

New catalyst is made from an inexpensive, abundant metal and table sugar. Catalyst converts carbon dioxide (CO2) into carbon monoxide, a building block for producing a variety of useful chemicals including syngas. With recent advances in carbon capture technologies, post-combustion carbon capture is becoming a plausible option to help tackle the global climate change crisis. But how to handle the captured carbon remains an open-ended question. The new catalyst potentially could provide one solution for disposing the potent greenhouse gas by converting it into a more valuable product.