Human activities have been changing near-Earth space and weather. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Genna Duberstein

Our Cold War history is now offering scientists a chance to better understand the complex space system that surrounds us. Space weather – which can include changes in Earth’s magnetic environment – are usually triggered by the sun’s activity, but recently declassified data on high-altitude nuclear explosion tests have provided a new look at the mechanisms that set off perturbations in that magnetic system. Such information can help support NASA’s efforts to protect satellites and astronauts from the natural radiation inherent in space.

From 1958 to 1962, the U.S. and U.S.S.R. ran high-altitude tests with exotic code names like Starfish, Argus and Teak...

Healthy liver (left) and diseased liver (right) with infiltrated CD8 T-cells indicated by arrow. Credit: Rohit Kohli, MBBS, MS, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles

Role of NKT and CD8 T-cells demonstrated in mice and humans. A team of investigators led by Rohit Kohli, MBBS, MS, of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, has identified key inflammatory cells involved in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Current treatment for the disorder involves changes to diet, yet no medication has been approved for treatment. Findings from this study provide a potential therapeutic target and offer the possibility for developing a treatment.

“The rise in obesity has led to an epidemic of fatty liver disease in both children and adults,” said Kohli, head of the division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition...

Multifunctional scales, will be able to monitor your health and inform about potentially dangerous life conditions, such as arteriosclerosis or cardiac arrhythmia.

KTU Institute of Biomedical Engineering is developing the multifunctional scales, which can monitor your health and inform about potentially dangerous life conditions, such as arteriosclerosis or cardiac arrhythmia. “Hospitals are fully equipped with advanced technologies for diagnosing illnesses and critical conditions, but it is too expensive to use this equipment for everyday health monitoring. On the other hand, people do not have many devices for personal health monitoring at home, and these devices could be very practical,” says Vaidotas Marozas, the Director of the KTU Institute of Biomedical Engineering.

A team of KTU re...

Nelson Sepulveda is a nanotechnology researcher and associate professor of engineering at Michigan State University. Credit: Michigan State University

A paper-thin, flexible device created at Michigan State University not only can generate energy from human motion, it can act as a loudspeaker and microphone as well, nanotechnology researchers report in the May 16 edition of Nature Communications. The audio breakthrough could eventually lead to such consumer products as a foldable loudspeaker, a voice-activated security patch for computers and even a talking newspaper...