This artist’s impression shows the spiral galaxy NGC 4921 based on observations made by the Hubble Space Telescope. Credit: ICRAR, NASA, ESA, the Hubble Heritage Team. STScI/AURA

It’s the big astrophysical whodunnit. Across the Universe, galaxies are being killed and the question scientists want answered is, what’s killing them? New research published today by a global team of researchers, based at the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), seeks to answer that question. The study reveals that ram-pressure stripping is more prevalent than previously thought, driving gas from galaxies and sending them to an early death by depriving them of the material to make new stars.

The study of 11,000 galaxies shows their gas – the lifeblood for star formation – is being violently ...

An artist’s representation of what the three unusual tails of the pulsar Geminga may look like close up. NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory is giving astronomers a better look at pulsars and their associated pulsar wind nebulae, enabling new constraints on the geometry of pulsars and why they look the way they do from Earth. Credit: Nahks Tr’Ehnl

Like cosmic lighthouses sweeping the universe with bursts of energy, pulsars have fascinated and baffled astronomers since they were first discovered 50 years ago. In 2 studies, international teams suggest that recent images from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory of 2 pulsars – Geminga and B0355+54 – may help shine a light on the distinctive emission signatures of pulsars, as well as their often perplexing geometry.

Pulsars are a type of neutron star...

Lifetime report of perceived stress at work and cancer among men: A case-control study in Montreal, Canada. Preventive Medicine, 2017; 96: 28 DOI: 10.1016/j.ypmed.2016.12.004

1st study on the link between cancer and work-related stress perceived by men throughout their working lifetime. For men, prolonged exposure to work-related stress has been linked to an increased likelihood of lung, colon, rectal, and stomach cancer and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The findings are among the results obtained by researchers at INRS and Université de Montréal who conducted the first study to assess the link between cancer and work-related stress perceived by men throughout their working life. The results were recently published in Preventive Medicine.

On average, the study participants had held 4 jobs, with ...

Table: Results of gene analysis (top 20 genes)
from GWAS meta-analysis reveals novel loci and genetic correlates for general cognitive function: a report from the COGENT consortium

Findings could lead to new treatments for schizophrenia, ADHD etc. An international team of scientists, led by Todd Lencz, PhD, professor at The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research at Northwell Health and Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine, have unlocked some of the genes responsible for cognitive ability. Dr. Lencz et al studied the genes of 35,000 people and discovered new genetic variations related to cognitive ability.

60 international scientists form the Cognitive Genomics Consortium (COGENT)...