Science Tech Updates

Webb Detects Water Vapor in Rocky Planet-Forming One

July 26, 2023, Astronomy/Space

This artist’s concept portrays the star PDS 70 and its inner protoplanetary disk. New measurements by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have detected water vapor at distances of less than 100 million miles from the star – the region where rocky, terrestrial planets may be forming. This is the first detection of water in the terrestrial region of a disk already known to host two or more protoplanets, one of which is shown at upper right.
Credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, J. Olmsted (STScI)

Water is essential for life as we know it. However, scientists debate how it reached the Earth and whether the same processes could seed rocky exoplanets orbiting distant stars. New insights may come from the planetary system PDS 70, located 370 light-years away...

Inflammation discovery could slow aging, prevent age-related diseases — Age-related changes in whole-blood gene expression are associated with increased inflammatory gene transcription and decreased expression of genes encoding mitochondrial Ca2+ transport. Credit: *Nature Aging* (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s43587-023-00436-8

University of Virginia School of Medicine researchers have discovered a key driver of chronic inflammation that accelerates aging, a finding that could lead to longer, healthier lives and the possible prevention of age-related conditions such as deadly heart disease and devastating brain disorders.

The harmful inflammation is driven by improper calcium signaling in the mitochondria of certain immune cells, researchers found. Mitochondria are the power generators in all cells, and they rely heavily on calcium signaling.

The UVA Health res...

Breakthrough Metasurface Materials Tech Unleashes Enhanced Control for Advanced Telecommunications and Beyond

July 26, 2023, Physics

Cities can be obstacle courses for communications signals. A radio signal must travel from a cell phone to a router to a cell tower, and onward to its recipient—all while bouncing between walls, buildings and other structures. When it hits an obstacle, the radio wave gets scattered, diminishing the signal. This in turn reduces the bandwidth. At the same time, the signal must compete with the bandwidth needs of numerous other devices in the area...