News about Tabby's star, the most mysterious star of 2017
KIC 8462852, or "Tabby's Star," named after Tabetha Boyajian, the researcher at Louisiana State University (USA) who is leading its study, is a medium sized star, some 50 percent bigger than the sun, and 1,000 degrees hotter, at a distance of around 1000 light years. However, its brightness rises and falls sporadically, without explanation. Many theories have been proposed to explain the unusual light curve of the star, including the existence of an alien mega-structure orbiting around it.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-news-tabby-star-mysterious.html
Astronomers find one of the first stars formed in the Milky Way
Researchers at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) have identified a star that is a key to the formation of the first chemical elements in the galaxy. The results of this research are published today in The Astrophysical Journal.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-astronomers-stars-milky.html
Emission from the centre of a galaxy has a serpentine shape
An international group of scientists led by members of the National Instituto of Astrophysics (Osservatorio Astronomico di Torino (INAF-OATo) has discovered a peculiar spiral-shaped blazar jet with many twists. The results of these observations are published today in Nature magazine.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-emission-centre-galaxy-serpentine.html
Galaxies that feed on other galaxies
An international team of astronomers led by Giuseppina Battaglia, researcher at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), finds signs that the outer halo of the Milky Way contains stellar remains of massive dwarf galaxies that were devoured by our own.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-galaxies.html
Study reveals human skin flakes lead to bad smell in air-conditioning systems
Skin squames (cells that peel off from the skin surface) are a source of food for the bacteria found in air-cooling units, which produce odours even in a dust-free air-conditioning system, a study by Hong Kong Baptist University scholars revealed. This research is the first to show that the accumulation and bacterial degradation of skin squames in air-cooling units is positively correlated to the complaints of a urine-like smell in air-conditioned areas.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-reveals-human-skin-flakes-bad.html
Bacteria produce gold by digesting toxic metals
High concentrations of heavy metals, like copper and gold, are toxic for most living creatures. This is not the case for the bacterium C. metallidurans, which has found a way to extract valuable trace elements from a compound of heavy metals without poisoning itself. One interesting side-effect: the formation of tiny gold nuggets. A team of researchers from Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg (MLU), the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and the University of Adelaide in Australia has discovered the molecular processes that take place inside the bacteria. The group presented their findings in the renowned journal Metallomics, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-bacteria-gold-digesting-toxic-metals.html
Improving the sensitivity for ionic solutes analysis
Researchers from Kumamoto University in Japan have developed a new method to improve the sensitivity of analytical systems for ionic solutes, such as water from rivers and lakes, or even tap water. Clean water is important for community health, and impurity analysis can is conducted via sensitive equipment such as mass spectrometers. However, these devices can be prohibitively expensive for low-income areas or if only a few samples are to be analyzed. In these cases, an enrichment process is used to improve the sensitivity of more easily accessible analytical systems.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-sensitivity-ionic-solutes-analysis.html
Nokia widens losses in 2017
Nokia said Thursday that its net loss widened in 2017, but that underlying profits improved, enabling the Finnish mobile phone maker to raise its forecasts for the coming years as operators prepare to roll out new lightning-fast 5G technology.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-nokia-widens-losses.html
Profitable Daimler warns about heavy spending on new tech
German automaker Daimler made lots of money last year. That's a good thing, because the company says it will need to spend heavily this year to keep up with the technological change expected to disrupt the car industry.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-profitable-daimler-heavy-tech.html
Structural insight into the molecular mechanism of PET degradation
A KAIST metabolic engineering research team has found a molecular mechanism showing superior degradability of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). This is the first report to determine the 3-D crystal structure of Ideonella sakaiensis PETase and develop the new variant with enhanced PET degradation.
Source: https://phys.org/news/2018-02-insight-molecular-mechanism-pet-degradation.html
Source: https://phys.org/