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1,149 news posts in Featured news

Featured news

28 Jun 2022

Robotic arms connected directly to brain of partially paralyzed man allows him to feed himself

By Peter Rejcek, science writer Image: Shutterstock.com Recent advances in neural science, robotics, and software have enabled scientists to develop a robotic system that responds to muscle movement signals from a partially paralyzed person relayed through a brain-machine interface. Human and robot act as a team to make performing some tasks a piece of cake. Two robotic arms – a fork in one hand, a knife in the other – flank a seated man, who sits in front of a table, with a piece of cake on a plate. A computerized voice announces each action: “moving fork to food” and “retracting knife.” Partially paralyzed, the man makes subtle motions with his right and left fists at certain prompts, such as “select cut location”, so that the machine slices off a bite-sized piece. Now: “moving food to mouth” and another subtle gesture to align the fork with his mouth. In less than 90 seconds, a person with very limited upper body mobility who hasn’t been able to use his fingers in about 30 years, just fed himself dessert using his mind and some smart robotic hands. A team led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), in Laurel, […]

Featured news

17 Jun 2022

Colorful urban environments, even if just in virtual reality, promote wellbeing

By Conn Hasting, science writer Colorful virtual reality cityscape. Image credit: A. Batistatou, F. Vandeville, and Y.N. Delevoye-Turrell Urban environments can be drab and stressful, but introducing vegetation or colorful designs could improve the wellbeing of city dwellers. A new study investigated the potential of these simple interventions using a virtual reality simulation. It found that green vegetation was pleasurable for volunteers, whereas colorful designs increased curiosity and fascination. The virtual methods could be useful for urban planners in testing new methods to improve wellbeing.   Drab urban environments tend to increase our stress, whereas nature can soothe the soul, but how do you get the best of both? One option is to increase color and vegetation in cities, but finding the best approach can be tricky. A new study in Frontiers in Virtual Reality tested the effects of vegetation and colorful patterns in an urban environment. Employing virtual reality, the study found that green vegetation caused volunteers to walk more slowly, while also increasing their heartrate, indicating a pleasurable experience. Meanwhile, colorful patterns increased alertness, fascination and curiosity. The study illustrates the potential of simple interventions to improve the lives of urbanites, and also the power of virtual reality […]

Featured news

14 Jun 2022

Installation of deep-water pipeline gives immediate boost to sea-floor animals

By Tania Fitzgeorge-Balfour, science writer Image credit: DeeAnn Cranston / Shutterstock.com An underwater survey finds the abundance and types of animals on the deep-sea floor west of Africa, off the Angolan coast, increased in response to the installation of an underwater pipeline. This is thought to be related to the pipeline providing shelter and trapping organic matter that the animals feed on. Despite the remoteness of this area, the study also revealed a large increase in the amount of litter, which was trapped against the pipeline. An underwater survey west of Africa, off the Angolan coast, found that both the abundance and types of animals on the deep-sea floor increased significantly in response to the installation of a pipeline. Published in Frontiers in Marine Science, the study also revealed a large increase in the amount of litter on the seafloor, which was trapped against the pipeline. “In a short space of time the installation of a pipeline led to increases in the abundance and diversity of marine life in most areas,” said Daniel Jones, associate head of ocean biogeosciences at the National Oceanography Centre, UK, and author of this study. “We believe this could be related to the pipeline providing […]

Featured news

14 Jun 2022

Fighting malaria by manipulating the amount of serotonin mosquitos obtain from blood meals

By Maryam Clark and Mischa Dijkstra, science writers Image credit: Somboon Bunproy / Shutterstock.com A new study shows that by feeding blood containing high levels of the neurotransmitter serotonin to female invasive city-dwelling mosquitos (Anopheles stephensi), we can decrease the mosquitos’ flight speed, and reduce their motivation to seek out a second blood meal. This suggests that we could ultimately prevent the mosquitos’ transmission of malaria, by manipulating the amount of host serotonin that mosquitos normally obtain from their blood meals. Many people have heard of serotonin as a signaling molecule in the human brain that affects our mood. But across the animal kingdom, serotonin signaling is crucial for regulating a vast range of other functions, for example blood pressure, heart rate, nausea, and the rate of food passage in the gut. Now, a study in Frontiers in Physiology shows how we could take advantage of the pivotal role of serotonin in physiological pathways across unrelated species, to disrupt the transmission of malaria. The results suggest that by increasing the amount of serotonin that mosquitos ingest with mammalian blood, we can change the mosquitos’ behavior to make them less efficient vectors of malaria parasites. ► Read original article► Download original article (pdf) […]

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09 Jun 2022

Could cranberries help us prevent dementia? Check out 5 fascinating Frontiers articles you don’t want to miss

By Colm Gorey, Frontiers Science Communications Manager Image: Jean Beaufort At Frontiers, we bring some of the world’s best research to a global audience. But with tens of thousands of articles published each year, many often fly under the radar. Here are just five amazing papers you may have missed. Daily eating of cranberries may give us a memory boost and lower ‘bad’ cholesterol The famous proverb says that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but a recent study published to Frontiers in Nutrition has found that significant health benefits may come from eating a cup of cranberries a day. A team of researchers from the UK, the Netherlands, and Italy set out to see what benefits this daily dose of the popular berry would have on those aged between 50 and 80. Of those taking part in the study, half ate freeze-dried cranberry powder equivalent to 100g of fresh cranberries, while the other half were given a placebo. The results showed that those who were eating cranberries daily saw a significant improvement in their memory of everyday events, neural functioning, and delivery of blood to the brain. The researchers hope that their findings could have implications for […]

Featured news

03 Jun 2022

The University of Lincoln has joined the Frontiers – JISC national open access deal

 We are pleased to announce that the University of Lincoln has joined the UK national open access deal agreed between Jisc Collections and Frontiers.  This landmark deal provides a simplified and streamlined route to open access publishing for researchers in the UK. The University of Lincoln supports its researchers in making their research more widely available. As part of this deal, eligible authors may publish in any Frontiers journal with a discount of 10% on Article Processing Charges (APCs) for articles. This agreement will further encourage University of Lincoln researchers to publish open access, increasing the volume of research openly available. While this reduces costs for the researcher, it also benefits the wider research community and the public at large.   Information for authors: This agreement provides a discount only and does not cover the full costs of your APC. You are advised to obtain confirmation of funding to cover the remaining 90% of the APC from the University of Lincoln prior to submitting your manuscript. Please visit the University of Lincoln’s Repository and Open Access portal page to learn more about the eligibility criteria and university requirements. Relevant information can be found under Guidance Documents, in the “Frontiers APC discount” slide deck […]

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03 Jun 2022

Most read article of May 2022: Surprising finding shows children grow faster during the school year than summer vacation

By Colm Gorey, Frontiers Science Communications Manager Image: Shutterstock.com Each month, Frontiers shines a spotlight on some of the leading research across a wide range of topics. Here are just some of the highlights that resonated strongly with readers on our news site in the month of May. Children grow faster during school year than during summer holidays It has been long recognized that in western countries, children are more likely to become overweight or obese over the summer. Causes of this include changes in kids’ physical activity and diet over the summer period, including the summer holidays. But in a study in Frontiers in Physiology, scientists from the US show that this ‘obesogenicity’ of summers has another unexpected cause: children grow faster over the school year than over the summer. And because body mass index (BMI) is the ratio of body weight in kilograms and height in meters squared, faster vertical growth during the school leads to increased BMI during summers. “Here we show seasonality in standardized body mass index (BMIz), with children gaining height at a greater rate during the school year compared to the summer,” said Dr Jennette P Moreno, an assistant professor at the USDA/ARS Children’s […]

Featured news

01 Jun 2022

This illusion, new to science, is strong enough to trick our reflexes

By Mischa Dijkstra, Frontiers science writer An illusion new to science shows that the pupillary light reflex, which controls the width of the pupil in anticipation of expected changes in light, depends on the perceived environment rather than the physical reality. Have a look at the above image. Do you perceive that the central black hole is expanding, as if you’re moving into a dark environment, or falling into a hole? If so, you’re not alone: a new study shows that this ‘expanding hole’ illusion, which is new to science, is perceived by approximately 86% of people. Dr Bruno Laeng, a professor at the Department of Psychology of the University of Oslo and the study’s first author, said: “The ‘expanding hole’ is a highly dynamic illusion: The circular smear or shadow gradient of the central black hole evokes a marked impression of optic flow, as if the observer were heading forward into a hole or tunnel.” Optical illusions aren’t mere gimmicks without scientific interest: researchers in the field of psychosociology study them to better understand the complex processes our visual system uses to anticipate and make sense of the visual world – in a far more roundabout way than a […]

Featured news

31 May 2022

When should I schedule my exercise? The question is more important than you think

By Mischa Dijkstra, Frontiers science writer A randomized controlled trial shows for the first time that for physical exercise, the time of day affects its effectiveness. Whether morning or evening exercise is more effective depends on type of exercise and training objectives, and differs between women and men. But even when time of day isn’t taken into account, the new multimodal weekly exercise program presented here improves health and performance for both sexes. When should I fit exercise within my daily schedule? For most, the answer depends on our family’s schedule and working hours, and perhaps on whether we’re ‘larks’ or ‘night owls’. But over the past decade, researchers have found that much more hangs on this question than these constraints. That’s because recent findings suggest that the effectiveness of exercise depends on the time of day (Exercise Time Of Day, ETOD). Now, a randomized controlled trial not only confirms convincingly that ETOD affects the effectiveness of exercise, but also shows that these effects differ between types of exercise, and between women and men. The results are published in Frontiers in Physiology. ► Read original article► Download original article (pdf) Principal investigator Dr Paul J Arciero, a professor at the Health and […]