Scientists Say

Study shows signature changes more pronounced in people with genetic risk, raising hopes for new therapiesChanges to microbes that live in the gut can identify people at greater risk of Parkinson’s disease long before symptoms develop, according to work that also raises hopes for new therapies.Researchers discovered signature changes in the gut microbiome that are more pronounced in people with a genetic risk for Parkinson’s and even more stark in those diagnosed with the disease. Continue reading...

Engineers link reduced lifespan of roads to shift to heavier cars, some bought to navigate damaged surfacesDrivers who choose SUVs are compounding the pothole problem, experts have warned, as research showed hundreds of thousands of people bought bigger cars to navigate damaged roads.Scientists said the cumulative effect of increasing numbers of heavier vehicles was a contributory factor in Britain’s potholes getting worse. Continue reading...

Conservationists say move could push species closer to extinction and clearer environmental rules are needed insteadFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastConservationists and scientists have warned a mining lobby proposal to use artificial intelligence to speed up national environmental approvals could generate “Robodebt-style” failures, putting threatened species at further risk.The Minerals Council of Australia has asked the government to spend $13m to trial the use of AI to help companies prepare applications and help the federal government make decisions. Continue reading...

Letters to US agency raise concerns over tech firms’ plans to use reflective satellites and expand numbers in low Earth orbitProposals to deploy reflective mirrors and up to 1m more satellites in low Earth orbit could have far-reaching consequences for human health and ecosystems, leading sleep and circadian rhythm researchers have said.Presidents of four international scientific societies representing about 2,500 researchers from more than 30 countries are among those who have raised concerns in letters to the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Continue reading...

Unseasonably warm and even dangerous temperatures this week were up to 30F above average for the time of yearThe record-breaking heatwave scorching the US west this week would have been “virtually impossible” if not for the climate crisis, a team of scientists has determined.Millions of Americans from the Pacific coast to the Rockies baked under unseasonably warm and even dangerous temperatures this week, with temperatures up to 30F (17C) above average for the time of year. Continue reading...

Researchers say their prototype is a big step towards fully functioning batteries with rapid charging timesAustralian scientists have developed what they say is the world’s first proof-of-concept quantum battery.Quantum batteries, first proposed as a theoretical concept in 2013, use the principles of quantum mechanics to store energy, and have the potential to be more efficient than conventional batteries. Continue reading...