Phys.org

Skeletal muscles grow and regenerate as individual precursor cells—called myoblasts—fuse into long fibers from which mature muscle fibers develop. How they coordinate this process and form functional muscles is not yet fully understood. A research team at the Max-Planck-Zentrum für Physik und Medizin (MPZPM) has now shown that mechanical stress influences the fusion of muscle cells.

Underground sewers that safely manage wastewater are essential to modern cities. However, since they are buried underground and difficult to access, their condition can be hard to monitor. Traditional camera inspections are costly and time-consuming, but we need regular inspections so aging pipes do not continue to deteriorate until they reach a breaking point. When damaged pipes leak, they can pose serious risks to public health by contaminating surrounding water, while more severe failures can even damage infrastructure above them, causing sinkholes in city streets.

Astronomers have discovered a star being torn apart by a massive black hole more than 1,000 parsecs from the center of its host galaxy. The tidal disruption event, TDE 2023mfm, was first discovered by ZTF and then studied with a wide range of telescopes, including Keck, Lick, Hubble, Swift, Chandra, XMM-Newton and the VLA. The discovery paper was posted to the arXiv preprint server on Sept. 28.

How can bodies adapt to survive environments completely different from the ones they evolved for?

A Florida State University–led review shows how ultrahigh-resolution mass spectrometry can help researchers identify the molecular fingerprints of human activity in water systems around the world.

Researchers at the Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) at Kanazawa University have developed a way to observe how antibodies interact with a cancer-related protein carried on tiny membrane-bound vesicles released by cells. Using high-speed atomic force microscopy, they found that measuring how much of the protein is present does not necessarily show how accessible it is to antibodies. The findings reported in the journal Small Methods provide a new way to investigate differences between individual cancer-derived vesicles although further research is needed before the approach can be used clinically.

Many owners will enthusiastically attest that their cat has improved their quality of life. Some studies support this common claim that caring for a feline friend has positive effects on human health and well-being. However, the evidence is inconsistent, and other studies have even reported possible negative effects of cat ownership.

Exchange rates are more than just abstract numbers. They determine the value of a Mexican peso, the cost of a German car in the U.S. and whether an Argentine farmer can repay his debts. Jantke de Boer, junior professor of international monetary macroeconomics at Ruhr University Bochum, has examined how expectations of future protectionist measures influence exchange rates.

Materials that change their shape upon exposure to light are attracting growing interest in applications such as soft robotics, microscale actuators and smart materials. However, the connection between molecular-level structural changes and larger-scale deformation remains incompletely understood.

Knowing someone who died by firearm suicide is associated with greater recognition of suicide risk, but may not lead to safer storage practices, according to a Rutgers study published in Psychiatry Research.

Glimpses of the "gallium anomaly" were first seen in the mid-1990s, but it was first clearly discovered and stated in 2007 by neutrino physicist Carlo Giunti of Italy. The problem is simple to state but potentially very important: about 20% fewer electron neutrinos were seen to be captured by gallium nuclei than expected.

Some travelers take the scenic route. Others step on the gas and head straight for the destination. New research suggests southern right whales do much the same when crossing the Southern Ocean.

The way time is described can shape everything from our motivation to our decision-making, according to new research from behavioral scientist Dr. Deepak Sirwani, an assistant professor at the UBC Sauder School of Business. The study is published in the Journal of Marketing Research.

Chemical predictions can help prevent unwanted reactions or improve the efficacy of industrial processes, among other applications, but predicting how chemicals interact can be costly and time-consuming—especially because chemicals may behave differently from one environment to another.

Almost all change is difficult: adapting your lifestyle, a reorganization at work, or starting to use gender-neutral language. When behavioral change is required, resistance is therefore often encountered. As a result, it can sometimes take a long time for a change to be accepted—and sometimes it doesn't happen at all. It is therefore important to understand where that resistance comes from, according to Radboud University communication scientist Marieke Fransen. Fransen and her colleagues investigated this and identified 12 reasons.

Future Arctic winter sea ice is likely to shrink by around 1 million square kilometers (386,000 square miles) more than previously thought, after researchers used clues from a warm period 6,000 years ago to improve the reliability of climate models.

The decisive penalty kick in a final, match point in tennis or the last attempt in a competition: When a lot is at stake, even a well-practiced performance can suddenly break down. Yet pressure does not necessarily impair performance. Some people perform at their best precisely in the moments that matter most. Existing accounts can only partly explain why.

In 2023, professor Damian Helbling was getting a lot of calls and emails from local residents. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had just announced regulations to limit per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)—some of which have been linked to cancers and other negative health effects—in drinking water. Ithacans and others in the region wanted to know about levels in the ponds, lakes, streams and creeks in their proverbial backyards.

For more than 20 years, Canada's Species at Risk Act (SARA) has protected wildlife that are at risk of being lost from Canadian lands and waters. Once a species is listed as extirpated, endangered or threatened under the act, it becomes illegal to kill, harm or capture it or damage its residences. Its critical habitat must also be protected, at least on federal land.

Manhattan's Upper West Side has been reveling in the company of its latest celebrities: a family of barn owls nested in a water tower atop a building near Central Park.