Neat News - Neat things do happen

Learning new things is a good way to keep an ageing brain fit and is more beneficial than just using existing capabilities.

Organic semiconductors with a layer of molybdenum disulfide can be used to make efficient solar panels.

Using some silica aerogel, regions of Mars could house greenhouses that mimic Earth's atmosphere. The new research suggests that this could produce local Earth like conditions.

Using carbon nanotubes scientists managed to use waste energy to produce light. The method may be used to make solar panels more efficient.

Seeing green spaces from your home reduces cravings for alcohol, cigarettes, and harmful foods.

Malnourished children improve better when they have a good composition of their gut bacteria and a diet rich in bananas, chickpeas, and peanuts can improve it.

Small measures in food production and use can lead to a significant gain in efficiency so that the land needed to produce the food can be reduced by more than 20%. The steps include reducing food waste, increasing the efficiency of the land, and tweaking diets.

While coral reefs are retreating from tropical areas, new ones are building up in subtropical areas.

For the first time, researchers succeeded in eliminating the HIV virus in living animals, namely mice. This may be a major step towards building a cure for AIDS.

Norway has a programme in which much more money is spent on the rehabilitation of prisoners than previously and has achieved that only about a quarter of the prisoners reoffend after five years compared to 60 to 70 percent before.

In a small study it has been found that the virus that causes the common cold can attack cancer cells of the bladder. A bigger study is needed.

In a new study it has been discovered that brief periods of exercise can activate a gene that enhances the brain function in mice.

After rewiring nerves in the spinal cord 12 out of 16 patients can move their arms and hands. This has a life changing impact on living independent lives.

Data are available now that show that planting the right sort of trees around the globe could capture 205 gigatons of carbon dioxide, two thirds of the carbon released since the start of the industrial revolution.

A new study has found that products made of the meat substitute quorn stimulate post-exercise muscle building better than milk products.

The Austrian parliament has outlawed the herbicide glyphosate that is suspected to be related to cancer and to cause environmental problems.

Many of us feel that vacations do us good. Now there is also scientific evidence that a vacation lowers the risk of a cardiovascular disease.