Neat News - Neat things do happen

A new material has been developed that is very light and resistant against moisture. As such the so-called carbon fibre reinforced polymers protected by a nano barrier are suitable for components in future space missions.

Researchers have started to understand how decision making in the brain is organized on a molecular model in experiments with mice. It is related to the striatum, the part of the brain that regulates rewards, motivation, and has other functions.

A very thin durable membrane using electrostatic attraction has been developed that can separate oil from water.

There are ways to determine via an EEG whether somebody is conscious, however, the method has exceptions and at times it is difficult to tell.

In the ancient city of Kulubá in Mexico, a 1000 year old large Mayan palace has been found.

Two-sided solar panels that can convert the light reflected from the ground as well could generate 15 to 20 percent more electricity. It is expected that by 2030 half of the solar cells will be bifacial.

The highest court in the Netherlands has decided that the Dutch government must make haste in its attempt to cut green houses gases. Emissions must be reduced by at least 25 percent by the end of 2020.

In experiments with mice, scientists have distinguished between not knowing and not remembering and found that memory recall abilities fluctuate with the time of day.

If people grow up with a dog they seem to have a smaller risk of developing schizophrenia in adulthood.

In experiments with mice scientists found in the 1990s that exercise leads to the generation of new neurons. More recent research found that the effect is bigger if the exercise takes place in a cognitively stimulating environment.

Mealworms can eat plastic, even types that are toxic, creating this way protein-rich food for animals.

A new vaccine against Zika has the potential to eliminate the disease.

In the state of New York, USA, fossilized trees have been found in a quarry that are 386 million years old. They are assumed to be from the world's oldest forest.

Ship owners representing 90 percent of the merchant fleet want to spent five billion dollars to make ships CO₂ emission free.

Scientists managed to isolate the DNA of a woman from the Stone Age, almost 6000 years old. The information may help to understand the development of humans during this time.

Using an implant in non-human primates, researchers have reconstructed how the words are processed in their brains. The understanding may in the longer run lead to implants that can give understanding of words to people with hearing loss.

From 16 December in his city of birth, Bonn, Germany, there will be celebrations of Ludwig van Beethoven's 250th birth year.

Grandmother killer whales have a big beneficial impact on the survival of their grandchildren, assumed they do not have any calves themselves to look after. They focus their efforts on the grandchildren.

In a research study it was found that it is more informative for people to say how much time it takes to walk off the calories than to write a calorie number on the label and that as a consequence such more informative labels help people to eat less.

Anastrozole, given to women with a high risk of developing breast cancer, almost halves the risk of breast cancer. In a new trial it has been found that it is effective even seven years after stopping treatment.

Greta Thunberg known for her activities against climate change, has been declared Person of the Year by Time magazine. She is with 16 years of age the youngest person ever chosen since the magazine started the tradition in 1927.

Researchers have found a way how the printing instruction of objects that are printed by a 3D printer can be stored in the printed objects themselves by using DNA techniques. This way it is possible to reprint just with the information in the object.

Scientists have identified a protein that plays an important role in the ageing of cells, that is, their loss of the ability to repair themselves.

The Seychelles have taken action to protect their fish stocks by voluntarily stop fishing for six months so that the fish stocks can replenish. Also for a debt swap they want to protect 30 percent of their national waters.

There are trials that indicate that Aducanumab may - after initially negative results - slow down Alzheimer's disease if applied in high doses. More research is needed.

A woman who had a cardiac arrest in a snowstorm in the Pyrenees was revived after 6 hours and made a near-full recovery. That she could survive this extraordinary long time span was due to the low temperatures and a special technique of reviving her.

Scientists try to gain a better understanding of how the spinal cord is wired so that a micro-implant could be used to bridge damaged parts in the next decade.

A new typhoid vaccine against typhoid fever is highly effective and can stop strains of the disease that are resistant against most antibiotics.

Eating a carb-rich breakfast and only a small dinner may in some cases replace insulin injections in dealing with diabetes.

There is support for the thesis that in the early development of life on the Earth, a predecessor of microbes still in existence in Lake Kivu in East Africa played an essential role by producing so much methane that the Earth was kept warm and the water did not freeze over.

Coral reefs are threatened by climate change. However, some corals seem to be resilient in a warmer climate, giving hope that the coral reefs can be protected.