Neat News - Neat things do happen

A hydrogen powered train has made its maiden journey in Warwickshire and Worcestershire, UK. It is supposed to transport passengers by the end of 2021.

Three underground water lakes have been discovered on Mars. The existence of a fourth lake has been confirmed. This is relevant for the existence of life on Mars as well as for a potential colonization.

Trees provide shade and this way protect against UV light. In a study different trees were compared and the crimson king variety of the maple tree protects best.

It has been assumed that high quality chromium steel is an invention of the 20th century. However, now a manuscript has been found that shows that already in the 10th or 11th century a chromite mineral was added for the production of high quality steel in ancient Persia.

A cocktail of antibodies from recovered Covid-19 patients is very effective to keep the virus from entering cells. The different antibodies supplement each other in the task.

The slight breeze that you produce when you walk can be harvested using the Bernoulli effect by a new tiny device that then powers some LED lights. In the long run the approach could be used to power a mobile phone, for instance.

Within 15 years California, the fifth largest economy, wants to phase out selling petrol-powered cars as a milestone to becoming completely carbon neutral.

In 1952 Alan Turing wrote a paper to explain pattern formation as those of sand ripples in dunes. Now empirical work on Australian fairy circles showed that these follow the same principles.

China has announced that it sets the new target to become carbon neutral by 2060. This is an important step since China is the biggest CO₂ emitter and energy financier.

Older people are today physically and cognitively fitter than 30 years ago, a study in Finland found comparing muscle strength, walking speed, reaction speed, verbal fluency, reasoning and working memory of people between 75 and 80 now and 30 years ago.

A ten minute massage or to a lesser degree ten minutes of rest help the body to deal with stress. All participants in a study felt less stressed and more relaxed after such ten minutes.

In a study it has been found that people who decide to become more empathetic, typically also become more liberal in their view how other people should be treated and take others' perspective.

Dogs can be put on a trail by letting them pick up a scent. Similarly, honeybees can be scent trained by providing them with corresponding food. This way they can be made to focus pollination efforts on sunflowers, for instance.

Some four billion years ago, the first organic molecules were formed on Earth. They led to the origin of life. Now a previously unknown mechanism has been found that puts gases together in fluids so that they have little chance of escaping and hence a good chance of reacting.

Wearable biosensors are used in different forms to monitor the health of people, for instance, when they are exercising. One drawback is that they typically hinder sweat evaporation making them uncomfortable and leading to problems in the signal transmission. Now a silicone based material has been made that overcomes these problems.

In Berlin, Germany, currently the festival of lights takes place with light projections to famous landmarks and buildings. The festival is devoted to solidarity in times of the Covid-19 pandemic.

A molecule has been detected in the clouds of Venus, phosphine, that on Earth is either produced artificially or by microbes. This is an indication that similar microbes may be on Venus as well.

Archaeologists have found that ancient ceramic cooking pots -- if not glazed -- have absorbed parts of the meals prepared in them. Using modern analytic methods it is possible to determine what people ate thousands of years ago.

In the inner ear there are tiny hairs that play an important role in our hearing. Now the role of a protein in regrowing these hairs is better understood. This insight may help in finding a way to reverse hearing loss in some cases.

People who worry too much lose control and may be trapped in anxiety or depression. By activities it is possible to overcome this, for instance, by listening to music, reading, taking a shower, dancing, exercising, meeting a friend, watching a movie, or meditating.

The African tree of life (baobab tree) provides food and other raw materials. It can live for more than 1000 years. Now it has been determined that it has 168 chromosomes. The new knowledge will be used to improve its cultivation.

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common type of primary liver cancer in adults and difficult to treat, which is typically done by starving the cancer cells by blocking their blood supply. Up to now this was done in an unspecific way. Now a new method, involving droplets that evaporate in an ultrasound controlled way in the cancerous cells has been developed. The new method is very effective in combination with traditional chemotherapy.

A new study found that catching a common cold may have a positive effect on combating the flu. The virus causing the cold activates the immune system which then is in a better position to combat a potential flu infection.

In a study it has been found that playfulness can be trained by simple exercises and then lead to more fulfilled lives.

In a clinical study a device has been successfully tested that can be implanted. It monitors and regulates the blood sugar level of children from the age of six with type 1 diabetes.

Many hand-held devices such as video game consoles contain a battery, which needs to be changed. Now in a proof of principle a basic device has been developed that needs no battery and is fully powered by the sun and the gamer's button pressing. Hence changing the battery is obsolete.

In order to split water into oxygen and hydrogen used in renewable energy often a so-called mixed nickel iron hydroxide catalyst is used to minimize the energy needed. This catalyst, however, has a limited lifespan. With a new technique the lifespan can be significantly extended, making the approach more viable.

Hydrogen technology is a possible alternative to electric cars. However, currently the fuel cell is very expensive since it makes use of the expensive metal platinum. With a new design, the amount of platinum needed could be reduced from currently 30 to 50 grams per car to just 5 grams. More tests are needed.

In a new study it has been found that the venom from honeybees, called melittin, can destroy aggressive breast cancer cells in a lab setting. More work is needed to see whether this insight can result in a therapy.

Recent research has found a reason why breast milk is so important for the immune system of infants. Certain proteins, the so-called alarmins, in breast milk protect the babies from dangerous intestinal colonization disorders.