Wednesday 8 May 2019

California to ban pesticide said to harm child development

The nation's most productive agricultural state will ban a widely used pesticide blamed for harming brain development in babies, California officials said Wednesday.

* This article was originally published here

Microsoft to turn next chapter in raising talk to conversations

On Monday at Build 2019, Microsoft's annual conference for developers, the company showed off the technology for a conversational engine, to integrate with voice assistant Cortana.

* This article was originally published here

Obesity rising faster in rural areas than cities

Obesity is increasing more rapidly in the world's rural areas than in cities, according to a new study of global trends in body-mass index (BMI).

* This article was originally published here

Study shows how big data can be used for personal health

Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine and their collaborators followed a cohort of more than 100 people over several years, tracking the biology of what makes them them. Now, after collecting extensive data on the group's genetic and molecular makeup, the researchers are piecing together a new understanding of what it means to be healthy and how deviations from an individual's norm can flag early signs of disease.

* This article was originally published here

Supply-chain hack attacks are worrying investigators

What do you know about supply-chain attacks? In January, an article in CSO said it's when a weak link in your enterprise security might lie with partners and suppliers. It's when someone infiltrates your system through an outside partner or provider with access to your systems and data.

* This article was originally published here

Analysis of historical specimens determines single origin of Australian potato pest

Potato cyst nematodes (PCN) are quarantine soilborne pests that damage potatoes around the world, stunting plants and reducing yields. PCN results in losses of 9% of total potato production in Europe and can cause total losses in other regions of the world.

* This article was originally published here

New database: Water sources in 43 states contain potentially unsafe chemical levels

More than 610 drinking water sources in 43 states contain potentially unsafe levels of chemical compounds that have been linked to birth defects, cancers, infertility and reduced immune responses in children, according to a new database compiled by the Environmental Working Group and Northeastern University.

* This article was originally published here

Cities can follow Stanford's energy makeover to cut emissions of carbon dioxide affordably, new study finds

Over the past several years, Stanford transformed its energy infrastructure by electrifying its heating system, replacing its gas-fired power plant with grid power, creating a unique system to recover heat, building massive tanks to store hot and cold water, and building a solar power plant. The Stanford Energy System Innovations project cut the campus's total greenhouse gas emissions 68 percent and is lowering the system's operating costs by $425 million over 35 years.

* This article was originally published here

Smarter training of neural networks

These days, nearly all the artificial intelligence-based products in our lives rely on "deep neural networks" that automatically learn to process labeled data.

* This article was originally published here

Identifying therapeutic targets in sepsis' cellular videogame

Sepsis is a medical condition that few patients have heard of and most doctors dread. The body's response to attack by bacteria can trigger a cascade of cellular self-destruction that inadvertently causes blood clots, multi-organ failure, and death.

* This article was originally published here

A new filter to better map the dark universe

The earliest known light in our universe, known as the cosmic microwave background, was emitted about 380,000 years after the Big Bang. The patterning of this relic light holds many important clues to the development and distribution of large-scale structures such as galaxies and galaxy clusters.

* This article was originally published here

Wireless movement-tracking system could collect health and behavioral data

We live in a world of wireless signals flowing around us and bouncing off our bodies. MIT researchers are now leveraging those signal reflections to provide scientists and caregivers with valuable insights into people's behavior and health.

* This article was originally published here

Design flaws create security vulnerabilities for 'smart home' internet-of-things devices

Researchers at North Carolina State University have identified design flaws in "smart home" Internet-of-Things (IoT) devices that allow third parties to prevent devices from sharing information. The flaws can be used to prevent security systems from signaling that there has been a break-in or uploading video of intruders.

* This article was originally published here

System grading doctors is inefficient, needs revisions

A system created to grade doctors and empower patients to make better decisions falls short of its goal of providing information useful to consumers, according to a study by University of Michigan researchers.

* This article was originally published here

Researchers propose air conditioners as climate-change remedy

Scientists have an idea that could make you feel more like a green citizen than hedonist if you buy an air conditioner for your living quarters. There is a way that could use the units to fight climate change. OK, let us review the question posed by a Fast Company: What if every air conditioner was stopping climate change as it kept you cool?"

* This article was originally published here

Researchers violate Bell's inequality with remotely connected superconducting qubits

The efficient generation of entanglement between remote quantum nodes is a crucial step in securing quantum communications. In past research, entanglement has often been achieved using a number of different probabilistic schemes.

* This article was originally published here

Study shows cell's cytoskeleton does more than hold up a cell, it transfers energy

Dysfunctions and malformations in the scaffold of a cell are thought to contribute to heart muscle weakness, neurodegenerative disease and even deafness. Now biophysics research at The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) has taken a closer look at a cell's cytoskeleton and found a new purpose: It aids in energy transfer and information processing within neurons.

* This article was originally published here