Short Takes – 7-6-23 Geeky Edition

Neutrinos offer a new view of the Milky Way. ScienceNew.org article. Pull quote: “The map includes suggestions of specific high-energy neutrino sources within the Milky Way that might be the remnants of past supernova star explosions, the cores of collapsed supergiant stars or other as-yet-unidentified objects, the team reports in the June 30 Science. But more research is needed to clearly pick those sorts of features out of the data.”

Bacteria can be engineered to fight cancer in mice. Human trials are coming. TechnologyReview.com article. Pull quote: ““We were surprised by the magnitude of the response,” says Fischbach. “It’s surprisingly potent, given how mild a treatment it is.” The treatment also worked in mice that already had tumors. The tumors appeared to shrink in animals swabbed with the engineered microbes. The team’s findings were published in the journal Science.”

How mercury emissions from industry can be greatly reduced. Newswise.com article. Pull quote: “Sulphuric acid is an important industrial chemical, but it often contains one of the world’s most toxic substances: the volatile heavy metal mercury, which can pollute both the air and water. Researchers at Chalmers University of Technology have shown that it is possible to reduce the levels of mercury in sulphuric acid by more than 90 per cent – even from low levels. The study was conducted in collaboration with the spin-off company Atium and mining and metals refining company Boliden.”

Large sub-surface granite formation signals ancient volcanic activity on Moon's dark side. ScienceDaily.com article.  Pull quote: “A team of scientists led by Matthew Siegler, an SMU research professor and research scientist with the Planetary Science Institute, has published a study in Nature that used microwave frequency data to measure heat below the surface of a suspected volcanic feature on the Moon known as Compton-Belkovich. The team used the data to determine that the heat being generated below the surface is coming from a concentration of radioactive elements that can only exist on the Moon as granite.”