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Trump Administration Rules Make Research Slower, Costlier and Harder to Share

sb admin — Thu, 23 Jul 2026 15:31:31 +0000

Trump Administration Rules Make Research Slower, Costlier and Harder to Share

Most Americans don’t read the rules that govern the federal grants funding science. Those rules, called the Uniform Guidance, shape how cancer research is funded, graduate students are trained, clinical trials are sustained, universities stock their labs and discoveries from those labs move into broader society.

When the Trump administration announced on May 29, 2026, its intentions to revise these rules, many researchers were alarmed.

The Office of Management and Budget – the White House agency tasked with implementing the president’s policies across the executive branch – proposed requiring political appointees to review grant decisions for whether research projects advance the president’s policy priorities. These political officials would also have greater authority to override the decisions of the research agencies managing the grants.

Political appointees may soon oversee scientific research in America. Maria Korneeva/Moment via Getty Images via The Conversation

The proposal was open for public comment until July 13, 2026, and received nearly 500,000 comments. Scientists have warned that these changes could allow political considerations to displace objective assessments, undermining merit-based federal research funding.

The OMB said these changes are intended to improve transparency and oversight of federal funds. However, scientists worry that several of these revisions could make research less predictable, harder to share and more expensive to do.

Beyond concerns about political influence over funding decisions, there are also more practical issues: What happens when the federal grant system becomes less stable for the people involved in the work of research?

Deprioritizing scientific merit

The first issue is peer review. Federal science agencies already use peer-review systems to assess which research projects will receive federal funding.

These systems generally involve scientists and other specialists with expertise relevant to the proposed work. Grant proposals typically undergo several rounds of review, one involving external experts and one involving agency officials. I am a scientist who has served for many years on federal grant review panels, including within the National Institutes of Health.

Reviewers like me assess the scientific merit of a research proposal through several factors. These include the rigor and feasibility of the work – that is, whether the study design can appropriately answer the research question. We consider whether the investigators have the expertise and institutional support to conduct the work. We also assess the overall impact of the project, examining whether the research could meaningfully advance the field and benefit science and society.

The Trump administration seeks to overhaul science in the United States.

Peer review is designed to test whether a proposal is scientifically strong enough to merit public investment. This process is not perfect, but it is central to the credibility of federal research funding. By having a panel of experts identify conflicts of interest and methodological weaknesses, and by comparing competing proposals, peer review helps reduce the likelihood that a consequential funding decision rests on one person’s preferences or an applicant’s prestige.

If the scientific merit of a project becomes less important, as it would under the Office of Management and Budget’s proposal, researchers, institutions and the general public will have less confidence that the strongest science is being funded and producing reliable evidence rather than preferred political outcomes. Over time, that loss of confidence could discourage investment in ambitious proposals that advance science.

Research needs stability to thrive

The second issue is stability. Federal grants are often multiyear commitments. Many individual grants are structured for approximately three to five years, while complex clinical trials and research infrastructure projects may take longer with renewals, follow-on phases or related grants. A project may require years of work before meaningful results emerge.

The Trump administration’s proposed revisions to funding rules would expand the circumstances under which agencies could suspend or terminate awarded grants at will, even for research projects that are being conducted under their approved scope. The proposed grounds for termination include no longer advancing current agency priorities or public interest.

A grant supports the staff, supplies, data systems and compliance programs essential to a research project. If an ongoing award can be terminated because of a shift in political priorities, students may lose support, clinical trials may be disrupted, and lab facilities may be unable to maintain fragile equipment.

Science also depends on long-term planning. A laboratory cannot easily recruit and hire staff, order custom materials or launch a study if funding decisions become unpredictable. Research institutions make many of these commitments months or years in advance. Specialized employees cannot always be reassigned immediately, and studies involving patients or animals carry ethical and regulatory responsibilities that continue even when funding is interrupted.

Cutting short an ongoing project that has been receiving federal grants is also a waste of taxpayer dollars.

Sharing is critical to science

The third issue is dissemination. The Trump administration’s proposal would not allow grants to cover many publication costs, including article processing charges and open-access fees. More precisely, the proposed changes would require the federal agency overseeing the grant to approve publications in advance.

Researchers would be forbidden from using grants to cover subscriptions to professional, academic and technical journals. They would also be restricted from using grants to pay for conferences and professional memberships unless expressly approved by the federal agency.

The proposal states that these expenses aren’t necessary to carry out the objectives of a grant. But sharing findings is critical to research.

Sharing and discussing findings with other researchers is critical to science. Kevin Sullivan/Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty Images via The Conversation

Publication is how federally funded research becomes part of the scientific record. Open-access publishing helps physicians, patients, policymakers, companies, teachers and researchers read study findings without a paywall. These goals are consistent with federal policies emphasizing public access to taxpayer-funded research.

Conferences are also part of research. They are where scientists scrutinize data, train young researchers and learn new methods. My own career has been shaped by this ecosystem. Conferences have allowed me to present my findings, receive critical feedback and meet new collaborators across disciplines. Many research partnerships begin with a question during a poster session or after a talk. A conversation can lead to researchers combining their expertise to solve a problem they couldn’t address alone.

Restricting the ability of grants to cover these essential parts of research shifts the cost elsewhere, often to universities, departments, investigators or trainees. Researchers who lack federal or institutional support, especially trainees and early career scientists, are often unable to share their work and access professional development opportunities.

If access to scientific exchange depends more heavily on an individual’s or an institution’s financial resources, the result will likely be restrictions on who gets to participate in science.

Protecting research without isolating researchers

The fourth issue is collaboration. The Trump administration’s proposal would establish a governmentwide prohibition on using federal funds to support research and related activities involving specific foreign countries or entities, particularly China. Exceptions may be possible with the approval of an agency head, though all research with international components would be required to prioritize domestic interests first.

Addressing foreign influence and protecting intellectual property is important to maintaining national security. But many scientific problems are inherently international: Infectious diseases, cancer, climate, food security, space science and rare diseases do not stop at national borders.

Broad restrictions may discourage valuable collaborations even when the risks can be managed. International partnerships can provide access to unique patient populations, scientific expertise and data, facilities and environmental conditions that are not available in the United States.

Science is a collaborative enterprise. Thomas Barwick/DigitalVision via Getty Images via The Conversation

Heightened risk-based oversight is appropriate in certain cases, such as when research projects involve particularly sensitive information or technology, or when an international partner has a record of noncompliance. But the administration’s proposal does not distinguish between identifiable security risks and transparent scientific relationships that strengthen American research.

Effective oversight is calibrated to the nature, scale and demonstrated risk of each collaboration. Applied too broadly, safeguards against abuse can increase administrative burden without improving scientific accountability.

Accountability without impeding research

The rules governing federal grants may seem technical. But these guidelines determine whether scientific discoveries are funded, completed, shared and translated into benefits for society.

Federal oversight that is transparent, predictable and proportionate to identifiable risks can help keep scientific merit and productive use of public funds at the center of grant decisions. Accountability works best when it helps researchers deliver reliable results, not when it disrupts sound work because of changing political preferences or blanket restrictions.

If the goal is better stewardship of taxpayer dollars, then clear, risk-based safeguards can help address misconduct, waste and genuine security threats without weakening the conditions that allow research to succeed.

Accountability can be strengthened without undermining the stability and collaboration that makes federally funded research successful.

By Aliasger K. Salem, Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Iowa. Professor Salem receives funding from NIH, NSF and DOW. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

sb admin Thu, 07/23/2026 - 11:31

Categories

Policy

Framing The Trojan War As A Trade War Over A Shipping Route

sb admin — Thu, 16 Jul 2026 23:13:42 +0000

Framing The Trojan War As A Trade War Over A Shipping Route

Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated adaptation of The Odyssey officially opened in theatres this week. It retells Homer’s ancient epic of Odysseus’ journey home from the Trojan war.

The Trojan war of Homer’s epics is heavily mythologized. But it is set in a world of seafaring and sea passages that the ancient Greeks knew intimately well.

Interestingly, Nolan’s film has reframed the Trojan war as a trade war over a shipping route. This economic motive is absent from Homer’s original.

Pierre Belon, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

But it would have been a highly relevant theme for the Athenians listening to the Homeric epics hundreds of years later, when actual wars hinged on control of a vital shipping route to the Black Sea, passing right by where Odysseus began his mythological journey home: the Dardanelles.

Controlling this waterway – including tolling the ships that traversed it – was crucial to the rise of the Athenian Empire. That has parallels with – and lessons for – today, when placing tolls on crucial shipping routes is again being debated.

A gateway to the Black Sea

The Dardanelles (which the ancient Greeks called Hellespont) is a narrow natural strait situated in modern-day Turkey.

Along with the Sea of Marmara and another strait to the north-east called the Bosphorus, it connects the Aegean Sea (and therefore the Mediterranean Sea) to the Black Sea.

From about 500 BC, the Greek city-states, but especially democratic Athens, began to realize that control of this waterway was crucial to their survival and success.

A couple of decades later, the Persian wars had only reinforced this realisation because Xerxes, the great king of the Persian Empire, had built a pontoon bridge across the Dardanelles to get his invading army into Greece.

An old engraved illustration of crossing the Hellespont by Xerxes with his huge army. mikroman6/Getty

After the Greeks defeated Xerxes in the Balkans in 480 and 479 BC, one of the first things they did was to secure the Dardanelles and capture other cities to its north in what is now Turkey, especially Byzantium (Istanbul today) and Chalcedon (now Kadıköy).

At the same time, the Athenians, who were now leading the Greek coalition against Persia, also captured three big islands on the approach to the strait: Imbros, Lemnos and Skyros.

This made it safer for their warships and grain ships to traverse the shipping route from Athens to the Dardanelles.

Feeding an empire

Securing this shipping route was soon about more than just warfare. It also allowed the Athenians fully to exploit the trade coming from the Bosporan kingdom, which covered roughly modern-day Crimea and parts of southern Ukraine.

Greece’s climate and terrain were well suited to some crops, and Athens was completely self-sufficient in olive oil. But very dry Attica especially was poorly suited to others – notably grain – so trade with the north was vital to fuelling its rise.

Controlling the Dardanelles and hence the shipping line to the Black Sea allowed the Athenians to secure enormous amounts of cheap food, leading to a huge population boom.

By 431 BC, the Peloponnesian War broke out between Athens and Sparta.

At this point, we know Athens was importing two thirds of its food from overseas, and the bulk of it through the Dardanelles.

Sparta and its allies invaded the territory of Athens repeatedly during the first ten years of this storied 30-year war. In response, the Athenians simply withdrew their population behind their fortifications and relied on the grain coming through the Dardanelles to keep them alive.

A 19th-century engraving depicting the ancient city of Athens at its peak. Wikimedia

Tolls on shipping

In the last ten years of the Peloponnesian War, when Athens started to run out of money, it actually became more heavy-handed in its control of this vital narrow waterway.

Athenian democracy had long had garrisons on either side of the Bosphorus to police what the other Greek city-states were importing through this shipping route.

But, in 413 BC, it introduced a 10% toll on the value of all cargo passing through this strait. The enormous amount of money this toll raised helped Athens hold out against Sparta for another seven years.

How losing control crushed Athens

However, the Spartans ultimately won the Peloponnesian War. In its final decade, they struck a deal with the Persian Empire to build a fleet to challenge Athens at sea.

In 405 BC, very close to modern-day Gallipoli, the Spartan fleet captured almost the entire last fleet of Athens without a battle – close to 200 ships – and executed the captured Athenian sailors.

Without any fleet, Athens lost control of the shipping line and the Spartans stopped the grain ships sailing to Athens from the north.

Athens was quickly starved into submission through a land and sea blockade, and ultimately lost the Peloponnesian War. Losing control of that vital narrow waterway near ancient Troy had thus resulted in the fall of the Athenian Empire.

The pattern repeats

Christopher Nolan’s film is poignant and timeless lesson about the human costs of war and how waging it should be an absolute last resort.

But the ancient history of the narrow waterway on which Troy was situated also holds lessons for understanding the current war between the United States and Iran.

The history of the Dardanelles warns us that states and empires can rise and fall over who controls such a waterway. Prudent states – such as democratic Athens – secure such straits over generations, using all the tools in their diplomatic and military tool kits to do so. To imperil free trade through such waterways or to act recklessly in relation to them can come at a terrible cost.

By David M. Pritchard, Associate Professor of Greek History, The University of Queensland. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

sb admin Thu, 07/16/2026 - 19:13

Categories

Social Sciences

South Africa’s Food System Is Failing Children

sb admin — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:30:22 +0000

South Africa’s Food System Is Failing Children

Child malnutrition in South Africa casts a long shadow across the life course. For example, stunting or being short for their age compromises children’s physical growth and their brain development in ways that limit their education and employment prospects.

Stunted and overweight children are both at greater risk of developing noncommunicable diseases such as obesity, diabetes and hypertension. These conditions are placing a huge – and growing – burden on South Africa’s healthcare system.

In this way, child malnutrition helps to drive an intergenerational cycle of poverty and ill health that comes at great cost to individual children, their families and South African society.

South Africa produces a surplus of food, yet children are dying of hunger. But the deaths from severe acute malnutrition are just the tip of the iceberg.

Many children live in areas where access to nutritious food is limited. Scrolla

At the Children’s Institute, at the University of Cape Town, we have spent over two decades researching the state of South Africa’s children, including child health, nutrition education and nutrition status. We advocate for law reforms to ensure their rights are protected. And we teach child rights courses we’ve designed for health and allied professionals.

Over the years, our research has highlighted the slow violence of malnutrition experienced by this vulnerable population. Our Children Count website, an ongoing data project that analyses key indicators affecting South Africa’s children, shows that the situation is deteriorating.

A growing burden

More than one in four of South Africa’s young children are stunted and stunting rates have remained stubbornly high for decades. Of equal concern is the rapid increase in childhood overweight and obesity – also affecting one in four young children. These rates have nearly doubled since 2016 from 13% to 22.3%.

But the problem is not insurmountable. Early intervention is vital.

Research shows that exposure to malnutrition in the first 1,000 days of life (from conception to a child’s second birthday) can have an irreversible effect on long-term health and development. Acting early to support optimal nutrition can reduce the burden of noncommunicable diseases, build human capital and drive economic development.

The root causes

To design effective solutions, we need to look beyond individual behaviour to address the root causes. Many children live in severely food insecure households where caregivers skip meals to shield their children from hunger.

Nearly 40% of children live below the food poverty line – in households with a per capita income of less than R855 (US$52) per month, or R29 (US$1.77) a day. This is not enough to meet children’s basic nutritional needs, let alone provide a balanced, nutrient rich diet.

At the same time global food corporations have flooded South African markets with cheap, ultra-processed foods, high in sugar, salt and saturated fats, and low in nutrients. These are helping to fuel the rapid rise in obesity. Many children live in “food deserts” where healthy foods are unaffordable or unavailable.

These violations of children’s right to basic nutrition have been the subject of an inquiry by the South African Human Rights Commission. When the first round of public hearings was held in March 2026, my colleagues and I called on the commission to put children at the centre of its public inquiry into the food system. The second round of hearings (6-10 July 2026) put the spotlight on the roles and responsibilities of major retailers.

What needs to be done?

Child malnutrition is a complex problem. The whole of society needs to work to ensure that healthy food is both available and affordable. Based on our research we have made five policy suggestions.

South Africa needs to start by investing in maternal health and nutrition. Pregnancy is a time of heightened nutritional need, when food insecurity poses a risk to both the mother and her unborn child. This is why civil society is calling for the introduction a maternal support grant, starting in the second trimester of pregnancy. It should then convert automatically to the child support grant after birth, in order to prevent complications and low birth weight, support healthy growth and development, and provide income support when it’s needed most.
Next, the country needs to improve infant and young children feeding. Breastfeeding is one of the most powerful interventions to prevent both under- and over-nutrition, yet only one in five infants (0-6 months) in South Africa are exclusively breastfed. In addition, only one in four young children (6-12 months) have a minimum acceptable diet. So the health system has a critical role to play in better supporting breastfeeding women and the transition to complementary foods. It also needs to respond proactively to the very first signs of growth faltering and ensure that children at risk of malnutrition can access support through the Nutrition Therapeutic Programme or child support grant.
Nutrition support then needs to continue across the life course. Schools and early childhood development programmes are important channels for providing children with a daily meal to alleviate hunger and provide them with energy to play and learn. The National School Nutrition Programme reaches in excess of 9 million learners. And the early childhood development subsidy supports a much smaller proportion of younger children. But neither of these programmes provide support when it’s needed most: in the first two years of life when children are most vulnerable to stunting and severe acute malnutrition.
The child support grant is the only programme providing younger children with nutrition at scale, yet its value (R580 a month (US$35) or R20 a day) is being eroded by food price inflation. Advocates are calling on the government to increase the grant to at least the food poverty line, starting with the under-twos.
These investments in government services are only part of the solution. It is also essential to regulate the food industry by: increasing taxes to reduce consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages; clearly labelling foods that are high in salt, sugar and fat; and ensuring that these are not marketed to children.

In this way, South Africa can begin to create healthier food environments and make it easier for both children and their families to make healthy food choices. We therefore hope that the commission will put clear recommendations in place to prevent the food industry from profiting at the expense of the health and nutrition of our youngest and most vulnerable children.

By Lori Lake, Communication and Education Specialist at the Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

sb admin Wed, 07/15/2026 - 12:30

Categories

Policy

Spend More Time With Your Dog This Christmas

sb admin — Fri, 19 Dec 2025 18:10:53 +0000

Spend More Time With Your Dog This Christmas

As daylight shortens and routines slow down, many people experience a dip in mood and motivation. The run-up to Christmas is marketed as joyful, but for a large number of households it brings family strain and a surprising amount of loneliness. Against this backdrop, it’s no wonder the idea of welcoming a dog into the home feels appealing.

One of the most consistent findings in human–animal studies is that dogs often act as emotional stabilisers. In my 2025 study, pet owners described a sense of companionship that feels different from human relationships. They talked about dogs as warm presences that offer routine, purpose and a steady emotional tone at home.

Many participants said that when a dog is present, expressing emotions becomes easier – whether that is joy, frustration or sadness. Simply having another living being nearby, responding without judgment, can make difficult moments feel more manageable.

These needs often intensify during winter. For many people, this period makes them think about who isn’t present as much as who is. Although a dog cannot replace human relationships, a companion animal can make emotional fluctuations less dramatic. For someone dealing with a difficult December, a dog can provide steadiness during what can otherwise be an emotionally uneven month.

This helps explain the growing popularity of initiatives such as animal-assisted therapy programmes and puppy yoga sessions, where participants interact with dogs that are not their own. Research suggests that even brief contact with unfamiliar or therapy dogs can reduce stress and improve mood, indicating that the psychological benefits of canine interaction do not depend on ownership.

Some studies also suggest that dogs may be particularly effective in buffering stress compared with other companion animals, possibly because of their responsiveness to human social cues. Although these experiences are not a substitute for long-term companionship, they may offer moments of calm, connection and routine.

For people unable or unwilling to commit to dog ownership, lighter forms of contact, such as fostering for a local shelter, walking a friend’s dog or volunteering with rescue organisations, may still provide psychological benefits.

Dogs and social support

During the COVID lockdowns, people who felt strongly bonded to their dogs often reported higher levels of perceived social support. While the dog wasn’t solving practical problems, this relationship appeared to soften feelings of isolation at a time when normal social life was disrupted.

Although the circumstances were very specific, this finding has wider relevance. Many people spend long stretches at home over the Christmas period, sometimes largely alone or without regular social contact. In such situations, having a dog nearby can offer a sense of companionship during what might otherwise be extended periods indoors.

Research shows that dog owners often experience short social encounters while out walking: brief greetings from neighbours, light conversation with other dog owners, or acknowledgement from passersby. These interactions are usually quick, but they can help maintain a sense of belonging during winter, when daylight is short and social activity naturally slows.

Not every owner will have the same experience, and caring for a dog requires time, energy and resources. Even so, for some households, the presence of a dog can make the winter months feel less isolating than they might otherwise be.

Better company than bickering relatives? Eva Blanco/Shutterstock

Everyday connection

The emotional benefits of companion animals may be particularly relevant for older adults, many of whom live alone. Loneliness in later life is associated with higher risks of depression, cognitive decline and cardiovascular disease. Here, companion animals can play a modest but important role. Everyday routines such as feeding, grooming and going outdoors with a dog provide structure to the day and encourage gentle physical activity.

Even short outings can increase light exposure and offer low-pressure opportunities for social contact – two elements known to support wellbeing in later life. Exposure to natural daylight plays a key role in regulating circadian rhythms, which influence sleep, mood and energy levels.

Outdoor light is more intense than typical indoor lighting, even on overcast days, and is more effective at signalling to the brain when to be alert and when to rest. In adults, reduced daylight exposure is associated with sleep disruption and lower mood, particularly during winter months when days are shorter.

Being greeted at the door or having a dog settle beside the armchair does not replace human company, but it can provide a daily sense of being noticed and needed. Some studies suggest that interacting with a familiar dog can help regulate stress and promote feelings of calm. While these effects should not be overstated, they help explain why many older adults describe their animals as central to their emotional wellbeing.

But research also indicates there is an important caveat: emotional benefits are most likely to grow out of stable, long-term relationships. When dogs are adopted impulsively, that foundation may never develop.

Puppies require training, patience – and early-morning wake-ups. Adult dogs may come with behavioural histories that take time to understand. And all dogs bring financial responsibilities, from vet bills to insurance and food, that continue long after decorations are packed away. These realities are often overlooked in the excitement of December.

But for those prepared to take on the responsibility, a dog can offer far more than a fleeting festive moment. It can provide years of connection and companionship long after the Christmas lights fade.

Panagiota Tragantzopoulou, Visiting Lecturer, University of Westminster. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

sb admin Fri, 12/19/2025 - 13:10

Categories

Brain and Behavior

Can scientists detect life without knowing what it looks like?

sb admin — Fri, 12 Dec 2025 20:42:39 +0000

Can scientists detect life without knowing what it looks like?

When NASA scientists opened the sample return canister from the OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample mission in late 2023, they found something astonishing.

Dust and rock collected from the asteroid Bennu contained many of life’s building blocks, including all five nucleobases used in DNA and RNA, 14 of the 20 amino acids found in proteins, and a rich collection of other organic molecules. These are built primarily from carbon and hydrogen, and they often form the backbone of life’s chemistry.

For decades, scientists have predicted that early asteroids may have delivered the ingredients of life to Earth, and these findings seemed like promising evidence.

Even more surprising, these amino acids from Bennu were split almost evenly between “left-handed” and “right-handed” forms. Amino acids come in two mirror-image configurations, just like our left and right hands, called chiral forms.

On Earth, almost all biology requires the left-handed versions. If scientists had found a strong left-handed excess in Bennu, it would have suggested that life’s molecular asymmetry might have been inherited directly from space. Instead, the near-equal mixture points to a different story: Life’s left-handed preference likely emerged later, through processes on Earth, rather than being pre-imprinted in the material delivered by asteroids.

A ‘chiral’ molecule is one that is not superposable with another that is its mirror image, even if you rotate it. NASA

If space rocks can carry familiar ingredients but not the chemical “signature” that life leaves behind, then identifying the true signs of biology becomes extremely complicated.

These discoveries raise a deeper question – one that becomes more urgent as new missions target Mars, the Martian moons and the ocean worlds of our solar system: How do researchers detect life when the chemistry alone begins to look “lifelike”? If nonliving materials can produce rich, organized mixtures of organic molecules, then the traditional signs we use to recognize biology may no longer be enough.

As a computational scientist studying biological signatures, I face this challenge directly. In my astrobiology work, I ask how to determine whether a collection of molecules was formed by complex geochemistry or by extraterrestrial biology, when exploring other planets.

In a new study in the journal PNAS Nexus, my colleagues and I developed a framework called LifeTracer to help answer this question. Instead of searching for a single molecule or structure that proves the presence of biology, we attempted to classify how likely mixtures of compounds preserved in rocks and meteorites were to contain traces of life by examining the full chemical patterns they contain.

Identifying potential biosignatures

The key idea behind our framework is that life produces molecules with purpose, while nonliving chemistry does not. Cells must store energy, build membranes and transmit information. Abiotic chemistry produced by nonliving chemical processes, even when abundant, follows different rules because it is not shaped by metabolism or evolution.

Traditional biosignature approaches focus on searching for specific compounds, such as certain amino acids or lipid structures, or for chiral preferences, like left-handedness.

These signals can be powerful, but they are based entirely on the molecular patterns used by life on Earth. If we assume that alien life uses the same chemistry, we risk missing biology that is similar – but not identical – to our own, or misidentifying nonliving chemistry as a sign of life.

The Bennu results highlight this problem. The asteroid sample contained molecules familiar to life, yet nothing within it appears to have been alive.

To reduce the risk of assuming these molecules indicate life, we assembled a unique dataset of organic materials right at the dividing line between life and nonlife. We used samples from eight carbon-rich meteorites that preserve abiotic chemistry from the early solar system, as well as 10 samples of soils and sedimentary materials from Earth, containing the degraded remnants of biological molecules from past or present life. Each sample contained tens of thousands of organic molecules, many present in low abundance and many whose structures could not be fully identified.

At NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, our team of scientists crushed each sample, added solvent and heated it to extract the organics — this process is like brewing tea. Then, we took the “tea” containing the extracted organics and passed it through two filtering columns that separated the complex mixture of organic molecules. Then, the organics were pushed into a chamber where we bombarded them with electrons until they broke into smaller fragments.

Traditionally, chemists use these mass fragments as puzzle pieces to reconstruct each molecular structure, but having tens of thousands of compounds in each sample presented a challenge.

LifeTracer

LifeTracer is a unique approach for data analysis: It works by taking in the fragmented puzzle pieces and analyzing them to find specific patterns, rather than reconstructing each structure.

It characterizes those puzzle pieces by their mass and two other chemical properties and then organizes them into a large matrix describing the set of molecules present in each sample. It then trains a machine learning model to distinguish between the meteorites and the terrestrial materials from Earth’s surface, based on the type of molecules present in each.

One of the most common forms of machine learning is called supervised learning. It works by taking many input and output pairs as examples and learns a rule to go from input to output. Even with only 18 samples as those examples, LifeTracer performed remarkably well. It consistently separated abiotic from biotic origins.

What mattered most to LifeTracer was not the presence of a specific molecule but the overall distribution of chemical fingerprints found in each sample. Meteorite samples tended to contain more volatile compounds – they evaporate or break apart more easily – which reflected the type of chemistry most common in the cold environment of space.

This figure shows compounds identified by LifeTracer, highlighting the most predictive molecular fragments that distinguish abiotic from biotic samples. The compounds in red are linked to abiotic chemistry, while the blue compounds are linked to biotic chemistry. Saeedi et al., 2025, CC BY-NC-ND

Some types of molecules, called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, were present in both groups, but they had distinctive structural differences that the model could parse. A sulfur-containing compound, 1,2,4-trithiolane, emerged as a strong marker for abiotic samples, while terrestrial materials contained products formed through biological process.

These discoveries suggest that the contrast between life and nonlife is not defined by a single chemical clue but by how an entire suite of organic molecules is organized. By focusing on patterns rather than assumptions about which molecules life “should” use, approaches like LifeTracer open up new possibilities for evaluating samples returned from missions to Mars, its moons Phobos and Deimos, Jupiter’s moon Europa and Saturn’s moon Enceladus.

The Bennu asteroid sample return capsule used in the OSIRIS-REx mission. Keegan Barber/NASA via AP

Future samples will likely contain mixtures of organics from multiple sources, some biological and some not. Instead of relying only on a few familiar molecules, we can now assess whether the whole chemical landscape looks more like biology or random geochemistry.

LifeTracer is not a universal life detector. Rather, it provides a foundation for interpreting complex organic mixtures. The Bennu findings remind us that life-friendly chemistry may be widespread across the solar system, but that chemistry alone does not equal biology.

To tell the difference, scientists will need all the tools we can build — not only better spacecraft and instruments, but also smarter ways to read the stories written in the molecules they bring home.

By Amirali Aghazadeh, Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

sb admin Fri, 12/12/2025 - 15:42

Categories

Life Sciences

TWA 7 b: James Webb Space Telescope Finds Its First New Exoplanet

sb admin — Wed, 25 Jun 2025 14:36:49 +0000

TWA 7 b: James Webb Space Telescope Finds Its First New Exoplanet

The James Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021 and on active duty since 2022, has gotten its legs viewing already known exoplanets but can now take credit for its first direct image of a previously unknown one.

Exoplanets have been detected since 1992 when two, named named Poltergeist and Phobetor, were found orbiting the pulsar PSR B1257+12.

Since then they have become key targets in astronomy, in hopes that capturing snapshots in time can help us understand how planetary systems form. Thousands have been detected indirectly but because they are less bright due to being 'drowned out' by light from their star, direct observation is a challenge. So the two most common methods of detection look for its effect rather than direct viewing. Transit photometry uses a small drop of luminosity from the star when its planet, as seen from here, is in front of it, while radial velocity detects a star’s speed variations caused by the planet’s gravitational influence.

To help, Centre national de la recherche scientifique in France developed a coronagraph attachment for the JWST’s MIRI instrument which can reproduce the effect observed during an eclipse. Such masking makes objects around a star easier to observe.

TWA 7 from the Very Large Telescope’s SPHERE instrument with an image from JWST’s MIRI overlayed reveals the empty area around TWA 7 B in the R2 ring (CC #1). ©A.-M. Lagrange et al. / ESO / JWST

With infinite stars it's necessary to find targets of opportunity so astronomers focus on younger stars where the planets are still hot and the system discs can be viewed by us 'from above' - pole on.

TWA 7 has three distinct rings, one very narrow and surrounded by two empty areas with almost no matter. JWST was able to find a source within the heart of this narrow ring - an exoplanet.

The new planet is comparable in size to Saturn, but that is 10 times lighter than those captured in previous images, and has been named TWA 7 b.

sb admin Wed, 06/25/2025 - 10:36

Categories

Physical Sciences

No Secretary Kennedy, The MMR Vaccine Does Not Contain 'Aborted Fetus Debris'

sb admin — Fri, 02 May 2025 19:56:43 +0000

No Secretary Kennedy, The MMR Vaccine Does Not Contain 'Aborted Fetus Debris'

Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the United States’ top public health official, recently claimed some religious groups avoid the measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine because it contains “aborted fetus debris” and “DNA particles”.

The US is facing its worst measles outbreaks in years with nearly 900 cases across the country and active outbreaks in several states.

At the same time, Kennedy, secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, continues to erode trust in vaccines.

So what can we make of his latest claims?

Credit: Annie Rice/AP, provided by The Conversation

There’s no fetal debris in the MMR vaccine

Kennedy said “aborted fetus debris” in MMR vaccines is the reason many religious people refuse vaccination. He referred specifically to the Mennonites in Texas, a deeply religious community, who have been among the hardest hit by the current measles outbreaks.

Many vaccines work by using a small amount of an attenuated (weakened) form of a virus, or in the case of the MMR vaccine, attenuated forms of the viruses that cause measles, mumps and rubella. This gives the immune system a safe opportunity to learn how to recognise and respond to these viruses.

As a result, if a person is later exposed to the actual infection, their immune system can react swiftly and effectively, preventing serious illness.

Kennedy’s claim about fetal debris specifically refers to the rubella component of the MMR vaccine. The rubella virus is generally grown in a human cell line known as WI-38, which was originally derived from lung tissue of a single elective abortion in the 1960s. This cell line has been used for decades, and no new fetal tissue has been used since.

Certain vaccines for other diseases, such as chickenpox, hepatitis A and rabies, have also been made by growing the viruses in fetal cells.

These cells are used not because of their origin, but because they provide a stable, safe and reliable environment for growing the attenuated virus. They serve only as a growth medium for the virus and they are not part of the final product.

You might think of the cells as virus-producing factories. Once the virus is grown, it’s extracted and purified as part of a rigorous process to meet strict safety and quality standards. What remains in the final vaccine is the virus itself and stabilising agents, but not human cells, nor fetal tissue.

So claims about “fetal debris” in the vaccine are false.

It’s also worth noting the world’s major religions permit the use of vaccines developed from cells originally derived from fetal tissue when there are no alternative products available.

Are there fragments of DNA in the MMR vaccine?

Kennedy claimed the Mennonites’ reluctance to vaccinate stems from “religious objections” to what he described as “a lot of aborted fetus debris and DNA particles” in the MMR vaccine.

The latter claim, about the vaccine containing DNA particles, is technically true. Trace amounts of DNA fragments from the human cell lines used to produce the rubella component of the MMR vaccine may remain even after purification.

However, with this claim, there’s an implication these fragments pose a health risk. This is false.

Any DNA that may be present in this vaccine exists in extremely small amounts, is highly fragmented and degraded, and is biologically inert – that is, it cannot cause harm.

Even if, hypothetically, intact DNA were present in the vaccine (which it’s not), it would not have the capacity to cause harm. One common (but unfounded) concern is that foreign DNA could integrate with a person’s own DNA, and alter their genome.

Introducing DNA into human cells in a way that leads to integration is very difficult. Even when scientists are deliberately trying to do this, for example, in gene therapy, it requires precise tools, special viral delivery systems and controlled conditions.

It’s also important to remember our bodies are exposed to foreign DNA constantly, through food, bacteria and even our own microbiome. Our immune system routinely digests and disposes of this material without incorporating it into our genome.

This question has been extensively studied over decades. Multiple health authorities, including Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration, have addressed the misinformation regarding perceived harm from residual DNA in vaccines.

Ultimately, the idea that fragmented DNA in a vaccine could cause genetic harm is false.

The bottom line

Despite what Kennedy would have you believe, there’s no fetal debris in the MMR vaccine, and the trace amounts of DNA fragments that may remain pose no health risk.

What the evidence does show, however, is that vaccines like the MMR vaccine offer excellent protection against deadly and preventable diseases, and have saved millions of lives around the world.

By Hassan Vally, Associate Professor, Epidemiology, Deakin University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

sb admin Fri, 05/02/2025 - 15:56

Categories

Life Sciences

Curiosity Found New Carbon Molecules On Mars. What Does It Mean For Alien Life?

sb admin — Fri, 28 Mar 2025 17:12:55 +0000

Curiosity Found New Carbon Molecules On Mars. What Does It Mean For Alien Life?

Nasa’s Curiosity Mars rover has detected the largest organic (carbon-containing) molecules ever found on the red planet. The discovery is one of the most significant findings in the search for evidence of past life on Mars. This is because, on Earth at least, relatively complex, long-chain carbon molecules are involved in biology. These molecules could actually be fragments of fatty acids, which are found in, for example, the membranes surrounding biological cells.

Scientists think that, if life ever emerged on Mars, it was probably microbial in nature. Because microbes are so small, it’s difficult to be definitive about any potential evidence for life found on Mars. Such evidence needs more powerful scientific instruments that are too large to be put on a rover.

Curiosity rover near the site of Mont Mercou on Mars. Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

The organic molecules found by Curiosity consist of carbon atoms linked in long chains, with other elements bonded to them, like hydrogen and oxygen. They come from a 3.7-billion-year-old rock dubbed Cumberland, encountered by the rover at a presumed dried-up lakebed in Mars’s Gale Crater. Scientists used the Sample Analysis at Mars (Sam) instrument on the Nasa rover to make their discovery.

Scientists were actually looking for evidence of amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins and therefore key components of life as we know it. But this unexpected finding is almost as exciting. The research is published in Proceedings of the National Academies of Science.

Among the molecules were decane, which has 10 carbon atoms and 22 hydrogen atoms, and dodecane, with 12 carbons and 26 hydrogen atoms. These are known as alkanes, which fall under the umbrella of the chemical compounds known as hydrocarbons.

It’s an exciting time in the search for life on Mars. In March this year, scientists presented evidence of features in a different rock sampled elsewhere on Mars by the Perseverance rover. These features, dubbed “leopard spots” and “poppy seeds”, could have been produced by the action of microbial life in the distant past, or not. The findings were presented at a US conference and have not yet been published in a peer reviewed journal.

The Mars Sample Return mission, a collaboration between Nasa and the European Space Agency, offers hope that samples of rock collected and stored by Perseverance could be brought to Earth for study in laboratories. The powerful instruments available in terrestrial labs could finally confirm whether or not there is clear evidence for past life on Mars. However, in 2023, an independent review board criticized increases in Mars Sample Return’s budget. This prompted the agencies to rethink how the mission could be carried out. They are currently studying two revised options.

Signs of life?

Cumberland was found in a region of Gale Crater called Yellowknife Bay. This area contains rock formations that look suspiciously like those formed when sediment builds up at the bottom of a lake. One of Curiosity’s scientific goals is to examine the prospect that past conditions on Mars would have been suitable for the development of life, so an ancient lakebed is the perfect place to look for them.

The Martian rock known as Cumberland, which was sampled in the study. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

The researchers think that the alkane molecules may once have been components of more complex fatty acid molecules. On Earth, fatty acids are components of fats and oils. They are produced through biological activity in processes that help form cell membranes, for example. The suggested presence of fatty acids in this rock sample has been around for several years, but the new paper details the full evidence.

Fatty acids are long, linear hydrocarbon molecules with a carboxyl group (COOH) at one end and a methyl group (CH3) at the other, forming a chain of carbon and hydrogen atoms.

A fat molecule consists of two main components: glycerol and fatty acids. Glycerol is an alcohol molecule with three carbon atoms, five hydrogens, and three hydroxyl (chemically bonded oxygen and hydrogen, OH) groups. Fatty acids may have 4-36 carbon atoms; however, most of them have 12-18. The longest carbon chains found in Cumberland are 12 atoms long.

Mars Sample Return will deliver Mars rocks to Earth for study. This artist’s impression shows the ascent vehicle leaving Mars with rock samples. Nasa/JPL-Caltech

Organic molecules preserved in ancient Martian rocks provide a critical record of the past habitability of Mars and could be chemical biosignatures (signs that life was once there).

The sample from Cumberland has been analyzed by the Sam instrument many times, using different experimental techniques, and has shown evidence of clay minerals, as well as the first (smaller and simpler) organic molecules found on Mars, back in 2015. These included several classes of chlorinated and sulphur-containing organic compounds in Gale crater sedimentary rocks, with chemical structures of up to six carbon atoms. The new discovery doubles the number of carbon atoms found in a single molecule on Mars.

The alkane molecules are significant in the search for biosignatures on Mars, but how they actually formed remains unclear. They could also be derived through geological or other chemical mechanisms that do not involve fatty acids or life. These are known as abiotic sources. However, the fact that they exist intact today in samples that have been exposed to a harsh environment for many millions of years gives astrobiologists (scientists who study the possibility of life beyond Earth) hope that evidence of ancient life might still be detectable today.

It is possible the sample contains even longer chain organic molecules. It may also contain more complex molecules that are indicative of life, rather than geological processes. Unfortunately, Sam is not capable of detecting those, so the next step is to deliver Martian rock and soil to more capable laboratories on the Earth. Mars Sample Return would do this with the samples already gathered by the Perseverance Mars rover. All that’s needed now is the budget.

By Derek Ward-Thompson, Professor of Astrophysics, University of Central Lancashire and Megan Argo, Senior Lecturer in Astronomy, University of Central Lancashire. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

sb admin Fri, 03/28/2025 - 13:12

Categories

Life Sciences

Crowdsourced Geospatial Data Will Mean A 'Seismic Shift'

sb admin — Fri, 02 Feb 2024 03:10:51 +0000

Crowdsourced Geospatial Data Will Mean A 'Seismic Shift'

Astronomy has long been dominated by expert amateurs but with geospatial data everywhere, thanks to widely available internet and smartphones, it is not just that directions that were once only available in a paper map are now updated on your phone in real time to account for traffic.

It is changing the relationships of science also. Crowdsourced scientific data will go from obscure folding protein folding of 15 years ago to relevance everywhere.

That evolution will continue to be driven by how the data is gathered.

Credit: Xiao Huang, Emory University

According to the authors, urban planning, transportation and environmental monitoring have been particularly impacted by crowdsourcing information, with “unprecedented real-time sights and community-driven perspectives, often leading to more responsive and adaptive decision-making processes,” thanks to user-generated data.

The same type of data is informing the commercial sector, as well, with better-informed customer-centric product development and marketing strategies. The significance of this shift lies in its empowerment of ordinary individuals to contribute to and influence fields traditionally dominated by experts and authorities. This democratization has not only diversified the types of data available but has also led to richer, more multifaceted insighted into human behavior and environmental changes.

Despite such a shift, however, the researchers said a comprehensive, overarching perspective to connect the various data sources, such as social media platforms, with the application domains, such as public health or remote sensing, is still needed.

“We aim to bridge this gap and provide a holistic view of the use and potential of crowdsourcing geospatial data,” said Emory University professor Xiao Huang. “In this study, we conduct an exhaustive analysis of the current efforts, possibilities and obstacles associated with crowdsourced geospatial data across two fundamental perspectives: human observations and Earth observations.”

Earth observations refers to the work of large entities, such as academic institutions or government bodies to record data, as opposed to human observations made on social media, for example. In coupling these two perspectives, the researchers identified seven specific challenges: ensuring data quality and accuracy; protecting data privacy; training and educating non-experts; sustaining data collection; navigating legal and ethical issues; and interpreting data. Their paper summarizes the current state of affairs in each area, as well as a potential pathway forward.

“Crowdsourced geospatial data has a critical role and vast potential in enhancing human and Earth observations,” Huang said. “This data, contributed by the general public through various platforms, offers high-resolution spatiotemporal observations that traditional methods might miss. This comprehensive review paper underscores the democratization of data collection and its implications for various sectors, emphasizing the necessity of integrating these non-traditional data sources for more comprehensive and nuanced understanding and decision making.”

The researchers identified three primary future directions: expanding the scope of geospatial crowdsourcing by harnessing the power of the crowd; pioneering a sustainable crowdsourcing ecosystem, from motivation to retention; and translating crowdsourced geospatial data into real-world impact.

sb admin Thu, 02/01/2024 - 22:10

Categories

Technology

Red Light Myopia Therapy Can Injure Your Retina

sb admin — Mon, 29 Jan 2024 19:18:47 +0000

Red Light Myopia Therapy Can Injure Your Retina

Over the last few years, low-level red light (LLRL) therapy has become popular to control myopia, or nearsightedness, especially in children. In LLRL therapy, children are instructed to look into a red light-emitting instrument for three minutes, twice a day, five days a week, for the duration of the treatment period, which could last years.

Studies reported the treatment as effective and responsible for significant reduction in myopia progression and it is already being used to address myopia in over 100,000 pediatric patients.

Despite passing clinical trials it's not safe in all cases, so stricter standards need to be created, according to University of Houston Professor Lisa Ostrin, who says the therapy can put the retina at risk of photochemical and thermal damage.

Photo courtesy of GETTY Images, provided by the University of Houston

Ostrin examined two different LLRL devices, and while both instruments were confirmed to be Class-1 laser products, as defined by International Electrotechnical Commission standards, according to Ostrin they are unsafe to view continuously for the required treatment duration of three minutes.

Class-1 lasers are low-powered devices that are considered safe from all potential hazards when viewed accidentally and briefly. Examples of Class-1 lasers are laser printers, CD players and digital video disc (DVD) devices. Class-1 lasers are not meant to be viewed directly for extended periods.

“We found that the red-light instruments for myopia exceed safety limits,” said Ostrin. “For both LLRL devices evaluated here, three minutes of continuous viewing approached or surpassed the luminance dose MPE, putting the retina at risk of photochemical damage.”

sb admin Mon, 01/29/2024 - 14:18

Categories

Medicine