MICHAEL BLOOMBERG, the billionaire former mayor of New York, has announced he is running for president. But he is late to join the race and not very popular with Democratic primary voters. We also look at TikTok, a wildly successful video-sharing app that some see as a threat to security in the Western world. And much of Switzerland is up in arms—about the reliability of the country’s coffee supply. Runtime: 20 min
Listen to the latest science updated, brought to you by Nick Howe and Shamini Bundell. This week, delving into the results of the latest graduate student survey, and assessing ageism in science fiction literature.In this episode:
The results of Nature’s 2019 PhD survey are in. David Payne, Nature’s Chief Careers Editor, takes us through them. Nature’s PhD survey collection
Giant tortoises are quick learners, and colour-changing magic mushrooms. Research Article: Gutnick et al.; Research Highlights: Why magic mushrooms turn dark blue when picked
Author Sylvia Spruck Wrigley has been looking into the number of older women that appear in sci-fi novels, and the roles they play. Essay: Space ageing: why sci-fi novels shun the badass older woman
A trove of mummified remains causes excitement in Egypt, and Italy plans a new science funding body. News: Rare mummified lions add to Egyptology buzz; News: Italy’s plan to create €300-million research agency draws fire
From a Stanford Medicine online news release:
“What you want is more, small fat cells rather than fewer, large fat cells,” Jackson said. “A large fat cell is not a healthy fat cell. The center is farther away from an oxygen supply, it sends out bad signals and it can burst and release toxic contents.” Large fat cells are associated with insulin resistance, diabetes and inflammation, he added.
Jackson and his colleagues found that when omega-3 fatty acids bind to a receptor called FFAR4 on the cilia of fat stem cells, it prompts the fat stem cells to divide, leading to the creation of more fat cells. This provides the body with more fat cells with which to store energy, something that is healthier than storing too much fat in existing fat cells.
For years, researchers have known that defects in an ancient cellular antenna called the primary cilium are linked with obesity and insulin resistance. Now, researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered that the strange little cellular appendage is sensing omega-3 fatty acids in the diet, and that this signal is directly affecting how stem cells in fat tissue divide and turn into fat cells.
To read more: http://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2019/11/omega-3-fatty-acids-health-benefit-linked-to-stem-cell-control.html
From a Becker’s Hospital Review online release:
The purpose of the centers is to increase customers’ understanding of Medicare, match them with people who can talk with them about their benefits or new plans to enroll in, and access in-store annual wellness visits.
In addition, Walgreens and UnitedHealthcare are partnering for a new AARP Medicare Advantage Walgreens health plan. The health plan aims to deliver lower prescription drug costs to members, as many of the plans have $0 premiums and $0 copays on primary care visits, preventive care and some generic drugs. The 46 plans will be sold across 24 states.
Under a multiyear agreement, UnitedHealthcare will open 14 Medicare service centers in Walgreens stores across the U.S., the organizations said Nov. 25.
UnitedHealthcare, the health insurance arm of UnitedHealth Group, will operate Medicare service centers in Walgreens stores across five cities: Las Vegas, Phoenix, Cleveland, Denver and Memphis, Tenn. The centers are slated to open in January 2020.
From a Variety.com online article:
Fox has been selling 30-second ads in the event for between “north of $5 million” to as much as $5.6 million, Winter says. In contrast, CBS sought between $5.1 million and $5.3 million for a package of inventory in its 2019 broadcast of the event. Meanwhile, Fox is seeking between $2 million and $3 million for the most expensive advertising slots in its pre- and post-game coverage.
Madison Avenue is giving new consideration to the Super Bowl, the annual media extravaganza that it has seemed less excited about in recent years.
Fox Sports has sold all its available commercial inventory in Super Bowl LIV, slated to be broadcast from Miami Gardens, Florida, on February 2, 2020. It’s the first time in half a decade that the network showing the big game hasn’t had to go down to the wire to dispense with its high-priced ad slots, and suggests advertisers have found new appeal in the live telecast in an era when most of TV’s best-known programming has a significant component of on-demand viewership.
To read more: https://variety.com/2019/tv/news/super-bowl-commercials-2020-fox-sell-out-1203415238/?recip_id=1124968&lyt_id=1124968
NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report join Judy Woodruff to discuss the latest political news, including whether two weeks of public impeachment hearings have shifted public opinion about President Trump and the investigation into his Ukraine policy, potential pressure on Republican lawmakers and the late entrance of Michael Bloomberg into the 2020 Democratic race.
Netflix has risen from obscurity to be one of the most powerful media companies in the world with more than 150 million global subscribers. It has launched critically acclaimed hits such as House of Cards, The Crown and Unbelievable, as well as showcasing the back catalogues of popular television series. But as part of its rapid growth, the company has racked up huge debts.
Joining Anushka Asthana to discuss the long-term sustainability of Netflix are the TV critic Mark Lawson and the Guardian’s deputy business editor Dan Milmo.
From a Neuroscience News & Research online article:
“The link between antibiotic exposure and Parkinson’s disease fits the current view that in a significant proportion of patients the pathology of Parkinson’s may originate in the gut, possibly related to microbial changes, years before the onset of typical Parkinson motor symptoms such as slowness, muscle stiffness and shaking of the extremities. It was known that the bacterial composition of the intestine in Parkinson’s patients is abnormal, but the cause is unclear. Our results suggest that some commonly used antibiotics, which are known to strongly influence the gut microbiota, could be a predisposing factor,” says research team leader, neurologist Filip Scheperjans MD, Ph.D. from the Department of Neurology of Helsinki University Hospital.
Higher exposure to commonly used oral antibiotics is linked to an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease according to a recently published study by researchers from the Helsinki University Hospital, Finland.
The strongest associations were found for broad-spectrum antibiotics and those that act against anaerobic bacteria and fungi. The timing of antibiotic exposure also seemed to matter.
The study suggests that excessive use of certain antibiotics can predispose to Parkinson’s disease with a delay of up to 10 to 15 years. This connection may be explained by their disruptive effects on the gut microbial ecosystem.
Who among us hasn’t wished we could read someone else’s mind, know exactly what they’re thinking? Well that’s impossible, of course, since our thoughts are, more than anything else, our own. Private, personal, unreachable. Or at least that’s what we’ve always, well, thought.
Advances in neuroscience have shown that, on a physical level, our thoughts are actually a vast network of neurons firing all across our brains. So if that brain activity could be identified and analyzed, could our thoughts be decoded? Could our minds be read? Well, a team of scientists at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh has spent more than a decade trying to do just that. We started our reporting on their work 10 years ago, and what they’ve discovered since, has drawn us back.
To read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/functional-magnetic-resonance-imaging-computer-analysis-read-thoughts-60-minutes-2019-11-24/
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