https://phys.org/ en-us Latest news from University of Maryland Deploying paramedics, social workers, and others to non-criminal emergency calls could significantly boost a police department's ability to respond to criminal emergencies while reducing negative interactions with the community, according to new University of Maryland research. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-civilian-safety.html Social Sciences Political science Wed, 06 Mar 2024 15:34:03 EST news628961642 E. coli bacteria and an electronic device might seem to have little in common, but in a recent experiment, University of Maryland researchers linked them into the first closed-loop system able to communicate across the technological–biological divide. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-cells-electronics.html Cell & Microbiology Biotechnology Tue, 05 Mar 2024 10:08:03 EST news628855681 In day-to-day life, light seems intangible. We walk through it and create and extinguish it with the flip of a switch. But, like matter, light actually carries a little punch—it has momentum. Light constantly nudges things and can even be used to push spacecraft. Light can also spin objects if it carries orbital angular momentum (OAM)—the property associated with a rotating object's tendency to keep spinning. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-laser-merry.html Optics & Photonics Fri, 01 Mar 2024 11:55:06 EST news628516502 A University of Maryland public health researcher joined scholars from institutions worldwide to call for the retraction of four studies purporting to show damaging psychological effects of abortion, including one submitted as evidence in a decision overturning Roe v. Wade and now involved in a current Supreme Court case over availability of the abortion drug mifepristone. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-03-health-discusses-abortion-retractions.html Medical research Obstetrics & gynaecology Fri, 01 Mar 2024 10:30:58 EST news628511453 Rumormongers, blabbermouths, busybodies—no matter what you call them, gossipers get a bad rap. But new theoretical research conducted by University of Maryland and Stanford University researchers argues that gossipers aren't all that bad. In fact, they might even be good for social circles. https://phys.org/news/2024-02-gossip-gabbing-bad.html Social Sciences Wed, 21 Feb 2024 16:27:04 EST news627755221 Plant leaves come in many different shapes, sizes and complexities. Some leaves are large and smooth, while others are smaller and serrated. Some leaves grow in single pieces while others form multiple leaflets. These variations in leaf structure play a crucial role in how plants adapt—and survive—in different environments. https://phys.org/news/2024-02-scientists-genetic-mechanism-responsible-leaf.html Molecular & Computational biology Agriculture Fri, 16 Feb 2024 08:18:04 EST news627293880 Employers making hiring decisions, landlords considering possible tenants and schools approving field trip chaperones all widely use commercial background checks. But a new multi-institutional study co-authored by a University of Maryland researcher shows that background checks themselves can't be trusted. https://phys.org/news/2024-02-background-dont.html Social Sciences Political science Thu, 15 Feb 2024 13:27:04 EST news627226021 Tech company layoffs exceeded 260,000 in 2023, and continue in 2024. This, despite a robust job market in non-tech industries. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-02-tech-layoffs-economy-shift.html Business Tue, 13 Feb 2024 12:48:03 EST news627050882 Together, D.C., Virginia and Maryland lead the nation in the percentage of job postings requiring artificial intelligence (AI) skills, and overall, the D.C. region is the second-biggest hub of new AI jobs, according to a new mapping project led by University of Maryland researchers. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-02-ai-jobs.html Business Machine learning & AI Tue, 06 Feb 2024 15:34:03 EST news626456041 Those who are old enough might remember when "The Facebook" was a more exclusive club—one where only American college kids could post raucous party pix, browse through a crush's public photo albums or track down childhood friends with a few clicks. Twenty years after the social media juggernaut's launch, Facebook users can still do all that—except now they're 40% of the world's population. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-02-qa-facebook.html Consumer & Gadgets Business Mon, 05 Feb 2024 11:10:01 EST news626353522 Window to the soul? Maybe, but the eyes are also a flashing neon sign for a new artificial intelligence-based system that can read them to predict what you'll do next. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-02-algorithm-crunches-eye-movement-screen.html Business Machine learning & AI Thu, 01 Feb 2024 15:56:43 EST news626025401 Photo, audio and video technologies have advanced significantly in recent years, making it easier to create convincing fake multimedia content, like politicians singing popular songs or saying silly things to get a laugh or a click. With a few easily accessible applications and some practice, the average person can alter the face and voice of just about anyone. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-01-deepfakes-shallowfakes-media.html Computer Sciences Security Tue, 30 Jan 2024 14:49:41 EST news625848577 Associate Research Professor Charles Harry likes to strike up conversations with his new students by asking about their pets: Their favorite memories, the name of their first pet, even if they chose the collar based on their favorite color. Most don't hesitate—after all, he's their professor. https://techxplore.com/news/2024-01-expert-alarming-creativity-today-cyberattacks.html Consumer & Gadgets Security Tue, 30 Jan 2024 14:30:03 EST news625847401 If your pup seems unusually pooped—coughing, sneezing or acting sluggish—don't pooh-pooh it. A mysterious canine illness is spreading throughout the country that can linger for months, cause fever, pneumonia and, in rare cases, death. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-qa-mysterious-illness-dogs-nationwide.html Veterinary medicine Thu, 25 Jan 2024 15:00:04 EST news625417202 Earth's moon shrank more than 150 feet in circumference as its core gradually cooled over the last few hundred million years. In much the same way a grape wrinkles when it shrinks down to a raisin, the moon also develops creases as it shrinks. But unlike the flexible skin on a grape, the moon's surface is brittle, causing faults to form where sections of crust push against one another. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-scientists-moon-landslides-instability-lunar.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 25 Jan 2024 12:27:11 EST news625408028 Offshore wind farms can be an energy boon, but does their noisy construction bother marine animals? UMD's Arthur N. Popper, who studies underwater sounds and their ecological impacts, weighs in. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-qa-noisy-offshore-farms-disturb.html Ecology Tue, 09 Jan 2024 13:17:55 EST news624028671 Researchers at the University of Maryland and National Institutes of Health have identified the microbial enzyme responsible for giving urine its yellow hue, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Microbiology. https://phys.org/news/2024-01-urine-yellow-scientists-enzyme-responsible.html Cell & Microbiology Molecular & Computational biology Wed, 03 Jan 2024 05:00:01 EST news623426996 While lithium-ion batteries currently dominate the industry, serious concern remains about the limited availability of lithium used in these batteries. Conversely, sodium-ion batteries provide a more sustainable alternative due to the tremendous abundance of salt in our oceans, thereby potentially providing a lower-cost alternative to the rapidly growing demand for energy storage. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-12-battery-technology-high-sodium-metal.html Energy & Green Tech Wed, 20 Dec 2023 13:18:48 EST news622300723 Soybeans can pollinate themselves, but a new study by UMD researchers shows that pollen from multiple plants can greatly increase their yields. What's more, the addition of a strip of wildflowers near rows of soybeans amplifies the effect. The information could help farmers of one of Maryland's top commodities increase the production and marketability of their crops. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-pollinators-big-impact-edamame.html Ecology Agriculture Fri, 15 Dec 2023 13:32:24 EST news621869542 The increasing number and intensity of wildfires in the Western U.S. are overshadowing other achievements at reducing emissions, aggravating air pollution and increasing disease and mortality, according to a new study led by University of Maryland researchers. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-12-western-wildfires-reversed-decades-gains.html Health Wed, 06 Dec 2023 12:23:37 EST news621087812 Methane is the second-most abundant greenhouse gas in Earth's atmosphere, and its emissions have been rapidly—and mysteriously—rising since 2007. Though pervasive, the origin of the colorless compound is tricky to trace, complicating efforts to curb gases that trap heat in the atmosphere and warm the planet. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-scientists-fingerprint-methane-track-climate.html Earth Sciences Environment Mon, 27 Nov 2023 11:21:04 EST news620306461 University of Maryland researchers aiming to combat rising global temperatures have developed a new "cooling glass" that can turn down the heat indoors without electricity by drawing on the cold depths of space. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-11-cooling-glass-blasts-space.html Engineering Energy & Green Tech Mon, 13 Nov 2023 11:36:53 EST news619097810 Exposure to state-level school desegregation during primary school was associated with higher midlife cognitive function among Black Americans who grew up in the U.S. South from the 1950s to 1970s, according to new findings by a University of Maryland public policy researcher. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-link-school-desegregation-midlife-cognitive.html Social Sciences Education Fri, 10 Nov 2023 12:40:03 EST news618842402 A team of University of Maryland researchers developed a nasal spray vaccine that delivers the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein into cells of the airway in mice and hamsters, triggering an immune response that significantly reduced infection and spread of COVID-19. The technology can be adapted to induce immunity to other respiratory illnesses, such as influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-11-nasal-vaccine-covid-preclinical.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Vaccination Mon, 06 Nov 2023 13:08:03 EST news618498481 The planet's demand for salt comes at a cost to the environment and human health, according to a new scientific review led by University of Maryland Geology Professor Sujay Kaushal. Published in the journal Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, the paper revealed that human activities are making Earth's air, soil and freshwater saltier, which could pose an "existential threat" if current trends continue. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-humans-disrupting-natural-salt-global.html Earth Sciences Environment Tue, 31 Oct 2023 06:00:01 EDT news617894893 University of Maryland researchers studied synaptic changes in an animal model before and after it developed vision, which plays a key role in circadian rhythm. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-eye-opening-circadian-pacemaker.html Biochemistry Analytical Chemistry Fri, 27 Oct 2023 09:19:56 EDT news617617193 University of Maryland researchers studying how lithium batteries fail have developed a new technology that could enable next-generation electric vehicles (EVs) and other devices that are less prone to battery fires while increasing energy storage. https://techxplore.com/news/2023-10-plagues-next-gen-lithium-batteries.html Engineering Energy & Green Tech Thu, 26 Oct 2023 12:07:03 EDT news617540821 A team of University of Maryland researchers has made new strides in the fight against metastatic cancer by successfully combining three cutting-edge photoimmunotherapy technologies to help prevent the spread and return of the disease, while minimizing illness and other familiar side effects of treatment. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2023-10-combine-technologies-metastatic-cancer.html Oncology & Cancer Biomedical technology Wed, 25 Oct 2023 16:49:05 EDT news617471341 NASA's InSight mission to Mars helped scientists map out Mars' internal structure, including the size and composition of its core, and provided general hints about its tumultuous formation. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-molten-layer-martian-core.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 25 Oct 2023 11:00:02 EDT news617447779 It's officially spooky season: Nights are creeping in earlier. A fall chill has descended. Skeletons and witches and jack-o-lanterns dot every street. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-wildlife-biologist-myths.html Plants & Animals Tue, 24 Oct 2023 15:37:03 EDT news617380621