Omg! Facebook interactions are more meaningful than you think
Do you often find yourself checking your notifications on Facebook while taking a break from studying? Do you also find — after your break has gone two hours into overtime — that you begin to panic and become upset with yourself for logging on in the first place? Well friends, do not fret.
A new report from the National IT User Center shows that pastime browsing is actually beneficial. The report has predicted that new social media tools will result in the growth of individual entrepreneurs, and that the networks created on Facebook are more meaningful than previously thought.
What accounts for the potential increase in entrepreneurs is that Facebook enables individuals to be more independent when searching for information. Facebook users have access to a wealth of information, such as job opportunities, housing availability, and connecting with new contacts. The most meaningful relationships available to users are the opportunities to reach out to other people — in business and in pleasure.— Thuy Truong
Source: Uppsala University
Gigantic X-ray telescope used to find the origins of the universe
The space agencies of the US, Europe, and Japan have worked on a cooperative project to build the largest X-ray telescope ever made. The International X-ray Observatory is planned for space launch in 2021, and is expected to provide brand new information about black holes, and thus, the origins of the universe.
The massive X-ray detector features a mirror with a 1,300 square meter surface, consisting of carefully engineered silicon wafers with 1 mm2 pores underneath. Detectors then capture the incoming radiation and ultimately translate it into digital format for computer processing.
Preliminary X-ray telescopes will be launched into space as soon as 2013 to search the sky for specific “supermassive black holes,” which emit characteristic high energy X-radiation in comparison to other types of black holes. These black holes developed at the dawn of the universe, possibly before the birth of the first stars. Scientists believe the insights brought by the IXO will add knowledge in the search of the universe’s origins.— Albert Razvan Gheorghita
Source: The German Physical and Technical Federal Institute
How gut-invading worms infiltrate your intestines
Ever wonder how intestinal worms are able to survive in a digestive system that can easily mash up even the most resilient diets? A group of researchers at the University of Edinburgh recently uncovered a key protective element that enables these gut-invading worms to function and survive within the intestine.
Using mice, they showed that intestinal worms produce a protein that activates regulatory T cells, which are cells capable of suppressing the immune response in both humans and animals. Because a heightened immune response can eradicate intestinal worms, the group also demonstrated that blocking regulatory T cell activation greatly decreases the viability of these worms. What’s more interesting is that regulatory T cells can also alleviate allergies, and it has often been reported that patients with intestinal worms have tend to experience less allergic symptoms.
The study speaks volumes to an area of medicine that has always been difficult to treat, and opens up doors for a new therapeutic approach.— Wilson Kwong
Source: Rockefeller University Press
