[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Can air pollution add to the risk and severity of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts? A new study published in the journal Neuro Toxicology suggests so.It claims that though there is no conclusive evidence, there are several plausible pathways to link the two.For example, the Neuro Toxicology study says, exposure to persistently high levels of air pollution can cause systemic inflammation or inflammation throughout the body, oxidative stress, potentially leading to or worsening upper airway dysfunction during sleep. “It is important to note that effects of...
Science
From Apollo to Artemis: Why it’s so difficult to send humans to Moon
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Despite technological advancements since the Apollo missions, which landed a dozen astronauts on the moon between 1969 and 1972, the current efforts under Nasa‘s Artemis program to return humans to the lunar surface are facing significant challenges. This situation raises the question: Why is getting back to the moon so difficult today?Financial and political challengesThe Artemis program, unlike its Apollo predecessor, operates under far tighter budget constraints.”At its peak, Nasa was consuming around 5% of the entire federal budget,” a significant portion of which was dedicated to the Apollo program. If adjusted for inflation, Apollo would have...
Science
Aditya mission continuously sending data about Sun: Isro chief | India News
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Isro’s chief, S Somnath, revealed on Sunday that the Aditya L1 solar mission of the premier space research agency continues to relay data about the Sun. Somnath, addressing reporters after receiving a special award from jewellery major P C Chandra Group, highlighted that numerous instruments aboard the spacecraft are actively capturing data on various aspects.“We are looking into the sun in a continuous manner – UV magnetic charges observation, corona graph observation, X-ray observation and other things,” he said.India’s inaugural solar mission craft, the Aditya-L1 spacecraft, embarked on its journey on September 2, 2023.“As we are keeping...
Science
Lyrid meteor shower: When and where to watch
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: The cosmic wonder of meteor shower can be observed by the earthlings as the Lyrid Meteor shower is set to peak overnight Sunday into Monday.Best observed from the Northern Hemisphere, the Lyrids are caused by the dusty debris from a comet named Thatcher and spring from the constellation Lyra.Although, viewers may have a difficult time witnessing this cosmic activity as the moon will be nearly full and shining bright in the night sky.Even in ideal conditions away from city lights, only a few meteors per hour are expected to be visible to the naked eye.“For a dedicated...
Science
Nasa satellite’s ‘shocking’ space junk near-miss was even closer than thought
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Nasa’s TIMED spacecraft and the defunct Russian spy satellite Cosmos 2221 experienced an alarmingly close encounter in orbit, space.com reported. Initial estimates suggested that the two satellites passed within 65 feet (20 meters) of each other. However, further analysis revealed that the actual distance was even closer, with the satellites coming within a mere 33 feet (10 meters) of one another, according to Nasa deputy administrator Pam Melroy.Melroy expressed her personal shock and the concern shared by Nasa officials, stating, “Had the two satellites collided, we would have seen significant debris generation — tiny shards traveling tens...
International
Why many policies to lower migration actually increase it
[ad_1] LONDON: Every spring and summer, when the weather improves, the numbers of people trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe drastically increase, sometimes tripling. Distressing photos and headlines dominate front pages, and politicians stoke negative narratives about migration. People migrate for many reasons: safety, work, education, family or adventure.Even though politicians like to divide migrants into neat categories, such as refugees and economic migrants, the messy reality is that most people moving fit into several categories at once. This makes it all the harder for governments to stop it from happening, try as they might. Some adopt a “send...
Technology
Artificial Intelligence has a measurement problem
[ad_1] SAN FRANCISCO: There’s a problem with leading artificial intelligence tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude: We don’t really know how smart they are. That’s because, unlike companies that make cars or drugs or baby formula, AI companies aren’t required to submit their products for testing before releasing them to the public. Users are left to rely on the claims of AI companies, which often use vague, fuzzy phrases like “improved capabilities” to describe how their models differ from one version to the next.Models are updated so frequently that a chatbot that struggles with a task one day might...
Technology
Nasa’s new frontier: Hubble telescope to probe secrets of small asteroids
[ad_1] Nasa‘s Hubble Space Telescope, in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), has initiated a novel mission targeting small asteroids within the main belt. This effort seeks to deepen our understanding of these celestial objects, which are considered crucial to unraveling the mysteries of the early solar system. Managed by Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Center and supported by Lockheed Martin Space for mission operations, the telescope continues its over three-decade-long legacy of space exploration and discovery.The new focus on small main belt asteroids aims to provide insights into their composition and dynamics, aspects that remain underexplored compared to their...
AI a ‘fundamental change in the news ecosystem’: Expert
[ad_1] PERUGIA: Artificial intelligence is shaking up journalism and in the short term will cause “a fundamental change in the news ecosystem“, media expert David Caswell told AFP.A former employee at Yahoo! and BBC News Labs, the British broadcaster’s innovation wing, Caswell spoke as industry leaders gathered in the Italian city of Perugia to discuss the biggest questions facing their trade.“We don’t know. But what we are trying to do is to understand all of the possibilities or as many of the possibilities as we can. But I think there are some things that are becoming clearer: one is the...
Plastic production threatens 1.5 degrees Celsius limit, new study warns
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: If the current rate of plastic production continues, it could use up the global carbon budget to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by as early as 2060 or no later than 2083, according to a new study. The study by the United States’ Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) comes ahead of the fourth round of United Nations negotiations for an international treaty to end plastic pollution in Ottawa, Canada, during April 23-29. It is estimated that global plastic production today accounts for around 12 per cent of total demand for oil and 8.5 per cent...
How freezing embryos plays a crucial role in IVF
[ad_1] The practice of freezing embryos as part of in vitro fertilization (IVF) was thrown into chaos in Alabama this year, when the state supreme court ruled that such embryos should be considered children, exposing clinics to wrongful death claims in the event they are destroyed in the thawing process.In 2021, more than 80% of U.S. IVF procedures involved the transfer of frozen embryos, according to a recent report by the U.S.Department of Health and Human Services.Undermining use of frozen embryos in IVF would introduce many uncertainties, delays and possible additional expenses, according to fertility experts. Here is what you...
Bengaluru gets Asia’s 1st dedicated Space domain awareness centre | India News
[ad_1] BENGALURU: Bengaluru has become home to Asia’s first dedicated command and control centre for space domain awareness. The state-of-the-art facility was inaugurated Friday at the newly opened global headquarters of Digantara, a space situational awareness (SSA) company. The 25,000 sq ft headquarters houses a first-of-its-kind command centre focused solely on monitoring and managing space traffic.This advanced facility will play a vital role in ensuring the safety and sustainability of satellite operations around the world by tracking objects in orbit.Isro chairman S Somanath and experts from around 10 countries, including from global space agencies like European Space Agency (ESA), French...
Science
Nasa satellite’s ‘shocking’ space junk near-miss was even closer than thought
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Nasa’s TIMED spacecraft and the defunct Russian spy satellite Cosmos 2221 experienced an alarmingly close encounter in orbit, space.com reported. Initial estimates suggested that the two satellites passed within 65 feet (20 meters) of each other. However, further analysis revealed that the actual distance was even closer, with the satellites coming within a mere 33 feet (10 meters) of one another, according to Nasa deputy administrator Pam Melroy.Melroy expressed her personal shock and the concern shared by Nasa officials, stating, “Had the two satellites collided, we would have seen significant debris generation — tiny shards traveling tens...
Science
Lyrid meteor shower: When and where to watch
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: The cosmic wonder of meteor shower can be observed by the earthlings as the Lyrid Meteor shower is set to peak overnight Sunday into Monday.Best observed from the Northern Hemisphere, the Lyrids are caused by the dusty debris from a comet named Thatcher and spring from the constellation Lyra.Although, viewers may have a difficult time witnessing this cosmic activity as the moon will be nearly full and shining bright in the night sky.Even in ideal conditions away from city lights, only a few meteors per hour are expected to be visible to the naked eye.“For a dedicated...
Science
Aditya mission continuously sending data about Sun: Isro chief | India News
[ad_1] NEW DELHI: Isro’s chief, S Somnath, revealed on Sunday that the Aditya L1 solar mission of the premier space research agency continues to relay data about the Sun. Somnath, addressing reporters after receiving a special award from jewellery major P C Chandra Group, highlighted that numerous instruments aboard the spacecraft are actively capturing data on various aspects.“We are looking into the sun in a continuous manner – UV magnetic charges observation, corona graph observation, X-ray observation and other things,” he said.India’s inaugural solar mission craft, the Aditya-L1 spacecraft, embarked on its journey on September 2, 2023.“As we are keeping...
Politics
बस्तर में पुल के नीचे मिला BJP नेता का शव, सुबह की सैर पर निकले थे बुधराम करटम, हत्या की आशंका
ऐप पर पढ़ें छत्तीसगढ़ के बस्तर जिले में भाजपा के एक स्थानीय नेता का शव बरामद किया गया है। पुलिस ने मंगलवार को बताया कि 35 वर्षीय बुधराम करटम का शव सोमवार को जगदलपुर और गीदम को जोड़ने वाले राष्ट्रीय राजमार्ग पर किलेपाल गांव के पास एक पुलिया के नीचे पाया गया। उनके चेहरे पर चोट के निशान थे। परपा क्षेत्र के पुलिस उप-विभागीय अधिकारी (SDOP) ईश्वर चंद्राकर (Eshwarya Chandrakar) ने कहा कि करटम (Budhram Kartam) भाजपा की जिला इकाई के सचिव थे। करटम सुबह की सैर के लिए निकले थे। जब वह घर नहीं लौटे तो उसके परिवार के...
Politics
एमपी: छात्रा से रेप के मामले में फरार कांग्रेस MLA पर दस हजार का इनाम
मध्य प्रदेश पुलिस ने 21 वर्षीय छात्रा के अपहरण और रेप के मामले में फरार चल रहे आरोपी कांग्रेस विधायक हेमंत कटारे की गिरफ्तारी पर 10 हजार रुपए का इनाम घोषित किया है। भोपाल-दक्षिण के पुलिस अधीक्षक राहुल कुमार लोधा ने शनिवार को बताया कि हमने फरार चल रहे हेमंत कटारे की गिरफ्तारी के लिए शुक्रवार रात 10,000 रुपए का इनाम घोषित किया है, क्योंकि कई समन जारी करने के बाद भी वह पुलिस के सामने पेश नहीं हुए हैं। उन्होंने बताया कि पुलिस ने इसके अलावा मामले में दूसरे फरार आरोपी विक्रमजीत सिंह की गिरफ्तारी पर 10,000 रुपए का...
