General Science topics

[dipsylalapo Supervisor]

A few articles that I read last night. 

• Even though electric cars are still in the minority, they seem to be taking a toll on the amount of oil that is being used. Source
• Scientists in the Ozone think that the Ozone layer will completely heal within 50 year. Source
• France is banning pesticides that kill bees. Hail bess. Source

Despite all the crap that happens in the world, at least there's some good new. 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

A Super-Spicy Plant Could Help End the Opioid Crisis

 

 

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Watch Your Tongue

 

You probably don’t go around biting into plants covered in needles. But if you happened to chomp down on Euphorbia resinifera, a cactus-like plant also known as the resin spurge, you’d seriously regret it — and not for the reason you might think.

The plant’s active ingredient, resiniferatoxin (RTX), is incredibly spicy — a full 10,000 times hotter than the world’s hottest pepper on the scale used to measure hotness. But in an ironic twist, RTX could actually be the future of pain relief.

 

Nerves Ending

 

According to a newly published story in WIRED, researchers across the globe have taken a keen interest in RTX as a painkiller.

They’ve discovered that, when injected into the body, the chemical binds to TRPV1, a molecule found in the nerve endings that sense pain. This opens a channel in the nerve ending that calcium can then flow through. This calcium overload deactivates the pain-sensing nerve without affecting other sensory neurons, such as those that allow a person to feel a light touch.

RTX researcher Michael Iadarola has tested RTX on dogs, injecting the chemical into the animals’ knees to alleviate joint pain, with promising results.

“It is profoundly effective there, and lasts much, much longer than I might have expected, maybe a median of 5 months before the owners of the dogs asked for reinjection,” he told WIRED. “The animals went from basically limping to running around.”

 

Crisis Diverted

Besides simply being effective, RTX has numerous benefits over existing painkillers: It doesn’t require frequent dosing, targets only the area causing pain, and doesn’t produce a potentially addictive high.

If the powerful chemical becomes widely available for human use, it could eventually begin to replace opioids as the go-to medication for addressing major pain issues — helping society address its major opioid addiction issue in the process.

https://futurism.com/this-game-uses-artificial-intelligence-to-recruit-new-players

[DocM]

I've used capsaicin-infused patches to relieve chronic  pain and it works. If this works better, and given my refusing opioids for obvious reasons, count me in.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

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This Icelandic company has come up with an ingenious way to make motorists slow down

 

https://twitter.com/universal_sci/status/1066790522814152705

 

Or the painted grand Canyon drop off...

[DocM]

Saw that on the news 😄

[Beittil]

To bad it only works when coming into town apparently 😛 From the other direction its going to be like.. 'Whut?' and then you floor it some more 😛

[Draggendrop Veteran]

 

nailed it...

[Draggendrop Veteran]

SWARMS OF DRONES CAN NOW PLANT TREES IN AREAS DEVASTATED BY FIRES

 

 

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Every year, wildfires in the U.S. burn an average of 7 million acres, and our current method of replacing lost trees isn’t exactly ideal. “Even at the most sophisticated companies in the world, planters are superheroes that use bags and a shovel to plant trees,” entrepreneur Grant Canary told TechCrunch.

 

That’s why he founded DroneSeed in 2015. The company has developed drones capable of both deciding where to plant seeds and actually planting them — two tasks previously carried out by humans.

 

The drone uses lidar to create a 3D map of an area and a multispectral camera to gather details about its soil and vegetation. From that data, an AI model determines the ideal spot to plant a new tree.

 

The drones don’t simply throw seeds at the ground, though — DroneSeed has developed special “seed vessels.” These are small pucks of nutrients with a seed at their center and a dusting of capsaicin on their exterior to deter animals from eating them.

 

Team Effort

DroneSeed is the first company to receive a multi-craft, over-55-pounds unmanned aerial vehicle license from the Federal Aviation Administration. That means its drones can work in swarms of up to five crafts to cover larger areas.

 

The company has already tested its tech with nonprofits and U.S. timber companies, and it plans to kick off its first commercial post-fire restoration project in December.

 

Eventually, it could help us ensure that we’re able to plant news trees at least as quickly as we lose them — and given the fact that wildfires are growing both more common and more destructive, the tech couldn’t come at a more opportune time.

https://futurism.com/the-byte/droneseed-plant-trees-wildfire

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

 

 

 

 

[Beittil]

That first one is more like "What happens to my brain when imperial units impact it"

[Draggendrop Veteran]

 

This system works well in tough weather conditions...I'll vouch for it.

 

--------------------------------------------

 

Got back from the doctor's office today...after several tests...did not need to see this...and fall off the keyboard.....

 

 

lets make it real bad...

 

 

 

[Draggendrop Veteran]

First high-speed full-body 3D scanner ready for clinical tests on humans

 

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Scientists from the University of California Davis in partnership with Shanghai-based United Imaging Healthcare (UIH) have developed a scanner capable of producing 3D images of the entire human body at once. The first images were released on November 17, 2018 and, as promised, they provide a level of detail not available in any other device in the world. Named EXPLORER, the machine has been 13 years in the making and was funded by grants from the National Cancer Institute and the National Institutes of Health. The initial concept for EXPLORER was devised by UC Davis scientists Simon Cherry and Ramsey Badawi, and another 40+ scientists make up the team involved in its development from multiple universities.

 

The first full-body 3D scans performed by EXPLORER. | Credit: UC Davis

 

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Using a type of sectional imaging called PET (positron emission tomography), EXPLORER can produce a whole body scan in as little as 20 to 30 seconds, which is about 40 times faster than current scan capabilities. The machine is also unique in its overall sensitivity, specifically 40 times higher than existing commercial systems. This enhanced capability means much higher resolution images, significantly lower radiation dosage requirements, quicker scans, and the ability to track radiotracers for a longer period of time. The fast scanning ability could also avoid the need for anesthesia in young children.

 

PET is a safe medical imaging technique that either maps the location or tracks the movement of dye placed into the body containing miniscule amounts radioactive elements (“radiotracers”). Certain organs and tissue absorb the dye, providing information for doctors to analyze and assess their functionality. Specifically, a PET scan shows where the dye collects. Through this method, blood flow and oxygen activity can be measured, along with many other functions, and it is commonly used to detect cancer, heart problems, and issues with the central nervous system.

 

Given the improvements provided by EXPLORER, the team’s scientists and UIH, the company that built it, hope their machine will improve things in the clinical environment such as diagnosing and tracking diseases, providing detailed information about drug therapies, and obtaining better data on cancer that has metastasized. They are further working together to install the EXPLORER system in Sacramento and plan to begin imaging patients in June of 2019. The goal overall is to make EXPLORER available to the international clinical research community.

https://www.teslarati.com/full-body-human-3d-scanner-clinical-tests/

 

EXPLORER Dynamic Total Body Scan. 

video is 26 seconds

 

 

 

This would be very handy for me right now....

[DocM]

The difficulty with positron emission tomography is the cost. First, the machines are very expensive. Second,  the half-life of the isotopes used is so short, 1.5-120 min for most to  78.41 hours for ⁸⁹Zr, the facility needs an on-site cyclotron (particle accelerator) to make them just before use.  

 

$$$$

Edited December 1, 2018 by DocM

[Unobscured Vision]

... which means any procedures used with said devices are going to be exorbitantly expensive ... Medical is going to want to profit (endlessly) from their investments.

 

As @DocM said, $$$$.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

I'm a little old fashioned...but if the scan is for a child with cancer...the state can cover the cost.

 

It's a statement for the type of society one has.

 

Us old farts can use a chainsaw and polaroid.

[Jim K Global Moderator]

On ‎12‎/‎1‎/‎2018 at 3:20 PM, DocM said:

The difficulty with positron emission tomography is the cost. First, the machines are very expensive. Second,  the half-life of the isotopes used is so short, 1.5-120 min for most to  78.41 hours for ⁸⁹Zr, the facility needs an on-site cyclotron (particle accelerator) to make them just before use.  

 

$$$$

Not necessarily ... especially since F18 is the most frequently used isotope.  You do not need a cyclotron on-site.  Another common isotope (for cardiac), Ru82, is produced onsite through a generator which last 4-8 weeks before needing replacement.  Ga68 can be from a generator as well (good for about one year).  

 

You do have N13, C11 and O15 ... but they are less commonly used and, yes, you would need a Cyclotron in house or a 3rd party (Cardinal Health, GE Healthcare, etc) very close by (O15 certainly needs to be in house).

 

Anyway ... most of the time you'll be getting F18.

 

The Zr89 half life is incredibly long ...

[DocM]

Isotope cows help, but they are not a complete  solution. You still need the ability to generate or quickly acquire the less commonly used radionuclides, and outside of metropolitan centers that means having a cyclotron available. it may not be the  institution's, but it's going to cost either way. 

 

Another cost driver is the combined CT and pet scanners costing north of $2.5 million, unless you buy a reconditioned one. When pricing this system,  much further north and if there is additional hardware there won't be any reconditioned ones on the market.

Edited December 3, 2018 by DocM

[Jim K Global Moderator]

1 hour ago, DocM said:

Isotope cows help, but they are not a complete  solution. You still need the ability to generate or quickly acquire the less commonly used radionuclides, and outside of metropolitan centers that means having a cyclotron available. it may not be the  institution's, but it's going to cost either way. 

 

Another cost driver is the combined CT and pet scanners costing north of $2.5 million, unless you buy a reconditioned one. When pricing this system,  much further north and if there is additional hardware there won't be any reconditioned ones on the market.

I did PET for about 10 years (Wilford Hall Medical Center)...we didn't have a cyclotron in house.  I've never heard of isotope "cows" .. assuming you mean a nuclear pharmacy + couriers?  GE Healthcare, Cardinal Health, independent nuclear pharmacies are plentiful...and they are a "complete" solution.  If you are in the middle of nowhere ... your local clinic probably won't have a PET scanner anyway.  Also as mentioned, the other common isotope Ru82, can be produced with a generator (similar to Tc99m)

[DocM]

Isotope cows =   generators.  

[Jim K Global Moderator]

2 hours ago, DocM said:

Isotope cows =   generators.  

 

"Isotope cows help, but they are not a complete  solution. "

 

Which is inaccurate. Most nuclear medicine studies utilize Tc99m which is eluted from a Mo99 generator. PET radioisotopes Ru82 and Ga68 are eluted from generators.  F18 is not...it is from a cyclotron.

 

Moly cow ... haven't heard that in a long time. 

[DocM]

19 hours ago, Jim K said:

 

"Isotope cows help, but they are not a complete  solution. "

 

Which is inaccurate. Most nuclear medicine studies utilize Tc99m which is eluted from a Mo99 generator. 

 

Agreed, but most nuclear medicine studies are not a PET or variant.

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PET radioisotopes Ru82 and Ga68 are eluted from generators.  F18 is not...it is from a cyclotron.

 

Worldwide, 25% of PET installations have a co-sited cyclotron due to the real need for high activity/short half-life isotopes.  Until the distribution system is improved, or high sensitivity scanners like EXPLORER are proven effective and affordable, co-sited cyclotrons are still going to be necessary at many institutions.

 

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Moly cow ... haven't heard that in a long time. 

That's because I've been around a very long time. I can remember non-intensified fluoroscopy systems, and the use of primitive ultrasound to diagnose a cerebral midline shift.

[Jim K Global Moderator]

2 hours ago, DocM said:

 

Agreed, but most nuclear medicine studies are not a PET or variant.

 

Worldwide, 25% of PET installations have a co-sited cyclotron due to the real need for high activity/short half-life isotopes.  Until the distribution system is improved, or high sensitivity scanners like EXPLORER are proven effective and affordable, co-sited cyclotrons are still going to be necessary at many institutions.

 

That's because I've been around a very long time. I can remember non-intensified fluoroscopy systems, and the use of primitive ultrasound to diagnose a cerebral midline shift.

What?  Look, you said that generators are "not a complete solution."  They are for Ru82 and Ga68.  There aren't generators for F18 which is why your "Isotope cows help, but they are not a complete  solution. " is confusing because they are different methods of yielding different radioisotopes.

 

I have no idea where you get your "25% of PET installations have a co-sited cyclotron" ... but that is still very different than your original comment of "facility needs an on-site cyclotron" ...

 

I mean ... I do this for a living now.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

Just had to post these...

 

Stellar's Sea Eagle...

 

 

and happy Cappies...

 

Companionable Capybaras

 

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Native to most of South America, the capybara is the largest rodent on Earth. Capybaras can grow to be two feet tall (61 cm) and weigh as much as 175 pounds (79 kg). They are social animals by nature, and they have gained a level of fame worldwide for their seeming ability to make individuals from other species feel at ease in their presence. Collected here: images of capybaras young and old, in the wilds of South America, in safari parks in Europe, hot springs in Japan, and elsewhere, often pictured with a companion or two.

great images at the link...

https://www.theatlantic.com/photo/2018/11/photos-companionable-capybaras/576991/

[Jim K Global Moderator]

That is one pretty bird.

[Draggendrop Veteran]

 

 

 

// Thought Alert...