Infections caused by antibiotic resistance are a leading issue faced by the medical field. The authors studied the antibacterial effectiveness of turmeric against gram-positive Staphylococcus epidermidis using antibiotic sensitivity disks. They infused blank antibiotic sensitivity disks with a 5% concentrated solution of turmeric and placed them on agar plates inoculated with bacteria. Overall, there was no measurable ZOI surrounding the turmeric disk so the measurements for all trials were 0 cm, suggesting that turmeric at a 5% concentration is not an effective antibacterial against S. epidermidis.
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Capturing Harmful Air Pollutants Using an Electrospun Mesh Embedded with Zinc-based Nanocrystals
Zeolithic imidazolate framework-8 (ZIF-8) is a specific metal-organic framework that has favorable qualities for use in an air filter and is known to be capable of adsorbing particulate matter. Therefore, the objective of this experiment was to determine the effectiveness of ZIF-8 in adsorbing polar, gaseous air pollutants, specifically nitrogen dioxide and hydrogen sulfide. In order to determine effectiveness, the percent change in concentration for various gases after the application of ZIF-8 crystals was measured via Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The work highlights crystals as a potentially promising alternative or addition to current filter materials to reduce atmospheric pollution.
Read More...Efficacy of natural coagulants in reducing water turbidity under future climate change scenarios
Here the authors investigated the effects of natural coagulants on reducing the turbidity of water samples from the Tennessee River Watershed. They found that turbidity reduction was higher at lower temperatures for eggshells. They then projected and mapped turbidity reactions under two climate change scenarios and three future time spans for eggshells. They found site-specific and time-vary turbidity reactions using natural coagulants could be useful for optimal water treatment plans.
Read More...Convolutional neural network-based analysis of pediatric chest X-ray images for pneumonia detection
The authors test various machine learning models to improve the accuracy and efficiency of pneumonia diagnosis from X-ray images.
Read More...Effects of urban traffic noise on the early growth and transcription of Arabidopsis thaliana
This article explores the largely unstudied impact of noise pollution on plant life. By exposing Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings to urban traffic noise, the study found a significant increase in seedling growth, alongside substantial changes in gene expression. This research reveals critical insights into how noise pollution affects plant physiology and contributes to a broader understanding of its ecological impacts, helping to guide future efforts in ecosystem conservation.
Read More...Generation of a magnetic field on Mars
The authors propose and test a method that would allow for the generation of a magnetic field on Mars sufficient to support future colonization.
Read More...SmartZoo: A Deep Learning Framework for an IoT Platform in Animal Care
Zoos offer educational and scientific advantages but face high maintenance costs and challenges in animal care due to diverse species' habits. Challenges include tracking animals, detecting illnesses, and creating suitable habitats. We developed a deep learning framework called SmartZoo to address these issues and enable efficient animal monitoring, condition alerts, and data aggregation. We discovered that the data generated by our model is closer to real data than random data, and we were able to demonstrate that the model excels at generating data that resembles real-world data.
Read More...The impact of greenhouse gases, regions, and sectors on future temperature anomaly with the FaIR model
This study explores how different economic sectors, geographic regions, and greenhouse gas types might affect future global mean surface temperature (GMST) anomalies differently from historical patterns. Using the Finite Amplitude Impulse Response (FaIR) model and four Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) — SSP126, SSP245, SSP370, and SSP585 — the research reveals that future contributions to GMST anomalies.
Read More...Public Perception of the Effects of Artificial Sweeteners on Diabetes Based on YouTube Comments
Artificial sweeteners are rising in popularity, in part due to the influence of social media platforms like YouTube. However, YouTube commenters often repeat information about artificial sweeteners that is not supported by scientific research. To investigate how misinformation about sweeteners spreads through social media, Kim and Yoo conduct a content analysis of YouTube comments to reveal how many comments repeat misinformation about artificial sweeteners' effects.
Read More...Utilizing meteorological data and machine learning to predict and reduce the spread of California wildfires
This study hypothesized that a machine learning model could accurately predict the severity of California wildfires and determine the most influential meteorological factors. It utilized a custom dataset with information from the World Weather Online API and a Kaggle dataset of wildfires in California from 2013-2020. The developed algorithms classified fires into seven categories with promising accuracy (around 55 percent). They found that higher temperatures, lower humidity, lower dew point, higher wind gusts, and higher wind speeds are the most significant contributors to the spread of a wildfire. This tool could vastly improve the efficiency and preparedness of firefighters as they deal with wildfires.
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