Curiosity November 2023

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November= Novem=Nava, nine. 9th month when year was of 10 months in Roman calendar system, BC times

Month of Late Autumn in NH while Late Spring in SH.

Chrysanthemum Florigraphy: Language of flowers

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Last month’s science news

1. Nobel Prizes declared: Physiology or Medicine goes to Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman for COVID-19 vaccine, Chemistry goes to Moungi Bawendi, Louis Brus and Alexei Ekimov for Quantum Dots, and Physics for Pierre Agostini, Ferenc Krausz and Anne L’Huillier for work in electrons. Peace goes to Narges Mohammadi (jailed Iranian Journalist), Economics goes to Claudia Goldin for Women’s Pay, while Literature goes to Jon Fosse, whose major works include “Boathouse” (1989) and “Melancholy” I and II (1995–1996).
2. 2023 Nobel by countries: Austria 1, France 3, Germany 1, Hungary 2, Iran 1, Norway 1, Russia 1, Sweden 1, Tunisia 2, US 7
3. Debunking viral clickbait story: Human sperms defies Newtonian laws. Reynolds number of a sperm swimming, it’s very, very small. That means that viscosity is a much more dominant force than inertial ones. New Scientist has a tendency to feature such clickbait for increasing readership. For instance, one issue featured parallel universe as cover image.
4. Reproducibility trial: 246 biologists get different results from same data sets | Wide distribution of findings shows how analytical choices drive conclusions.
5. Chimpanzees goes through menopause too
6. Personal good news; I am now a member of advisory committee of Asia Pacific Focal Point of International Science Council.

Annular solar eclipse in US last month © Sanil Sansar

This month’s Discoveries

1. Potential rabies treatment discovered with a monoclonal antibody, F11. Rabies virus is fatal once it reaches the central nervous system. F11 therapy limits viral load in the brain and reverses disease symptoms. | 100% fatality once disease symptoms occur | Rabies is disease of developing countries, so who will fund this!
2. Study shows the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines in Japan in 2021, finding they reduced mortality by more than 97%.
3. For the first time, researchers have found that Alzheimer’s symptoms can be transferred to a healthy young organism via the gut microbiota, confirming its role in the disease.
4. Brain fungal infection produces Alzheimer’s disease-like changes — Researchers discovered how the fungus Candida albicans enters the brain in mice and generates amyloid beta-like peptides, toxic protein fragments from the amyloid precursor protein related to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.| Cavities, Blood clots and heart disease, gut microbiome modulation to ask us to eat more sugar, and now Alzheimer’s.
5. Millions of Americans Have Cognitive Decline and Don’t Know It | Studies suggest up to 10 million Americans don’t know they’re living with mild cognitive impairment, and few doctors identify it as often as they should.
6. Adults with ADHD are at increased risk for developing dementia
7. Young children who are close to their parents are more likely to grow up kind, helpful and ‘prosocial’
8. A new study shows that babies learn to imitate others because they are imitated. The more a mother is sensitive to and imitated her 6-month-old child, the greater the child’s ability at age 18 months to imitate others. Imitation is the start of the cultural process toward becoming human.
9. Experts have warned that ‘fat talk’ by mothers can unwittingly create problems for their daughter’s body satisfaction and even cause future disordered eating.
10. Conservatives are less likely to purchase imperfect fruits and vegetables that are abnormal in shape and color than liberals. | Cryptocurrency’s popularity in the U.S. tied to conservative moral foundations
11. Scientists Found Microplastics Deep Inside a Cave Closed to the Public for Decades | A Missouri cave that virtually nobody has visited since 1993 is contaminated by high levels of plastic pollution, scientists found.
12. The world may have crossed a “tipping point” that will inevitably make solar power our main source of energy, new research suggests
13. Scientists propose sweeping new law of nature, expanding on evolution | law of increasing fundamental information
14. A radio burst traveled 8 billion years to reach Earth. It’s the farthest ever detected.
15. In classrooms, teachers’ authority is no longer readily accepted by students. The ‘double addressing’ strategy is most effective in exercising authority, where teachers address one student to pass on a message to the rest of the group, or address the group to pass on a message to one student.
16. AI translates 5,000-year-old cuneiform tablets into English | A new technology meets old languages.
17. ‘I’d rather not know’: Why we choose ignorance — When given the choice to learn how their actions will affect someone else, 40% of people will choose ignorance. Choosing not to learn consequences allows people to act selfishly while maintaining positive self-image, research suggests.

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Observances

• 3 Jupiter at opposition
• 4 Southern Taurid meteor shower
• 5 Tsunami Awareness
• 9 International week of Science and Peace, Moon-Venus Conjunction
• 10 Science Day for Peace and Development
• 11 Northern Taurid meteor shower
• 13 Antibiotic Awareness, Uranus at Opposition
• 14 Diabetes
• 17 Philosophy
• 18 Leonid meteor shower
• 19 Toilet
• 20 Children’s, Moon-Saturn Conjunction
• 22 Alpha mono cerotid meteor shower
• 25 Elimination of Violence against women, Moon-Jupiter Conjunction
• 27 The beaver moon, November Full moon
• 28 November Orionid Meteor Shower
• 30 Remembrance for all Victims of Chemical Warfare

Opportunities

• Indo-German DST-DAAD Personal Exchange, 20th Nov
• The Branco Weiss Fellowship — Society in Science, 15th Jan 24
• Swiss Govt PhD and PostDoc Scholarships, 10th Nov
• American Association for University Women scholarships, 15th Nov
• The Lundbeck Foundation’s Postdoc Call
• 1–10 Nov Berlin Science Week
• Several JRF/Project position calls shared in Facebook group

Book I am reading in this month: Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity, Peter Attia, Bill Gifford.

My latest book “Biostatistics and Mathematical Biology” just got published by Pearson. Available in bookstores/Amazon. “Life Skills” is now on sale, Rs. 435 only. Order here. YAI Fb page lists more exciting curiosity-driven research news every day, do subscribe.

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