Covid infection caused surge in preterm births: US Study

Says vaccines helped bring it down

New Delhi: COVID-19 caused an alarming surge in premature births, but vaccines were key to returning the early birth rate to pre-pandemic levels, researchers have found analysing birth records in California, US. Maternal COVID-19 infection increased the probability of preterm delivery, which is birth occurring before 37 weeks of gestation, by 1.2 percentage points, from […]

Current solar cycle intensity to peak in 2024, may impact Earth’s satellites: Study

New Delhi: The current ongoing solar cycle is likely to peak its intensity in 2024 and can potentially impact Earth’s space weather, according to researchers at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Kolkata. It is known that roughly every 11 years, the intensity of solar activity reaches its peak, which manifests as […]

Climate change pushes dengue into new frontiers across India

Dimapur (Nagaland): The lights above washing the hospital corridor with a dim glow, a frantic Jenpu Rongmei rushed to see his 12-year-old nephew Nina who had been admitted the night before with fever and body ache. He was too late. The young boy had succumbed to dengue, a neglected tropical disease that was entirely alien […]

Physicists detect second-most powerful cosmic ray from beyond our galaxy

New Delhi: Researchers have detected the second-most powerful cosmic ray to have come from outside our galaxy. But the exact origin of this “ultra-high-energy” particle from outer space remains a mystery. Observed in Utah, this is believed to be the most powerful cosmic ray detection since the ‘Oh-My-God’ particle in 1991 that left physicists puzzled. […]

UN climate meetings organised in a way that benefits richer, larger countries: Study

New Delhi: The UN COP climate meetings are organised in a way that benefits richer and larger countries at the expense of smaller and poorer ones, according to a study. The research by a team from the University of Leeds in the UK and Lund University in Sweden also labels the participating countries as either […]

Ozone hole largest on record over past 3 years, new research finds

New Delhi: Contrary to public perception, the Antarctic ozone hole has been amongst the largest on record over the past three years, new research has found. The ozone hole above Antarctica has been remarkably massive and long-lived over the past four years and chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are not the only things to blame, said researchers in […]

Problem screen use hits attention, higher-level thinking: Study

New Delhi: Problematic screen use impairs a range of cognitive processes, in particular the ability to concentrate and the so-called executive functions, which include impulse control, planning, organisation and problem solving, a study shows. The research, published in the journal Neuropsychology Review, is an overview of more than 30 studies of people who fall into […]

Screen time found to affect children’s brain physically, functionally: Researchers

New Delhi: Screen time leads to physical and functional changes in the brains of children under 12 years of age, impacting their development, scientists have found after reviewing 33 brain imaging studies spanning 23 years and involving 30,000 participants. Screen time, referring to the time children spend watching television or playing computer games, was found […]

1.3 million die every year due to cancers caused by tobacco smoking in 7 countries: Lancet Study

New Delhi: Over 1.3 million lives are lost every year to cancers caused by smoking tobacco across seven countries, including India, according to a study published in The Lancet’s eClinicalMedicine journal. Researchers found that together, the seven countries — India, China, the UK, Brazil, Russia, the US and South Africa — represented more than half […]