Knowledge Update

​Canberra, June 15 (IANS) Australia's Parkes Observatory telescope has discovered a molecule which displays key attributes associated with life, in a breakthrough set to help scientists solve the mystery of biology in space.

Chirality, or "handedness" is a key attribute related closely with life, but homochirality, or being exclusively either "left or right handed", has never been discovered outside of Earth, until the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation's (CSIRO's) Parkes telescope found the 'handed' molecule propylene oxide.

Dr John Reynolds, Director of Operations at CSIRO Astronomy and Space Science, said the discovery will give scientists the chance to further research how the Universe can contribute to sustaining life, Xinhua reported.

"This discovery gives us a window into how an incredibly important type of molecule is made in space, and gives us the chance to understand the impact that process may have on life in the universe," Reynolds said in a statement on Wednesday.

Typically, many molecules exist in forms that are mirror images of each other, but molecules associated with life, such as proteins, enzymes, amino acids and sugars are found to be made up of a single handedness.

Propylene oxide is a common homochiral compound used in making polyurethane plastics, and was discovered by the radio telescope in an interstellar cloud near the center of the Milky Way.

The cloud, known as Sagittarius B2, is actively forming stars, and Reynolds said scientists would follow the developments in the region to see if the Universe divulges any further secrets about the potential of life in outer space.

"Understanding how this came about is a major puzzle in biology, " he said.​

​Washington, June 15 (IANS) For the first time, an instrument onboard an orbiting NASA spacecraft has measured the methane emissions from a single, specific leaking facility on the Earth’s surface, the US space agency has said.

The observation -- by the Hyperion spectrometer on NASA’s Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) -- is an important breakthrough in our ability to eventually measure and monitor emissions of this potent greenhouse gas from space.

"This is the first time the methane emissions from a single facility have been observed from space,” said one of the researchers, David Thompson from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.

In a new paper accepted for publication in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, a research team detailed the observation, which occurred over Aliso Canyon, near Porter Ranch, California. 

The Hyperion instrument successfully detected the methane leak on three separate overpasses during the winter of 2015-16. 

The research was part of an investigation of the large accidental Aliso Canyon methane release last fall and winter.

The orbital observations from Hyperion were consistent with airborne measurements made by NASA’s Airborne/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) imager flying onboard a NASA ER-2 aircraft.​

Canberra/Washington, June 15 (IANS) In a first, a team of scientists using highly sensitive radio telescopes has discovered the first complex organic “chiral” molecule in interstellar space near the centre of our galaxy.

Like a pair of human hands, certain organic molecules have mirror-image versions of themselves, a chemical property known as chirality.

These so-called "handed" molecules are essential for biology and have intriguingly been found in meteorites that have hit the Earth and comets in our solar system.

The molecule, propylene oxide (CH3CHOCH2), was found in an enormous star-forming cloud of dust and gas known as Sagittarius B2 (Sgr B2).

“This is the first molecule detected in interstellar space that has the property of chirality, making it a pioneering leap forward in our understanding of how prebiotic molecules are made in the universe and the effects they may have on the origins of life," explained Brett McGuire, Jansky post-doctoral Fellow with the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) in Charlottesville, Virginia.

"Propylene oxide is among the most complex and structurally intricate molecules detected so far in space," added Brandon Carroll, chemistry graduate student at the California Institute of Technology.

Detecting this molecule opens the door for further experiments determining how and where molecular handedness emerges and why one form may be slightly more abundant than the other.

Complex organic molecules form in interstellar clouds like Sgr B2 in several ways.

The most basic pathway is through gas-phase chemistry, in which particles collide and merge to produce ever more complex molecules.

To form more complex molecules like propylene oxide, astronomers believe thin mantles of ice on dust grains help link small molecules into longer and larger structures.

These molecules can then evaporate from the surface of the grains and further react in the gas of the surrounding cloud.

To date, more than 180 smaller molecules have been detected in space.

“Meteorites in our solar system contain chiral molecules that predate the Earth itself, and chiral molecules have recently been discovered in comets," noted Carroll. "Such small bodies may be what pushed life to the handedness we see today."

"By discovering a chiral molecule in space, we finally have a way to study where and how these molecules form before they find their way into meteorites and comets, and to understand the role they play in the origins of homochirality and life," McGuire said in a paper published in the journal Science.

The research was undertaken with the National Science Foundation's Green Bank Telescope (GBT) in West Virginia as part of the Prebiotic Interstellar Molecular Survey. Additional supporting observations were taken with the Parkes radio telescope in Australia.​

​Beijing, June 13 (IANS) The indicators of industrial production and retail sales maintained their growth in May, while investments in fixed assets slowed down, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBS) on Monday.

Beijing, June 14 (IANS) Encouraging data points to stabilisation of China's economy but challenges ranging from tepid private investment to sluggish global economy suggest a strong recovery is unlikely.

​New York, June 14 (IANS) US-based technology giant Apple at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San Francisco on Monday announced revealed iOS 10.

The OS will not be available to customers until later this year. The company rolled out the developer betas on Monday and said public betas for non-developers will follow in July,

London, June 13 (IANS) A combination of text messages and individual counselling sessions help motivate patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), resulting in improved patient-reported clinical outcomes, finds a study.

"The findings support the introduction of behavioural approaches as an effective way to improve the health of rheumatoid arthritis patients which may also be applicable in other populations with chronic disease and limited mobility," said Tanja Thomsen from the Copenhagen Centre for Arthritis Research in Denmark. 

According to the researchers, RA patients tend to be more sedentary than the general population that can have serious health consequences, including an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death. 

In the study, 75 adult RA patients underwent a 16-week intervention that included three individual motivational counselling sessions with a health professional and regular text messages aimed at improving motivation to reduce daily sitting time and replacing it with light intensity physical activity.

A control group of 75 healthy adult patients matched for other characteristics was encouraged to maintain their usual lifestyle. Daily sitting time was recorded using a wearable activity monitor.

The researchers found that after 16 weeks, there was a significant between-group difference in average daily sitting time in favour of the intervention group. 

Secondary outcomes that were also in favour of the intervention group included self-assessment scores of pain, fatigue, physical function and blood measurements of total cholesterol. 

The study was recently presented at the European League Against Rheumatism Annual Congress 2016 in London.​

New York, June 14 (IANS) Microsoft officially confirmed on Monday that a slimmer version of its gaming machine Xbox One will be launch in August. Dubbed the Xbox One S, the new console will be 40 per cent smaller than the existing model, Xbox One, making it the smallest gaming machine Microsoft has produced, Xinhua quoted the company as saying at the E3 Expo. The company said out of a new visual design, "the sleekest, most advanced Xbox ever" also comes with 4K Ultra HD video support and High Dynamic Range capabilities for both gaming and video, among other new features. The new Xbox One S also comes with a slightly redesigned controller, featuring textured grip, increased wireless range and Bluetooth support. The company also announced another new console, Project Scorpio, which will offer virtual reality and 4K gaming. The console will be backwards compatible with both the Xbox One and Xbox One S, existing alongside both simultaneously.​

​New York, June 14 (IANS) Young adults find video gaming so compelling that they often end up delaying bedtime by more than one and half hours on the nights spent gaming, reveals new research.

"These findings provide further insight into factors that influence individuals' decision making when determining if they should get sufficient sleep,” said lead author Brandy Roane, Assistant Professor at the University of North Texas Health Science Centre in the US.

The study included online surveys from 963 gamers. Participants were US gamers with an average age of 28.7 years who played video games at least once the previous week. 

The analysis showed that on average, gamers delayed going to bed 36 per cent of the nights they played video games. 

Average game playing was 4.6 nights per week and the average delay in bedtime on the nights spent gaming was 101 minutes.

"Our data shows that video gaming is quite an important factor that frequently leads to missed sleep for 67 percent of gamers," Roane noted.

"Additionally, the reasons provided by gamers for their choice to delay their bedtime strongly supports the inclusion of video gaming as an addictive behavior," Roane said.

The findings were presented at SLEEP 2016, the 30th anniversary meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies LLC (APSS), in Denver.​

New York, June 14 (IANS) Consuming nearly four servings of whole grains such as bran, oatmeal and quinoa a day can reduce the risk of premature death, says a new study.

The findings showed that the multiple bio-active compounds in the whole grains contribute to various health benefits.

Also, whole grains contain high fiber that is likely to lower cholesterol production, glucose response and increase satiety.

Further, people who consume around 70 grams of whole grains a day showed 22 per cent lower risk of total mortality, 23 per cent lower risk of heart diseases mortality as well as a 20 per cent lower risk of cancer mortality in comparison to those who ate little or no whole grains.

"These findings further support current dietary guidelines that recommend at least three daily servings (or 48 grams) of whole grains to improve long-term health and prevent premature death," said Qi Sun, Assistant Professor at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, in the US.

The results were published online in the journal Circulation.

People should choose foods that are high in whole grain ingredients and reduce the consumption of unhealthy refined carbohydrates, the researchers suggested.

For the study, the team conducted a meta-analysis of 12 published studies and which included 786,076 people in US, Britain and the Scandinavian countries between 1970 and 2010.​