[Science] :
This summer the country notched its highest temperatures to date. According to the Korea Meteorological Administration(KMA) on Thursday, the seasonal average temperature nationwide was 25-point-six degrees Celsius, one-point-nine degrees higher than the past yearly average for the season, and the highest ...

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[Science] :
This past September set records both for tropical nights and unusually hot daytime weather throughout the country.   According to the Korea Meteorological Administration(KMA) on Tuesday, locations across the nation experienced heat-wave-level temperatures of 33 degrees Celsius or higher over an average ...

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[Politics] :
The main opposition Democratic Party(DP) will stage a rally this weekend to denounce alleged influence peddling by President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon-hee and call for a special counsel probe. DP spokesperson Hwang Jung-a said Wednesday that the party will hold the rally in Seoul’s ...

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[Culture] :
Considering the growing popularity of the Korean language around the world, the government plans to double the number of internet-based Test of Proficiency in Korean(TOPIK) sessions and offer the test in more countries next year. According to the education ministry on Thursday, the online test, designed to ...

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Hot peppers are tasty and nutritious fruits (not vegetables!) that create a spicy sensation on your tastebuds. They have been a staple of spicy foods for thousands of years, but in the last half-century, scientists have developed advanced cross-breeding techniques to craft the hottest pepper in the world — hotter than nature would concoct on its own.

In search of the hottest hot sauce in the world, we found the bottles with the highest Scoville Heat Units (SHUs) to bring you this list of the 14 most diabolically spicy hot sauces.

Apples are nature's delicious and nutritious candy, with a staggering 7,500 varieties grown around the globe. Even the sweetest apples are healthy alternatives to sugary sweets — making them a great way to indulge your cravings without racking up the calories. Whether you're a fan of the crisp, refreshing crunch or more the type to bake the fruit into an apple pie, you really can't go wrong.

Challenge yourself with some of the hardest riddles we could find so you can keep your mind sharp! As you tackle these tricky brain teasers, you'll engage your mind in a way that few other activities can.

The results of the seventh blind test of crystal structure prediction are presented, focusing on structure generation methods.

The results of the seventh blind test of crystal structure prediction are presented, focusing on structure ranking methods.

Accurate modeling of conformational energies is key to the crystal structure prediction of conformational polymorphs. Focusing on molecules XXXI and XXXII from the seventh blind test of crystal structure prediction, this study employs various electronic structure methods up to the level of domain-local pair natural orbital coupled cluster singles and doubles with perturbative triples [DLPNO-CCSD(T1)] to benchmark the conformational energies and to assess their impact on the crystal energy landscapes. Molecule XXXI proves to be a relatively straightforward case, with the conformational energies from generalized gradient approximation (GGA) functional B86bPBE-XDM changing only modestly when using more advanced density functionals such as PBE0-D4, ωB97M-V, and revDSD-PBEP86-D4, dispersion-corrected second-order Møller–Plesset perturbation theory (SCS-MP2D), or DLPNO-CCSD(T1). In contrast, the conformational energies of molecule XXXII prove difficult to determine reliably, and variations in the computed conformational energies appreciably impact the crystal energy landscape. Even high-level methods such as revDSD-PBEP86-D4 and SCS-MP2D exhibit significant disagreements with the DLPNO-CCSD(T1) benchmarks for molecule XXXII, highlighting the difficulty of predicting conformational energies for complex, drug-like molecules. The best-converged predicted crystal energy landscape obtained here for molecule XXXII disagrees significantly with what has been inferred about the solid-form landscape experimentally. The identified limitations of the calculations are probably insufficient to account for the discrepancies between theory and experiment on molecule XXXII, and further investigation of the experimental solid-form landscape would be valuable. Finally, assessment of several semi-empirical methods finds r2SCAN-3c to be the most promising, with conformational energy accuracy intermediate between the GGA and hybrid functionals and a low computational cost.

The seventh blind test of crystal structure prediction (CSP) methods substantially increased the level of complexity of the target compounds relative to the previous tests organized by the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre. In this work, the performance of density-functional methods is assessed using numerical atomic orbitals and the exchange-hole dipole moment dispersion correction (XDM) for the energy-ranking phase of the seventh blind test. Overall, excellent performance was seen for the two rigid molecules (XXVII, XXVIII) and for the organic salt (XXXIII). However, for the agrochemical (XXXI) and pharmaceutical (XXXII) targets, the experimental polymorphs were ranked fairly high in energy amongst the provided candidate structures and inclusion of thermal free-energy corrections from the lattice vibrations was found to be essential for compound XXXI. Based on these results, it is proposed that the importance of vibrational free-energy corrections increases with the number of rotatable bonds.

A seventh blind test of crystal structure prediction has been organized by the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre. The results are presented in two parts, with this second part focusing on methods for ranking crystal structures in order of stability. The exercise involved standardized sets of structures seeded from a range of structure generation methods. Participants from 22 groups applied several periodic DFT-D methods, machine learned potentials, force fields derived from empirical data or quantum chemical calculations, and various combinations of the above. In addition, one non-energy-based scoring function was used. Results showed that periodic DFT-D methods overall agreed with experimental data within expected error margins, while one machine learned model, applying system-specific AIMnet potentials, agreed with experiment in many cases demonstrating promise as an efficient alternative to DFT-based methods. For target XXXII, a consensus was reached across periodic DFT methods, with consistently high predicted energies of experimental forms relative to the global minimum (above 4 kJ mol−1 at both low and ambient temperatures) suggesting a more stable polymorph is likely not yet observed. The calculation of free energies at ambient temperatures offered improvement of predictions only in some cases (for targets XXVII and XXXI). Several avenues for future research have been suggested, highlighting the need for greater efficiency considering the vast amounts of resources utilized in many cases.

A seventh blind test of crystal structure prediction was organized by the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre featuring seven target systems of varying complexity: a silicon and iodine-containing molecule, a copper coordination complex, a near-rigid molecule, a cocrystal, a polymorphic small agrochemical, a highly flexible polymorphic drug candidate, and a polymorphic morpholine salt. In this first of two parts focusing on structure generation methods, many crystal structure prediction (CSP) methods performed well for the small but flexible agrochemical compound, successfully reproducing the experimentally observed crystal structures, while few groups were successful for the systems of higher complexity. A powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) assisted exercise demonstrated the use of CSP in successfully determining a crystal structure from a low-quality PXRD pattern. The use of CSP in the prediction of likely cocrystal stoichiometry was also explored, demonstrating multiple possible approaches. Crystallographic disorder emerged as an important theme throughout the test as both a challenge for analysis and a major achievement where two groups blindly predicted the existence of disorder for the first time. Additionally, large-scale comparisons of the sets of predicted crystal structures also showed that some methods yield sets that largely contain the same crystal structures.

Laser-induced projectile impact testing (LIPIT) based on synchrotron imaging is proposed and validated. This emerging high-velocity, high-strain microscale dynamic loading technique offers a unique perspective on the strain and energy dissipation behavior of materials subjected to high-speed microscale single-particle impacts. When combined with synchrotron radiation imaging techniques, LIPIT allows for in situ observation of particle infiltration. Two validation experiments were carried out, demonstrating the potential of LIPIT in the roentgenoscopy of the dynamic properties of various materials. With a spatial resolution of 10 µm and a temporal resolution of 33.4 µs, the system was successfully realized at the Beijing Synchrotron Radiation Facility 3W1 beamline. This innovative approach opens up new avenues for studying the dynamic properties of materials in situ.

we introduce a novel approach for a real-time dual-frequency feedback system, which has been firstly used at the hard X-ray nanoprobe beamline of SSRF. The BiBEST can then efficiently stabilize X-ray beam position and stability in parallel, making use of different optical systems in the beamline.

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) has announced that...

USGS Western Fisheries Research Center (WFRC) biological science technician, Genevieve Kent, is the winner of this issue’s photo contest. 

Emerita Resources Corp. (EMO:TSX.V; EMOTF:OTCQB; LLJA:FSE) announces results from a metallurgical testing program at its wholly-owned Iberian Belt West (IBW) project in Spain. Read why one expert says the company is in "the right place to be."

Wearing a rainbow sequin gown she designed herself in honor of Pride Month, Kataluna Enriquez made history last weekend when she was crowned Miss Nevada USA — the win will make her the first openly transgender contestant to compete in the upcoming Miss USA pageant this fall.

"My win is our win," she posted afterward on her Instagram in a message to the LGBTQ community. "We just made history. Happy pride."

Enriquez, who was also Miss Nevada USA's first trans contestant, beat out 21 other women for the top spot. She will represent the Silver State at the 2021 Miss USA pageant that will be held on Nov. 29 in Tulsa, Okla., where she will have a chance to be crowned Miss USA and advance to the Miss Universe pageant.

If crowned Miss USA, Enriquez will become the second trans contestant to compete for Miss Universe, after Angela Ponce, who represented Spain in the 2018 Miss Universe pageant. The pageant began allowing transgender contestants in 2012.

Enriquez began competing in pageants in 2015. Unable to afford custom designer gowns that fit her body at the time, she began designing her own to wear for competitions and eventually started her own line, Kataluna Kouture (@katalunakouture). In March, Enriquez became the first trans woman to win Miss Nevada's preliminary pageant, Miss Silver State USA.

The journey has not been easy, and Enriquez has faced discrimination. While competing in a pageant outside of Nevada, she had not been given a roommate when pageant organizers learned she was trans. A doctor had also been sent to certify that she was a woman before she could continue.

But Enriquez told NPR's Weekend All Things Considered that her determination to make history was what motivated her to keep competing.

"I had a purpose and I had a dream," she said. "I wanted to compete on the Miss USA stage. When I was young, I always wanted to see someone on the Miss USA stage — someone like me. And it just happened to be that I was the person that I needed to make history."

As she prepares for the Miss USA pageant, Enriquez said she plans to advocate for equality and mental health.

"My win is not just a win for the trans community," she said. "It's a win for all women to be represented."

Kalyani Saxena and Tinbete Ermyas produced and edited the audio version of this story. Josie Fischels produced for the web. Josie Fischels is an intern on NPR's News Desk.

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

A team of students at Maiden High School has been selected as the Grand Prize winner in Catawba County�s Distracted Driving Video Contest. Members of the winning team are Matt Ellis, Rebecca Gates, John Kirby and Taylor Abshire.

The program started in the spring, when 4-H youth received a set of plants and participated in a workshop where they learned how to create a successful home mini vegetable garden with tomatoes, peppers, squash and more.

Alexander, Burke, Caldwell and Catawba County students in the 4th or 5th grades submitted posters related to the theme �Severe Weather Awareness� and illustrated an example of a natural hazard that affects North Carolina. One poster from each county and one overall winner from all entries were chosen as the winners of the Unifour Area Severe Weather Awareness Week Poster Contest. The winners were announced during Severe Weather Awareness Week with surprise presentations at each winner�s school.

A team of students from Hickory High School's Student Council won the Grand Prize. The team included Will McCarrick, Anne Orgain, Taylor Panzer and Lexie Reeves. Their video, "Do You Drive Distracted?", was judged the best by a panel of judges.

A series of secret tests conducted by the U.S. Army in the 1950s and 1960s did not expose residents of the United States and Canada to chemical levels considered harmful, according to a new report from a committee of the National Research Council.

The federal government should not rely on polygraph examinations for screening prospective or current employees to identify spies or other national-security risks because the test results are too inaccurate when used this way.

Despite being used for several decades, test-based incentives have not consistently generated positive effects on student achievement, says a new report from the National Research Council.

Potentially useful biomarker tests for molecularly targeted therapies are not being adopted appropriately into clinical practice because of a lack of common evidentiary standards necessary for regulatory, reimbursement, and treatment decisions, says a new report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

The latest and final in a series of congressionally mandated biennial reviews of the evidence of health problems that may be linked to exposure to Agent Orange and other herbicides used during the Vietnam War changed the categorization of health outcomes for bladder cancer, hypothyroidism, and spina bifida and clarified the breadth of the previous finding for Parkinson’s disease.

The National Academy of Engineering today announced the winners of its 2018 EngineerGirl essay competition.

When Sara Altschule took a 23andMe ancestry test, the results confirmed what she already suspected - She is 77 percent Ashkenazi Jewish.

Five years after a landmark National Academies report on eyewitness identification, a lead author reflects on its impact.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Researchers are scrambling to find effective treatments for COVID-19, which has infected more than 1 million people around the word.

Latest COVID-19 Conversations webinar discusses implementing crisis standards of care.

When it comes to COVID-19 testing, questions remain about which of the tests available are reliable, how much testing is needed, and how to ensure access to testing. The latest COVID-19 Conversations webinar explored the challenges ahead.

Disease surveillance, testing, and contact tracing are among the best public health tools available to protect ourselves and our communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, said panelists during a recent COVID-19 Conversations webinar, hosted by the National Academy of Medicine and American Public Health Association.

A new rapid expert consultation from a standing committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine examines four topics related to the use and interpretation of COVID-19 diagnostic tests.

Two new rapid expert consultations from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine offer lessons learned from the 2020 fall semester regarding COVID-19 testing and guidance on student behavior, as college administrators plan for the 2021 spring semester.

As cochlear implant technology has significantly improved, the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) should use a more difficult test than the Hearing in Noise Test (HINT) to make disability benefit determinations in adults and children after cochlear implant surgery, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

A new report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) warns the increasingly numerous and widespread impacts of climate change may soon overcome our ability to adapt, unless action is taken to reduce emissions.

Lauren Alexander Augustine, executive director of the National Academies’ Gulf Research Program, discussed community resilience strategies before the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis at a March 9 hearing.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress — which produces the “Nation’s Report Card” and other critical education data — should make changes to understand and reduce its costs and open the door to innovation.

Testing for exposure to PFAS — chemicals used in a broad range of consumer products for decades — should be offered to patients who are likely to have a history of elevated exposure. A new report provides advice to the CDC on how clinicians can interpret test results and deliver follow-up care.

Apple is exploring development of its own car, according to multiple reports. CEO Tim Cook approved development a year ago, according to Daisuke Wakabayashi and Mike Ramsey at The Wall Street Journal. Steve Zadesky, an Apple VP, has permission to hire 1,000 people to build an electric car. This is fairly stunning news. Apple makes high-margin computers that are replaced every 2-5 years.

HCLTech said the lab is scalable to test millimeter-wave (mmWave) frequency 5G infrastructure to help OEMs and telecom service providers quickly and accurately measure critical parameters.

Physicists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) have successfully tested a new device that will lead to a better understanding of the interactions between ultrahot plasma contained within fusion facilities and the materials inside those facilities. The measurement tool, known as the Materials Analysis Particle Probe (MAPP), was built by a consortium that includes Princeton University and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (U. of I.).

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Precision time signals sent through the Global Positioning System (GPS) synchronize cellphone calls, time-stamp financial transactions, and support safe travel by aircraft, ship, train and car.

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Managers in Industry 4.0 will need risk management skills, says Rekha Sethi, director-general of AIMA

Abhinav Srivastava, CIO, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, talks about how technology is reshaping automotive safety.