British Geological Survey submits application for geoenergy observatory in Cheshire  ThinkGeoEnergy

Reductive cyclization of 1,3,5-triphenyl- and 3-(2-meth­oxy­phen­yl)-1,5-di­phenyl­pentane-1,5-diones by zinc in acetic acid medium leads to the formation of 1,2,4-tri­phenyl­cyclo­pentane-1,2-diol [1,2,4-Ph3C5H5-1,2-(OH)2, C23H22O2, (I)] and 4-(2-meth­oxy­phen­yl)-1,2-di­phenyl­cyclo­pentane-1,2-diol [4-(2-MeOC6H4)-1,2-Ph2C5H5-1,2-(OH)2, C24H24O3, (II)]. Their single crystals have been obtained by crystallization from a THF/hexane solvent mixture. Diols (I) and (II) crystallize in ortho­rhom­bic (Pbca) and triclinic (Poverline{1}) space groups, respectively, at 150 K. Their asymmetric units comprise one [in the case of (I)] and three [in the case of (II)] crystallographically independent mol­ecules of the achiral (1R,2S,4r)-diol isomer. Each hydroxyl group is involved in one intra­molecular and one inter­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond, forming one-dimensional chains. Compounds (I) and (II) have been used successfully as precatalyst activators for the ring-opening polymerization of ∊-caprolactone.

Electron diffraction tomography (EDT) has gained increasing interest, starting with the development of automated electron diffraction tomography (ADT) which enables the collection of three-dimensional electron diffraction data from nano-sized crystals suitable for ab initio structure analysis. A basic description of the ADT method, nowadays recognized as a reliable and established method, as well as its special features and general applicability to different transmission electron microscopes is provided. In addition, the usability of ADT for crystal structure analysis of single nano-sized crystals with and without special crystallographic features, such as twinning, modulations and disorder is demonstrated.

The room-temperature experiment has been revisited for macromolecular crystallography. Despite being limited by radiation damage, such experiments reveal structural differences depending on temperature, and it is expected that they will be able to probe structures that are physiologically alive. For such experiments, the humid-air and glue-coating (HAG) method for humidity-controlled experiments is proposed. The HAG method improves the stability of most crystals in capillary-free experiments and is applicable at both cryogenic and ambient temperatures. To expand the thermal versatility of the HAG method, a new humidifier and a protein-crystal-handling workbench have been developed. The devices provide temperatures down to 4°C and successfully maintain growth at that temperature of bovine cytochrome c oxidase crystals, which are highly sensitive to temperature variation. Hence, the humidifier and protein-crystal-handling workbench have proved useful for temperature-sensitive samples and will help reveal temperature-dependent variations in protein structures.

Rotation is a core crystallographic operation. Two sets of Cartesian coordinates of each point of a rotated object, those before and after rotation, are linearly related, and the coefficients of these linear combinations can be represented in matrix form. This 3 × 3 matrix is unique for all points and thus describes unambiguously a particular rotation. However, its nine elements are mutually dependent and are not interpretable in a straightforward way. To describe rotations by independent and comprehensible parameters, crystallographic software usually refers to Euler or to polar angles. In crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy, there exists a large choice of conventions, making direct comparison of rotation parameters difficult and sometimes confusing. The program py_convrot, written in Python, is a converter of parameters describing rotations. In particular, it deals with all possible choices of polar angles and with all kinds of Euler angles, including all choices of rotation axes and rotation directions. Using a menu, a user can build their own rotation parameterization; its action can be viewed with an interactive graphical tool, Demo. The tables in this article and the extended help pages of the program describe details of these parameterizations and the decomposition of rotation matrices into all types of parameters. The program allows orthogonalization conventions and symmetry operations to be taken into account. This makes the program and its supporting materials both an illustrative teaching material, especially for non-specialists in mathematics and computing, and a tool for practical use.

Microcrystal delivery methods are pivotal in the use of serial femtosecond crystallography (SFX) to resolve the macromolecular structures of proteins. Here, the development of a novel technique and instruments for efficiently delivering microcrystals for SFX are presented. The new method, which relies on a one-dimensional fixed-target system that includes a microcrystal container, consumes an extremely low amount of sample compared with conventional two-dimensional fixed-target techniques at ambient temperature. This novel system can deliver soluble microcrystals without highly viscous carrier media and, moreover, can be used as a microcrystal growth device for SFX. Diffraction data collection utilizing this advanced technique along with a real-time visual servo scan system has been successfully demonstrated for the structure determination of proteinase K microcrystals at 1.85 Å resolution.

A new temperature-controllable humidifier for X-ray diffraction has been developed. It is shown that the humidifier can successfully maintain protein crystal growth at a temperature lower than room temperature.

The Python-based program py_convrot is a universal converter of rigid-body rotation parameters. The program interactively illustrates the action of various rotation parameters and can be used both for teaching goals and for practical applications.

An algorithm, based on the matching of q-vectors pairs, is combined with three-dimensional pattern matching using a nearest-neighbors approach to index Laue and monochromatic serial crystallography data recorded on small unit cell samples.

A new study has revealed information about the way tungara frogs in the tropical rain forest hear, sort, and process sounds which is very similar to the way humans do. The knowledge could be applicable to communication disorders associated with hearing loss and attention deficits or difficulties.

The post Research on tungara frogs may be applicable to hearing loss/attention deficits in humans appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Hot spots of mercury pollution in aquatic sediments and soils can contaminate local food webs and threaten ecosystems, but cleaning them up can be expensive […]

The post Toxicity of mercury hot spots can be reduced with application of activated carbon, researchers discover appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

A new aspherical scattering factor formalism has been implemented in the crystallographic least-squares refinement program SHELXL. The formalism relies on Gaussian functions and can optionally complement the independent atom model to take into account the deformation of electron-density distribution due to chemical bonding and lone pairs. Asphericity contributions were derived from the electron density obtained from quantum-chemical density functional theory computations of suitable model compounds that contain particular chemical environments, as defined by the invariom formalism. Thanks to a new algorithm, invariom assignment for refinement in SHELXL is automated. A suitable parameterization for each chemical environment within the new model was achieved by metaheuristics. Figures of merit, precision and accuracy of crystallographic least-squares refinements improve significantly upon using the new model.

UK-based banks have received around 100,000 applications in a single day after The Bounce Back Loans scheme for small businesses was released.

The U.S. Agency for International Development should speed its transformation into a global leader and catalyst in applying science, technology and innovation to the challenges facing developing countries, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

In a letter to the U.S. Department of State, the presidents of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and National Academy of Medicine expressed concern that a proposal to add supplemental questions for visa applicants.

The Gulf Research Program (GRP) of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is now accepting applications for its Early-Career Research Fellowships and Science Policy Fellowships for 2019.

Apple Senior Vice President of Worldwide Marketing Phil Schiller announces the new iPhone 6 during an Apple special event at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts on September 9, 2014 in Cupertino, California. Apple unveiled the two new iPhones the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.; Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Apple's latest mobile operating system — iOS 8 — is now available, and with it, a new technical hurdle for law enforcement. The company says it will be technologically impossible to access data on phones and iPads running iOS 8, because it won't allow user passcodes to be bypassed.

Our phones, of course, contain troves of information — contacts, messages, recordings — which can be helpful for investigative or prosecutorial purposes. The Supreme Court earlier this year ruled law enforcement cannot access that kind of data without a warrant. Prosecutors had already feared the warrant hurdle would be too much — Rockland County, N.Y., District Attorney Thomas Zugibe told the Wall Street Journal in June that technology "is making it easier and easier for criminals to do their trade," while the court "is making it harder for law enforcement to do theirs."

Now, even with a warrant, data from Apple devices running iOS 8 will be tough — and, Apple says, impossible — for law enforcement to get its hands on.

As The Washington Post reports, the move "amounts to an engineering solution to a legal quandary: Rather than comply with binding court orders, Apple has reworked its latest encryption in a way that prevents the company — or anyone but the device's owner — from gaining access to the vast troves of user data typically stored on smartphones or tablet computers."

Not so fast, writes an iOS forensics expert, Jonathan Zdziarski. Just because Apple will no longer help police doesn't mean police can't find ways to use existing commercial forensics tools to extract the data themselves. Wired Magazine describes how Zdziarski proved his own point:

Zdziarski confirmed with his own forensics software that he was still able to pull from a device running iOS 8 practically all of its third-party application data — that means sensitive content from Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, web browsers, and more — as well as photos and video. The attack he used impersonates a trusted computer to which a user has previously connected the phone; it takes advantage of the same mechanisms that allow users to siphon data off a device with programs like iTunes and iPhoto without entering the gadget's passcode.

"I can do it. I'm sure the guys in suits in the governments can do it," says Zdziarski.

And, Apple will still be able to turn over user data stored outside its phones, for example, on its iCloud service, The Washington Post notes. Users often back up photos, videos, emails and more to iCloud, as the recent nude photo theft reminded us.

Apple, in creating plausible deniability for itself, is also using its strongly worded new privacy stance as a marketing opportunity. It's reinforcing what it says is a commitment to privacy and transparency when it comes to government data requests. Apple says so far this year, it has received fewer than 250 government requests for data, including requests to unlock encrypted iPhones.

The tool, which comes after a similar effort by Google, looks at how people’s traveling behavior has changed since the start of the pandemic

The post Apple releases mobility data to help combat COVID‑19 appeared first on WeLiveSecurity

New research has investigated the long-term effects of applying sewage sludge to Spanish soils. The results indicate that sludge enhances soil properties, but recommends a maximum dose of 40 tons per hectare, applied biannually. Above this level, it appears the soil properties will not improve and may even worsen.

Adapting to climate change in coastal cities needs further development of the resilience approach as well as identifying how it can be practically used in local actions, according to a new study. The researchers present resilience as a flexible, practical way of dealing with climate change's impacts, such as coastal flooding, which can be easily built into adaptation measures.

According to UK researchers, caution must be taken in the use of shale gas until more is known about its environmental impacts. Using US data, they estimated the additional emissions associated with the extraction of gas from shale compared to that of conventional sources and highlighted concerns from the US that extraction could bring significant risks of ground and surface water contamination.

Researchers have used a new comprehensive life cycle approach to estimate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from road construction. When applied to four projects in Spain, the results suggest improvements could be made in the use and efficiency of off-road machinery, the choice of materials and restoration of ecosystems.

The use of important ecosystem services, such as carbon storage or hunting, can be estimated through ecosystem accounting methods, a new study demonstrates. The researchers tested models that could help policymakers to understand the capacity of ecosystems to generate ecosystem services, and how these services are used over time.

Dimension Data to help organisations on the enterprise mobility front through a dedicated Apple practice and managed mobility services for iOS

Rebates and exchange programmes for showerheads, toilets and washing machines can produce significant water savings, according to a US study. The study observed a 6 to14% reduction in household water demand for the first two years after these efficiency programmes were introduced by a water authority in Florida.

Samsung has created an ecommerce platform in partnership with Benow.in along with mobile phone retailers across the country that will allow them to sell and deliver smartphones. Offline stores are also being used to fulfil orders placed on Samsung’s e-store for television and appliances.

Direct messages on the desktop have been in the works for a while now.

Companies like Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, Haier and Godrej Appliance are leveraging Livechat, WhatsApp, DIY video as well as on-call assistance, and helping remotely on real time basis as their service centres are closed in compliance with the government directives.

Apple has finally rolled out its hardware disconnect feature to its iPad models for improved security.

There are more than 30,000 microwave ovens, AC and washing machines which needs repair at a time when Indians are locked indoors and doing household chores themselves due to the lockdown.

The updated iPhone SE will start at $399, or less than half the price of its leading flagship devices and be available as of Friday.

Apple has also provided an additional credit period of 60 days to help them tide over business disruptions due to Covid-19.

Both the companies said privacy and preventing governments from using the system to compile data on citizens was a primary goal

Despite being high on the political agenda, biodiversity is still declining. A new analysis has focused on forest biodiversity in Finland, Russia and Peru and concluded that a global ecosystem approach can make a link between human and ecological systems but bottom-up initiatives are needed to effectively put the concept into action.

Orchards pollinated by a wide range of wild bee species grow more apples than those pollinated by fewer species, finds a new US study. Its authors suggest that farmers could consider investing in wild bee conservation to improve crop yield.

Vermicomposting livestock manure with maize can increase agricultural benefit by 304%, shows a new study. The combination of increased crop yield and the additional earthworms produced as a result of the process led to a substantial increase in output compared to a traditional composting system.

Wastewaters from fruit-packaging plants may contain preservative chemicals. When spread onto fields, these wastewaters affect the way soil microbes cycle nitrogen, new research has found. Although this may impair crop growth, according to the authors, the results could also lead to the development of new substances that reduce nitrate run-off from agricultural land.

Sewage sludge and manure are sometimes added to soil to improve crop production. However, these ‘natural fertilisers’ may contain not only nutrients and organic matter but also antibacterial agents. This study investigated their impact on the microbes in soil, revealing an increase in antibiotic resistance genes. The researchers recommend greater efforts to remove antibiotic residues from wastewater and manure.

Innovatively designed batteries offer a way for vehicles to move away from their dependence on fossil fuels. There has been little mass-market uptake of new battery design, however. In the last century, only four types of battery have been used: manganese oxide; lead acid; nickel; and lithium ion, which is a relative newcomer, introduced in 1991. To understand how innovation moves from research and development (R&D) to application and the mass market, scientists perform technology lifecycle (TLC) analyses, often focusing on R&D and basic research. This study adds an additional indicator — start-up companies — to explore the early phases of how batteries transition from science into industry.