A version of this gene doubles the risk of dying from COVID-19

Ultrahot 'superionic' ice is a new state of matter | A version of this gene doubles the risk of dying from COVID-19 | Why don't people have tails? Created for {EMAIL} | [Web Version]( November 15, 2021 CONNECT WITH LIVESCIENCE  [Facebook]( [Twitter](  [LIVESCIENCE]( [LIVESCIENCE]( Amazing science every day [SIGN UP]( ⋅ [WEBSITE](  [] Top Science News [] [Ultrahot 'superionic' ice is a new state of matter]( [Ultrahot 'superionic' ice is a new state of matter]( (Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory illustration / Millot, Coppari, Hamel, Krauss) Scientists just squeezed a water droplet between two diamonds and blasted it to star-like temperatures with one of the world's most powerful lasers. The result was a new and mysterious phase of water. Called superionic ice, the "strange, black" water exists under the same pressures and temperatures as those at the center of Earth — a fact that could soon help researchers investigate the secrets buried inside the cores of other worlds. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/15) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] COVID-19 [] [A version of this gene doubles the risk of dying from COVID-19]( [A version of this gene doubles the risk of dying from COVID-19]( (KATERYNA KON/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY via Getty Images) Researchers have identified a version of a gene that doubles a person's risk of severe COVID-19 and doubles the risk of death from the disease for people under 60. The gene, LZTFL1, is involved in the regulation of lung cells in response to infection. When the risky version of the gene is present, cells lining the lungs seem to do less to protect themselves from infection with the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. The gene version that raises COVID-19 risk is present in 60% of people of South Asian ancestry, 15% of people of European ancestry, 2.4% of people with African ancestry and 1.8% of people with East Asian ancestry. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/14) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Life’s Little Mysteries [] [Why don't people have tails?]( [Why don't people have tails?]( (NurPhoto/Getty Images) Tens of millions of years ago, the common ancestors of humans and all other primates had tails. Many modern primates, such as monkeys and lemurs, still have tails, but as primates diversified and evolved, the ancestors of modern humans, as well as apes such as chimps and bonobos — our closest primate relatives — ditched their tails entirely. Why did some primates keep their tails, while humans and apes didn't? Tail loss is thought to be part of the backstory for humans evolving to be bipedal, but precisely how we lost our tails is a question that scientists have long sought to answer. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/15) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Math & Physics [] [Wormholes may be viable shortcuts through space-time after all, new study suggests]( [Wormholes may be viable shortcuts through space-time after all, new study suggests]( (Shutterstock) Wormholes, or portals between black holes, may be stable after all, a wild new theory suggests. The findings contradict earlier predictions that these hypothetical shortcuts through space-time would instantly collapse. The sea change comes because tiny differences in the mathematics of relativity, which is used to describe such wormholes, end up dramatically changing our overall picture of how they behave. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/15) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Astronomy & Astrophysics [] [Interstellar visitor 'Oumuamua wasn't a nitrogen iceberg, Harvard astrophysicists say]( [Interstellar visitor 'Oumuamua wasn't a nitrogen iceberg, Harvard astrophysicists say]( (Bjorn Bakstad via Getty Images) The first-known interstellar object in our solar system, known as 'Oumuamua, continues to defy scientific explanation. Now, one of the latest explanations for what the cigar-shaped interloper is made of — a "nitrogen iceberg" — has also been shot down. In a recent attempt to explain 'Oumuamua, researchers described it as a nitrogen iceberg. But astrophysicists at Harvard say that's impossible, and explain why in a new paper published Nov. 5 in the journal New Astronomy. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/15) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Curious Creatures [] [Polar bear parts are being smuggled around the world]( [Polar bear parts are being smuggled around the world]( (Image by JHLee via Getty Images) People have smuggled hundreds of bear body parts — including polar bear parts — into Australia and New Zealand, a new study reveals. Enforcement agencies seized bear teeth, rugs, bile and embryos suspended in honey from passengers arriving in Australia and New Zealand from 2007 to 2018. Most of the bear parts and derivatives, such as gallbladder bile, were ingredients in traditional medicines. The goods were most often seized from people traveling into Australia and New Zealand from China, but they also came from other countries such as the U.S. and Canada. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/15) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [This fish has 555 teeth … and it loses 20 every day]( [This fish has 555 teeth … and it loses 20 every day]( (catcherman/Getty Images) A fish called the Pacific lingcod has one of nature's toothiest mouths, with about 555 teeth lining its two sets of jaws. Now, a new study suggests that these fish lose teeth as fast as they grow them — at an astonishing rate of 20 per day."Every bony surface in their mouths are covered in teeth," said senior author Karly Cohen, a doctoral candidate in biology at the University of Washington. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/15) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] [Tangled bald eagles crash land on Minnesota street]( [Tangled bald eagles crash land on Minnesota street]( (Plymouth Police Department) A pair of bald eagles interlocked their talons during a territorial dispute — or potentially a lover's dance — and crash-landed as a tangled duo onto a Minnesota street early this month. A small crowd soon assembled where the bald eagles fell, near the intersection of 41st Avenue and Nathan Lane in Plymouth, according to WCCO 4 News, a local television station. Video footage showed the entangled eagles struggling on the ground and occasionally letting out loud shrieks. At other moments, the birds laid still, their outstretched wings draped over one another. Full Story: [Live Science]( (11/14) [LinkedIn]( [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [Email]( [] Daily Quiz [] POLL QUESTION: Around how many active satellites are in low orbit around Earth? 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