Two properties are particularly sought after in materials for technology (for a variety of devices from sensors to computer memory, etc.): magnetism and ferroelectricity. Obtaining materials with both qualities is highly desirable. At the present time, these properties have shown to be almost entirely mutually exclusive, but a new study conducted by SISSA/Northwestern University introduces an innovative method which may soon become reality.
News
Without understanding the “referential function” of language (words as “verbal labels”, symbolizing other things) it is impossible to learn a language. Is this implicit knowledge already present early in infants? A study conducted by the Language, Cognition and Development Lab of SISSA says it is.
If we read about someone who is smiling and happy, without realizing it, we smile as well, and a similar reaction also occurs for the other emotions. If, however, the text is not in our mother tongue but in a second language, then our mind and body react in a blander manner. This effect, according to Francesco Foroni, the author of a new study that observed the phenomenon for the first time, may depend on the different way we learn our mother tongue and a second language.
There are languages that place the verb between the subject and the object (SVO order—Subject/ Verb/ Object) while others place it at the end of the trio (SOV order). The order of these elements, far from being purely decorative, influences efficiency of expression.
Even fragmentary information can be used to understand which mechanical subunits make up a protein and how these move in relation to one another, with a view to establishing how the molecule carries out its functions. To this end, a SISSA research group (in collaboration with Temple University in Philadelphia) has developed a new method for the computerized analysis of the internal dynamics of molecules, demonstrating its efficiency and versatility. The study has been chosen as the cover story of the journal Structure.
Social cognitive neuroscience is a relatively young but promising field that stems from the encounter between cognitive neuroscience and social cognition studies. The journal Cortex is devoting a whole issue to the subject (available online on August 1 and in print on September 1), which has been coordinated by SISSA and the University of Oxford.
The semantic representation of social groups involves areas of the brain associated with processing emotions. So says a study at SISSA in collaboration with the University of Trieste and the University Hospital of Udine which was published in the journal Cortex.
In old stars there is too little Lithium – 7, a primordial isotope which was created along with the universe in the first 3 minutes, and scientists do not know why. There has even been some question of whether it was a problem of the big bang theory, the theoretical framework that explains much of what we know about our Universe. A team led by SISSA (in collaboration with INAF - Astronomical Observatory of Trieste, and The University of Padua) revisited this “lithium problem”.
26-28 ottobre 2015,
SISSA
La SISSA organizza la “Scuola in comunicazione del rischio per la salute e per l’ambiente”. Il corso è rivolto a diversi e operatori dell’informazione e permette di accedere ai crediti formativi previsti per la formazione continua dei giornalisti. Le iscrizioni si effettuano online alla pagina http://ics.sissa.it/comunicazionerischio/domanda-ammissione e resteranno aperte fino al 28 settembre alle 12.00
The cognitive system encodes better the first and last syllables of words. Researchers at SISSA, in collaboration with Udine Hospital (Azienda Ospedaliera di Udine), have demonstrated for the first time that this cognitive mechanism is present from birth. The study was published in the scientific review Developmental Science.
Sono ancora aperte le iscrizioni al Master in Comunicazione della Scienza “Franco Prattico” (MCS) della SISSA di Trieste per il nuovo biennio 2015-2017. Intanto emergono alcune importanti anticipazioni: prima fra queste la partecipazione dello scrittore Paolo Giordano e del giornalista britannico Andy Ridgway. È inoltre previsto un aumento delle ore di lezione in inglese e di quelle dedicate all’approfondimento dei social media. Le iscrizioni alle selezioni resteranno aperte fino al 29 settembre 2015, alle 12.00.
A group of scientists at SISSA proposes a quick alternative for predicting the internal dynamics of RNA molecules (how the different parts move in relation to each other). This simple solution, which uses beads and springs, provides similar results to other, more complex and expensive techniques for analyzing molecules that are currently in use. The study was published in the journal Nucleic Acids Research.
Patients, doctors and researchers look with great expectations to epidural electrostimulation, a medical technique that could alleviate the condition of subjects affected by paralysis due to spinal cord injury. Although still relatively rudimentary, the technique is constantly being improved thanks to research.
In the most systematic and rigorous study conducted thus far in its field, the Prion Protein ( PrPC ) was clearly shown to play a role in preventing the onset of epileptic seizures. PrPC is perhaps best known in its "degenerate" form, the prion, and an infectious agent behind dangerous neurodegenerative diseases such as Mad Cow Disease. SISSA contributed to the study, which was published in the journal Scientific Reports (Nature group).
Certain genetic diseases arise from a deficit of specific genes. An enzyme that amplifies gene transcription could be a viable therapy in these cases, as long as genes are not stimulated to work on the wrong part of the body. SISSA scientists have created synthetic "intelligent" enzymes which are able to differentiate between active and inactive genes and selectively stimulate the former ones.
È uscito il nuovo bando del premio SISSA/INFN dedicato a Romeo Bassoli, inserito nel progetto “Memorie di scienza”. Il premio finanzia con 3mila euro il miglior progetto per la raccolta di interviste e testimonianze orali in ambito scientifico. Tema di quest’anno sono le malattie infettive.
29-30 giugno 2015
SISSA,via Bonomea 265, Trieste
Tim Shallice is one of the founding fathers of modern neuroscience. Colleagues at the International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA) are celebrating his 75th birthday by inviting leading figures on the international neuroscience scene to Trieste for a workshop on ”semantic processing”, a field of study of special interest to Shallice. To attend this workshop, which will be held in English and is open to experts, send an email to lpiretti@sissa.it . Attendance is free.
June 25, 2015, 11 am
SISSA, “P. Budinich” Main Lecture Hall
The Peruvian-born biophysicist Carlos Bustamante has been awarded an honorary PhD by SISSA in Trieste for his innovative research and important contribution to our knowledge of the workings of biological systems through the development of molecular level investigation techniques. The ceremony will be held on 25 June at 11.00 am in the “P. Budinich” Main Lecture Hall of SISSA.
The Nobel Prize winner Roderick MacKinnon suggested that ion channels (the pores on the cell membrane that regulate the exchange of ions between the inside and outside of cells) were like rigid tubes through which molecules of varying size move.