February 28, 2024: On the origins of heavy metals, a primer on popular weight-loss drugs, and an accuracy check on personality tests that pegged you as an introvert.
—Robin Lloyd, Contributing Editor | | | Scientists have created new extraheavy versions of three silvery metals in an advance that could lead to a better understanding of how some elements are forged in stars, reports freelance science journalist Stephanie Pappas. The new heavyweights are isotopes—versions of atoms with irregular numbers of neutrons in the nuclei—of the metals thulium, ytterbium and lutetium. None of the five isotopes has been created before on Earth.
How they did it: A stationary target composed of carbon was bombarded with intense, heavy beams of platinum atoms at Michigan State University's new Facility for Rare Isotope Beams. The collisions knocked protons and neutrons off the original platinum nuclei; by sheer chance a fraction of the collisions resulted in nuclei losing more protons than neutrons, yielding very neutron-rich isotopes of lighter metals.
Why it matters: If bombardment data continue to yield good knowledge of the nucleus, scientists could predict precisely which atoms would coalesce from cosmic circumstances such as a neutron star merger, says MSU physicist Brad Sherrill, co-author of a new report on the heavyweight isotope findings. Such insights also could lead to new ways to process or dispose of nuclear waste while minimizing deadly radioactive byproducts. | | | An artist's impression of two merging neutron stars. New insights from laboratory experiments on Earth are illuminating the fine details of how such astrophysical cataclysms enrich the cosmos with gold, uranium and other heavy elements. Credit: Mark Garlick/Science Photo Library/Getty Images | | | It probably has not escaped you that a class of several expensive diabetes and/or weight-loss treatments, called GLP-1 receptor agonists, has recently become more widely available in the U.S. Here's a helpful primer on these drugs, by freelance science journalist Saima May Sidik. Endocrinologist Sue Pedersen states that good options for people with mild diabetes who are not overweight are two older generation such drugs, called liraglutide—sold as the weight-loss drug Saxenda and as the type 2 diabetes medication Victoza—and dulaglutide—sold as Trulicity and approved for diabetes treatment. The newer versions of this category of drugs rely on a compound called semaglutide (sold as Ozempic and Wegovy). These drugs are somewhat more effective at controlling diabetes and enhancing weight loss, states endocrinologist Daniel Drucker. The compound's ability to circulate longer in the body without degrading might explain its impact.
How it works: The human gut naturally produces a hormone called GLP-1 in response to eating. When this short-lived hormone binds to specific receptors in the body, it triggers mechanisms that regulate blood-sugar levels, slow digestion and act on our neurons—all of which make us feel full and help us eat less. The drugs that are so widely publicized these days produce synthetic versions of GLP-1 that last longer.
What's next: Another new player, called tirzepatide and sold as Mounjaro for treatment of diabetes and as Zepbound for weight loss, also interacts with a second receptor, called glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide, or GIP. That receptor affects insulin levels and blood sugar similarly to GLP-1. That dual action likely allows the compound to control blood sugar even better, states endocrinologist Dimitris Papamargaritis. Two next-generation GLP-1 receptor agonists—retatrutide and another called CargiSem—also show promise for being even more effective on blood-sugar control and weight loss, Drucker says. | | | • "Warming winter syndrome" describes weather symptoms such as this winter's ice storms and rains in regions that were once reliably below freezing, a climate scientist says. | 5 min read | | | • A "microbiome of death" that lurks in decomposing human corpses could help forensic detectives establish time of death. | 3 min read | | | • Skeptics have long had their doubts about personality inventories like the popular Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) that sorts test-takers into 16 categories, such as "ISFP" (shared with Bob Dylan and Rihanna) or "INTP" (shared with Tina Fey and Albert Einstein). In a new essay, Spencer Greenberg and Seth Stephens-Davidowitz report on data that backs those doubts. The team found that the usefulness of an MBTI-like test for predicting life outcomes, such as life satisfaction and close-friend counts, fell "halfway between science and astrology." The results of another personality test, called the Big Five, proved more accurate at predicting life outcomes. At the end of the essay's fifth graf, just above the graphic, there's a link for a free version of a test created by the team for their study. Click on that to compare your own Big Five and MBTI-style results. | 6 min read | | | • The scoop on keeping an ice cream factory cool. | IEEE Spectrum | • Lead-tainted applesauce sailed through gaps in the U.S. food safety system, poisoning children.| The New York Times | • Dupont and its spinoff knew about risks but kept making toxic PFAS chemicals, United Nations human rights advisors conclude.| Inside Climate News | | | If you have any feedback, suggestions, or spot any errors while reading these newsletters, please reach out to us. | —Robin Lloyd, Contributing Editor | | Subscribe to this and all of our newsletters . | | | | Scientific American
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