It’s possible that I shall make an ass of myself. But in that case one can always get out of it with a little dialectic. I have, of course, so worded my proposition as to be right either way (K.Marx, Letter to F.Engels on the Indian Mutiny)
Wednesday, June 18, 2025
SPACE/COSMOS
Queer astronaut documentary takes on new meaning in Trump’s US
Sally Ride became the first US women in space on June 24, 1983
- Copyright AFP Armend NIMANI
Bénédicte Rey
When director Cristina Costantini started making a documentary about the first US woman in space, she thought it would be looking back on the “sexism and homophobia of yesteryear”.
But the story of astronaut Sally Ride, whose queer identity was a secret when she blasted off more than four decades ago, took on a “completely different meaning” after the re-election of President Donald Trump, Costantini told AFP.
“When we started making the film, it didn’t seem all that political to celebrate queer love or women astronauts,” said the director of “Sally”, which started streaming on Disney+ in many countries on Tuesday.
“Just a few years ago, there was a pride flag that flew in space, and (NASA) had vowed the next person on the Moon would be a woman.”
But that vow has now been removed from NASA’s website, just one of many changes at the US space agency since Trump returned to the White House in January.
“Employees have been asked to remove symbols of gay pride, pride flags, trans visibility flags,” Costantini said.
Now, the director hopes the documentary “serves as a reminder that these rights are not guaranteed, that they were hard fought and they were won by people like Sally” and her partner Tam.
“It’s our responsibility to carry the torch and continue the fight for equality.”
– ‘It was hard on her’ –
After boarding the Challenger space shuttle on June 18, 1983, Ride became the first US woman to fly to space. It was two decades after Soviet cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova made the voyage.
NASA only started allowing women to apply as astronaut recruits in 1977.
Ride, who had a PhD in astrophysics from Stanford University and was an accomplished tennis player, was one of six women selected out of more than 8,000 applicants in the class of 1978.
Ride received the same training as male astronauts, but was treated quite differently.
Journalists asked whether she cried when facing difficulty. NASA engineers asked about what make-up she would need in space. They even worried whether 100 tampons would be enough for her six-day journey into space.
“I felt the women hadn’t paid their dues like we had,” Mike Mullane, another astronaut in the class of 1978, said in the documentary.
When Ride returned to Earth, the image of the 32-year-old in her blue jumpsuit, curly chestnut hair, piercing blue eyes and confident smile was seen around the world.
But Ride struggled to come to terms with her new status as icon.
“It was too much for her,” Tam O’Shaughnessy, who was Ride’s partner for 27 years, told AFP. “She was an introvert and it was hard on her.”
The two women founded a nonprofit dedicated to teaching girls science.
But the world would only learn they were in a relationship until after Ride’s death from pancreatic cancer at the age of 61 in 2012.
“Sally did not like labels,” O’Shaughnessy said.
“She was a queer woman. And so I think it’s great that she’s sort of become a part of the (LGBTQ+) community after death.”
O’Shaughnessy expressed concern at reports that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth wants to change the name of a Navy ship currently named after famous gay activist Harvey Milk.
“There’s a research vessel called ‘Sally Ride’ and it crossed my mind that might change, too” she said.
“It’s just shocking. All of this is hard to swallow.”
Lunar dust less toxic than city pollution, study finds
As NASA prepares to send astronauts back to the moon for the first time in over 50 years, new research from the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) has found that lunar dust is less harmful to human lung cells than previously feared, and significantly less toxic than common Earth-based air pollution.
The UTS-led study, published in the journal Life Sciences in Space Research, provides reassuring data for the upcoming Artemis missions, which aim to establish a long-term human presence and a base on the moon.
Lead researcher and UTS PhD candidate Michaela B. Smith investigated the impact of the most accurate, new-generation lunar dust simulants on human lung cells in the lab. She compared the effects to those of airborne particulate matter collected from a busy street in Sydney.
Smith said the health of astronauts was a concern after the Apollo missions, where crew members experienced respiratory issues.
The study found that while the sharp, abrasive lunar dust can act as a physical irritant, it did not cause the severe cellular damage or inflammation seen from the urban Earth dust. “It's important to distinguish between a physical irritant and a highly toxic substance,” Smith said.
“Our findings suggest that while lunar dust may cause some immediate irritation to the airways, it does not appear to pose a risk for chronic, long-term diseases like silicosis, which is caused by materials like silica dust.”
In Apollo, the primary route of exposure occurred after extravehicular activity. “When astronauts re-entered their landing module, fine dust that had clung to their spacesuits became airborne in the confined cabin and was subsequently inhaled, leading to respiratory issues, sneezing, and eye irritation,” said Smith.
“Any dust, if you inhale it, you'll sneeze, cough, and have some physical irritation. But it's not highly toxic like silica, where you end up with silicosis from being on a construction site for 10 years. It’s not going to be something like that,” said Smith.
The research focused on fine dust particles (≤2.5 micrometres), which are small enough to bypass the body's natural defences and penetrate deep into the lower airways of the lungs. The study used two different types of lung cells, representing the upper (bronchial) and lower (alveolar) regions of the lung.
Results showed that Earth dust induced a greater inflammatory response and was more toxic to the cells than the lunar dust simulants. The paper suggests the primary mechanism of toxicity from lunar dust is mechanical damage caused by the particles' irregular shape and rough edges as they are internalised by cells. Crucially, the lunar simulants did not trigger significant oxidative stress—a key chemical damage pathway often associated with fine particle toxicity.
“This likely means that if exposure occurs at levels typically found in air pollution on Earth, health effects would be minimal,” the authors conclude in the paper.
While the findings reduce a critical risk factor, NASA is still taking the threat of dust exposure seriously. Smith, who recently visited the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, saw new engineering solutions firsthand.
“What they've done now is designed it so that the suits are actually attached to the outside of the rover,” she said. “The astronaut will climb in and out from inside, and the suit never goes inside, which prevents the dusty suit from ever contaminating the internal cabin environment.”
“While this research helps to reduce concerns about one critical risk factor, it’s important to note that NASA continues to treat dust exposure seriously and is developing robust mitigation strategies,” said Smith.
The research has paved the way for Smith’s current PhD work, which investigates the next frontier of space health: the effect of microgravity on lung function.
In the lab, she uses a specialised rotating device to simulate the weightlessness experienced on the International Space Station, studying how it impacts the cellular structure and function of the lungs over time.
Smith’s PhD supervisor and study co-author Distinguished Professor Brian Oliver, from UTS and the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research, said this foundational work on lunar dust provides greater confidence for humanity’s next giant leap.
“The results contribute to the safety case for returning humans to the moon.”
“This research places our research group at UTS at the forefront of the space life sciences field, establishing us as key contributors to this vital area of research, particularly within Australia,” Oliver said.
A clay-rich mesa in the Hellas basin of Mars. The blue color near the rim is aluminum bearing clays. The red-orange color below that is iron and magnesium bearing clays. The image captures an area that’s 1 kilometer across.
The planet Mars is home to thick layers of clay that can span hundreds of feet. Since they need water to form, these outcrops have long been of interest to scientists looking for signs of past life on the Red Planet.
In a new study in Nature Astronomy, scientists from The University of Texas at Austin and collaborators took a closer at these clay terrains and found that most formed near standing bodies of surface water, which were common on Mars billions of years ago. This environment would help foster the chemical weathering needed to create thick, mineral-rich layers of clay and could have provided the right mix of water, minerals and a calm environment for life to develop.
“These areas have a lot of water but not a lot of topographic uplift, so they’re very stable,” said the study’s lead author Rhianna Moore, who conducted the research as a postdoctoral fellow at the UT Jackson School of Geosciences. “If you have stable terrain, you’re not messing up your potentially habitable environments. Favorable conditions might be able to be sustained for longer periods of time.”
The study was conducted as part of UT’s Center for Planetary Systems Habitability, which investigates the origins and requirements for life on Earth and other planetary bodies. Moore is now with NASA as part of a team supporting the Artemis mission to Earth’s Moon.
The researchers noted that the thick clays could also be a sign of an imbalanced water and carbon cycle on ancient Mars, which could explain why Mars appears to be missing carbonate rocks in environments where they would be expected on Earth.
Billions of years ago, Mars was a wet world. It had lakes and rivers, which created geological formations that are carved on the surface of the planet today. The thick clay layers formed during this wet period. However, before this study, little was known about the environments in which they formed, and how the surrounding terrain influenced their evolution.
Moore analyzed images and data from 150 clay deposits that had been previously identified in a global survey conducted by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. She investigated trends in their topographical characteristics and how close they were to other geological features, such as former bodies of water.
She found that the clays were mostly found at low elevations near lake deposits but away from valley networks, where water is thought to have flowed more vigorously across the terrain. This balance between chemical and physical weathering led to their preservation through time. Co-author Tim Goudge, an assistant professor at the Jackson School’s Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, said that the Mars clay environment is similar to the tropical places where thick clay layers are found on Earth.
“On Earth, the places where we tend to see the thickest clay mineral sequences are in humid environments, and those with minimal physical erosion that can strip away newly created weathering products,” he said. “These results suggest that the latter element is true also on Mars, while there are hints at the former as well.”
However, the clays also reflect an ancient Martian world that was very different from the Earth of today.
On Earth, shifting tectonic plates are constantly exposing fresh rock that can readily react with water and CO2 in the atmosphere, which helps regulate the climate. However, Mars lacks tectonic activity. When Martian volcanoes released CO2 into the atmosphere, the lack of a source for new reactive rock would have led the greenhouse gas to linger — causing the planet to become warmer and wetter. The researchers suggest that these conditions may have contributed to the formation of the clays.
What’s more, the lack of new rock on the surface may have impeded the chemical reactions needed to form carbonate rock — which would normally form from volcanic rock that underlies most Martian geology given CO2, water and time. Ongoing clay formation may have contributed to the dearth of carbonates by sucking up water and sequestering chemical byproducts in the clay, rather than having them leach out into the wider environment, where they could react with the surrounding geology.
“It’s probably one of many factors that’s contributing to this weird lack of predicted carbonates on Mars,” said Moore.
The research was funded by NASA and the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research.
A map from the study showing the location the clay deposits on Mars, along with other geological features that the researchers examined.
This image shows a detailed, thousand-colour image of the Sculptor Galaxy captured with the MUSE instrument at ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Regions of pink light are spread throughout this whole galactic snapshot, which come from ionised hydrogen in star-forming regions. These areas have been overlaid on a map of already formed stars in Sculptor to create the mix of pinks and blues seen here.
Astronomers have created a galactic masterpiece: an ultra-detailed image that reveals previously unseen features in the Sculptor Galaxy. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT), they observed this nearby galaxy in thousands of colours simultaneously. By capturing vast amounts of data at every single location, they created a galaxy-wide snapshot of the lives of stars within Sculptor.
"Galaxies are incredibly complex systems that we are still struggling to understand," says ESO researcher Enrico Congiu, who led a new Astronomy & Astrophysics study on Sculptor. Reaching hundreds of thousands of light-years across, galaxies are extremely large, but their evolution depends on what’s happening at much smaller scales. “The Sculptor Galaxy is in a sweet spot,” says Congiu. “It is close enough that we can resolve its internal structure and study its building blocks with incredible detail, but at the same time, big enough that we can still see it as a whole system.”
A galaxy’s building blocks — stars, gas and dust — emit light at different colours. Therefore, the more shades of colour there are in an image of a galaxy, the more we can learn about its inner workings. While conventional images contain only a handful of colours, this new Sculptor map comprises thousands. This tells astronomers everything they need to know about the stars, gas and dust within, such as their age, composition, and motion.
To create this map of the Sculptor Galaxy, which is 11 million light-years away and is also known as NGC 253, the researchers observed it for over 50 hours with the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument on ESO’s VLT. The team had to stitch together over 100 exposures to cover an area of the galaxy about 65 000 light-years wide.
According to co-author Kathryn Kreckel from Heidelberg University, Germany, this makes the map a potent tool: “We can zoom in to study individual regions where stars form at nearly the scale of individual stars, but we can also zoom out to study the galaxy as a whole.”
In their first analysis of the data, the team uncovered around 500 planetary nebulae, regions of gas and dust cast off from dying Sun-like stars, in the Sculptor Galaxy. Co-author Fabian Scheuermann, a doctoral student at Heidelberg University, puts this number into context: “Beyond our galactic neighbourhood, we usually deal with fewer than 100 detections per galaxy.”
Because of the properties of planetary nebulae, they can be used as distance markers to their host galaxies. “Finding the planetary nebulae allows us to verify the distance to the galaxy — a critical piece of information on which the rest of the studies of the galaxy depend,” says Adam Leroy, a professor at The Ohio State University, USA, and study co-author.
Future projects using the map will explore how gas flows, changes its composition, and forms stars all across this galaxy. “How such small processes can have such a big impact on a galaxy whose entire size is thousands of times bigger is still a mystery,” says Congiu.
More information
This research was presented in a paper accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics.
The team is composed of E. Congiu (European Southern Observatory, Chile [ESO Chile]), F. Scheuermann (Astronomisches Rechen-Institut, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg, Germany [ARI-ZAH]), K. Kreckel (ARI-ZAH), A. Leroy (Department of Astronomy and Center for Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics, The Ohio State University [OSU], USA), E. Emsellem (European Southern Observatory, Germany [ESO Garching] and Univ. Lyon, Univ. Lyon1, ENS de Lyon, CNRS, Centre de Recherche Astrophysique de Lyon, France), F. Belfiore (INAF – Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Italy), J. Hartke (Finnish Centre for Astronomy with ESO [FINCA] and Tuorla Observatory, Department of Physics and Astronomy [Tuorla], University of Turku, Finland), G. Anand (Space Telescope Science Institute, USA), O. V. Egorov (ARI-ZAH), B. Groves (International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research, University of Western Australia, Australia), T. Kravtsov (Tuorla and FINCA), D. Thilker (Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Johns Hopkins University, USA), C. Tovo (Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia ‘G. Galilei’, Universit‘a di Padova, Italy), F. Bigiel (Argelander-Institut für Astronomie, Universität Bonn, Germany), G. A. Blanc (Observatories of the Carnegie Institution for Science, USA, and Departamento de Astronomía, Universidad de Chile, Chile), A. D. Bolatto and S. A. Cronin (Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, USA), D. A. Dale (Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Wyoming, USA), R. McClain (OSU), J. E. Méndez-Delgado (Instituto de Astronomía, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico), E. K. Oakes (Department of Physics, University of Connecticut, USA), R. S. Klessen (Universität Heidelberg, Zentrum für Astronomie, Institut für Theoretische Astrophysik and Interdisziplinäres Zentrum für Wissenschaftliches Rechnen, Germany, Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian, USA, and Elizabeth S. and Richard M. Cashin Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studies at Harvard University, USA) E. Schinnerer (Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, Germany), T. G. Williams (Sub-department of Astrophysics, Department of Physics, University of Oxford, UK).
The European Southern Observatory (ESO) enables scientists worldwide to discover the secrets of the Universe for the benefit of all. We design, build and operate world-class observatories on the ground — which astronomers use to tackle exciting questions and spread the fascination of astronomy — and promote international collaboration for astronomy. Established as an intergovernmental organisation in 1962, today ESO is supported by 16 Member States (Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom), along with the host state of Chile and with Australia as a Strategic Partner. ESO’s headquarters and its visitor centre and planetarium, the ESO Supernova, are located close to Munich in Germany, while the Chilean Atacama Desert, a marvellous place with unique conditions to observe the sky, hosts our telescopes. ESO operates three observing sites: La Silla, Paranal and Chajnantor. At Paranal, ESO operates the Very Large Telescope and its Very Large Telescope Interferometer, as well as survey telescopes such as VISTA. Also at Paranal ESO will host and operate the Cherenkov Telescope Array South, the world’s largest and most sensitive gamma-ray observatory. Together with international partners, ESO operates ALMA on Chajnantor, a facility that observes the skies in the millimetre and submillimetre range. At Cerro Armazones, near Paranal, we are building “the world’s biggest eye on the sky” — ESO’s Extremely Large Telescope. From our offices in Santiago, Chile we support our operations in the country and engage with Chilean partners and society.
USC-led team sheds light on dark matter by simulating twins of our Milky Way galaxy
Until now, scientists could not study how galaxies are born and evolve in a universe where dark and normal matter interact. The supercomputer-based COZMIC simulator developed by a USC-led team has made that possible
A USC-led research team has created a series of supercomputer-simulated twins of our Milky Way galaxy—which could help scientists unlock new answers about one of the biggest mysteries in the universe: dark matter, the invisible substance that makes up about 85% of all matter in existence.
The research was led by cosmologist Vera Gluscevic, who is an associate professor at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences; as well as Ethan Nadler, formerly a postdoc at USC and Carnegie Observatories who is now an assistant professor at University of California, San Diego; and Andrew Benson, a staff scientist at Carnegie Observatories.
They called their simulation project “COZMIC” —short for “Cosmological Zoom-in Simulations with Initial Conditions beyond Cold Dark Matter.”
Scientists have known for decades that dark matter exists—but until now, they could not study how galaxies are born and evolve in a universe where dark and normal matter interact. COZMIC has made that possible, the team said.
The development of COZMIC and the team’s results are described in a trio of studies published today (Monday, June 16) in The Astrophysical Journal, a publication of the American Astronomical Society. (See COZMIC I, COZMIC II and COZMIC III)
The heart of dark matter Scientists know that dark matter is real because it affects how galaxies move and stick together. For example, galaxies spin so fast that they should fly apart, but they don’t. Something invisible holds them together; many scientists believe that dark matter is at the heart of this— an idea first suggested in 1933 by a Swiss researcher, Fritz Zwicky. Research on dark matter has evolved ever since.
Dark matter is tricky to study because it doesn’t emit any light or energy that can be easily detected. Scientists study dark matter by watching how it affects motions and structures like galaxies. However, that is somewhat like studying someone’s shadow without being able to examine in detail the actual person who cast the shadow.
For the suite of studies, the research team took the step of deploying new physics —not just standard particle physics and relativity— and programmed a supercomputer to create very detailed cosmological simulations through COZMIC to test different ideas about what dark matter might be doing.
“We want to measure the masses and other quantum properties of these particles, and we want to measure how they interact with everything else,” Gluscevic said. “With COZMIC, for the first time, we’re able to simulate galaxies like our own under radically different physical laws—and test those laws against real astronomical observations.”
In addition to Glusevic, Nadler and Benson, the team behind COZMIC includes Hai-Bo Yu of UC Riverside; Daneng Yang, formerly of UC Riverside and now at Purple Mountain Observatory CAS; Xiaolong Du of UCLA; and Rui An, formerly of USC.
Several dark matter scenarios “Our simulations reveal that observations of the smallest galaxies can be used to distinguish dark matter models,” said Nadler.
For the studies with COZMIC, the scientists accounted for the following dark matter behavior scenarios:
Billiard-ball model: In this first study, every dark matter particle collides with protons early in the universe, much like billiard balls when they are first set in motion. This interaction smooths out small-scale structures and eliminates satellite galaxies in the Milky Way. The study also includes scenarios where dark matter moves at high speeds, and others in which it is composed of extremely low-mass particles.
Mixed-sector model: This second study is a hybrid scenario in which some dark matter particles interact with normal matter, but others pass through it.
Self-interacting model: For this third study, the scientists simulated a scenario in which dark matter interacts with itself both at the dawn of time and today, modifying galaxy formation across cosmic history.
While running these simulations, the scientists input new physics into the supercomputer to produce a galaxy whose structure bears the signatures of those interactions between normal and dark matter, said Benson.
Gluscevic added: “While many previous simulation suites have explored the effects of dark matter mass or self-interactions, until now, none have simulated dark matter interactions with normal matter. Such interactions are not exotic or implausible. They are, in fact, likely to exist.”
A new day for dark matter
The team says it is a big step forward in figuring out what dark matter really is. They hope that by comparing their twin galaxies to real telescope images, they can get even closer to solving one of space’s biggest mysteries.
“We’re finally able to ask, ‘Which version of the universe looks most like ours?’” Gluscevic said.
The COZMIC team plans to expand their work by directly testing the predictions from their simulations with telescope data so they may discover signatures of dark matter behavior in real galaxies.
This next stage could bring scientists closer than ever to understanding what dark matter is, and how it shapes the cosmos.
###
Journal
The Astrophysical Journal
Method of Research
Computational simulation/modeling
Subject of Research
Not applicable
Article Publication Date
16-Jun-2025
Space conditions can cause gum inflammation and bone loss, say scientists
Micro-CT analysis and 3D reconstructions of the left maxillary bone with ligature-induced periodontitis between the first and second molars in ground control and hindlimb unloaded (HLU) ligature-induced periodontitis mice.
Credit: Journal of Periodontal Research. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jre.70000
Living in zero gravity can lead to periodontitis, a common and serious condition where the gums become inflamed and the bone that supports teeth starts to break down, eventually leading to tooth loss, scientists reveal in a new study.
The scientists confirm their findings in the study published in the Journal of Periodontal Research, in which they try to understand how simulated microgravity—the near-weightless environment astronauts experience in space—might influence the development and severity of periodontitis.
The researchers carried out their experiment in a lab in which mice were used to test the impact of periodontitis in microgravity conditions and on Earth. To simulate this, they use a special model where mice were placed in a position that mimics the effects of microgravity, and then gum disease was induced.
The write, “Six male C57BL/6J mice (3–4 months, ~30 g) were randomly divided into two groups (n=3 each): (a) ground control with ligature-induced periodontitis and (b) hindlimb unloaded with ligature-induced periodontitis.
“All procedures followed ethical approval (ACUC-02-02-2023). Mice were anesthetized (100mg/ kg ketamine/5–10mg/kg xylazine, intraperitoneally) prior to ligature placement between the first and second left maxillary molars.”
The study, according to lead author Zahi Badran, University of Sharjah’s professor of periodontology, has “found that mice exposed to simulated microgravity showed much worse gum inflammation and bone loss compared to mice with induced periodontitis on the ground. They had higher levels of disease markers, more severe tissue damage, and more immune cells in the affected areas.”
The group of mice on the ground “showed minimal bone loss,” while the group in simulated space conditions “exhibited a marked increase in CEJ-ABC distance, indicating significant bone resorption.”
Similarly, the group of mice in simulated space fight “displayed a significant increase in ALP activity compared to the control group, indicating increased bone resorption and inflammation associated with periodontitis due to the change in gravity,” the researchers find.
The researchers use ALP, or Alkaline Phosphatase activity, as a marker for several biological processes, most notably bone growth and liver function.
The research indicates that microgravity can exacerbate induced gum disease in animals, underscoring the importance of developing tailored dental prophylaxis and care strategies for future space explorers. “It also opens the door to better understanding how inflammation works in the body, both in space and on Earth,” adds Prof. Badran.
As space travel becomes a real possibility for longer missions, including journeys to Mars, scientists are looking more closely at how space conditions affect human health. However, the authors maintain that one area that’s been less studied is oral health and diseases in microgravity, especially gum disease, also known as periodontitis.
The authors stress the fact that there has been “an increased interest in astronauts or future space health, especially the effects of microgravity on various body systems.”
However, they note that “to the best of our knowledge, this is the first in vivo pilot study to investigate microgravity's effects on periodontitis progression using the combination of the hindlimb unloading.”
Asked about the significance of the research findings for space agencies, Prof. said the study “calls for the integration of dental medicine, particularly periodontology, into astronaut/future space colonies' inhabitants' health protocols.
“Specialized prevention and treatment strategies, along with in-mission monitoring tools, most probably will be essential in case of prolonged space stays. Simultaneously, the model offers terrestrial benefits, providing insights into the periodontal status of immobilized bed patients, who experience similar effects of microgravity.
“This model will be extensively studied to better understand the biological pathways underlying these outcomes and to explore how periodontitis may influence other systemic diseases under microgravity.”
The authors see their study as a harbinger of “a new line of multidisciplinary research on oral health and disease in microgravity” that will shed more light on space medicine in general.
They say they are determined to replicate their model “to assess additional microbiological and immunological parameters to investigate the connection between gum diseases and other systemic diseases in microgravity.”
The authors are aware of the limitations of their study, as its findings are based on a relatively small sample size. However, they emphasize its robustness due to the use of “the HLU model to simulate microgravity, which offers valuable insights into disease progression under space-like conditions.”
Smartphone use should not be allowed before 12, said the report - Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP SPENCER PLATT
The Dutch government Tuesday advised parents to forbid children under 15 from using social media apps like TikTok and Snapchat, the latest country to propose curbs over mental health concerns.
The advice, which is non-binding, comes after Australia and New Zealand proposed social media bans for under-16s, and several European countries have issued similar guidelines.
“Intensive screen and social media use can be bad for the (mental) health and development of children,” said the Dutch ministry for health, wellbeing and sport.
“Think of sleeping problems, panic attacks, depressive symptoms, reduced concentration and a negative self-image.”
The ministry distinguished between smartphone use, messaging apps such as WhatsApp and Signal, and social media apps like TikTok.
Children younger than their last year of primary school (typically 11 or 12) should not be allowed a smartphone, the government advised.
From secondary school (age 12 or 13), message apps should be permitted but no social media apps before 15, according to the guidelines.
“A step-by-step approach helps: first learn to communicate via chat, then get acquainted with social media,” said the government.
The ministry also issued guidelines on screen time: none at all before the age of two, while children over 12 should not be in front of a screen for more than three hours.
Healthy screen use is more than just time limits, the government said.
“It’s also about balancing screen time with other activities, using media together, and fostering positive online experiences.”
The advice brings the Netherlands into line with other age guidelines in Europe, said the government.
Backed by France and Spain, Greece has spearheaded a proposal for how the European Union should limit children’s use of online platforms.
France, Greece and Denmark believe there should be a ban on social media for under-15s, while Spain has suggested a ban for under-16s.
In the Netherlands, a children’s advocacy group said earlier this month the “unchecked expansion” of social media platforms is driving an unprecedented global mental health crisis in kids and teens.
The KidsRights report said what it termed “problematic” social media use was on the rise, with a direct link between heavy internet use and suicide attempts.
However, blanket bans are not the answer, the group warned.
“Such blanket bans may infringe on children’s civil and political rights,” including access to information, said the report.
First, retail investors’ initial investment expectations are generated based on fundamental company information communicated through official releases and market noise information through channels other than online platforms.
Second, retail investors may adjust their investment expectations based on feedback obtained through replies and discussions with other investors on online platforms. The iterative process of online opinion exchange and information filtering continuously refines their perceptions of target companies, potentially influencing their investment expectations (Hirshleifer et al., 2025).
Finally, target companies may adjust their corporate strategy. If retail investors choose to maintain or increase their holdings based on their updated investment expectations, a governance effect may occur, i.e., target companies are encouraged to adopt long-term strategies, such as green investments. Conversely, if investors sell or reduce their holdings, a market pressure effect may be triggered, potentially leading companies to prioritize short term gains.
Credit: Hongjie Zhang and Feng He (University of Science and Technology Beijing, China) Taoyuan Wei (CICERO Center for International Climate Research, Norway) Yingming Zhu and Yao Zhang (Nanjing University of Science and Technology, China) Lili Yan (University of Greenwich, UK)
Background and Motivation
In recent years, green investment has become an imperative for Chinese corporations striving to align with national climate goals such as “carbon peak by 2030” and “carbon neutrality by 2060.” While environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics are increasingly mainstreamed, China’s capital market remains dominated by retail investors, who account for over 99% of A-share investors. With the rise of digital forums like Eastmoney’s Stock Bar, these investors can collectively voice short-term financial concerns, potentially steering companies away from long-term, sustainability-driven strategies. Recognising this emerging power dynamic, researchers sought to explore: Do retail investor concerns expressed online inhibit corporate green investment intentions? China Finance Review International (CFRI) brings you a new study titled “Impact of online opinions: Do retail investor concerns inhibit corporate green investment intentions?” which investigates this very question with empirical rigour.
Methodology and Scope
The study employs a high-dimensional panel regression model using annual data from over 35,000 observations of Chinese A-share listed companies (2010–2022). Corporate green investment intentions are captured through an innovative machine learning-based keyword frequency index, derived from annual report texts. Retail investor sentiment is measured using post volumes from China’s largest investment forum. The research incorporates a range of endogeneity and robustness tests, including instrumental variable methods, PSM, and difference-in-differences approaches.
Key Findings and Contributions
Online Investor Sentiment Suppresses Green Investment Intentions: The study reveals a significant negative relationship between retail investor concerns expressed on stock forums and the level of corporate green investment intention. Firms appear to defer or reduce their green initiatives when facing intensive scrutiny or dissatisfaction from online retail investors.
Stage-Specific Inhibitory Effects: The inhibitory impact of online sentiment is most pronounced in the early phases of green investment, such as pollution prevention and process upgrades, suggesting investor pressure is strongest where returns are uncertain or long-term.
Negative Sentiment Drives the Effect: While both positive and negative sentiments influence firms, it is the prevalence of negative online opinions that substantially discourages green investment activities.
Credibility of Corporate Information as a Buffer: The study finds that firms with higher information transparency and credibility—evidenced by strong investor relations, high-quality disclosures, or Big Four audits—are better insulated from the negative influence of retail investor sentiment.
Diverging Effects on Innovation: Interestingly, while green investment intentions are suppressed, retail investor pressure may actually encourage green innovation (e.g., patent output), indicating a nuanced divergence in investor influence on tangible versus intangible green efforts.
Why It Matters
As climate imperatives grow more urgent, understanding how capital markets either support or suppress corporate sustainability is critical. In markets like China, where retail investors wield outsized influence, this research provides the first robust evidence that online sentiment may actively shape (and constrain) firms' environmental decision-making. It also informs the broader debate on how digital platforms reconfigure traditional governance dynamics between corporations and their stakeholders.
Practical Applications
For Researchers: Introduces a novel method to quantify green investment intentions using text mining and grounded theory. Expands the analytical framework for understanding retail investor influence beyond institutional channels.
For Investors: Reveals the collective power of online retail sentiment in influencing corporate ESG behaviour. Encourages a reassessment of how long-term value is communicated and perceived in investor communities.
For Policymakers: Supports policies aimed at improving retail investor education and promoting long-term investment culture. Suggests that enhancing corporate information transparency may mitigate harmful short-termism.
For Companies and Bankers: Offers a roadmap for improving investor relations through higher disclosure quality and proactive online engagement. Informs banks assessing corporate ESG risks that online investor sentiment may affect firms' green strategies.
Discover high-quality academic insights in finance from this article published in China Finance Review International. Click the DOI below to read the full-text original! Open access for a limited time!
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The personal credit scores of top-level corporate executives can help explain their decision making in the corporate environment, at least when it involves evaluating risk, a new study suggests.
Researchers at The Ohio State University conducted an experiment with a national sample of high-level executives and found that those with subprime credit scores tended to be “yes persons” – even when it was counterproductive.
In contrast, executives with prime credit scores critically evaluated external information, more effectively processing decisions involving risk.
“Responsible CEOs do not want executives who are going to be ‘yes persons,’ they want someone who evaluates data objectively,” said Noah Dormady, co-author of the study and associate professor at Ohio State’s John Glenn College of Public Affairs.
“That’s the issue we’re picking up in this study. Executives with higher credit scores were much more likely to think thoughtfully and critically about the data and make objective decisions.”
Executives who participated in this study self-reported their FICO scores, which is one type of credit score. The two biggest factors in FICO scores are a person’s payment history – such as how often they are late paying bills – and how much they owe. Other factors include their credit mix, length of credit history and how much new credit they have.
These factors tend to be correlated with income; however the study focused exclusively on the top-level executives in a company, who are referred to as C-suite executives. These executives would all have similar levels of income.
Credit scores are known to be predictive of a person’s risk tolerance, Choi said.
“This is important because prior research suggests that personal financial habits may extend to professional decision making,” she said.
This study involved data from a controlled experiment previously led by Dormady, and involving 303 C-suite executives at middle-market firms (those with annual revenues between $10 million and $1 billion), in partnership with Ohio State’s National Center for the Middle Market.
In the experiment, the participants had to make an investment recommendation to a chief operations officer involving inventories. They had to decide whether to invest in inventories that could act as a buffer in case of a catastrophe, like a hurricane, that temporarily halted production at the company.
“The decision to stockpile inventories is one of opportunity cost. For a company, the cost of those inventories can take away from currently productive plant, equipment, and workforce.” “It can be a difficult decision that involves managing risk for the company,” Dormady said.
The executives in the study went through 10 decision making periods, and each period had 2 rounds. In each period, they were randomly given a unanimous recommendation from a group of advisers that, in the scenario, were appointed by their CEO. The advice in each period was either to invest in the inventory or not, and this was given between each round of decisions.
After that, the participants were told whether a catastrophe had occurred or not. Overall, the participants had a 25% chance of having a catastrophe in each period. In the end, some participants in the study experienced no catastrophes, and some had as many as 7 in their 10 periods.
The key finding was that executives with the best, prime credit ratings tended to take the advisers’ advice only when it matched their own experiences in the experiment. If the executives experienced more catastrophes, they were more likely to accept the advice of the advisers if they told them to invest in more inventory.
But they weren’t afraid to reject the advice if it conflicted with their own experience.
“Those with higher FICO scores were more confident to make their own decisions, possibly because the financial decisions they made in their personal lives worked out well, compared to those with lower FICO scores,” Choi said.
In fact, executives with subprime credit scores were about twice as likely to follow the advice of advisers, even when it was inaccurate, when compared to those with prime credit.
“Executives with subprime credit were more likely to simply defer to the appointed advisors, even disregarding their lived experience,” Dormady said.
“That suggests executives with lower credit scores are more likely to be the type of decision maker who follows consensus over fact.”
The researchers noted that they took into account a variety of demographic and other factors about the executives in the study, including gender, veteran status and other personal details. But it was the FICO score that was most meaningful when it came to how they responded to risk in the scenarios.
Given the strong results in this study, does that mean companies should use FICO scores to screen candidates for top executive positions? Dormady said that is a complex question that raises ethical issues.
More replication studies should be done to confirm the results, he said, and guidelines are needed to ensure that credit score data is not misused or abused.
As debates around work-life balance, mental health, and return-to-office mandates heat up in the UK, a new Crosscurrents Work Culture report from Zety reveals a surprising source of concern: the spread of U.S. corporate culture.
U.S. work culture is often characterised by longer hours, less vacation time, and a stronger emphasis on individual achievement and productivity, while European work culture generally prioritises work-life balance, with shorter work hours, more vacation time, and stronger worker protections.
Furthermore, European countries tend to have mandated vacation time and a greater focus on leisure, whereas U.S. citizens may feel pressure to work longer hours, especially if their managers also do so, and take less time off.
According to a survey of 1,000 workers across the UK, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain, 83% of European employees say they are worried that U.S. workplace norms—popularised by figures like Elon Musk—are negatively influencing their own professional environments.
There are several concerns that make up this tendency. The survey reveals that 78% fear that U.S. workplace policies could threaten strong European labour laws and mental health protections.
European labour laws generally provide stronger protections for workers than those in the US, particularly concerning job security, working hours, and paid leave. US laws tend to favour employer flexibility, while European laws often prioritize worker rights and job security.
This concern extends to not only maintaining current provisions, but also with making employment law stronger in favour of workers. Here, 68% said they support stronger labour protections to guard against the influence of American-style workplace mandates like longer hours and productivity surveillance.
There is also the relative ease for dismissing someone. In the US, most employment relationships are “at-will,” meaning either the employer or employee can terminate the relationship at any time, with or without cause, as long as it is not discriminatory.
In contrast, European countries generally have laws that make it more difficult for employers to terminate employees without a valid reason and often require advance notice and severance pay.
If employment practices were to change, a sizable proportion of employees suggest they will exit the workplace. The poll finds that 34% say they would look for a new job immediately if their company introduced U.S.-style policies like forced return to office, weekly reporting, or fewer holidays.
Workers across Europe are not only resisting hustle culture—they’re sounding the alarm about a shift in workplace values. With U.S. business practices spreading across industries, there is growing tension between corporate demands and long-held labour rights.
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Living near an ocean polluted by microplastics may increase cardiometabolic disease risk
Rates of Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease and stroke were higher among residents in 152 U.S. coastal counties near microplastic-polluted oceans, finds a new study in the Journal of the American Heart Association
A study of microplastics in U.S. coastal waters found that residents of counties adjacent to the most heavily microplastic-polluted waters had significantly higher rates of Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease (plaque-clogged blood vessels feeding the heart) and stroke compared to similar counties located near waters with low levels of microplastic pollution.
Microplastics are tiny plastic particles from plastic waste, such as packaging, synthetic fabrics and personal care products, that break down and collect in drinking water, seafood and the air.
More research is needed to understand how people in coastal communities are exposed to microplastics and to determine how much exposure is harmful to their health.
Embargoed until 4 a.m. CT/5 a.m. ET Wednesday, June 18, 2025
DALLAS, June 18, 2025 — Living in a U.S. coastal county bordered by ocean waters with very high concentrations of microplastics may increase the risk of heart and metabolic diseases, such as Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease and stroke. This risk was higher compared to residents of coastal counties with low levels of microplastic pollution in nearby waters, according to new research published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association, an open-access, peer-reviewed journal of the American Heart Association.
“This is one of the first large-scale studies to suggest that living near waters heavily polluted with microplastics may be linked to chronic health conditions. Plastic pollution is not just an environmental issue – it may also be a public health issue,” said Sarju Ganatra, M.D., senior author of the study, medical director of sustainability, vice chair of research in the department of medicine at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center in Burlington, Massachusetts, and president of Sustain Health Solutions.
Microplastics are tiny plastic particles less than 5 millimeters in size, the width of a new pencil eraser or smaller. Nanoplastics are even smaller, invisible to the naked eye, and measuring smaller than one-thousandth of a millimeter. Both sizes of plastic particles come from the chemical breakdown (decomposition) of larger plastic waste, including food packaging (like single-use water bottles), synthetic fabrics and personal care products. Micro and nanoplastics have been found in drinking water, seafood and the air. Seawater intrusion, which is a natural process where seawater mixes with groundwater resources, is reported extensively in coastal areas and results in a high concentration of various contaminants including microplastics in groundwater aquifers in coastal areas, according to the study.
In this study, researchers examined whether the concentration of plastic particles in ocean water near coastal communities was associated with higher incidence of Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease and stroke among residents in those counties. Researchers examined concentrations of marine microplastic pollution (likely a combination of both micro- and nano-plastics) within 200 nautical miles of the counties, dividing the pollution levels into four categories based on mean marine microplastic levels (MML):
low pollution (0–0.005 pieces/m³): described as almost nothing visible — maybe one tiny plastic speck in 200 bathtubs of ocean water;
medium pollution (0.005–1 pieces/m³): up to 1 small plastic particle per 200 bathtubs of ocean water;
high pollution (1–10 pieces/m³): likely to be a small handful of small plastic bits floating in each bathtub of ocean water; and
very high pollution (10+ pieces/m³) every scoop of ocean water (about the size of a bathtub) could contain 10 or more plastic particles.
The analysis found that, compared to residents of U.S. coastal counties with low levels of microplastic pollution in nearby waters, those living in counties with very high levels of microplastic pollution had:
18% higher adjusted prevalence of Type 2 diabetes, which is known to double the risk of heart disease;
7% higher for coronary artery disease, a buildup of plaque in the heart’s arteries that may lead to a heart attack or stroke; and
9% more strokes. A stroke happens when a blood vessel in the brain gets blocked or bursts. Strokes are the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of disability.
In addition, the analysis found that U.S. counties along the Gulf of Mexico (also known as the Gulf of America) and Atlantic coasts had a higher prevalence of Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease and stroke compared to those on the Pacific coast.
The association between high microplastic pollution levels and more people with cardiometabolic diseases was consistent even after adjusting for age, gender, access to doctors, socioeconomic status (education, unemployment, household income, neighborhood status, etc.) and environmental considerations (air pollution, noise pollution, closeness to parks, walking space, etc.).
“While this study measured pollution in ocean water, pollution isn’t limited to the sea. Microplastics are everywhere: in drinking water, in the food we eat, especially seafood, and even in the air we breathe. So, while we examined data from microplastics collected from ocean water and the health status of people living in communities nearby, microplastic pollution affects all of us, regardless of where we live,” Ganatra said.
He said scientists are only beginning to understand the full impact of microplastics on health. “Ironically, even in health care – a field devoted to healing – we rely heavily on single-use plastics, from IV bags and syringes to gloves, tubing, medication blister packs and surgical drapes. Much of it ends up in landfills or the ocean, where it fragments into microplastics and enters the ecosystem,” Ganatra said.
“This study adds to a growing body of evidence that the garbage we discard into the environment often finds its way back to us. It’s time to shift from awareness to action,” he said. “We urge policymakers to view plastic pollution as an environmental crisis as well as a potential health crisis.”
Chair of the writing committee for the 2024 American Heart Association Scientific Statement: Environmental Exposures and Pediatric Cardiology, Justin Zachariah, M.D., M.P.H., FAHA, said “The authors conducted a very careful county-level analysis suggesting more data individual-level studies are needed to understand how plastic affects us and interventions to reduce those effects, or limits on micro- and nanoplastics in the environment. In the absence of such data or policies, transparency and labels about plastic content could empower consumers to make choices that are right for them. We must remember these plastics can indefinitely persist in our bodies, possibly subjecting persons at every age to accumulating risks throughout their lifespan.” Zachariah, who was not affiliated with this study, is an associate professor of pediatric cardiology at Baylor College of Medicine and medical director of the cardiovascular clinical research core at Texas Children’s Hospital, both in Houston.
The study has several limitations. First, the association with microplastics compared county-level data rather than individuals. This type of study cannot prove a cause-and-effect relationship between nearby ocean microplastic levels (measured in water only, not in fish or plant life) and the development of cardiometabolic diseases.
“We also didn’t measure plastic levels in residents of these counties, and we don’t yet know the exact ways these particles may harm the body. So, while the findings are compelling, they should be a call for more in-depth research, not for making definitive conclusions,” Ganatra said.
Ganatra and colleagues say their findings point to several key areas for future research:
How do microplastics get into the human body?
At what levels do microplastics become harmful?
Where do these particles accumulate in the body?
How do microplastics affect long-term health?
The research team is currently designing follow-up studies to measure individual microplastic exposure through water, food and air, and to evaluate how exposure influences biological markers of inflammation and cardiovascular stress.
Study details, background and design:
Using information from the National Centers for Environmental Information, marine microplastic concentrations were obtained and measured between 2015 and 2020 for the ocean waters within 200 nautical miles (the marine Exclusive Economic Zone) of 152 U.S. coastal counties along the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico (also known as the Gulf of America).
The average age of the county residents was 43 years, and about half were female. About 75% were white adults, 13% Black adults, 1% American Indian and Alaska Native adults, 4% Asian American adults, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander adults, and the remaining 7% of adults did not self-identify their race or ethnicity.
County prevalence rates of Type 2 diabetes, coronary artery disease and stroke were obtained from the 2022 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Population-Level Analysis, which is based on the 2019-2020 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System and the 2015-2019 American Community Survey.
Researchers compared the prevalence of diseases between counties with low vs. very high concentrations of microplastics, both with and without adjusting for several county-level risk factors, such as age, sex, race, ethnicity, access to physicians, and indicators of socioeconomic and environmental issues faced by people living in coastal communities.
Co-authors, disclosures and funding sources are listed in the manuscript.
Studies published in the American Heart Association’s scientific journals are peer-reviewed. The statements and conclusions in each manuscript are solely those of the study authors and do not necessarily reflect the Association’s policy or position. The Association makes no representation or guarantee as to their accuracy or reliability. The Association receives more than 85% of its revenue from sources other than corporations. These sources include contributions from individuals, foundations and estates, as well as investment earnings and revenue from the sale of our educational materials. Corporations (including pharmaceutical, device manufacturers and other companies) also make donations to the Association. The Association has strict policies to prevent any donations from influencing its science content. Overall financial information is available here.
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About the American Heart Association
The American Heart Association is a relentless force for a world of longer, healthier lives. Dedicated to ensuring equitable health in all communities, the organization has been a leading source of health information for more than one hundred years. Supported by more than 35 million volunteers globally, we fund groundbreaking research, advocate for the public’s health, and provide critical resources to save and improve lives affected by cardiovascular disease and stroke. By driving breakthroughs and implementing proven solutions in science, policy, and care, we work tirelessly to advance health and transform lives every day. Connect with us on heart.org, Facebook, X or by calling 1-800-AHA-USA1.
