‘Planet Nine’ hidden world at the edge of our solar system could actually be something else, scientists say

 

A supposed “planet nine” that lies hidden at the edge of our solar system could actually be something else entirely, according to scientists.

The unexplained movement of objects at the edge of our solar system has led some to propose that they are being influenced by another world, hidden in the dark distance of our planetary neighbourhood, that they have referred to as planet nine. Objects at the far reaches of the solar system behave as if they are being pulled around by an object that we cannot see, which is probably another planet, they suggest.

But a new study by researchers Harsh Mathur, a professor of physics at Case Western Reserve University, and Katherine Brown, an associate professor of physics at Hamilton College, say that those movements are instead the result of a modified law of gravity.

The scientists plotted what would happen if the objects were being governed by a theory known as Modified Newtonian Dynamics or MOND. That suggests that Newton’s usual gravity only works up to a point – that in the outer regions of galaxies, for instance, gravity behaves in unusual ways.

They found that the data lined up, and applying the MOND theory to the existing observations seemed to predict them exactly. “The alignment was striking,” said Professor Mathur.

They note that the findings do not necessarily rule out planet nine – or another explanation for what is going on. Some researchers have suggested other explanations for what the objects could be, for instance, while others have suggested that the claimed effect is just the result of when the distant objects tend to be observed.

“Regardless of the outcome, this work highlights the potential for the outer solar system to serve as a laboratory for testing gravity and studying fundamental problems of physics,” said Professor Brown.

The findings are reported in a paper, ‘Modified Newtonian Dynamics as an Alternative to the Planet Nine Hypothesis’, published in The Astronomical Journal.

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Social Security: Why You Won’t Get an SSI Check in October

 

If you qualify for Social Security’s Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, you’ll have a slow month in October 2023. It’s one of four months out of the year when SSI payments are not distributed. But don’t fret — the missed payment will be made up later.

 

 

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Because of a quirk in the payment schedule, SSI beneficiaries don’t receive a payment in October, January, April and July. However, they get two payments in March, June, September and December. One check is issued the remaining four months: February, May, August and November.

SSI benefits are provided to low-income individuals with limited resources who are blind or age 65 or older, or who have a qualifying disability. A qualifying disability is one that keeps you from working and is expected to last one year or result in death

In 2023, the federal SSI benefit rate is $914 for an individual and $1,371 for a couple. However, some states supplement the federal SSI benefit with additional payments, which makes the total SSI benefit higher. SSI benefit amounts and state supplemental payment amounts vary based upon your income, living arrangements and other factors, according to the SSA.

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The following states and U.S. territories do not pay a supplement to SSI recipients: Arizona, Arkansas, Mississippi, North Dakota, Northern Mariana Islands, Tennessee and West Virginia.

As for regular Social Security retirement benefits, they will be paid on the usual schedule in October 2023. If your birthday falls on the 1^st through the 10^th, you will receive your payment on the second Wednesday of the month, which is Oct. 11. If your birthday falls on the 11^th through the 20^th, you’ll be paid on the third Wednesday (Oct. 18). Those with birthdays on the 21^st through 31^st will be paid on the fourth Wednesday (Oct. 25).

Scientists discover how dozens of genes may contribute to autism

 

  Brain-cell cultures are suspended in a dish at the lab of Sergiu Pasca, a Stanford University professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences. (Timothy Archibald)

 

Using a host of high-tech tools to simulate brain development in a lab dish, Stanford University researchers have discovered several dozen genes that interfere with crucial steps in the process and may lead to autism, a spectrum of disorders that affects about one in every 36 Americans, impairing their ability to communicate and interact with others.

The results of a decade of work, the findings published in the journal Nature may one day pave the way for scientists to design treatments that allow these phases of brain development to proceed unimpaired.

The study delves into a 20-year-old theory that suggests one cause of autism may be a disruption of the delicate balance between two types of nerve cells found in the brain’s cerebral cortex, the area responsible for higher-level processes such as thought, emotion, decision-making and language.

Some nerve cells in this region of the brain excite other nerve cells, encouraging them to fire; other cells, called interneurons, do the opposite. Too much excitation can impair focus in the brain and cause epilepsy, a seizure disorder that is more common in people with autism than in the general population. Scientists therefore believe a proper balance requires more of the inhibiting interneurons.

 

In the developing fetus, these nerve cells start out deep in the brain in a region called the subpallium, then migrate slowly to the cerebral cortex. The process begins mid-gestation and ends in the infant’s second year of life, said Sergiu Pasca, a Stanford University professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences who led the study.

                                                                                               

Pasca’s team, which included researchers from the University of California at San Francisco and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, tested 425 genes that have been linked to neurodevelopmental disorders to determine which ones interfere with the generation and migration of interneurons. Genes linked to autism were among those identified in the study.

“What’s really cool about this paper is that autism is a collection of different behaviors, but we don’t have [an] understanding of how those behaviors are connected to differences in the brain,” said James McPartland, a professor of child psychiatry and psychology at the Yale School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study.

The new work advances research into autism by “beginning to create a fundamental understanding of the building blocks of brain development,” he said.