Science News 2012
Here's a list of all the news articles that appeared on Science a GoGo in 2012.
27 December 2012
Ancient mega-piranha had mega-bite
Megapiranha paranensis, a prehistoric relative of piranhas weighing about 20 pounds, delivered a bite with a force more powerful than any other creature - even Tyrannosaurus rex...
21 December 2012
Stanford announces peel-and-stick solar panels
Solar cells have traditionally been heavy, fixed panels, but Stanford scientists aim to change that with the development of flexible, decal-like photovoltaic panels that can be peeled off like band-aids and stuck to virtually any surface...
20 December 2012
Human hands evolved for punching, not just dexterity, says prof
A University of Utah study suggests human hands evolved not only for the manual dexterity needed to use tools or play a violin, but also so we could make fists and punch hard...
19 December 2012
Evidence for HIV in humans in distant past
HIV may have affected humans for much longer than is currently believed, according to a scientist who says that the genomes of an isolated West African human population provide important clues about how the disease has evolved...
18 December 2012
New type of cell division discovered
Scientists trying to understand the cellular mechanics of how cancer begins have discovered a new type of cell division which they have named klerokinesis. The researchers believe that klerokinesis could be an evolutionary failsafe mechanism, the function of which is to "rescue" a range of cell functions during embryonic development...
17 December 2012
Steroid use found to damage brain's spatial functioning
Long-term use of anabolic-androgenic steroids appears to severely impact a user's ability to accurately recall the shapes and spatial relationships of objects, say U.S. medicos...
14 December 2012
Three new species of venomous loris identified
University of Missouri researchers recently identified three new species of slow loris that had originally been mistakenly grouped with another species...
13 December 2012
Rethink creation of life in terms of information, argues new theory
Attempts to recreate the emergence of life by mixing and reacting basic chemicals are wrong-headed, argue two US scientists, who instead propose that it is the informational architecture of a system's chemical networks that allows it to gain causal purchase over its components and become alive...
12 December 2012
Epigenetics might explain evolutionary puzzle of homosexuality
Epigenetics - how gene expression is regulated by temporary switches, called epi-marks - appears to be a critical and overlooked factor in the long-standing evolutionary puzzle of why homosexuality occurs...
11 December 2012
Are we living in a computer simulation? Physicists propose test to find out
In 2003, a British philosopher published a probabilistic analysis examining the possibility that we might all be living in a computer simulation. His conclusion - that we quite likely are living in a computer simulation - might soon be put to the test by US physicists...
10 December 2012
The nose knows: Pinocchio effect reveals liars
Applying thermography techniques to the field of psychology, Spanish researchers have observed the "Pinocchio effect," where a person's nose becomes warmer when they are lying...
8 December 2012
Successful clinical trial for ketamine-like antidepressant
Researchers are reporting a successful phase IIa clinical trial of GLYX-13, a first-of-its-kind ketamine-like antidepressant that takes effect within 24 hours and delivers double the antidepressant effect of traditional SSRI treatments...
7 December 2012
Ultrasound used to stimulate tactile sensations in brain
Scientists have provided the first neurophysiological evidence for something that medicos have long suspected: ultrasound applied to parts of the body, such as the fingertips, can stimulate different sensory pathways leading to the brain. The breakthrough could find its way into applications ranging from medicine to consumer electronics...
6 December 2012
Oops. Greenhouse gas levels appear to be significantly underestimated
Measuring greenhouse gas emissions has traditionally relied on estimating emissions from all the activities and processes that might generate the gases, but scientists who instead took actual atmospheric measurements found that levels of nitrous oxide may be up to 3 times greater than previous estimates...
5 December 2012
Radioactive elements may make alien life more likely on exoplanets
An abundance of radioactive elements observed in a number of exoplanetary systems would make the constituent planets much warmer, say scientists at Ohio State University, who contend that this planetary inner-heat could significantly expand the so-called Goldilocks zone around stars where life could evolve...
4 December 2012
Squirrels and birds inspire latest deceptive robots
With funding from the Navy, Georgia Tech researchers are building robots that can deceive each other in a manner similar to the way birds and squirrels confuse and harass predators...
3 December 2012
Tap water implicated in rise of food allergies
Chemicals known as dichlorophenols, which are used in pesticides and to chlorinate water supplies, could be partially to blame for the rocketing number of food allergies affecting developed nations...
30 November 2012
New evidence for water and organics on Mercury
Scientists say data transmitted by the Messenger spacecraft provide compelling support for the notion that Mercury harbors abundant water ice and other frozen volatile materials in its permanently shadowed polar craters...
29 November 2012
New experimental findings challenge theory of electromagnetism
A cornerstone of physics may require a rethink if the results from a series of new experiments are confirmed. They suggest that predictions based on the fundamental theory of electromagnetism may not accurately account for the behavior of atoms in exotic states...
28 November 2012
Tree plumbing stress approaching tipping point
The hydraulic system of trees is so finely-tuned that predicted increases in drought due to climate change may lead to catastrophic failure in many species. That's according to a new study that found many plants around the globe are already operating at the top of their drought-stress safety threshold...
27 November 2012
Ancient microbes found beneath ice of Antarctic lake
Scientists have discovered a viable community of bacteria that survives in a pitch-black, salty, and sub-zero environment beneath nearly 20 meters of ice in one of Antarctica's most isolated lakes...
26 November 2012
Brain, Universe, Internet governed by same fundamental laws, suggests supercomputer simulation
Structural and dynamical similarities between the human brain and other complex networks such as the Internet or the Universe itself suggest that some fundamental laws might govern them all, although the nature and origin of such laws remain elusive...
23 November 2012
Braille patterns transmitted directly to retina
For the first time scientists have wirelessly streamed Braille patterns directly into a blind patient's retina, allowing the patient to read words accurately and quickly...
22 November 2012
Rhythmic nature of consciousness probed
Understanding how our brains encode thoughts at the cellular level may be a step closer after neuroscientists at MIT discovered groups of neurons encoding specific behavioral rules by oscillating in synchrony, a finding that suggests conscious thought emerges from oscillatory cycles in the brain...
21 November 2012
Stabbed or shot? Drink up
Hospital patients with traumatic injuries such as fractures, internal injuries and open wounds were far more likely to survive if they had consumed alcohol, and the protective effect increased with the amount of alcohol consumed...
20 November 2012
Solar steam generator outshines photovoltaic solar cells
Using light-capturing nanoparticles, US researchers have achieved an impressive 82 percent conversion efficiency of sunlight directly into steam; a breakthrough they say will create highly cost-effective solutions for desalination, water purification and electricity generation...
19 November 2012
DNA fluidity has "profound implications" for genetic screening, say Yale scientists
The accepted notion that every cell in our body contains identical DNA is incorrect, with Yale and Stanford researchers discovering that genetic variations are widespread throughout the body's tissues, a finding the researchers say will have profound implications for the role of genetic screening...
16 November 2012
"Uncommon features" in Einstein's brain revealed
Researchers who have just completed a new analysis of the famous scientist's grey matter say portions of Albert Einstein's brain were unlike those of most people and could be related to his extraordinary cognitive abilities...
15 November 2012
Nomad planet spotted?
Astronomers say they have identified an astronomical body that is very probably a nomad planet - a free-floating planet that wanders through space without a parent star...
14 November 2012
Husbands stay close with oxytocin
The first evidence that oxytocin promotes relationship fidelity in humans has been provided by a study that measured the distance men keep between themselves and an attractive woman...
13 November 2012
Human intellectual abilities in decline, claims geneticist
A provocative new analysis of genetic mutation in the context of Darwinian selection indicates that humans are losing intellectual and emotional capabilities because unbeneficial mutations are not being selected against in our modern society...
12 November 2012
Revealed: how social isolation atrophies the brain
Neuroscientists report that animals that are socially isolated for prolonged periods make less myelin (the brain's white matter) in the region of the brain responsible for emotional and cognitive behavior...
8 November 2012
Wild Arabica coffee facing extinction
Scientists who have predicted the possible extinction of wild Arabica coffee within 70 years say urgent conservation measures are needed to future-proof Arabica's genetic diversity and ensure the long-term sustainability of Arabica coffee production...
7 November 2012
Birds provide new vector for hemorrhagic fever
For the first time, scientists have found ticks infected with Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever on migratory birds that fly between Africa and Europe...
6 November 2012
Cockatoo makes his own tools
A cockatoo named Figaro from a species not known to use tools has been observed spontaneously making and using tools for reaching food and other objects...
5 November 2012
Sea-level rise predictions may be missing critical factors
Sea levels are rising faster than IPCC projections and a new paper suggests that previously ignored climate feedbacks, such as groundwater use, are to blame...
2 November 2012
Asteroid belts' location critical for evolution of complex life
A new study suggests that the size of an asteroid belt - and its proximity to a giant Jupiter-like planet - needs to be just right for complex life to evolve in a planetary system...
1 November 2012
Synthetic magnetism used to control light
Stanford physicists and engineers have demonstrated a device that produces synthetic magnetism to exert virtual force on photons similar to the effect of a magnetic field on electrons...
31 October 2012
Food security emerging as major climate change issue
A new report looking into how climate change will affect food production and food security warns that nothing less than a "complete recalibration" of where specific crops are grown and livestock are raised will be required if the world is to be fed...
30 October 2012
Extinction of dinosaurs a given thanks to fragility of their ecosystem
A new study suggests that the ecological structure of dinosaur communities made them sitting ducks for extinction after the Chicxulub asteroid impact...
29 October 2012
Experiment could reveal mechanism behind quantum entanglement
European and Asian physicists have devised a do-able experiment that could reveal the precise workings of Einstein's "spooky action at a distance." The results would show that either faster-than-light communication is possible, or, that the Universe is fundamentally nonlocal, in the sense that every bit of the Universe is connected to every other bit...
27 October 2012
"It's not you, it's me," means it's probably you, say ovulation boffins
Long after women have chosen Mr. Reliable over Mr. Sexy, they struggle unconsciously with the decision, with the highest levels of dissatisfaction occurring during ovulation...
26 October 2012
Men enjoy dirt-eating as much as pregnant women, Harvard study finds
Harvard scientists say that pica (particularly geophagy - the eating of soil) is far more prevalent in Madagascar than previously thought, and men are partaking as often as pregnant women...
25 October 2012
Dark matter not so dark; may be peppered with rogue stars
Astronomers have suggested that the dark matter halos that envelop entire galaxies may not be completely dark after all, and could contain rogue stars that have been flung out of the galaxy...
24 October 2012
Arctic ice shrinks, Antarctic grows
The dramatic decline in Arctic sea ice cover over the last three decades has been well documented, but at the opposite end of the Earth something more complex is happening...
23 October 2012
Precognition may exist in biological processes, suggests new review
After reviewing more than 30 years worth of studies into "anomalous anticipatory activity," researchers at Northwestern University think the phenomenon of presentiment might be related to recent findings in the field of quantum biology...
22 October 2012
Spatial awareness skewed by fear
Fear can dramatically skew our perception of approaching objects, causing us to underestimate the distance of a threatening one, but researchers are unsure whether fear makes the object appear to travel faster, or whether that fear makes the viewer expand their sense of personal space...
20 October 2012
Ball lightning an ion discharge, contends Aussie scientist
No explanation of how ball lightning occurs has been universally accepted by science, but an Australian researcher thinks eye-witness accounts from airline pilots may offer an important clue...
19 October 2012
Early Triassic ocean temp reached 40& #176;C
Scientists have discovered why life on Earth took so long to recover after the end-Permian mass extinction 250 million years ago. It was simply too hot to survive, suggests new research, with temperatures of 60& #176;C on land and 40& #176;C at the sea-surface...
18 October 2012
Earth-sized planet found nearby in Alpha Centauri system
Astronomers from the European Southern Observatory have discovered a planet about the same mass as Earth orbiting a star in the Alpha Centauri system - the closest star system to Earth...
17 October 2012
Significant testosterone deficiency found in obese boys
For the first time, medicos have measured testosterone levels in teens of different weights and found that young obese males have up to 50 percent less testosterone, significantly increasing their potential to be impotent and infertile as adults...
16 October 2012
Lack of sleep causing obesity epidemic?
Challenging the long-held notion that the main function of sleep is to give rest to the brain, researchers have found that not getting enough sleep has a significant impact on fat cells, reducing by 30 percent their ability to respond to insulin, a hormone that regulates energy...
15 October 2012
Knife-on-bottle is "nastiest sound," say scientists
Frenetic activity between the emotional and auditory parts of the brain explains why the sound of a knife on a bottle is so unpleasant, say researchers who have been examining brain scans of subjects listening to different sounds...
12 October 2012
High voltage solar cell recharger developed for phones
A solar technology breakthrough by UK scientists means portable electronic devices such as phones, cameras, and e-book readers could soon have credit card-sized solar cells built-in, allowing them to be recharged on the move...
11 October 2012
Surprising spiral structure observed around dying star
Astronomers using the ALMA telescope in Chile have observed an unusual spiral structure in the gas surrounding the red giant star R Sculptoris...
10 October 2012
The prettier the guiltier
Past research has linked physical attractiveness to success in a variety of fields, but a new study from Europe shows that beauty can be a handicap when it comes to culpability in domestic violence crimes...
9 October 2012
Mystery object delays Curiosity rover's soil scooping
A mysterious bright object lying on the Martian surface has delayed the Curiosity rover's soil sampling activities until mission control can identify the metallic object...
8 October 2012
Neuroscientists observe "novel" activity in brain during sleep
For the first time, researchers have measured the activity of a brain region known to be involved in learning and memory during sleep and discovered that it behaves as if it's remembering something, a finding that counters conventional theories about memory consolidation during sleep...
5 October 2012
BPA metabolite findings may reveal real estrogenic culprit
Bisphenol A (BPA), the much maligned chemical that studies have tied to obesity and birth defects, may not be the real villain after all, with researchers now saying it is one of BPA's metabolites that is the culprit...
4 October 2012
Twin-study shows eating disorders influenced by genetics
Genetics may make some women more vulnerable to the pressure of being thin, say researchers who also found media exposure to idealized body size plays a less significant role than previously thought...
3 October 2012
UK scientists aim to create artificial bee brain
Hoping to gain insights into what's needed for creating artificial intelligence, UK scientists are embarking on a project to produce a computer simulation of a honeybee brain...
2 October 2012
Blood-brain barrier in obese people hotwired for fatty foods
US scientists say diets high in saturated fat and refined sugar appear to cause changes to the blood-brain barrier of obese people that in turn may fuel overconsumption of those same foods and make weight loss more challenging...
1 October 2012
Smaller fish on the menu as oceans warm
Warmer and less-oxygenated waters could see many fish species reduce in size by up to 20 percent over the next few decades, according to computer modeling carried out by Canadian scientists...
28 September 2012
Novel rabies-like virus behind hemorrhagic fever outbreak
A 2009 outbreak of acute hemorrhagic fever in the Democratic Republic of Congo was likely caused by a novel virus that appears to be closely related to the types of viruses that cause rabies...
27 September 2012
Ancient Buddhist statue, filched by Nazis, was carved from meteorite
A 1,000 year-old Buddhist statue discovered by a Nazi expedition to Tibet in 1938 has been analyzed by scientists and found to be carved from a rare ataxite meteorite...
26 September 2012
Hubble images provide farthest-ever montage of early Universe
Using multiple images from the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have assembled a new, improved portrait of our deepest-ever view of the Universe. Called the eXtreme Deep Field, the hybrid image contains around 5,000 galaxies - some from a time when the Universe was only a few hundred million years old...
25 September 2012
Antibiotic oomph: the eyes have it
Scientists have found that small fragments of keratin protein in the eye are exceptionally efficient at killing off pathogens, a discovery that could lead to new, inexpensive antimicrobial drugs...
24 September 2012
Forests set to return to Canada's extreme north
Scientists studying the fossilized remains of an ancient forest inside the Arctic circle think that our warming climate could soon see the return of hickory, oak, spruce and willow to this hostile environment...
21 September 2012
Psychopaths revealed via smell test
Psychopathic tendencies appear to be associated with an impaired sense of smell, say Australian scientists who believe inefficient processing in the front part of the brain is the culprit...
20 September 2012
Gene mutation behind African migration also responsible for modern health woes
The brain-boosting genetic mutation that allowed primitive man to migrate across the African continent is over-represented in modern-day African Americans and is believed to be responsible for the higher rates of hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease and cancer in that population group...
19 September 2012
Soundscape ecologists recreate lost world
Using the meticulous field notes compiled by pioneering ecologist Aldo Leopold, modern-day acoustic ecologists have recreated a soundscape of Wisconsin countryside from last century, hoping to demonstrate how a sense of the ecological health of place can be gained by listening to its soundscape...
18 September 2012
Climatologists estimate extreme rainfall events in tropics
Thunderstorm complexes, flood-inducing monsoons and wide-sweeping cyclones will all become more likely in the tropics; suggest new MIT projections that show 10 percent heavier rainfall extremes for every 1 degree Celsius rise in temperature...
17 September 2012
Cheap USB ultrasound ready for developing world
A USB ultrasound device about the size of a computer mouse that can be manufactured for as little as $50 will save the lives of hundreds of thousands of women and children, say its developers...
14 September 2012
Bolivian park may be most biodiverse area on planet
The Wildlife Conservation Society says a remote park in northwest Bolivia may be the most biologically diverse place on Earth, boasting 11 percent of the world's birds, more than 200 species of mammals, 300 types of fish, and 12,000 plant varieties...
13 September 2012
Sexual arousal neutralizes disgust response
Dutch researchers have found that natural responses to disgusting stimuli were lessened significantly when female subjects were sexually aroused. The researchers believe the findings may provide new insights into female sexual dysfunction...
12 September 2012
Semen protein acts as "master regulator" in females
Working with fruit-flies, scientists have observed "remarkable" changes in female gene expression after exposure to a protein in semen. The researchers say the changes, which may also exist in other species, include altered fertility, immunity, libido, eating and sleep patterns...
11 September 2012
Joke boffins analyze tragedy humor
"Too soon!" complained the audience when comedian Jeffrey Ross did a skit about the recent shootings in Colorado, but psychologists exploring humor and tragedy say it's not quite as simple as "too soon"...
10 September 2012
Fungi make modern violin sound like a Stradivarius
A Swiss researcher has succeeded in using fungi to modify the wood in a violin to make it sound indistinguishable from a Stradivarius...
8 September 2012
New uncertainty over uncertainty principle
One of the fundamental tenets of quantum mechanics, Werner Heisenberg's uncertainty principle, is being freshly challenged by University of Toronto researchers who say that Heisenberg's pessimistic assessment of the limits of measurement may be incorrect...
7 September 2012
South American glacial thinning sharply accelerates
Thinning of the largest icefields in the southern hemisphere (excluding Antarctica) has accelerated sharply, with a new study showing the glaciers are losing ice faster than ever before...
6 September 2012
Double whammy dinosaur extinction theory
Widely believed to have wiped out the dinosaurs, the giant asteroid that smashed into the Yucatán Peninsula may have been preceded by a volcanic extinction event that warmed the planet dramatically...
5 September 2012
Women better with colors
A study examining visual processing in the brain found that men have greater sensitivity to detail and rapidly moving stimuli, while women are better at discriminating between colors...
4 September 2012
Biodiversity backflip on warming climate
The notion that the planet's warming climate will result in widespread extinctions has been challenged by a new study that suggests that biodiversity on Earth generally increases as the planet warms...
3 September 2012
Alcohol rewires brain for PTSD
Heavy drinking appears to impair the brain's ability to recover from trauma and may put people at greater risk for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), say scientists from the University of North Carolina and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism...
1 September 2012
Booze intake influenced by glass shape
Research subjects drank beer from a curved glass almost twice as fast as from a straight sided glass, but the shape of the glass made no difference when the drinks were non-alcoholic...
31 August 2012
Nicotine receptor gets blame for Internet addiction
Internet addiction has a physiological basis, according to German researchers who say a variant of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor makes women particularly vulnerable...
30 August 2012
Sugar molecules observed in distant planet formation
For the first time, astronomers have identified molecules of glycolaldehyde - a simple form of sugar - in the gas surrounding a distant young star. The discovery shows that some of the chemical compounds needed for life existed in this relatively young solar system at the time of planet formation...
29 August 2012
Binary star has multiple orbiting planets
Astronomers have found the first multi-planet solar system orbiting a binary star. Importantly, the discovery shows that planetary systems can form and survive even in the chaotic environment around a binary star...
28 August 2012
Infant formula found to compromise immune system
Scientists have discovered how breast milk, but not infant formula, fosters colonies of microbiotic flora in a newborn's intestinal tract that aid nutrient absorption and immune system development...
27 August 2012
Tackling obesity by manipulating gut flora
Antibiotics could one day be the standard treatment for regulating weight, suggests a new study that examines the interactions between diet, the bacteria in our gut, and our immune systems...
24 August 2012
Flat lens focuses without distortion
Physicists at Harvard have created an ultrathin, flat lens that focuses light without imparting the distortions that occur with conventional lenses...
23 August 2012
Cause of global throat cancer epidemic a mystery
The "astounding" increase in cases of esophageal cancer around the world seems to have begun in the UK in the 1950s, but a recent comprehensive analysis of historical data has brought scientists no closer to identifying the cause...
22 August 2012
Semen found to induce ovulation
Previously thought to have no physiological effects, the prostatic fluid component of semen contains a protein that can trigger ovulation and other pregnancy-related hormonal responses in female mammals...
21 August 2012
Bucky ball "cage" imprisons smaller molecules
A quantum parlor trick where smaller molecules are "caged" inside the nano-meter sized cavity of a hollow spherical bucky ball (C60 Buckminsterfullerene) molecule could point the way to advanced molecular electronics...
20 August 2012
Curiosity's laser zaps first Martian rock
The rover Curiosity has zapped a fist-sized Martian rock with its laser, producing a cloud of ionized plasma that will be analyzed by Curiosity's spectrometers...
15 August 2012
Precise sexual orientation revealed in pupil dilation study
Researchers have used a specialized camera to measure pupillary changes in people watching erotic videos, the changes in pupil dilation revealing where the participant is located on the heterosexual-homosexual spectrum...
14 August 2012
Neanderthal nookie notion nixed
The idea that modern humans and Neanderthals once interbred is probably wrong, say researchers at the University of Cambridge who suggest that a common ancestry better explains the DNA we share with Neanderthals...
13 August 2012
Urbanization wild-card in warming estimates
Scientists studying the impact of urban expansion on climate have found that average summertime temperatures in one US area could increase by as much as 4 degrees Celsius over the next few decades...
10 August 2012
Banking regulations could create financial chaos, say physicists
Imposing minimal capital levels for banks in an effort to stabilize the banking sector will not prevent insolvency and may lead to even greater financial chaos, say the creators of a new theoretical framework for bank stability...
9 August 2012
Hamburger-shaped raindrops creating twin rainbows
Computer simulations have allowed scientists to identify the curiously named "burgeroid" raindrop as being responsible for a rare optical phenomenon known as the twinned rainbow...
8 August 2012
First 3-D images from Curiosity
NASA has received the first 3-D images from the rover Curiosity's hazard cameras as well as an image shot from orbit that shows the rover and the discarded parachute and sky crane used in Curiosity's descent...
7 August 2012
Orbiter captures Curiosity's descent
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has transmitted to Earth an astounding picture of the rover Curiosity as it descends by parachute towards the surface of Mars...
6 August 2012
Curiosity Live: countdown to Mars landing
Follow our live blog as NASA's Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft begins the most complicated planetary landing ever attempted to gently place the car-sized Curiosity Rover on Mars' surface...
5 August 2012
Waitresses in red win tips race
Male restaurant customers give consistently higher tips - around 20 percent more - to waitresses wearing red, say hospitality researchers...
27 July 2012
Sewage analysis reveals European party hotspots
For the first time, scientists have made direct comparisons of illicit drug use in 19 European cities by a co-operative analysis of raw sewage samples...
26 July 2012
Hunter-gatherer study contradicts obesity theory
Comparing the lifestyles of modern African hunter-gatherers and Westerners, scientists found no difference in energy expenditure, leading the researchers to posit that diet - rather than lack of exercise - may be the culprit in the obesity epidemic...
26 July 2012
Brain hardwired for objectification of women
A new series of experiments have shown that when presented with images of men, both male and female subjects perceive the person as a whole, whereas images of women are perceived as an assemblage of various body parts...
25 July 2012
Cell phone scanner diagnoses anemia
Designed for use in the developing world, a low-cost screening device connected to a cell phone could prevent the anemia-related deaths of 600,000 newborns every year...
24 July 2012
Inflatable heat shield survives re-entry test
Developed by NASA, a large heat shield inflated with nitrogen has successfully completed a re-entry trip through Earth's atmosphere while travelling at speeds of up to 7,600 mph...
23 July 2012
Artificial jellyfish shows new route to synthetic organisms
Using only silicon and cultured rat heart muscle tissue, bioengineers have created a jellyfish-like creature that, despite its relative simplicity, shows complex swimming and feeding behaviors...
21 July 2012
Titan's rivers create a puzzle for geologists
Captured by the Cassini spacecraft, detailed images of rivers of liquid methane on Saturn's moon Titan point to a mysterious geologic history...
20 July 2012
Diesel fumes causing waistlines to bulge?
Pregnant mice exposed to diesel exhaust pollution gave birth to offspring with a significantly higher rate of obesity and insulin resistance in adulthood. The effect, say the researchers, was especially prevalent in male mice, which were heavier regardless of diet...
19 July 2012
Earliest spiral galaxy "astounding"
Looking back 11 billion years, astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope have observed for the first time a spiral galaxy in the early universe, billions of years before other comparable spiral galaxies formed...
18 July 2012
OCD rodents keeping forests alive
The obsessive thieving and stashing of seeds by rodents provides a vital seed-dispersal service in tropical forests, according to new research that may solve a long standing puzzle in ecology...
17 July 2012
Inaccuracy of brain's language processing revealed
A new study using electroencephalography to explore what is happening in our brains when we process sentences containing semantic illusions (After a plane crash, where should the survivors be buried?) has shown human listening to be shallow and incomplete at best...
16 July 2012
Marijuana farms impacting fragile ecosystems
Poisons used on illegal marijuana farms may be sickening and killing the fisher, a rare forest carnivore that makes its home in some of the most remote areas of California...
13 July 2012
Iris recognition shows its age
It was generally assumed that the iris was a "stable" biometric over a person's lifetime but new research shows the iris is susceptible to an aging process that causes recognition problems...
12 July 2012
New moon discovery adds to Pluto's mystery
The discovery, by the Hubble telescope, of a fifth moon orbiting Pluto has astronomers wondering how the dwarf planet accrued such a complex collection of satellites...
11 July 2012
Magnetic sensory cells isolated in fish
For the first time, scientists have isolated individual magnetic cells in trout that the fish use to help them navigate back to their hatching ground. The discovery may shed light on how other creatures, including humans, are influenced by magnetic fields...
10 July 2012
Breakthrough in stabilizing vaccines and antibiotics without refrigeration
A new chemical stabilizer - based on silk - keeps the bioactive molecules in vaccines and antibiotics stable for long periods at temperatures of up to 140 degrees Fahrenheit. The developers say their technique could dramatically improve access to medications in the developing world...
9 July 2012
E-waste should be managed as a resource, say sustainability experts
Electronic waste now contains "deposits" of gold and silver 40-50 times richer than ores mined from the ground, but less than 15 percent of the precious metals used in computers, phones and tablets are recovered...
6 July 2012
Astronomers ponder proto solar system vanishing act
Displaying all of the characteristics of a solar system in the making, a massive cloud of dust and rocky debris orbiting a nearby star has vanished, leaving astronomers mystified as to what could have happened to the dusty disc that was much more massive than Saturn's rings...
5 July 2012
New boson could be Higgs particle, say CERN boffins
CERN physicists say they have enough statistical evidence to claim discovery of a new fundamental particle - a boson that may, pending further investigation, prove to be the so-called "god" particle responsible for the elusive Higgs field that gives other particles mass...
4 July 2012
Atom shadow photographed using traditional microscopy
For the first time, Australian scientists have managed to photograph the shadow of an atom using only visible light and an extremely powerful optical microscope...
3 July 2012
Toxoplasmosis linked to suicide attempts
Spread through contact with cat feces or eating undercooked meat, the parasite Toxoplasma gondii has been linked to increased rates of attempted suicide in women...
2 July 2012
Vacuum tube tech could save Moore's Law
To run integrated circuits at faster and faster speeds, scientists are proposing a new spin on an old method: a change from the use of silicon electronics back to vacuum technology for electron transport - a shift they believe would overcome a significant stumbling block in the development of faster and more efficient computers...
30 June 2012
Researchers hack and commandeer drone
For the first time, researchers have demonstrated that the GPS system used for navigation by an unmanned aerial vehicle, or drone, can be commandeered by an outside source to take control of the vehicle...
29 June 2012
Iconic sexual selection study "fatally flawed"
A classic study from more than 60 years ago suggesting that males are more promiscuous and females more choosy in selecting mates has informed and influenced evolutionary biology for decades, but a modern day repeat of the experiment indicates the original work may have been wrong...
28 June 2012
Nicotine vaccine mooted for children
A novel genetic vaccine that modifies the liver to produce antibodies to clear nicotine from the bloodstream could be administered to children in much the same way that polio and HPV vaccines are, say the developers...
27 June 2012
Smartphone powered robotic DJ set for party duties
The annoying guy at parties who keeps changing the music may be facing redundancy, thanks to a new robot DJ docking station that chooses music, reacts to crowd feedback and dances appallingly...
26 June 2012
Reading: up close and personal
There are no significant gender-related differences in the eye's ability to focus at near distances, so scientists have been looking for other reasons why women need higher power reading glasses than men of an equivalent age...
25 June 2012
Experiment reveals workings of Freudian unconscious
New experimental findings show a causal link between unconscious conflict and the conscious symptoms experienced by people with anxiety disorders, lending weight to one of Sigmund Freud's key theories...
21 June 2012
AI: size matters
MIT scientists have discovered that the brain processes objects based on their physical size, with a specific region of the brain reserved for recognizing large objects and another reserved for small objects. The findings could have major implications in robotics and artificial intelligence...
20 June 2012
Scientists block aggression
Pathological rage can be blocked in mice by shutting down a specific receptor in the brain, report US researchers who believe the finding could lead to new treatments for aggression and hostile overreactions to stress...
19 June 2012
Pop music created using natural selection and crowdsourcing
Software that uses Darwinian natural selection and the musical tastes of web users is well on the way to creating the perfect pop tune, according to evolutionary scientists in the UK...
18 June 2012
TV remotes a bacterial cocktail
A study that investigated bacterial populations on hotel room surfaces found television remote controls and housekeeping carts to be amongst the most heavily contaminated items...
15 June 2012
Kitchens worse than city centers for pollutants
Examining indoor pollutant levels, UK researchers found that gas kitchens had pollutant concentrations "well above" the levels set by the government as its objective for outdoor air quality...
14 June 2012
First genetically evolved semiconductors created
By directing the evolution of silicateins, the proteins responsible for the formation of silica skeletons in marine sponges, scientists at the University of California have synthesized novel semiconducting materials...
13 June 2012
Sperm quality unaffected by lifestyle choices
Medical advice given to sub-fertile men about smoking, alcohol, drugs and obesity is of little value, say UK medicos who contend that many common lifestyle "risks" appear to have little or no effect on sperm health...
12 June 2012
Insomnia caused by fear of the dark?
Canadian researchers say that an adult fear of the dark may be a contributing factor in some cases of insomnia...
11 June 2012
Capitalism on the couch: psychoanalyzing the credit crisis
Corporations and entire Western economies displayed the same kind of manic behavior as psychologically disturbed individuals during the 2008 credit crisis, contends a new study...
9 June 2012
Antidepressants in water induce autism-like gene expression in fish
Antidepressants and other psychoactive medications in water were found to affect the gene expression profiles of minnows in a way that mimics the gene expression patterns associated with autism spectrum disorder...
8 June 2012
Coolness no longer cool, say boffins
An intriguing new study - "Coolness: An Empirical Investigation" - suggests that the characteristics associated with coolness today are markedly different than those that originally generated the concept of cool...
7 June 2012
Scientists tip 2025 for possible planetary collapse
A very large meta-review by an international group of scientists suggests the Earth is perilously close to a tipping point where resource consumption, climate change, biodiversity loss and population growth will, at best, trigger major shifts in the biosphere, and at worst, cause planetary collapse...
6 June 2012
Social behavior shared across all vertebrates
Humans, birds, fish and frogs appear to share the same ancient neural circuits that are responsible for a range of social behaviors, from flashy mating displays to aggression and monogamy...
5 June 2012
Mosquitoes use tai chi to fly through rain
The martial art technique of yielding to an incoming attack rather than attempting to meet it with opposing force enables mosquitoes to fly relatively unscathed through rainstorms...
4 June 2012
Energy poverty linked to cognitive deficits
Researchers have found widespread memory, problem-solving and social deficits among children in the developing world who are exposed to the smoke from open cooking fires...
2 June 2012
U.S. heads getting bigger
In the space of less than 200 years, the average U.S. Caucasian skull size has increased nearly 7 percent, becoming taller and narrower. The researchers say they cannot pinpoint a reason as to whether the change is primarily due to evolution or lifestyle changes...
1 June 2012
Andromeda-Milky Way collision visualized
After nearly a century of speculation about the future destiny of Andromeda and our own Milky Way galaxy, scientists at NASA have visualized what the eventual collision of the two galaxies will look like and where our own solar system will end up...
31 May 2012
Body odor reveals age
Untrained human subjects can estimate the age of other humans based on differences in body odor, reports a new study that also claims that the odor of old people is more agreeable than the body smell of young people...
30 May 2012
Birds are baby dinosaurs, say Harvard scientists
Birds and dinosaurs are more closely related than previously thought, say scientists who claim that modern birds are, essentially, living juvenile dinosaurs...
29 May 2012
Families forged from female food fanciers
A new mathematical simulation shows that the most commonly proposed theories for the emergence of human pair-bonding are not biologically feasible. Instead, the new model suggests the emergence of the modern family was likely initiated by females who showed a preference for low-ranking males who were better at providing food, rather than fighting...
28 May 2012
Science literacy of dubious value in climate change assessment
A surprising new study into the public's views on climate changes casts doubt on the notion that the more you understand science and math, the better decisions you'll make in complex and technical situations...
26 May 2012
PVC flooring chemicals taken up by skin contact
Higher levels of the plastics chemicals known as phthalates have been found in children from homes containing PVC flooring materials, suggesting these softening agents can be absorbed by contact with the skin...
25 May 2012
Quantum effect in photosynthesis leaves researchers mystified
Using ultrafast spectroscopy, scientists have observed what happens at the subatomic level during the very first stage of photosynthesis and uncovered a much more fundamental interaction than had previously been considered possible...
24 May 2012
Nomad planets seeding life throughout the universe?
According to new calculations, planets adrift in space without a "home" solar system are abundant in the universe and scientists have proposed that these nomad planets might not only sustain life, but transport it as well...
23 May 2012
Synthetic excrement touted as solution to gastric woes
Typically acquired after a course of antibiotics, Clostridium difficile infections are skyrocketing, and medicos think fecal transplants using a synthetic mixture of intestinal bacteria could be the best treatment...
22 May 2012
Virus linked to macular degeneration
US scientists have found that a type of herpes-virus infection of the eye is associated with age-related macular degeneration, a disease that causes blindness in the elderly...
21 May 2012
First inexact computer chip aimed at developing world
Moving from theory to reality, US researchers have unveiled the first inexact computer chip. Error checking on the chip is only enforced for applications that require absolute accuracy which makes the chip efficient enough to power iPad-like devices that run entirely from solar power...
19 May 2012
Bird poo and manta rays: nature's intricate connectivity revealed
One of the longest ecological interaction chains ever documented sheds light on how human disturbance of the natural world may lead to widespread, yet largely invisible, disruption of ecosystems...
18 May 2012
US diet engenders stupidity
A new UCLA study with rodents is the first to show how a diet high in fructose sabotages memory and learning functions in the brain...
17 May 2012
Thought-controlled robotic arm demonstrated
Using only her thoughts, a paralyzed woman was able to reach for and drink from a bottle that was being manipulated by a robotic arm...
16 May 2012
Earliest cave art was erotica, say researchers
A block of limestone in southwestern France is adorned with what anthropologists believe are engravings of female genitalia dating back 37,000 years...
15 May 2012
Ovulation goggles make Mr Wrong look like Mr Right
Nice guys finish last when women are wearing ovulation goggles, say researchers who have been investigating exactly why females in the most fertile phase of their menstrual cycle choose sexy, rebellious cads to pair-up with...
14 May 2012
Carbon emission levels from deforestation challenged
When trees are felled to create solid wood products - such as lumber for housing - the wood retains most of its locked-up carbon, say scientists who suggest that previous climate models for carbon emissions from deforestation need revision...
9 May 2012
Entropy the major player in chirality conundrum
Why many of the important molecules in our bodies almost always occur in just one chiral form (either right or left handed) when they could potentially exist in either is a mystery that has confounded researchers for years...
8 May 2012
Dino farts warmed early climate
Mesozoic methane emissions from dinosaurs could, according to new calculations, have produced more of the notorious greenhouse gas than all modern sources - both natural and man-made - put together...
7 May 2012
Robot probe maps brain neuron activity faster, more accurately
Researchers at MIT and the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a robotic probe to automate the process of finding and recording information from neurons in the living brain...
6 May 2012
"Seeing" auras is really synesthesia, say Euro scientists
Spanish researchers say that healers who claim to be able to see the auras surrounding people are actually suffering synesthesia, the neuropsychological phenomenon that mixes the senses...
5 May 2012
Venus transit to help identify possible neo-Earths
Hoping to eventually identify Earth-like planets in other solar systems, astronomers plan to point the Hubble telescope at the Moon's Tycho crater during the upcoming transit of Venus across the Sun and analyze the reflected Venusian atmospheric spectra...
4 May 2012
Single gene mutation responsible for modern humans
Scientists believe that the appearance of a novel gene, occurring around the time that the Australopithecus and the Homo lineages separated, was responsible for the sudden increase in brain complexity that led to language and modern humankind...
3 May 2012
Controversial bird flu research finally published
After an unprecedented recommendation by a government review panel to block publication, a study that shows how the avian H5N1 influenza virus could become transmissible in mammals was published in full today...
1 May 2012
Inch-long fleas tormented dinosaurs
Ten times bigger than their modern cousins, fossilized prehistoric fleas unearthed by Chinese scientists reveal a proboscis like a hypodermic needle...
1 May 2012
Hundreds of rogue stars found outside galaxy
Astronomers say they have identified more than 600 stars that have been violently flung out of the Milky Way toward Andromeda; stellar victims, the scientists believe, of the supermassive black hole at our galaxy's core...
28 April 2012
Antibiotics found to have epigenetic effects
Male pseudoscorpions treated with tetracycline suffer significantly reduced sperm viability and this toxic effect is passed on to their untreated sons, say US researchers who believe a similar effect could occur in humans...
26 April 2012
Top chemical suspects in autism identified
US medical researchers have published their list of the top 10 chemicals implicated in autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders...
25 April 2012
SETI needs self-replicating robot explorers, argues prof
Autonomous, self-replicating robots are the best way to explore the universe, locate extraterrestrial life and perhaps even clean up space debris, argues Penn State professor John D. Mathews, in the Journal of the British Interplanetary Society...
24 April 2012
Bowerbirds gardening for pleasure
Scientists say they have uncovered the first evidence of a non-human species cultivating plants for use other than as food - bowerbirds growing fruits to be used as decorations in their sexual displays...
23 April 2012
Parkinson's treated with Victorian era device
A 19th century "vibration chair" has been found by modern-day researchers to significantly improve some of the symptoms of Parkinson's disease...
21 April 2012
Humans drawn to high emotion
Pictures of the left side of the face are perceived and rated as more pleasant than pictures of the right side of the face, leading scientists to hypothesize that we prefer the left side's more intense expressions of emotionality...
20 April 2012
Cholesterol's cancer fighting properties revealed
In an intriguing new study, scientists investigating cholesterol's binding properties within cells say that cholesterol appears to inhibit or stop cancer growth...
20 April 2012
Heredity and evolution seen in synthetic DNA
DNA and RNA possess two features believed essential for life: they display heredity and they can adapt over time. Now, scientists have shown that heredity and evolution can be performed by molecules other than DNA and RNA...
19 April 2012
New blow to dark matter theory
The most detailed study to date of the motions of stars in the Milky Way has found no evidence for the existence of the mysterious invisible substance known as dark matter...
18 April 2012
Food and sex behaviors predicted with MRI
Scientists using MRI brain scans to investigate the areas of the brain to do with reward and self-control found they could predict the subjects' levels of weight gain and sexual desires six months into the future...
17 April 2012
Chin augmentation skyrockets
The always fascinating annual statistics from the American Society of Plastic Surgeons show that chin augmentation is the fastest growing plastic surgery procedure - a phenomenon, speculate surgeons, sparked by a desire for success in the workplace...
16 April 2012
Water not necessary for life?
The proteins that are vital to living creatures evolved in Earth's water-rich environment and it was thought that water was vital for proteins to function, but some intriguing new findings from the UK challenge this belief...
14 April 2012
Penguins counted from space
Scientists using very high resolution satellite images to estimate penguin populations around the coastline of Antarctica were surprised to find there were twice as many emperor penguins as previously thought...
13 April 2012
Worrying and intelligence evolutionarily inseparable
Anxiety and excessive worry, traits that are usually viewed in a negative light, appear to have co-evolved with the attribute that is viewed as most adaptive - human intelligence...
12 April 2012
Climate change treaties wrongheaded, argues radical plan to lock-up fossil fuels
An intriguing analysis of fossil fuel trading and environmental policy shows that rather than attempting to limit consumption via pollution permits, taxation, and climate change treaties; buying coal, oil and other dirty fossil fuel deposits and then leaving them in the ground is a far more effective way to fight climate change...
11 April 2012
Oxytocin has "blockbuster potential" as lifestyle drug
A case report in The Journal of Sexual Medicine details how "significant, broad-spectrum improvements in sexual function" were apparent in a male subject after intranasal oxytocin use, leading the researchers to ponder the mass market potential of oxytocin as a lifestyle drug for men...
10 April 2012
Genes a good predictor of social status
Scientists using an experimental approach to observe how the presence or absence of DNA methyl groups correlates with social dominance claim that gene expression can predict the social status of an individual with 80 percent accuracy...
9 April 2012
Empirical evidence for homophobia's link to repressed same-sex attraction
In the first study of its kind, UK and US researchers have found that homophobia is more pronounced in individuals with an unacknowledged attraction to the same sex...
6 April 2012
Brain scans hint at root of consciousness
Imaging internal brain activity under anesthesia has provided researchers with revealing insights into what happens when the subjective phenomenon of consciousness first vanishes and then re-emerges...
5 April 2012
Black Queen Hypothesis offers new interpretations of organism interdependency
A new theory based on the same premise as the card game "Hearts" turns traditional evolutionary thinking on its head by positing that some living organisms evolve and survive by discarding genes rather than adding them...
4 April 2012
Facebook study reveals social media gender traits
A new European study into Facebook usage reports that women, but not men, feel less happy and less content with their lives the longer they spend on Facebook...
3 April 2012
"Super-Turing" AI gets development funding
Computer scientist Hava Siegelmann has received funding to develop what she calls a "Super-Turing" based artificial intelligence. Based on analog recurrent neural networks, Siegelmann says the machine will usher in a level of intelligence not seen before in artificial computation...
2 April 2012
Beer-goggles effect explained
Alcohol reduces our ability to assess facial symmetry in others, according to UK researchers who say the effect is most pronounced in women...
30 March 2012
Slow food, better mood
"The more fast food you consume, the greater the risk of depression," say Euro researchers who have linked the consumption of hamburgers, hotdogs and pizza to a significantly greater likelihood of developing depression...
29 March 2012
Earth to Moon on a cup of fuel
A new low-cost ionic motor could dramatically reduce the cost of space exploration, with its European developers saying it could propel a satellite to the Moon using just a tenth of a liter of fuel...
28 March 2012
Software detects lies by analyzing eye movements
A computer program that analyzes eye movements is better at identifying deceitful people than expert human interrogators...
27 March 2012
Antidepressant use primes brain for placebo effect
Putting a twist in a run-of-the-mill medication-versus-placebo trial has revealed that prior treatment with antidepressants appears to prime the brain to exhibit a much stronger response to a placebo...
26 March 2012
Hoarding may have led to human bipedalism
Detailed observations of modern chimpanzees indicate that walking upright may have evolved millions of years ago as an adaptation to be better able to carry scarce, high-quality foods and other resources...
23 March 2012
False memories implanted in mammalian brain
By exerting control over specific neurons in the brain, scientists have successfully generated synthetic memory traces in mice, leading the rodents to believe they were somewhere they weren't...
22 March 2012
More evidence for opiates role in cancer growth
Two new studies have found that the opiate drugs used to relieve pain in cancer patients appear to stimulate the growth and spread of tumors...
21 March 2012
Laser camera peers around corners
Using ordinary walls, doors or floors as reflective surfaces, MIT researchers have built a camera that produces recognizable 3-D images from outside the camera's line of sight...
20 March 2012
Researchers mull tobacco's restorative effects on self control
A new study that indicates smoking has a restorative effect on an individual's self-control resources has researchers pondering other self-control restoration strategies as a way to reduce smokers' dependence on tobacco...
19 March 2012
Exercise induced "coregasm" is real, say scientists
Indiana University researchers say they have confirmed anecdotal evidence that exercise alone - without any sexual act or fantasy - can produce a female orgasm, a phenomenon they refer to as a "coregasm..."
19 March 2012
Exposure to plastic chemical leads to shorter reproductive life
Mice exposed to high doses of a common plasticizing chemical in utero exhibit significant reproductive alterations and precancerous lesions as they grow up, according to a new toxicology report...
15 March 2012
Chinese fossils may be new human species
Dating from only around 13,000 years ago, fossils from two caves in south-west China have revealed a previously unknown Stone Age people who exhibit a highly unusual mix of ancient and modern anatomical features...
14 March 2012
Trans fats and aggression: the Twinkie defense gets scientific
Researchers have provided the first evidence linking the consumption of trans fats with a range of adverse behaviors, ranging from impatience to overt aggression...
13 March 2012
Analysis shows circumcision link to prostate cancer
Observational data from a new study reveal that men who had been circumcised before their first sexual intercourse were 15 percent less likely to develop prostate cancer than uncircumcised men...
12 March 2012
Earliest animal with a skeleton discovered
Up until the Cambrian Period, it was understood that animals were soft bodied and had no hard parts, but paleontologists say they have discovered fossil evidence for an organism with individual skeletal body parts that appears before the Cambrian...
9 March 2012
Bee thrill-seekers reveal evolutionary importance of novelty
One-in-20 honey bees are thrill seekers, say entomologists who have identified distinct patterns of gene activity in the same molecular pathways known to be associated with thrill-seeking in humans...
8 March 2012
QWERTY effect creates lovable words
An intriguing new study shows there is a link between the meaning of words and the letters they are composed of - a relationship the researchers have called the QWERTY effect...
7 March 2012
Nuke decontamination pill "highly effective"
Rapid, mass decontamination following a nuclear reactor accident or terrorist "dirty bomb" attack may be in the offing with US researchers reporting they have begun seeking FDA approval for trials of an orally administered decontamination agent...
6 March 2012
Tiny jellyfish has proto-eye linked to stingers
The first steps in the evolution of an eye may be evident in the hydra's stinging tentacles, say scientists who have discovered the tentacles are light sensitive and operate in fundamentally the same way as the eyes in animals and humans...
5 March 2012
Oceanic acidification unprecedented
Carbon dioxide emissions are acidifying the planet's oceans at a rate 10 times faster than occurred in the lead up to past mass extinctions of marine organisms...
2 March 2012
Wine subtleties mostly irrelevant to consumer palates
Biology appears to play a major role in wine experts' acute sense of taste, suggests a study that found consumers are "taste blind" to the subtleties of wine, including even fundamental characteristics such as the balance of sugar and acid...
1 March 2012
Supersonic UAV with sub-$100k price tag mooted
Powered by a novel, super-efficient jet engine, an unmanned aircraft that will fly at Mach 1.4 is nearing commercialization, say the designers behind the ultra-cheap drone...
29 February 2012
Art therapy not so therapeutic for schizophrenia
For people with schizophrenia, UK national treatment guidelines recommend group art therapy to improve mental health and social functioning, but a new study has found art therapy to be ineffectual...
28 February 2012
Arctic warming causing increased snowfalls?
New evidence put forward by atmospheric scientists links increasingly heavy winter snowfalls in the Northern Hemisphere to declining summer ice cover in the Arctic...
27 February 2012
Rosemary's curious psychoactive effects explored
Hailed since ancient times for its medicinal properties, scientists are now uncovering how rosemary oil improves cognitive performance through its effect on mood...
24 February 2012
Dopamine therapy turbocharges artistic drive
Pathological gambling and hypersexuality are two of the better documented side-effects of Parkinson's disease medication, but researchers say that dopamine therapy can also trigger the relentless pursuit of artistic endeavors...
23 February 2012
Wireless breakthrough in self-propelled implantable medical devices
Demonstrated this week, a novel innovation in wireless power transmission allows a tiny self-propelled implantable device to travel around the body in blood vessels, bringing the prospect of miniaturized medical robots a step closer...
22 February 2012
GPS location systems under increasing attack
A monitoring group in the UK has detected dozens of GPS jamming incidents as well as the first case of GPS spoofing being used to "trick" navigation systems. They warn of looming chaos in transportation systems and financial networks...
21 February 2012
Female brain frazzled by mild dehydration
Mild dehydration - which occurs when the body has lost just 1.5 percent of its normal water content - can cause fatigue, tension and anxiety in both genders, but the authors of two surprising new studies say the adverse changes in mood for women were particularly dramatic...
20 February 2012
Energy poverty killing more people than malaria
A lack of clean energy for cooking is causing severe respiratory diseases that kill around two million people each year, says a Canadian scientist...
17 February 2012
Texting stunting our reading skills?
The general assumption that text messaging encourages unconstrained language is a myth, says a Canadian researcher who contends that texting has a negative impact on people's linguistic ability to interpret and accept words...
16 February 2012
Tiny new reptile species discovered
Four new species of miniaturized lizards have been identified in Madagascar. Zoologists believe the tiny size of the chameleons may represent a case of "double" island dwarfism...
15 February 2012
"Cloaked" buildings could withstand earthquakes, say UK scientists
While much media attention has been paid to the development of an invisibility "cloak" that works with electromagnetic waves such as light, mathematicians from the University of Manchester have been looking at cloaking other wave-types, specifically, the damaging elastic waves generated by earthquakes...
14 February 2012
How to spot Internet dating liars
A linguistic analysis carried out by US communications experts has revealed a list of tell-tale language traits that liars use in their online dating profiles...
13 February 2012
Calorie intake linked to cognitive impairment
Consuming more than 2,100 calories per day appears to double the risk of cognitive impairment in the elderly, according to a study to be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's annual meeting...
10 February 2012
Cancer drug reverses Alzheimer's
In a discovery the researchers describe as "unprecedented," a cancer drug already approved by the FDA has been shown to quickly reverse the pathological, cognitive and memory deficits caused by the onset of Alzheimer's disease...
9 February 2012
Milky Way's black hole in asteroid feeding frenzy
The X-ray flares that are observed on a daily basis from the giant black hole at the center of the Milky Way may represent the demise of asteroids plunging into the singularity, according to an analysis of data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory...
8 February 2012
Stimulants' ADHD calming mechanism revealed
The counterintuitive calming effect of amphetamines was first observed in a group of hyperactive children more than 70 years ago, but the actual physiological mechanism at work has remained a mystery until now...
7 February 2012
Disease breathalyzer more sensitive than blood tests
Using what the developers call a "metabolic breathalyzer," diseases such as diabetes, cancer and infections could be detected much earlier than is currently possible with blood tests...
6 February 2012
Missing tree rings invalidate climate reconstructions
Penn State researchers have called into question the common practice of using tree rings to reconstruct past climate events, showing that tree rings are sometimes completely absent for very cold years...
3 February 2012
Gender behaviors directly manipulated
Uncovering the individual genes that are directly influenced by testosterone and estrogen has allowed scientists to manipulate individual behaviors in mice, such as sex drive, desire to pick fights, or willingness to spend extra time caring for their young...
2 February 2012
Wireless highway charging proposed for electric cars
An innovative wireless system that charges electric cars while they are on the road could also be used to control driverless electric vehicles...
1 February 2012
Brain waves reveal mind's internal voice
Eavesdropping on the brain's internal monologs or communicating with locked-in patients may one day be a reality, as scientists learn how to decode the brain's electrical activity into audio signals. The technique reads electrical activity in a region of the human auditory system and then reconstructs the words...
31 January 2012
Size matters: evolutionary changes in body size measured
For the first time, scientists have measured how quickly large-scale evolutionary changes in body size occur. Intriguingly, while it takes 24 million generations for a mouse-sized animal to evolve to the size of an elephant, shrinkage is a much more rapid process...
30 January 2012
Ankle gets top rating for scratching pleasure
American itch boffins have been studying which parts of the body produce the most pleasure when scratched. Their analysis of itch relief at different body sites and related pleasurability reveals the ankle to be a scratch-pleasure hotpspot...
26 January 2012
Magic mushrooms get MRI treatment
Brain scans have revealed that psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, makes users' memories more vivid by suppressing activity in certain areas of the brain...
25 January 2012
Racehorse "speed gene" traced to 18th century British mare
Irish researchers writing in the journal Nature Communications say that the original "speed gene" variant entered the equine Thoroughbred line from a single British mare about 300 years ago...
24 January 2012
Rising CO2 levels creating crazy fish
Rising oceanic carbon dioxide levels are disrupting a key brain receptor in fish, causing dramatic changes in their brain chemistry, behavior and sensory abilities...
23 January 2012
IQ plummets for women in social settings
A new study highlights the unexpected and dramatic consequences subtle social signals in group settings can have on individual cognitive functioning, especially for women...
20 January 2012
Say what? Ambiguity makes language more efficient
To avoid conversational confusion and optimize language, linguists argue that every word should have just one meaning, but a new study from MIT turns that notion on its head, showing instead that ambiguity in words actually makes language more efficient...
18 January 2012
Why gossip is good for you
Gossip has traditionally had a bad reputation, but a convoluted series of experiments carried out in the US have demonstrated the physiological benefits of gossiping...
17 January 2012
La Niña cooking up mutated viruses?
The La Niña weather cycle is altering the migratory patterns of birds and scientists speculate that it could possibly be triggering the development of dangerous new strains of influenza...
16 January 2012
Funding for artificial testicle project will get ball rolling
A joint venture between two US companies to develop an artificial testicle has received funding from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences...
13 January 2012
Researchers mull bacterium's link to autism
The bacterium Sutterella was found to be present at "remarkably high levels" in the gastrointestinal tracts of children with autism and scientists are pondering what the connection might be...
12 January 2012
Milky Way has "billions" of habitable planets
Working with data from telescopes located around the world, an international team of astronomers have shown that planets around stars are the rule rather than the exception and that there are likely billions of planets in our galaxy where humans could live...
11 January 2012
Disrupted biological clock damages brain
For the first time, scientists at Oregon State University have shown that disrupting the biological clocks found in many animals can cause accelerated neurodegeneration, loss of motor function and premature death...
10 January
Nicotine patches reduce senior moments
Older people may benefit from the regular use of nicotine patches, according to a study that showed improvements in memory and brain function in a group of senior non-smokers who were suffering mild cognitive impairment...
9 January 2012
Insect cyborgs get onboard power source
Attaching tiny sensors, recording devices and control mechanisms to insects is now a more realistic prospect after the discovery that electricity can be generated using the insect's digestive system...
6 January 2012
Monkeys feel the love on oxytocin
Researchers evaluating the effectiveness of the "love" hormone to treat autism and schizophrenia say that their experiments with monkeys show oxytocin breaks down normal social barriers...
5 January 2012
Stem cell injections produce robust anti-aging effects
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine scientists say that mice injected with stem cell-like progenitor cells seemed to have "sipped from the fountain of youth..."
4 January 2012
Virtual sky makes for happier workers
The European developers of a luminous ceiling that mimics the lighting of passing clouds say that their artificial skyscape creates a more pleasant office environment for workers...
3 January 2012
Scientists scope effects of marijuana ingredients via MRI
Brain scans of marijuana users under the influence of either THC or cannabidiol show that one chemical increases psychotic symptoms while the other reduces them...
2 January 2012
Hazardous levels of noise exposure for 90% of city dwellers
Nearly all city folk are exposed to sound levels that can cause permanent hearing loss, but researchers studying urban noise exposure were more surprised to learn that MP3 players, rather than noisy workplaces, were to blame...
29 December 2011
Shift work should carry health warnings, say medicos
The strong correlation between shift work, obesity and type 2 diabetes has led health experts to call for the poor diet of shift workers to be considered a new occupational health hazard...
28 December 2011
MS is a metabolic disorder, claims new study
A controversial new study that frames multiple sclerosis as a metabolic disorder rather than an autoimmune disease neatly addresses many puzzling aspects of the illness, including why it strikes women more than men and why cases are on the rise worldwide...
22 December 2011
Return of wolves triggers renaissance in Yellowstone ecosystem
Fifteen years after the return of wolves to Yellowstone National Park a beautifully revitalized ecosystem is emerging. Researchers studying the park say their observations provide "persuasive" evidence of the importance of top predators to biodiversity and ecosystem health...
21 December 2011
Earth-sized exoplanet identified
Two new planets - christened Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f - are the smallest yet discovered outside our solar system. Astronomers say one is the same size as Earth and the other about the size of Venus...
20 December 2011
Lower calorie intake provides brain boost
A low caloric diet changes the chemistry in the brain, enhancing both cognitive performance and memory, a discovery which scientists hope will yield new drugs to arrest the cognitive decline associated with aging...
19 December 2011
Modern man emerged from Middle East, suggests elephantine evidence
The elephant - a huge package of protein that is easy to hunt - disappeared from the Middle East around 400,000 years ago. This would have imposed considerable nutritional stress on Homo erectus, say Israeli researchers, who suggest that the loss of easy food favored hominids who were more knowledgeable and better at hunting smaller prey...