Social interactions alter gene expression
Our DNA determines a lot about who we are and how we relate to others, but recent studies involving social…
Force-field minimizes space radiation danger
A simple, portable magnetic field generator inside a spaceship should be sufficient to deflect the dangerous highly charged particles of…
“Junk” DNA anything but, new study finds
The Genome Institute of Singapore (GIS) reports that what was previously believed to be “junk” DNA is in fact a…
Shrooming down the road: rainforest fungus makes diesel
A novel fungus that makes diesel compounds has been discovered living in trees in the Patagonian rainforest, report researchers in…
One-third of world’s fish catches being needlessly used as animal feed
An alarming new study in the Annual Review of Environment and Resources contends that fully one-third of the world’s marine…
Red makes men behave “like animals”
A new study by two University of Rochester psychologists adds color – literally and figuratively – to the age-old question…
Quake detection gets cheap and cheerful
In the same vein as the SETI@home project, the Quake Catcher Network (QCN) aims to operate a massive seismic event…
Immune system overdrive responsible for cold symptoms
The human rhinovirus (HRV) cops most of the blame for the sneezing and runny nose that we associate with the…
Speed freaks aim to tame Bloodhound car’s ground-based sonic boom
Using computational fluid dynamics (CFD), an aerodynamics team at Swansea University in the UK is playing a vital role in…
Selective memory erasure achieved
Working with rodents, scientists have been able to selectively and safely remove both new and old memories by using a…
Suicide rate leaps for white, middle-aged women
Teen suicide gets plenty of airtime, but a new American study finds that middle-aged whites, particularly women, are an emerging…
“Lost” experiment hints at a richer primordial stew
A classic 50s experiment (known as the Miller-Urey Synthesis) that showed how amino acids could be created from inorganic molecules…
Social skills predict future earnings better than test scores
Ten years after graduation, high-school students who had been rated as conscientious and cooperative by their teachers were earning more…
Plentiful poo traces confirm Brits’ aversion to handwashing
A new study by researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine has found that the further north…
Bonobos show their dark side
Unlike their chimpanzee relatives, bonobos enjoy a make-love-not-war image. But a new study in Current Biology offers the first direct…
Molecular biologists get to grips with stem cell differentiation
In important new work, Florida State University (FSU) molecular biologists have begun to unscramble the enormously complex process by which…
Second virgin birth by shark confirmed
Scientists have confirmed the second-ever case of a “virgin birth” in a shark, raising the possibility that a relatively large…
DNA surname profiling mooted in UK
Scientists at the Department of Genetics at the University of Leicester (UL) are exploring the potential link between surname and…
Visible light data network under development
The next generation of wireless communications technology will use visible light instead of radio waves, with data piggybacking on interior…
Researchers get amped over artificial electric eel cells
Researchers at Yale University and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) believe that by applying modern engineering design…
Next-gen adaptive optics produce sharpest ever planetary images
A two-hour exposure of Jupiter using a prototype Multi-Conjugate Adaptive Optics (MCAO) instrument mounted on the ESO’s Very Large Telescope…
Researchers probe brain’s communication infrastructure
Washington University School of Medicine researchers are taking the first direct look at one of the human brain’s most fundamental…
High testosterone drives risky investments
Higher levels of testosterone correlate strongly with financial risk-taking behavior, finds a new study in Evolution and Human Behavior that…
Anti-obesity drugs may be effective against HIV, flu
Viruses dramatically increase cellular metabolism, and existing anti-obesity drugs may represent a new way to block these metabolic changes and…
Boulder debris indicates biggest ever tsunami
A line of massive boulders, each up to 30 feet high and weighing almost 2,000 tons, on the western shore…
Astronomers mull planetary smash ’em up derby
Two Earth-like planets orbiting a stable mature sun-like star some 300 light-years from Earth appear to have recently suffered a…
GPS open to attack, say researchers
The global positioning system (GPS) has become ubiquitous in electronic devices and is critical for the smooth operation of the…
Academics question surge’s success in Baghdad
By tracking the amount of light emitted by Baghdad neighborhoods at night, a team of UCLA geographers has uncovered fresh…
New DOE program aims to predict abrupt climate change
The U.S. Department of Energy has just announced the launch of IMPACTS – Investigation of the Magnitudes and Probabilities of…