| Context crucial when it comes to mutations in genetic evolution  | Evolutionary biologists have found that whether a given mutation is good or bad is often determined by other mutations associated with it. In other words, genetic evolution is context-dependent. | Read More »  Warm ocean drives most Antarctic ice shelf loss  | Ocean waters melting the undersides of Antarctic ice shelves, not icebergs calving into the sea, are responsible for most of the continent's ice loss, a new study has found. | Read More » Putting flesh on the bones of ancient fish  | Scientists present for the first time miraculously preserved musculature of 380 million year old armored fish discovered in north-west Australia. This research will help scientists to better understand how neck and abdominal muscles evolved during the transition from jawless to jawed vertebrates. | Read More » Nanoparticle opens the door to clean-energy alternatives  | Cheaper clean-energy technologies could be made possible thanks to a new discovery. An important chemical reaction that generates hydrogen from water is effectively triggered -- or catalyzed -- by a nanoparticle composed of nickel and phosphorus, two inexpensive elements that are abundant on Earth. | Read More » Gustatory tug-of-war key to whether salty foods taste good  | As anyone who's ever mixed up the sugar and salt while baking knows, too much of a good thing can be inedible. What hasn't been clear, though, is how our tongues and brains can tell when the saltiness of our food has crossed the line from yummy to yucky — or, worse, something dangerous. | Read More » Satellite data will be essential to future of groundwater, flood and drought management  | New satellite imagery reveals that several areas across the US are all but certain to suffer water-related catastrophes, including extreme flooding, drought and groundwater depletion. A new report underscores the urgent need to address these current and rapidly emerging water issues at the national scale in the U.S. | Read More » How diving mammals evolved underwater endurance  | Scientists have shed new light on how diving mammals, such as the sperm whale, have evolved to survive for long periods underwater without breathing. | Read More » Medieval leprosy genomes shed light on disease's history  | Scientists have reconstructed a dozen medieval and modern leprosy genomes -- suggesting a European origin for the North American leprosy strains found in armadillos and humans, and a common ancestor of all leprosy bacteria within the last 4000 years. | Read More » Prefab houses that are glued, not nailed, together  | With prefabricated houses, the dream of having one's own home can quickly become a reality. Until now, nails have been used to hold the individual components together. Now an adhesive tape has been developed to perform this task. | Read More » Lighter meals for fish in the northern Baltic Sea  | The nutrition available for fish in the northern Baltic Sea has become lighter during the past 30 years. | Read More » Smart technology makes its way into lighting  | The lighting systems of the future could be multi-purpose devices not dissimilar to smart phones. In the future, lighting will not just allow us to see but could also be used to survey surroundings, transmit information, reflect moods and make our lives more comfortable. Smart lighting could also save as much as 80 per cent of energy compared to traditional lighting solutions. | Read More » First evidence of a new phase in neutron stars  | The nuclear 'pasta', called as such due its similarity to the Italian food, limits the period of rotation of pulsars, and astronomers have detected the first evidence of existence of a new phase of matter in the inner crust of neutron stars. | Read More » Unzipped nanotubes unlock potential for batteries  | Graphene nanoribbons and tin oxide make an effective anode for lithium ion batteries, as discovered in early tests. | Read More » Autonomous energy-scavenging micro devices will test water quality, monitor bridges, more  | Researchers are using photonics in their quest to "bring the lab to the sample," developing sophisticated micro instruments that scavenge power from sunlight, body heat, or other sources, for uses such as monitoring water quality or assessing bridge safety. | Read More » Cutting post-surgical infection rate  | Medical researchers are recommending clinical guidelines that will cut the post-surgical infection rate for staph bacteria (including MRSA) by 71 percent and 59 percent for a broader class of infectious agents known as gram-positive bacteria. | Read More » Odors from human skin cells can be used to identify melanoma  | Researchers identified odorants from human skin cells that can be used to identify melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. In addition a nanotechnology-based sensor could reliably differentiate melanoma cells from normal skin cells. Non-invasive odor analysis may be a valuable technique in the detection and early diagnosis of human melanoma. | Read More » Deep brain stimulation trial in treatment-resistant obesity links weight loss trend to metabolism increase programmed in metabolic chamber  | A deep brain stimulation trial in treatment-resistant obesity linked a weight loss trend to a metabolism increase programmed in a metabolic chamber, according to a pilot study. | Read More » Free bus travel for teens curbs road traffic injuries and benefits environment  | Free bus travel for teens helps curb road traffic injuries and benefits the environment, reveal the results of an analysis of the free bus scheme in London. | Read More » Every 10 tobacco ad sightings boost teens' risk of starting to smoke by almost 40 percent  | Tobacco ads really do persuade teens to take up smoking, with every 10 sightings boosting the risk by almost 40 percent, reveals new research. | Read More » Major hurdle cleared to diabetes transplants  | Researchers have identified a way to trigger reproduction in the laboratory of clusters of human cells that make insulin, potentially removing a significant obstacle to transplanting the cells as a treatment for patients with type 1 diabetes. | Read More » Universal paid sick leave reduces spread of flu  | Allowing all employees access to paid sick days would reduce influenza infections in the workplace by nearly 6 percent, according to a first-of-its-kind analysis. The researchers simulated an influenza epidemic in Pittsburgh and surrounding Allegheny County and estimated it to be more effective for small, compared to large, workplaces. | Read More » Wild cheetah accelerate fast and reach speeds of up to 58 mph during a hunt  | Researchers have captured the first detailed information on the hunting dynamics of the wild cheetah in its natural habitat. Using an innovative GPS and motion sensing collar that they designed, biologists were able to record remarkable speeds of up to 58mph. | Read More » Scientists conclude that what causes menopause is -- wait for it -- men  | After decades of laboring under other theories that never seemed to add up, biologists have concluded that menopause is actually an unintended outcome of natural selection generated by men's historical preference for younger mates. | Read More » High prevalence of NSAID prescription in those at risk of heart attack/death in primary care  | A new study demonstrates a high prevalence of NSAID prescriptions in patients at risk of ischaemic heart disease. | Read More » Can you feel me now? New array measures vibrations across skin, may help engineers design tactile displays  | A new array measures vibrations across skin may help engineers design tactile displays. | Read More » Flare star WX UMa becomes 15 times brighter in less than 3 minutes  | Astrophysicists have detected a star of low luminosity which within a matter of moments gave off a flare so strong that it became almost 15 times brighter. The star in question is the flare star WX UMa. | Read More » From the mouths of babes: The truth about toddler talk  | The sound of small children chattering away as they learn to talk has always been considered cute – but not particularly sophisticated. However, research by a Newcastle University expert has shown that toddlers' speech is far more advanced than previously understood. | Read More » Study of oceans' past raises worries about their future  | Scientists have now completed the first global study of changes that occurred in a crucial component of ocean chemistry, the nitrogen cycle, at the end of the last ice age. The results of their study confirm that oceans are good at balancing the nitrogen cycle on a global scale. But the data also shows that it is a slow process that may take many centuries, or even millennia, raising worries about the effects of the scale and speed of current changes in the ocean. | Read More » Scientists explode the myth about running injuries  | Ordinary running shoes function perfectly well for new runners regardless of how they pronate, according to new research. Healthy newcomers to running who overpronate/underpronate do not actually suffer more running injuries than other runners if their first pair of running shoes do not have any special support. | Read More » Predicting collective online behavior  | Scientists are evaluating the impact of a website based on the interaction between its users with the entire Web. | Read More » Detecting homemade explosives, not toothpaste  | Researchers want airports, border checkpoints and others to detect homemade explosives made with hydrogen peroxide without nabbing people whose toothpaste happens to contain peroxide. | Read More » Mystery of X-ray light from black holes solved  | Astrophysicists using high-powered computer simulartions demonstrate that gas spiraling toward a black hole inevitably results in X-ray emissions. | Read More » Scientists identify neurons that control feeding behavior in Drosophila  | Scientists have developed a novel transgenic system which allows them to remotely activate individual brain cells in the model organism Drosophila using ambient temperature. This powerful new tool for identifying and characterizing neural circuitry has lead to the identification of a pair of neurons-– now called Fdg neurons-- in the fruit fly that decide when to eat and initiate the subsequent feeding action. | Read More » Bioenergy potential unearthed in leaf-cutter ant communities  | As spring warms up Wisconsin, humans aren't the only ones tending their gardens. Colonies of leaf-cutter ants cultivate thriving communities of fungi and bacteria using freshly cut plant material. | Read More » | |
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