e! Science News - Popular science news

Statistical analysis projects future temperatures in North America

Tue, 15 May 2012 15:33:34 -0400

For the first time, researchers have been able to combine different climate models using spatial statistics -- to project future seasonal temperature changes in regions across North America.

Surgeons restore some hand function to quadriplegic patient

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:32:49 -0400

Surgeons at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have restored some hand function in a quadriplegic patient with a spinal cord injury at the C7 vertebra, the lowest bone in the neck. Instead of operating on the spine itself, the surgeons rerouted working nerves in the upper arms. These nerves still "talk" to the brain because they attach to the spine above the injury.

People see sexy pictures of women as objects, not people

Tue, 15 May 2012 14:31:20 -0400

Perfume ads, beer billboards, movie posters: everywhere you look, women's sexualized bodies are on display. A new study published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, finds that both men and women see images of sexy women's bodies as objects, while they see sexy-looking men as people.

Elephant seal tracking reveals hidden lives of deep-diving animals

Tue, 15 May 2012 21:31:21 -0400

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz, who pioneered the use of satellite tags to monitor the migrations of elephant seals have compiled one of the largest datasets available for any marine mammal species, revealing their movements and diving behavior at sea in unprecedented detail.

Mice with big brains provide insight into brain regeneration and developmental disorders

Tue, 15 May 2012 18:03:07 -0400

Scientists at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI) and the University of Ottawa (uOttawa) have discovered that mice that lack a gene called Snf2l have brains that are 35 per cent larger than normal. The research, led by Dr. David Picketts and published in the journal Developmental Cell, could lead to new approaches to stimulate brain regeneration and may provide important insight into developmental disorders such as autism and Rett syndrome.

The elusive capacity of networks

Tue, 15 May 2012 19:31:19 -0400

In its early years, information theory -- which grew out of a landmark 1948 paper by MIT alumnus and future professor Claude Shannon -- was dominated by research on error-correcting codes: How do you encode information so as to guarantee its faithful transmission, even in the presence of the corrupting influences engineers call "noise"?

Mixed bacterial communities evolve to share resources, not compete

Tue, 15 May 2012 22:31:49 -0400

New research shows how bacteria evolve to increase ecosystem functioning by recycling each other's waste. The study provides some of the first evidence for how interactions between species shape evolution when there is a diverse community.

UMD finding may hold key to Gaia hypothesis

Tue, 15 May 2012 22:31:37 -0400

Is Earth really a sort of giant living organism as the Gaia hypothesis predicts? A new discovery made at the University of Maryland may provide a key to answering this question. This key of sulfur could allow scientists to unlock heretofore hidden interactions between ocean organisms, atmosphere, and land -- interactions that might provide evidence supporting this famous theory.

Female terrorists' bios belie stereotypes, study finds

Tue, 15 May 2012 11:22:59 -0400

Much like their male counterparts, female terrorists are likely to be educated, employed and native residents of the country where they commit a terrorist act, according to new research published by the American Psychological Association.

Anthropologists discover earliest form of wall art

Mon, 14 May 2012 16:35:10 -0400

Anthropologists working in southern France have determined that a 1.5 metric ton block of engraved limestone constitutes the earliest evidence of wall art. Their research, reported in the most recent edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows the piece to be approximately 37,000 years old and offers rich evidence of the role art played in the daily lives of Early Aurignacian humans.

Watching an electron being born

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:04:25 -0400

A strong laser beam can remove an electron from an atom -- a process which takes place almost instantly. At the Vienna University of Technology, this phenomenon could now be studied with a time resolution of less than ten attoseconds (ten billionths of a billionth of a second). Scientists succeeded in watching an atom being ionized and a free electron being "born." These measurements yield valuable information about the electrons in the atom, which up until now hasn't been experimentally accessible, such as the time evolution of the electron's quantum phase -- the beat to which the quantum waves oscillate.

New species of fish in Sweden

Tue, 15 May 2012 07:34:33 -0400

Reticulated dragonet have been found in Väderöarna -- "Weather Islands" -- off the west coast of Sweden. It is not often that a new species of fish is discovered in Sweden.

New 'metamaterial' practical for optical advances

Tue, 15 May 2012 15:33:17 -0400

Researchers have taken a step toward overcoming a key obstacle in commercializing "hyperbolic metamaterials," structures that could bring optical advances including ultrapowerful microscopes, computers and solar cells.

Ultrasensitive biosensor promising for medical diagnostics

Tue, 15 May 2012 16:32:34 -0400

Researchers have created an ultrasensitive biosensor that could open up new opportunities for early detection of cancer and "personalized medicine" tailored to the specific biochemistry of individual patients.

Tiny plants could cut costs, shrink environmental footprint

Tue, 15 May 2012 12:22:38 -0400

Tall, waving corn fields that line Midwestern roads may one day be replaced by dwarfed versions that require less water, fertilizer and other inputs, thanks to a fungicide commonly used on golf courses.