Eureka! Science News - Popular science news

Primitive asteroids in the main asteroid belt may have formed far from the sun

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:38:16 -0400

Many of the objects found today in the asteroid belt located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter may have formed in the outermost reaches of the solar system, according to an international team of astronomers led by scientists from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI).

Scientists decode genome of deadly parasitic worm

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:50:25 -0400

Scientists have sequenced the genome of the parasite that causes intestinal schistosomiasis (also known as bilharzia or snail fever), a devastating tropical disease that afflicts more than 200 million people in the developing world.

Alzheimer's risk: Would you want to know?

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:45:09 -0400

When people learn they are predisposed to Alzheimer's disease, any depression or anxiety is not long lasting, a new study indicates.

Timing is everything: Growth factor keeps brain development on track

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:32:50 -0400

Just like a conductor cueing musicians in an orchestra, Fgf10, a member of the fibroblast growth factor (Ffg) family of morphogens, lets brain stem cells know that the moment to get to work has arrived, ensuring that they hit their first developmental milestone on time, report scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in the July 16, 2009, edition of the journal Neuron.

Nearly 1 in 5 university students experienced violence in last 6 months: UBC study

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:24:35 -0400

While attending university, men are equally likely as women to have been victims of physical or emotional violence, and that violence is often linked to drinking, according to a new study led by University of British Columbia researcher Elizabeth Saewyc.

Reintroduced Chinese alligators now multiplying in the wild in China

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 12:45:58 -0400

The Wildlife Conservation Society announced today that critically endangered alligators in China have a new chance for survival. The WCS's Bronx Zoo, in partnership with two other North American parks and the Department of Wildlife Conservation and Management of the State Forestry Administration of China, has successfully reintroduced alligators into the wild that are now multiplying on their own.

In adolescence, girls react differently than boys to peers' judgments

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:29:00 -0400

Teenagers yearn to fit in and be accepted by their friends. A new study suggests that girls and boys think differently about being judged by their peers as they move through adolescence.

MGH study identifies first molecular steps to childhood leukemia

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:23:52 -0400

A Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH)-based research team has identified how a chromosomal abnormality known to be associated with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) – the most common cancer in children – initiates the disease process. In the July issue of Cell Stem Cell, they describe how expression of this mutation in hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), which usually occurs before birth, leads to the development of leukemia many years later.

'Sloppier copier' surprisingly efficient

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:38:20 -0400

The "sloppier copier" discovered by USC biologists is also the best sixth man in the DNA repair game, an article in the journal Nature shows.

Primate archaeology sheds light on human origins

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:38:32 -0400

A University of Calgary archaeologist who is one of the few researchers in the world studying the material culture of human beings' closest living relatives – the great apes – is joining his colleagues in creating a new discipline devoted to the history of tool use in all primate species in order to better understand human evolution.

FSU scientists unveil new seasonal hurricane forecasting model

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:45:41 -0400

Scientists at The Florida State University's Center for Ocean-Atmospheric Prediction Studies (COAPS) have developed a new computer model that they hope will predict with unprecedented accuracy how many hurricanes will occur in a given season.

Fossilized dung balls reveal secret ecology of lost world

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:35:35 -0400

A new study of 30 million year old fossil 'mega-dung' from extinct giant South American mammals reveals evidence of complex ecological interactions and theft of dung-beetles' food stores by other animals.

Fetal short-term memory found in 30-week-old fetuses

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 08:38:27 -0400

Memory probably begins during the prenatal period, but little is known about the exact timing or for how long memory lasts. Now in a new study from the Netherlands, scientists have found fetal short-term memory in fetuses at 30 weeks.

New map hints at Venus's wet, volcanic past

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 06:43:30 -0400

Venus Express has charted the first map of Venus's southern hemisphere at infrared wavelengths. The new map hints that our neighbouring world may once have been more Earth-like, with both, a plate tectonics system and an ocean of water.

How the moon got its stripes

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:50:28 -0400

A new study has revealed the origins of tiger stripes and a subsurface ocean on Enceladus- one of Saturn's many moons. These geological features are believed to be the result of the moon's unusual chemical composition and not a hot core, shedding light on the evolution of planets and guiding future space exploration.

Laser technology creates new forms of metal and enhances aircraft performance

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:36:55 -0400

Dr. Chunlei Guo and his team of researchers for the project discovered a way to transform a shiny piece of metal into one that is pitch black, not by paint, but by using incredibly intense bursts of laser light. The black metal created, absorbs all radiation that shines upon it.

Disclosing genetic risk for Alzheimer's disease does not cause psychological distress

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 17:45:13 -0400

Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have shown that disclosing genetic risk information to adult children of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) who request this information does not result in significant short-term psychological distress. The report from the REVEAL Study*, which appears in the July 16 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, is the first randomized trial to disclose to participants whether or not they carried the ε4 variant of the APOE gene, a variant that has been found to increase the risk of developing AD. The study demonstrated that test-related distress was reduced among those who learned that they were APOE ε4 negative, and was only transiently increased among those who learned they were APOE ε4 positive. The study also showed that persons with high levels of emotional distress before undergoing genetic testing were more likely to have emotional difficulties after disclosure.

Environmental factors instruct lineage choice of blood progenitor cells

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 09:51:31 -0400

The findings, published in the current issue of the prestigious journal Science, provide an essential building block for understanding the molecular mechanisms of hematopoiesis and are an important prerequisite for optimizing therapeutic stem cell applications.

Childhood adversity may affect processing in the brain's reward pathways

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:36:50 -0400

New research shows that childhood adversity is associated with diminished neural activity in brain regions implicated in the anticipation of possible rewards.

Can children outgrow chronic daily headache?

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 16:51:35 -0400

Most children who suffer from chronic daily headache may outgrow the disabling condition, according to research published in the July 15, 2009, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. Nearly 1.5 percent of middle school children are affected by chronic daily headache, which includes chronic migraines and tension-type headaches.