News
- Archaeology
Israeli cave yields Stone Age kills
A recently discovered Israeli cave has yielded some of the earliest known evidence of hunting by humans or our evolutionary ancestors, from around 300,000 to 200,000 years ago.
- Anthropology
Rock-solid choices of first toolmakers
Human ancestors who took up stone toolmaking in Africa around 2.6 million years ago already showed a proclivity for choosing high-quality pieces of rock, a new study finds.
- Chemistry
Flame-retardant cotton gets a boost from clay
Mixing cotton fibers with nanoparticles of clay increases the materials' heat tolerance, ultimately rendering new cotton fabrics flame retardant.
- Health & Medicine
A drug to stop diabetes’ onset?
Individuals susceptible to developing type 1 diabetes may find hope in a vaccinelike drug that is showing promise in mouse studies.
- Tech
Bacteria churn out new type of electronic paper
Researchers have developed a new way of making flexible electronic paper displays using cellulose derived from bacteria.
- Materials Science
Nanotubes take on the Grand Canyon
A new technique can turn forests of carbon nanotubes into a foamlike material with ideal properties for making lightweight shock absorbers.
- Health & Medicine
Double-Edged Drugs: Anti-inflammatories’ cancer effects vary by brand and tissue type
New research on anti-inflammatory medications being investigated as cancer treatments indicates that some of these drugs have secondary effects that could enhance or undermine their antitumor activity.
- Animals
Flex That Bill: Hummingbirds’ surprising insect-catching style
High-speed videos of hummingbirds catching insects reveal that their lower bills are unexpectedly flexible.
- Health & Medicine
Save the Brain: Study suggests new way to treat head trauma
A compound that stimulates nerve-cell activity may help the brain recover from serious head injuries.
- Chemistry
Molecular Midwives: Small helper compounds may have spawned early tools of life on Earth
Life on Earth may have sprung into being with the assistance of tiny molecules that are remarkably adept at stitching together DNA in the lab.
- Planetary Science
Martian Methane: Carbon compound hints at life
The presence of methane in the Martian atmosphere spotlights the possibility that there might be primitive life on the Red Planet.
- Archaeology
Cat’s Cradle? New find pushes back origin of tamed felines
Archaeological finds on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus indicate that people domesticated cats by about 9,500 years ago, long before cat taming achieved prominence in ancient Egypt.
