News
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Wild tobacco heeds ‘ouch’ from sagebrush
Biologists studying wild tobacco and sagebrush say they have found a case of interspecies plant communication in the field.
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Untreated schizophrenia may spare brain
Contrary to the fears of some researchers, treatment delays for schizophrenia may not worsen brain deficits associated with the mental disorder.
- Health & Medicine
Gene therapy might keep arteries open
Tiny steel-mesh tubes coated with a DNA-containing polymer could prevent arteries from becoming reclogged after cardiovascular treatment.
- Earth
New database describes all the marbles
Analyses of the isotope ratios of carbon and oxygen in hundreds of samples of Greek marble may help researchers identify the quarries that supplied the stone for some of Europe's most famous statues and architecture.
- Chemistry
Chemistry Catches Cocaine at Source
Scientists have devised a method for identifying cocaine's geographical origin by determining the chemical signatures of five distinct coca-growing regions in the Andes.
- Earth
Long dry spell
Falling reservoir levels in the western United States are just one symptom that the region is suffering through a drought that may be the worst to strike in the past 500 years.
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When Protein Breakdown Breaks Down: Bacterial toxin yields signs of Parkinson’s
Certain compounds that hinder cells from destroying waste proteins can produce symptoms of Parkinson's disease in rats.
- Materials Science
Cool Magnet: A little bit of iron gives magnetic refrigeration a boost
An improved material moves magnetic refrigeration one step closer to commercial reality.
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Mr. Universe Jr.: Child’s gene mutation confirms protein’s role in human-muscle growth
A boy born with extra-large muscles has mutations in a gene regulating muscle growth.
- Health & Medicine
Cancer with a Twist: Protein instrumental in breast-cancer metastasis
A protein called Twist, which orchestrates gene activity in cells, facilitates the spread of some breast cancers.
- Anthropology
Stone Age Ear for Speech: Ancient finds sound off on roots of language
Ancestors of Neandertals that lived at least 350,000 years ago heard the same range of sounds that people today do, suggesting that the ability to speak arose early in the Stone Age.
- Physics
Misbehavin’ Meson: Perplexing particle flouts the rules
The discovery of what appears to be a new subatomic particle with bizarre properties is challenging theorists' understanding of how matter behaves.
