News
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Health & MedicineClear Airways: Quelling a protein stops mucus overload
By interfering with a protein that earlier research implicated in mucus secretion, scientists have countered overstimulation of mucus secretion in the airways of mice.
By Nathan Seppa -
PhysicsA Solid Like No Other: Frigid, solid helium streams like a liquid
Frozen helium prepared in a laboratory has apparently transformed into a superfluid solid, or supersolid—a never-before-seen phase of matter that theorists predicted more than 30 years ago.
By Peter Weiss -
TechTapping sun’s light and heat to make hydrogen
Researchers have demonstrated a highly efficient means of splitting water molecules to generate hydrogen fuel.
By Peter Weiss -
Dog personality: His master’s traits
Personality traits may vary as much from one dog to another as they do from one person to another, a new study suggests.
By Bruce Bower -
Materials ScienceNanowires grow on viral templates
Researchers are using viruses to assemble semiconducting nanowires—the building blocks of future electronic circuits.
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PhysicsLight pulse hovers in atom capsule
A new way to freeze light pulses in midflight preserves the pulses' optical energy and may eventually lead to using stationary light in optical circuits and quantum computers.
By Peter Weiss -
Human genes take evolutionary turns
Researchers have identified a set of genes that has evolved an extensive pattern of alterations unique to people.
By Bruce Bower -
EarthThis pollutant fights lupus
A hormone-mimicking pollutant that leaches out of some plastics appears to fight lupus.
By Janet Raloff -
Health & MedicineCould refrigeration explain Crohn’s rise?
Crohn's disease, marked by inflammation of the small intestine, could be caused by refrigeration of meats, a process that selects for hardy bacteria that handle cold temperatures well, researchers hypothesize.
By Nathan Seppa -
TechElectronic skin senses touch
A pressure-detecting membrane laminated onto a sheet of flexible plastic electronics may lead to artificial skin for robots.
By Peter Weiss -
Health & MedicineAge-related anemia hastens death
People who develop low concentrations of iron-containing hemoglobin in their blood as they get older are at elevated risk for serious medical problems and early death.
By Ben Harder -
Health & MedicineThalidomide-like drug treats blood disorder
A novel drug appears to help people with myelodysplasia, a persistent condition that leaves them short of crucial blood components.
By Ben Harder