News
- Physics
Magnetic snap gives ions extra pop
Magnetic fields pump heat into ions when field lines of opposite orientation snap and reconnect.
- Physics
Groovy ’70s sound keeps X rays tight
Cast aside as a way to reproduce music, LP phonograph records reveal another, unsuspected talent that scientists plan to exploit-focusing X rays.
- Math
Whirling to a chaotic finale
A black hole paired with another body can succumb to chaos when they orbit each other, making it more difficult to detect gravitational waves produced by such objects.
- Math
Traffic woes of the single driver
At moderate traffic volumes, a single car moving at randomly fluctuating speeds can cause traffic jams in its wake.
- Math
Spinning to a rolling stop
Air viscosity makes the rolling speed of a spinning, tipping coin go up as its energy goes down until the coin suddenly stops.
- Health & Medicine
A different GI link to colon cancers
Diets rich in sweets and other quickly digested carbohydrates appear to increase an individual's risk of developing colon cancer.
- Health & Medicine
Berry promising anticancer prospects
Cranberry products can retard the growth and spread of breast cancer in rodents.
-
Disabled genes dull sense of smell
Mutated genes may explain why humans have a poor sense of smell.
-
Genes, genes, and more genes
Scientists have almost finished sequencing the genes of rice and of a man.
- Ecosystems
Insects, pollen, seeds travel wildlife corridors
Strips of habitat boost insect movement, plant pollination, and seed dispersal among patches of the same ecosystem.
- Paleontology
Trackway site shows dinosaur on the go
Scientists say that a sediment-filled, bathtub-shape depression found at one of North America's most significant dinosaur trackway sites is the first recognized evidence of urination in dinosaurs.
- Paleontology
Curved claws hint at pterosaur habits
A study of the claws of flying reptiles known as pterosaurs suggests that some of the creatures may have walked like present-day herons and used their wing fingers to hold prey.
