News
- Life
Numbers flap has minor implications for global extinctions
A statistical technique used to estimate rates of species disappearance is flawed, two ecologists charge — but not enough to invalidate recent dire assessments.
- Humans
Geographic profiling fights disease
Widely used to snare serial criminals, a forensic method finds application in epidemiology.
- Health & Medicine
No pain, healthier brain
When chronic back problems are treated, benefits extend above the neck.
- Life
Daytime bites for zombie ants
The living dead of the insect world show an unexplained sense of timing: a surge of strange activity in the a.m. followed by a final death grip at midday.
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Microbial mats may have given early animals breathing room
Early animals survived poor marine conditions by inhaling oxygen from bacterial "mines" at the bottom of the ocean.
- Chemistry
Melting icebergs fertilize ocean
Releasing extra iron into the water boosts carbon dioxide uptake by plankton.
- Science & Society
Youthful ingenuity honored at Intel ISEF
Young scientists receive awards for insights applicable to cancer treatment, homeland security, water supplies and more.
- Physics
New laser is from the birds
Inspired by an optical trick that colors feathers without pigment, physicists come up with a cheap, practical design.
- Earth
Ozone hole on the mend
Researchers claim to see atmospheric healing more than a decade earlier than a detectable uptick was expected.
- Life
Body attacks lab-made stem cells
In mice, the immune system targets and destroys reprogrammed adult skin cells, raising questions about their medical potential.
- Health & Medicine
Gravely damaged brains have ‘bottleneck’
A failure in electrical signaling may distinguish patients in vegetative states.
- Humans
Stone Age cold case baffles scientists
Stone-tool makers who hunkered down near Arctic Circle left uncertain clues to their identity.
