News
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Health & MedicineExcreted Tamiflu found in rivers
A Japanese study finds that excreted Tamiflu ends up in river water, raising concerns that birds hosting a flu virus will develop drug-resistant strains.
By Janet Raloff -
AstronomyMESSENGER captures new images of Mercury during a third passage
MESSENGER flew past Mercury for a third time on September 29. The spacecraft's mission will continue, with MESSENGER due to settle into a yearlong orbit around Mercury in March 2011.
By Ron Cowen -
ChemistryEarth’s ‘boring billion’ years blamed on sulfur-loving microbes
A new study suggests these organisms could have kept oxygen levels low and waters toxic, stalling the evolution of complex life.
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PaleontologyParasite may have felled a mighty T. rex
An infection known to afflict modern birds may have led to starvation in several dinosaurs.
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PaleontologyFish death, mammal extinction and tiny dino footprints
Paleontologists in Bristol, England, at the annual meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology report on fish fossils in Wyoming, the loss of Australia’s megafauna and the smallest dinosaur tracks.
By Sid Perkins -
LifeBetter sensing through empty receptors
A new model suggests cells may be more sensitive to their environment than previously thought.
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PaleontologyFeather-covered dinosaur fossils found
Scientists have uncovered a feather-laden, peacock-sized dinosaur that predates the oldest known bird.
By Sid Perkins -
HumansAutism may include aptitude for analogy
Contrary to what had been thought, some kids with this disorder recognize and compare relationships among objects in visual scenes
By Bruce Bower -
ChemistryThe element tin does what carbon will not
New bonding suggests scientists may need to rethink heavy metal chemistry.
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EcosystemsEels on the move
Study tracks European eels for the first 1,300 kilometers of their migration.
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Health & MedicineAlzheimer’s linked to lack of Zzzzs
Sleep deprivation leads to more Alzheimer’s disease plaques in the brains of genetically susceptible mice.
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HumansA head for numbers
The brain shows slightly different, but overlapping patterns when processing digits and dots of the same value.