News
- Earth
Antibiotics afield
Antibiotics shed by livestock in manure can end up in crops or bound to soil, where they can foster disease-resistant germs.
- Planetary Science
Found and lost
Astronomers who previously announced that they had identified the likely remains of the Mars Polar Lander in images taken by an orbiting spacecraft now say that they were fooled by electronic noise in those images.
- Health & Medicine
Sleep apnea could signal greater danger
The nighttime breathing disorder called obstructive sleep apnea might double a person's risk of death or stroke.
- Astronomy
Images of a fiery youth
A faint, infrared glow captured by the Spitzer Space Telescope might be light from the universe's first stars.
- Health & Medicine
Novel Approach: Cancer drug might ease scleroderma
The chemotherapy drug paclitaxel, when given to mice, shows signs of impeding the skin disease scleroderma.
- Earth
Global Wetting and Drying: Regions face opposing prospects for water supply
In the next half century, rivers and streams in some parts of the world will diminish in flow, while waterways elsewhere rise in output, according to a new analysis of climate simulations.
- Astronomy
Infrared telescope spies mountains of star creation
Viewing a star-making region in the infrared, the Spitzer Space Telescope has captured mountains of gas and dust being eroded by winds and radiation from a massive star, triggering waves of star birth.
- Tech
Hidden in Disorder: Chaos-encrypted information goes the distance
Scientists have demonstrated that a message encrypted in a chaotic laser signal can be transmitted more than 100 kilometers through a commercial optical-fiber network.
- Animals
Tszzzzzt! Electric fish may jam rivals’ signals
An electric fish appears to sabotage a rival's electric signals as a fight starts. With Audio and Video.
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Way to Glow: Butterfly-wing structure matches high-tech lights’ design
The blue-green wings of the swallowtail butterfly harbor an intricate optical system with a design reminiscent of the latest in light-emitting diode technology.
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Mental Meeting of the Sexes: Boys’ spatial advantage fades in poor families
The frequently observed superiority of boys to girls on tests of spatial skill disappears in children of poor families, indicating that this mental ability responds more sensitively to environmental influences than has been assumed.
- Paleontology
Ancient Grazers: Find adds grass to dinosaur menu
Analyses of fossilized dinosaur feces in India reveal the remains of at least five types of grasses, a surprising finding that's the first evidence of grass-eating dinosaurs and an indication that grasses diversified much earlier than previously recognized.
