Notebook
- Physics
Common campfire build confirmed as best
A standard method for building fires, making the height about equal to the width, is the most efficient structure for stoking the hottest flames, calculations show.
- Health & Medicine
Rotavirus vaccine is proving its worth
Rotavirus vaccination cuts childhood intestinal infection hospitalizations in half.
- Climate
Greenhouse effect from fossil fuels felt almost immediately
The warming caused by burning fossil fuels is surpassed within months by the greenhouse gas effect of the released carbon dioxide, new research shows.
- Health & Medicine
An antidepressant may protect against Ebola
Zoloft and a heart drug keep most mice alive after exposure to Ebola.
- Earth
Eruptions create new islands in the Red Sea
Satellite maps reveal the formation of two new volcanic islands in the Red Sea.
- Plants
Fifty years ago, ethylene research ripened
In 1965, scientists realized ethylene was the molecule that ripens fruit.
- Health & Medicine
One in 10 people with tattoos experience rashes, scarring or other problems
Tattoos carry risk of long-term rash; red ink may be most irritating color.
- Genetics
Genes and environment balance each other
Genes and environment have equal influence on human traits.
- Astronomy
Brightest galaxy discovered
The brightest known galaxy is about 350 trillion times as bright as the sun, and a supermassive black hole is to blame.
- Science & Society
Here’s what game theory says about how to win in semifinals
Game theory informs competitors facing off in a semifinal whether to go all out or save energy for the final.
- Genetics
A billion years of evolution doesn’t change some genes
Human genes can substitute for 47 percent of essential genes in baker’s yeast, new research shows.
- Animals
Pandas’ gut bacteria resemble carnivores’
Unlike other vegetarians, the bamboo eaters lack plant-digesting microbes.
