Uncategorized
- Health & Medicine
Risky DNA: Autism studies yield fresh genetic leads
Two new studies point to the diverse genetic roots of autism and related developmental disorders, while other evidence questions the claim that mercury-based childhood vaccines have contributed to rising autism rates.
- Math
Small Infinity, Big Infinity
A mathematician develops a new proof showing that infinity comes in different sizes.
- Humans
Letters from the January 12, 2008, issue of Science News
Shades of meaning In “Going Coastal: Sea cave yields ancient signs of modern behavior” (SN: 10/20/07, p. 243), researcher Curtis Marean refers to Stone Age people using a reddish pigment for “body coloring or other symbolic acts.” What reason is there for jumping to this conclusion? As with cave painting and figurines, there seems to […]
- Tech
Energy forest
Silicon nanowires can at least double the storage capacity of lithium-ion batteries.
- Health & Medicine
Down syndrome’s anti-tumor effect
The chromosomal abnormality that causes Down syndrome might protect against some solid tumors.
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Foster care benefits abandoned kids
Orphan infants living in Romanian institutions who were randomly assigned to receive foster care showed marked improvements in thinking and reasoning skills by age 4-1/2, compared with their peers who remained institutionalized.
- Paleontology
The warm jungles of ancient France
Chemical analyses of amber excavated near Paris suggest that France was covered with a dense tropical forest about 55 million years ago.
- Animals
Purring birds teach their chicks to beg
African birds called pied babblers teach their chicks that certain parental noises mean food is on the way.
- Health & Medicine
Smoking ups risk for type 2 diabetes
Smoking increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by up to 61 percent.
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Life from Scratch
Conjuring life in the lab from nothing but nonliving molecules may sound far-fetched, but the first synthetic life forms may soon be a reality.
- Archaeology
La Brea del Sur
Excavations at tar pits in Venezuela suggest that the fossils found there may rival those of the famed Rancho La Brea tar pits in Southern California.
- Earth
Focus on Our Planet
Although the United Nations has officially designated 2008 as the International Year of Planet Earth, the 3-year celebration actually began a year ago and will continue through December 2009. The program’s ultimate goal: “to build safer, healthier and wealthier societies around the globe” through a better appreciation for and harnessing of Earth sciences. The UN […]
