Uncategorized
- Health & Medicine
Still Waters: Skin disease microbe tracked to ponds, swamps
Scientists establish pond water as the natural environment of Mycobacterium ulcerans, the cause of the skin disease Buruli ulcer.
- Materials Science
Live Another Day: African insect survives drought in glassy state
When dehydrated, the larvae of an African fly replace the water in their cells with a sugar, which solidifies and helps keep cellular structures intact.
- Anthropology
European Roots: Human ancestors go back in time in Spanish cave
Excavations of a cave in northern Spain have yielded a fossil jaw and tooth that provide the first solid evidence that human ancestors reached Western Europe more than 1 million years ago.
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Calorie Kick: Desire for sweets not only a matter of taste
Chemical fireworks in the brain's reward system explode in response to calories, independent of flavor, suggests a new study of mice.
- Planetary Science
Gassy Geysers: Cassini surveys Saturn’s moon
NASA's Cassini spacecraft had a close encounter with the giant vapor plume gushing from Saturn's tiny moon Enceladus.
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Foul Play: Genetics may affect athlete doping tests
Athletes' genetic makeup may allow them to beat anti-doping tests.
- Planetary Science
Titan may harbor underground ocean
Observations by the Cassini spacecraft hint that Saturn's smog-shrouded moon Titan may harbor a global ocean of water and ammonia 100 kilometers below its surface.
- Tech
Power from heat
A more efficient material that converts heat into electricity could make a new kind of solar panel possible.
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Fingerprinting fugitive microbes
A new computational tool can identify engineered bacteria by finding the genetic "fingerprints" that distinguish altered bacteria from natural ones.
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Crustacean shuffle
A twisted joint might have made all the difference to scurrying crabs as they diverged from their clunky lobsterlike brethren.
- Anthropology
A hip stance by an ancient ancestor
By 6 million years ago, upright human ancestors had evolved a hip design that remained stable for perhaps the next 4 million years, until the appearance of hip modifications in Homo erectus.
- Health & Medicine
Strong support for a basic diet
The alkalinity of diets rich in potassium—usually a reflection of heavy fruit and vegetable consumption—helps preserve muscle.
