Uncategorized
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Earth
Oil Booms: Whales don’t avoid noise of seismic exploration
Field tests in the Gulf of Mexico suggest that sperm whales there don't swim away from boats conducting seismic surveys of the seafloor, but the noise generated by such activity may be subtly affecting the whales' feeding behavior. With video.
By Sid Perkins -
Wrong Impression: Bipolar kids misinterpret facial cues as hostile
Children with bipolar disorder are more likely than other kids to read hostility in bland facial expressions.
By Nathan Seppa -
Earth
Lazarus, the amphibian
The painted frog, unseen for more than a decade and feared to be extinct, has resurfaced in a remote desert highland of Colombia.
By Ben Harder -
Herpes Runs Interference: Researchers discover how virus sticks around
Herpes simplex virus 1, which causes cold sores, uses a short, double-stranded RNA to outwit a cell's defensive measures.
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Earth
Pumped-up Poison Ivy: Carbon dioxide boosts plant’s size, toxicity
Rising carbon dioxide in the atmosphere could make poison ivy grow much faster and become more toxic.
By Susan Milius -
19686
It’s big news that poison ivy thrives where there are higher concentrations of carbon dioxide? Did everyone forget elementary school science and plant life’s dependence upon carbon dioxide? Do I advocate buying and driving the most carbon dioxide–emitting vehicle you can find? No. I guess I would just like to see more common sense and […]
By Science News -
Humans
Letters from the June 3, 2006, issue of Science News
Latitude adjustments “Shafts of snow sculpted by sun” (SN: 4/1/06, p. 206) doesn’t say that penitentes appear only in the Andes, nor does it say in what part of the Andes they appear. Does the formation of penitentes require that the sun be nearly directly overhead for part of the day? Can penitentes form only […]
By Science News -
Evolving genes may not size up brain
Two gene variants previously implicated in the evolution of human brain size apparently don't influence brain volumes in people today.
By Bruce Bower -
Health & Medicine
At iconic Asian temple, monkeys harbor viruses
Temple sites in South and Southeast Asia that offer refuge to monkeys also shelter monkey viruses.
By Ben Harder -
Health & Medicine
Common drugs offer some hot flash relief
Antidepressants and some other prescription drugs reduce the number of hot flashes that many women experience during menopause.
By Nathan Seppa -
19685
When I looked at the photo in this article, I didn’t see a “pentagonal shape” in the swirling water. I saw a sine wave, wrapped around a circle. I was immediately reminded of the Bohr–de Broglie model of electron orbits forming standing waves. Rather than swirling water and glycol forming “unexplained” polygons, isn’t this simply […]
By Science News -
Physics
As waters part, polygons appear
When rapidly swirled inside a stationary bucket, liquids can form whirlpools of surprising shapes, such as triangles and hexagons.
By Peter Weiss