Uncategorized
- Health & Medicine
Watch and Wait, or Not: Studies weigh risks of delaying prostate surgery
Two long-running studies of men with prostate cancer have partly clarified the risks of postponing treatment of the disease.
By Ben Harder - Chemistry
Metal Rebel: Under extreme pressure, sodium breaks the rules for turning into liquid
In a demonstration that defies certain basic assumptions in physics, researchers have created liquid sodium at room temperature under high pressures.
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DNA’s Moody Temperament: Gene variant linked to depression-ready brain
A common version of a gene involved in regulating the neurotransmitter serotonin creates a brain that responds sensitively to stress and is therefore more likely to become depressed.
By Bruce Bower - Astronomy
Fleeting Flash: Pinpointing a short gamma-ray burst
An invisible, highly energetic flash detected by a spacecraft early this week may have given astronomers their first glimpse of two neutron stars colliding to forge a black hole.
By Ron Cowen - Animals
Built for Blurs: Jellyfish have great eyes that can’t focus
Eight of a box jellyfish's eyes have superb lenses, but their structure prevents them from focusing sharply.
By Susan Milius -
19550
This article states that “the resulting blurred view is good enough for spotting large objects such as mangrove roots.” It seems to me that the article is missing the crucial biological question presented by these eyes. My understanding is that the nervous system of a jellyfish contains no true nerves and no centralization. How can […]
By Science News - Health & Medicine
Proteins’ Promise: New test could reveal early ovarian cancer
A screening test for ovarian cancer shows promise in preliminary trials.
By Nathan Seppa - Physics
Galactic data shore up a constant
Alpha, a constant of nature found to vary in some astrophysical studies, actually holds steady, according to the first survey of galaxies used to evaluate alpha's constancy.
By Peter Weiss - Physics
Scales tilt against five-quark particles
Studies that fail to find purported five-quark particles, or pentaquarks, are stacking up quicker than studies that claim to have found such particles, suggesting that they might not really exist.
By Peter Weiss - Physics
Test puts pedal to heavy metal
Stellar explosions forge heavy elements such as gold more quickly than scientists had predicted, as indicated by the first measurement of the half-life of a rare form of nickel that's a key link in the chain of element formation.
By Peter Weiss - Chemistry
Crystal clear
Growing drug crystals on different polymer surfaces could improve a critical step in the development of pharmaceuticals.
- Earth
Air pollution linked to wheat diseases
The abundance of the air pollutant sulfur dioxide appears to influence which of two fungal pathogens plague more wheat plants.
By Ben Harder