Uncategorized
- Earth
Gemstone Geography: New technique discerns emeralds’ beginnings
Water molecules trapped inside the minuscule channels of an emerald harbor telltale signs of the gem's geographic origin.
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Genome made quickly from scratch
Scientists have synthesized a viral genome in record time.
- Astronomy
Spying a planet in star’s dusty veil
Astronomers blocked out the light of a nearby star and found hints of an orbiting planet.
- Humans
Panel turns critical eye on testosterone
Existing evidence does not justify claims that testosterone treatments can relieve or prevent age-related problems in men, a panel of medical experts has concluded.
By Ben Harder - Astronomy
Alien stars pass close to home
Stars from an alien galaxy are raining down on our own Milky Way and passing just a few hundred light-years from Earth.
By Ron Cowen - Health & Medicine
Nanoparticles hunt down and kill tumors
Gold nanoparticles, injected into mouse tumors and exposed to light, have been found to destroy cancer cells, a treatment approach that may one day offer an alternative to surgery.
- Physics
Hints emerge of a four-quark particle
Previously observed only in twos, threes, and perhaps in fives, quarks and antiquarks in a newfound particle may have glommed together to form a never-before-seen foursome.
By Peter Weiss - Health & Medicine
Discovery of Insulin
In 1923, the Nobel Prize in Medicine went to Frederick Banting and J.J.R. Macleod for their part in the discovery of insulin. This site documents that discovery and the initial development of insulin to alleviate suffering from diabetes. Part of the University of Toronto Libraries’ digital collection, the site features more than 7,000 images, reproducing […]
By Science News -
19363
This article speculated on the evolutionary origins of thermogenesis and observed how it predominates in ancient lineages of flowering plants like magnolias and water lilies. But thermogenesis goes back much farther than this, for it also occurs in cycads, nonflowering plants that arose in the Paleozoic. The male cones of some cycads, when mature, may […]
By Science News - Plants
Warm-Blooded Plants?
Research heats up on why some flowers have the chemistry to keep themselves warm.
By Susan Milius -
19291
This article describes attempts to use ketones as a substitute for glucose when it’s unavailable to the brain because converted fats can’t penetrate the brain. Wouldn’t it be simpler to feed or inject glucose directly? Oliver H. WinnCorona del Mar, Calif. The researchers who conducted the study say that giving glucose might help in some […]
By Science News - Health & Medicine
Ketones to the Rescue
Medical researchers are investigating a slew of possible applications for acids called ketones, which the body produces naturally when deprived of carbohydrates and protein.
By Ben Harder