Uncategorized
- Physics
Tiny tubes tune in colors
At the right length and conductivity, ultrathin filaments of carbon known as carbon nanotubes can receive visible light waves in the same the way as larger antennas receive radio signals.
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Cavefish blinded by gene expression
New evidence supports the theory that Mexican blind cavefish are sightless by evolutionary selection, not chance.
- Tech
Cramming bits into pits
By skewing the alignment of pits on an optical disk's surface, disk makers might store much more than one bit per pit.
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Single gene turns flu deadly
Variations in a single gene may have dramatically increased the virulence of 1918 Spanish flu.
- Chemistry
Branching polymer could heal cataract wounds
Cataract surgery might get a little easier, thanks to a transparent gel that seals surgical incisions in the eye better than standard sutures do.
- Anthropology
Chimps show skill in termite fishing
Video cameras set up in a central-African forest have recorded the sophisticated ways in which local chimpanzees catch termites for eating.
- Materials Science
Reversible gel restores artwork
To help conservationists restore paintings to their original glory without damaging the original paint, chemists have developed a cleaning product that switches from a liquid to a gel.
- Health & Medicine
Creepy-Crawly Care
Encouraging results from research on medical uses for maggots and leeches, coupled with recent government approval of both therapies, lend credibility to the idea that some live organisms deserve a place in the medical armamentarium.
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Reworking Intuition
Financially endangered companies rapidly reorganized to become profitable after key staff members ran simulated companies in 2-day sessions organized by a San Diego psychologist.
- Humans
Letters from the October 16, 2004, issue of Science News
Hubble grumble The cover type “Farewell to Hubble?” (“End of the Line for Hubble?” SN: 7/24/04, p. 56: End of the Line for Hubble?) makes me wonder why we haven’t seen the headline “Farewell to the Current NASA Administrator?” The only reason I have heard for the cancellation of the planned servicing mission is “it’s […]
- Humans
From the October 13, 1934, issue
A wingless rooster, production of artificial radioactive elements, and novae proposed as the origin of cosmic rays.
- Animals
Bird Calls
The Macaulay Library at Cornell University has the largest collection of animal sounds in the world. More than 67 percent of the world’s birds are represented in the center’s 160,000 recordings, along with sounds made by insects, fish, frogs, and mammals. The Library also archives and preserves a sampling of the behaviors of different animal […]
