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19361
This article describes the use of the mosquito-borne Sindbis virus to kill cancer cells in lab dishes and mice. It would be interesting to determine whether the human population of the Egyptian town of Sindbis exhibits a reduced incidence of certain cancers. Perhaps large-scale efforts directed toward elimination of the mosquito in populated areas are […]
By Science News - Earth
Cloud Chemistry: Atmospheric scientists dissect cirrus clouds
Cirrus cloud formation is influenced by the particles in the atmosphere, including pollutants.
- Astronomy
Solar Flip-Flops: Sun storms spawn magnetic reversal
Coronal mass ejections, billion-ton clouds of charged particles blasted from the sun, appear to play a key role in reversing the sun's magnetic poles every 11 years.
By Ron Cowen - Health & Medicine
No Scope: CT scan works as well as colonoscopy
A computed tomography scan of the large intestine works as well as colonoscopy in detecting signs of colon cancer.
By Nathan Seppa -
- Humans
Nanotech bill gives field a boost
Congress has approved a nanotechnology act that commits $3.7 billion in funding over 4 years and calls for research on the societal, environmental, and ethical implications of this rapidly growing field.
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Plants, bats magnify neurotoxin in Guam
Researchers have found that the natural neurotoxin BMAA gets magnified as it rises through a food chain on Guam, a finding that strengthens a recent hypothesis that attempts to explain a spike in neurological disease on that island.
By Susan Milius - Planetary Science
Martian sand ripples are taller than Earth’s
New data gathered by a Mars-orbiting probe suggest that large ripples found in sandy areas of the Red Planet are more than twice as tall as their terrestrial counterparts.
By Sid Perkins - Health & Medicine
Two markers may predict heart risk
Two proteins that play a role in inflammation may serve as indicators of a person's risk of heart disease and stroke.
By Nathan Seppa -
Tiny Bubbles
Microscopic vesicles shed by cells may help the AIDS virus, benefit cancer cells, and drive the immune response.
By John Travis -
19290
Unfortunately your article got something wrong in describing the reshaping of aircraft surfaces. It states, “The recently retired supersonic commercial transport, the Concorde, tilted its nose downward for subsonic flight.” This is not the (whole) truth because the reason for this reshaping was not to reduce air drag, but to achieve a far-better view of […]
By Science News - Tech
Wings of Change
Inspired by the Wright brothers, who steered their first flyer by twisting its pliant wings, engineers are developing versatile and flexible flying machines expected to undergo radical shape changes in flight.
By Peter Weiss