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In 1995, scientists working at NASA took a break from the usual cosmic research to tackle a much different problem: getting spiders stoned. Their experiments have shown that common house spiders spin their webs in different ways according to the psychotropic drug they have been given; the more toxic the drug, the more deformed the […]
New 3D images have been revealed today, showing the the Civil War-era gunboat U.S.S Hatteras in exquisite detail. The ship sank exactly 150 years ago, on January 11, 1863. It was buried under lots of sand, but recent storms, most notably 2008’s Hurricane Ike have moved the sand off the shipwreck. Resting under 17 meters of […]
The first sample from underground Mars will come from a rockbed that showcases unexpected mineral veins of gypsum. A Martian candy store Astronomers and geologists are now in the equivalent of a Martian candy store of scientific objectives: the lowest point of Gale crater, called Yellowknife Bay is literally teeming with minerals that could only […]
[This is a sponsored post by Sherry Lindbak] When a child is diagnosed with autism, families often embark on a lifelong quest to find answers, to seek treatment, and to maintain hope. Hope may now come in the form of a cure for autism if a new research study proves successful. Dr. Michael Chez, director […]
Many Parkinson experts across the world have been reporting a surprising, remarkable phenomenon: many patients treated with drugs that increase dopamine activity in the brain exhibit new creative talents, including painting, sculpting, writing, and many more. Prof. Rivka Inzelberg of Tel Aviv University‘s Sackler Faculty of Medicine first noticed something was weird when instead of […]
The flu season has started, and it promises to be one of the worst in years; so far, over 2.200 people have been hospitalized due to influenza related issues just in the US. For example, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino declared a citywide public health emergency, with some 700 declared influenza cases – 10 times more […]
A few days ago I was telling you about the drastic state of pollution taking place in China these days – pollution levels are so high that all newspapers, even communist ones started pressing the government into environmental protection. To see how much the Beijing pollution evolved – take a look at the picture of […]
Chimpanzees have the same sense of fair-play as humans do, explain researchers who played the Ultimatum game with them – it’s the first time such a trait was observed in a non-human species. Playing a fair game The Ultimatum game is a simple game often used in economy game theory in which the two players […]
Unusually straightforward discussions emerged from the Chinese state media in light of the dangerous levels of air pollution, which blanketed Beijing in acrid smog. The media joined forces with internet users and called for a re-evaluation in China’s modernization process – rapid urbanization and industrialization at the cost of the environment. A thick smog shrouded […]
It should be no surprise for anybody that a major earthquake is way overdue in LA; a study has shown that the area has a 99% chance of a big earthquake in the next 30 years (well, 25 years, since the study was conducted in 2008). Even with what should have been a huge wake […]
Astronomers have just spotted the biggest known spiral galaxy – by accident. A team was looking through data from the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (Galex) satellite for star-forming regions around a galaxy called NGC 6872, only to be shocked noticing a vast swathe of ultraviolet light from young stars, indiacting that it also contains remnants of […]
If you’re like most people, the possibility of a colony on Mars seems a little far-fetched; but now, a nonprofit Dutch company plans to establish a colony on Mars by 2023 – and they’re looking for volunteers. Mars One, as they are called, have already release an advertisement announcing they are searching for pioneers, and […]
Magma forms much deeper than geologists previously believed, according to a new study conducted by Rice University. Magma and Crust The group led by geologist Rajdeep Dasgupta put very small samples of peridotite under very large pressures, to find out if the rock can liquify, at least in small amounts, as deep as 250 […]
A recent study conducted by Californian and Japanese seismologists claims that stable fault areas might not be so stable, in terms of earthquake generation. The controversial findings suggest that creeping fault behavior (more on this in the next paragraph) is actually not only instable, but also capable of creating fast slipping earthquake ruptures. Faulty issues […]
People with brown eyes appear more trustworthy than those with blue eyes, unless the man has a broad face. What – is this for real? According to a study conducted by Karel Kleisner and colleagues from Charles University in the Czech Republic – the answer is ‘Yes’. The point of the study was to determine […]
A possible Earth-like planet was found by the Kepler Telescope; if the data is correct, then this would make it the most Earth-like world yet detected beyond our solar system. Unglamorously named KOI 172.02 (Kepler Object of Interest), the planet is some 50% larger than Earth, orbiting its star on an orbit which would make […]
Sharks are the ultimate predators, comfortably sitting at the very top of the food chain; but even they have their enemies (the biggest one being us, of course), especially when they’re small – nobody fears a small shark. But even in their defenseless period, sharks have managed to find a way to adapt. Australian researchers […]
We knew that 2012 was the hottest year even before December – the average of the first 11 months was just so big that December could have been much colder than average, and the year would still be really hot. But, as it turns out, December wasn’t colder than usual, and the result was even […]
Oil, oil, shale gas, oil, fracking, oil – this is pretty much all you hear all day, especially if you come from a geology background. But in the US, things really seem to be spiraling out of control. Jack Gerard, one of the most aggressive players in the game and chief executive of the American […]
The Apophis meteorite was named after an Egyptian demon of destruction, and for good reason – every now and then, it keeps buzzing our planet, a little to close for comfort. The 275 meter object will pass at about 15 million km away from the Earth – the Moon, for example is much closer, at […]
Another instrument was been successfully tested and used by the Curiosity rover: the dust sweeper. The mission team has successfully cleared a five-centimeter patch from a flat rock to give a clearer view of its texture and chemistry and to avoid additional sample contaminants. The tool is relatively simple, consisting of a motorized, wire-bristle brush […]
Gold coins found in Iraq Archaeologists working in the area unearthed 66 magnificent gold coins that are at least 1,400 years old, dating back to the Sassanid era that extended from 225 BC to 640 AD. The coins were sent to the lab for age analysis which will better pinpoint their origin in time. The […]
Canada’s oil production has been blooming lately, mostly due to the oil sands in Alberta, who hold some of the world’s largest oil reserves. However, a new study shows that exctractions from these oil sands are associated with an increase of local water toxicity. The black gold curse Researchers from the Queen’s University in Kingston, […]
A new species of “sea monster” was unearther in Nevada – a predator so fierce that it often hunted prey as big or bigger than itself. Thalattoarchon saurophagis translates into “lizard-eating sovereign of the sea” – and boy is that a good name. It measured well over 8 meters and lived some 244 million years […]
In case you didn’t know, there was a big pretend manned mission to Mars going on in 2010 and 2011, organized by the Russian Academy of Science in conjunction with the European and Chinese space agencies. The experiment, Mars500, placed six people in a simulated spaceship en route to Mars for 520 days, in order […]
Astronomers working on the Kepler telescope believe that every 1 in 6 stars hosts at least an Earth-sized planet in a close orbit, raising the number of such planets in our galaxy to 17 billion. Finding planets Astrophysicists also announced 461 new planet candidates discovered by the telescope; this raises the number of planets discovered […]
There are many bizarre things in Australia, but few go even close to the pink lake Hillier. Lake Hillier is a pink-coloured lake on Middle Island in Western Australia – the largest island from the Recherche Archipelago, a group of about 105 islands. A narrow strip of land composed of sand dunes covered by vegetation […]
Scientists and broadcasters announced for the first time that they have captured footage of the extremely elusive giant squid in its own habitat. Japan’s National Science Museum succeeded in filming the deep-sea creature at a depth of more than half a kilometer, but so far, the footage hasn’t been made public. In order to accomplish […]
Alien planets located in binary star systems are at the risk of being ejected into interstellar space, an international team of astrophysicists concluded. The orbits of binary stars can potentially cause violent disruptions in their planetary systems, potentially ejecting the planets out of the system. All planets in such systems are subjected to gravitational shifts […]
Well, the year really kicked off in style. This research is really next level physics, and in order to understand it (even slightly), we’re going to delve into some serious physics. Dancing around absolute zero Over the years, physicists have made significant progress in cooling objects closer to absolute zero (0 Kelvin, the temperature at […]
Hello ladies and gentlemen, hope you had a fine Christmas and New Year Party – we sure did! But after a much needed vacation, we’re back in business! So, just as a quick reminder: – We love it when you write to us! Tell it what we do right, what we do wrong, what we […]
Just like we build crossings to enable us to pass natural obstacles, wildlife crossings allow animals to pass human-made barriers. They’re useful not just because they protect wildlife from being hit by cars, but also because they connect habitats fragmented by human activity. Wildlife crossings are not new practice in habitat conservation, but so far there […]
The world is in our hands: the extent of Arctic sea ice reached a record low this year, and things seem to get worse and worse each year. Man-caused global warming threatens to destroy this unique environment, along with all the animals which inhabit it. This is me on Mars: the Curiosity Rover landed on […]
This may be a little late, but we started celebrating a little early this year and went on a well deserved vacation – so we’re going to ask for your forgiveness on this one. It’s been a great year for us, mostly due to you, the people who read ZME Science, who support us and […]
Something really bad is going to happen, and the Earth’s rotation will shift, rotating the other way, which will cause a magnetic pole reversal, which is going to rain all sorts of havoc on terrestrial life. As the poles shift, there will be a massive continental drift, with landmasses plunging in towards each other, bringing […]
It’s December 21, 2012. Nibiru, or Planet X as some call it, is going to collide or just barely miss a collision with planet Earth, and the consequences will be devastating. The idea was first started in 1995 by Nancy Lieder, founder of the website ZetaTalk. She describes herself as a contactee with the ability […]
Doomsday is upon us, fellow ZME Readers! December 2012, particularly 21 December 2012 marks the conclusion of a b’ak’tun—a time period in the Mesoamerican Long Count calendar which was used in Central America, most notably associated with the Maya (even though it was the Olmec people that actually invented it). In 1966, Michael D. Coe, […]
University of Utah researchers analyzed the forces and acceleration involved when different martial artists hit a punching bag. They found that the structure of the fist provides additional support for the knuckles to transmit punching force. “We asked the question: ‘can you strike harder with a fist than with an open palm?’,” co-author David Carrier […]
As you may or may not know, we’ve launched a new section of our website: Science Questions and Answers – a section aimed at you guys, where you can ask all questions science-related, and share your knowledge with others. We’re still in the beta version, but please, feel free to ask away – we’ll do […]
Spiders are truly remarkable creatures, but some of them are absolutely unique! This time, biologists working in the Amazon have found a spider that builds elaborate replicas of himself from leaves, debris and insects to confuse predators. The art of deceit From afar, it could mislead even the most experienced eye, hanging in the center […]
Astronomers have discovered five planets orbiting Tau Ceti, the closest single star that resembles our Sun in terms of temperature and luminosity. Finding our cosmic neighbors If the planets are indeed there and no error was involved in the study, then there’s a good chance one of them is the right distance from the star […]
Deep in Africa, under some of our planet’s most drought threatened areas lie massive water reserves – freshwater aquifers containing 60 times as much water as all the American Great Lakes combined. These aquifers are some 410,000 cubic miles thick and contain 100 times the freshwater that exists on the continent’s surface, and as Africa’s […]
It’s almost impossible to believe it at a first glance, but these stunning life-sized wooden animals are actually made from small chips and slivers of wood. 55 year old Russian artist Sergey Bobkov creates these masterpieces from cedar sticks about 5-6 centimeters long; he cuts them into about 100-150 thin slices shaped based on what […]
Labeled as a hallucinogenic drug and banned for decades after highly controversial results, research on the hallucinogen psilocybin is showing early promise in a new series of small, medicinal studies. Magic mushrooms There is significant evidence which suggests that psychoactive mushrooms have been used by humans in religious ceremonies for thousands of years; murals as […]
Lake Ontario faces multiple varied threats, from zebra mussels to toxins to light pollution from brightly lit shoreline cities; lake Erie is just as threatened, while the depths of lake Superior remain relatively unharmed – a study on the world’s largest surface freshwater supply explains. A thousand cuts The threats are actually so numerous and […]
I have to say I’m a little sad writing this – engineers working at NASA‘s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) have received confirmation that the twin probes used to create the most accurate and detailed gravity map of the Moon have successfully crashed into the surface of our planet’s satellite. I say successfully because this is […]
Dr Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) expressed his regrets for the leaking of the latest report, which explains that humans are practically certainly responsible for the climate change the planet is going through. The fifth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was prematurely published by […]
If learning to play the piano while watching television sounds like your thing – this is definitely something you should tune in to. Furthermore, if you already find your tutor helpful, this additional technology can make you a master musician. A computer scientist at Georgia Tech, Thad Starner, and his team, invented Mobile Music Touch […]
Finding ways to diagnose cancer earlier could potentially save millions of lives, improving the chances of survival for many patients. This is why researchers have developed nanoparticles which amplify tumor signals, making them much easier to detect. Nanotech to the rescue The new technology was developed by researchers from MIT and it makes biomarker detection […]
Space flight insomnia is quite a common issue, one for which space agencies don’t have a definite answer yet – but they’re working on it; one thing NASA plans to do is swap a fluorescent panel with a solid-state lighting module (SSLM) containing LEDs which produces a blue, whitish or red-coloured light depending on the […]
