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Bacteria biofilms, when formed, pose a significant health risk in industrial applications, like food processing, and medical settings. Researchers at MIT suggest a new weapon for fighting bacterial formations in the form of nature’s own line of defense – mucus. Mucus lines most of the wet surfaces of the body, including the respiratory and digestive tracts, […]
Scientists with the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS-II) have used a novel technique to peer through the nature of dark energy as far as ten billion years ago and measure the three-dimensional structure of the distant Universe. Tracing this 3-D map scientists were able to assess the influence of dark energy over time, which might help unravel […]
According to a new study conducted by Professor Gerald Crabtree, who heads a genetics laboratory at Stanford University in California, humans have peaked their intellectual capacities thousands of years ago, and now we are in a slow, but certain, state of decline. The provocative theory comes from one of the leading minds in genetics, and […]
Any mammal, including humans, suffering from an injury to the central nervous system will lead to a life-long loss of the particular affected brain function. Some invertebrates, like the zebrafish, in contrast can regenerate parts of their organs, even the central nervous system. The zebrafish’s remarkable ability to regrew parts of its damaged brain has […]
A recent research from Ohio State University found a link between gifted children’s special abilities and autism, a developmental disability characterized by problems with communicating and socializing and a strong resistance to change. Their findings suggest that child prodigies might have a genetic mutation that allows them to possess the extreme talents seen in autistic savants, […]
Considering their heavy scale armor, and ferocious apatite, “sensitive” might not be the first adjective that comes to mind when describing crocodiles or alligators. A new study has sought to answer a long lasting riddle for biologists after it finally found the purpose of peculiar black spots or domes on crocodile and alligator heads. Apparently, these […]
This has the potential to be the holy graal of solar energy – UCLA researchers have developed a new organic polymer that produces electricity, is nearly transparent and much more resistant than silicone. If you think about solar cells, usually, the blacker the better – the blacker they are, the less energy is lost. But […]
Take a moment to think about what your ears do. The human ear has a complex system for turning mere sound waves into electric messages for your brain, and it serves to keep you balanced. In order to turn sound waves (which are mechanical energy) into the electrochemical energy that sends messages to the brain, […]
Psychologists at Tel Aviv University’s School of Psychological Sciences surprisingly found that decision making based on instinct has surprisingly positive outcomes. The researchers’ experiment to prove their theory is comprised of an extremely simple set-up, as you may read on below, however, the findings are rather difficult to contest. Their work suggests that the human […]
The superb fairy-wren is a small Australian bird whose nests are often invaded by cuckoo birds. The cuckoos lay their eggs in the wrens’ nests, leaving their young to be taken care of by the wren family. This is bad for the actual wren chicks, because it limits the amount of resources, like food, that […]
Common to Central and South America, the Blue Morpho is an iconic butterfly, prized for its brilliant blue color and iridescence. Beyond its beauty, however, scientists have discovered that its wings have a certain microscopic texture that could benefit a wide range of applications from self-cleaning instruments, to more efficient piping. For example, the researchers […]
Some people in the world have a different perception of what’s good to eat and what’s not. For instance, it’s customary to this day in many culture around the globe to eat substances that are considered non-foods in the west, like dirt, clay, sand or raw starches like rice, weird roots and so on. A […]
A team of international physicists have made a nano-sized device which can allow the phase velocities of certain wave of visible light travel infinitely fast. No, this doesn’t translate into instant communication, nor does it mean that Einstein’s Theory of Relativity has been broken. It’s safe and sound. Read on, however, about the potential uses […]
In a groundbreaking study, researchers at University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science used satellite imagery to study volcanic eruptions from the past years in Indonesia’s west Sunda arc, a highly active volcanic region. Their findings show that images of inflating magma balloons hint towards impending volcanic eruptions in one in two cases, on […]
The first recollection of the spade-toothed whale came in 1872, but no actual proof of its existence has been found ever since. Recently, biologists were dumbstruck when they heard not one, but two specimens of the highly elusive whale species beached on the shores of New Zealand. Unfortunately the two whales, mother and cub, died […]
Some 12,900 years ago, a massive flood of melted freshwater in the Arctic caused a 1,200-year-long chill nicknamed the “Big Freeze.” During this time much of the Northern Hemisphere was engulfed by centuries of cold, which caused the extinction of most great mammals, like mammoths, as well as the Clovis people. For decades, scientists have […]
A team of dutch researchers have devised a window into metastasis, literary. The scientists implanted a glass window in the abdomen of a mouse through a surgical procedure, allowing them to perform high-resolution imaging of cancer metastasis. “Visualization of the formation of metastasis [spread of cancer cells] has been hampered by the lack of long-term […]
Back in the prehistoric, and even Antiquity days, man didn’t understand a lot of things; he took every such phenomena and said well, this god did it, or that spirit did it, or some entity did it and that’s just how it goes. Same goes for fossils – whenever somebody stumbled across a fossil, they […]
Photons are slippery fellas. Since they don’t have any electrons, they’re free to run through any matter, no matter how intense an electric field may be. Scientists at Stanford, however, have come by a monumental breakthrough after they devised a way to exert virtual force on photons using synthetic magnetism similar to the effect of […]
Alan Kingstone, a psychologist at the University of British Columbia, has been debating with peers for many years what exactly comprise the gaze mechanisms. Do humans first look for the eyes or face when surveying another person or animal? Many scientists believed this is a question impossible to answer since the two are indistinguishable. Capitalizing on […]
According to two new studies, after smoking is banned indoors the number of people suffering from heart attacks considerably drops within months. Some of the researchers believe this data offer substantial evidence to the claim that second-hand smoke does in fact affect people’s health. Besides the obvious health benefit, the researchers argue that preventing second-hand […]
When left in scarcity, the human mind has always been pressured to find a solution. In the past decade or so, the demand for rare earth metals has soured as ever expansive green technology required it. The problem however, is that not only do these metals come in short supply, but they’re actually controlled in their […]
The origins of vision is a widely debated subject, since genetic relationships between early animals capable of sight are inconsistent. A team of researchers has conducted an extensive computer analysis that tests every proposed hypothesis on the origin of vision to date, and found a common ancestor dating from 700 million years ago. Their findings […]
With Halloween just around the corner, preparations in light of the impending artificial ghoul frenzy run amok through each neighborhood. Haunted houses, wild theme parties, trick or treating and as always an onslaught of horror flicks releases from Hollywood. Despite Halloween being considered an idle release time, horror movies have always found an audience no matter […]
In yet another breakthrough archaeological find, the tomb of what’s considered by many the founder of the Mayan civilization has been found at the pre-Columbian archaeological site of Tak’alik Ab’aj in western Guatemala’s Retalhuleu region, about 45km from the border of Mexican state of Chiapas. The tomb was built between 700 and 400 BC, according to carbon-dating […]
Scientists have found hints that methane deposits, tucked away in seabed sediments, have began to breakdown from their frozen state. The shifting of the Gulf Stream from colder to warmer waters is to blame, the researchers note. While a significant greenhouse gas influx into the atmosphere might occur, the researchers conclude, based on their models and […]
No, this isn’t some kind of reinvented alchemy or optical illusion. Scientists at University of Southampton have changed the colour of gold, silver and other metals without coating, by using a nanotechnology patterning technique. Applications may include harder to forge currency or encryption of valuable documents, among other. The team of researchers embossed the surface of […]
In an extremely exciting find, scientists at Aarhus University in Denmark found a type of bacteria that creates electrical currents on the sea floor. Despite the lack of air or sun light, these tiny bacteria flourish and form vast swaths of electrically pulsating multi-cellular organisms. The researchers found that the bacteria breaks down substances in deeper sediments […]
Attempts to decipher the 5000 year-old proto-Elamite writing system have so far rendered little results, much of it still consisting a troublesome puzzle for the scientists studying it. After using a high-tech imaging technique that has rendered the symbols in incredible details, scientists are now finally confident they’re nearing a breakthrough. The Elamite civilization spanned […]
How many times did you find yourself anticipating a certain event shortly before it happened?
Strangely enough, it was computer simulation that provided the mathematical support for the grandmother hypothesis – a famous yet controversial theory which suggests adult humans have longer lifespans as a result of grandmother babysitting. Longevity genes The simulation indicates that without any estimate of the brain size, an animal with a chimp-like lifespan can evolve […]
The pyramids, art, all of the world’s great inventions, literary works, just about any valuable intellectual work can be traced back to food – cooked food. If you care to go as far back as our very roots, that is. Previous research showed that cooked food made it easier and more efficient for our guts to […]
It may not be the best footwork in the world, because much like your uncle after a few beers, Charli doesn’t really want to lift its feet too far from the floor – but it’s definitely something fun to look at. This US Navy robot has all the moves: the lasso toss, the horse riding, […]
Fusing ancient, medieval, renascent and modern influences, the city of Rome is truly relic of time. It’s actually so old, that many construction projects in Rome have to go through a tiresome process before they can even start work, since there’s always the chance some forgotten tomb or catacomb of some sort might lie underneath. If you’re wondering what are the […]
As the topic of climate change is frantically being discussed in every government office nowadays, a burst of solutions, some contradictory, are being constantly proposed. Sitting on the desk for a while is the solar geoengineering proposition – hailed by many, heavily criticized by others. A new study claims that solar engineering could be undertaken more […]
In 2011, a 5.1 magnitude earthquake struck the Spanish city of Lorca, resulting in the loss of 9 lives and the injury of over 100 people. Now, researchers studying the case believe groundwater extraction played a crucial role in triggering this earthquake. A fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock, across which […]
For scientists, the most common method of assessing an animal’s intelligence is by looking at its relative brain size, with respect to its body size. The human brain, for instance, is small compared to other animal’s brain, however it’s exceptionally large when considering our body mass. A new study, which analyzed the relative brain size […]
Between 247 to 252 million years ago, Earth life was going through quite possibly its most dire time. During this period some 90% of world’s species were wiped out, but what puzzled scientists for so long is the fact that it took five million years for life to recover after this apocalypse. A new study […]
You just invested a lot of time, ingredients and love in that perfect sandwich, only for it land on the kitchen floor. Darn it! The 5 second rule immediately pops in your head and you confidently retrieve it, comforting your despair. A team of researchers at San Diego State University, however, has found that the germs do indeed attach themselves […]
Barley is a key ingredient in beer, the third most popular drink in the world after water and tea, an industry which currently amounts to $300 billion a year. The quality of the barley greatly influences the savor of beer, so by growing better quality barley we might be able to brew a beer that’s […]
In a fantastic breakthrough in solar energy, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have devised solar cells using nanotechnology which have had a recorded efficiency as high as 18.2%. Now, this alone is far from being deemed impressive, considering the current most efficient solar cells are 35% plus. What […]
While climate change may be a subject of intense debate with equally enthusiastic supports on both sides of the fence, one thing anyone, no matter their side, shouldn’t argue is allocating resources for its study. Just recently, one of the most powerful tools for studying the planet’s climate in great detail has been powered up […]
We’ve written about some bizarre animals in the past, but just when you think nothing can come as a surprise… well, meet the Chinese soft-shelled turtle, an animal that has an unique ability, never before encountered in the animal kingdom – it can urinate through its mouth. This is definitely not your typical turtle, even its […]
Paleontologists have uncovered the fossil remains of a 3-inch-long extinct arthropod in Yunnan Province, China, dating from the Cambrian period. What makes it particularly special is the fact that it provides an unusual example of preservation of the brain and nervous system, atypical for fossil records this old, but most interestingly it suggests that complex […]
Researchers at MIT have developed a novel technique of creating cheap and reliable sensors for toxic gases by simply etching carbon nanotubes with a mechanical pen on a special paper, fitted with electrodes. The method allows for easy to make, cheap and reliable sensors that detect noxious gases in the environment, without the hassle that […]
Researchers have just given us a way to point an accusatory finger at our polluting neighbors, by calculating the emissions made by individual buildings. The program, named Hestia, after the Greek Goddess of the Home, can map CO2 emissions in urban landscapes and narrow them down to certain streets or homes, using public databases, […]
There were 5.4 million automobile crashes on U.S. roads in 2010, killing 33 000 people and injuring more than 2.2 million, according to survey released by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The death toll around the world is much higher. While cars have been designed to be a lot safer by making them more crash […]
Oil spills are one of the most devastating man-made ecological disasters out there. During such an outbreak, millions of gallons of oil can end up in the ocean, killing countless marine life, as well as harming the ecosystem. Handling such disasters, beyond pointing fingers which comes to no avail to the marine life, has become […]
Scientists at University of Sydney have been studying for the past few years one of the most peculiar events in nature. It seems that a living slime, no less, no more, is capable of reading information and remembering its past “steps” acting on some sort of external memory, this despite the fact that it has no […]
There’s a general belief, most likely resulting from extensive marketing ploys, that electric cars are the cleanest mean of transportation, and an adoption should be hastily made in order to save our planet. While it’s true that electric cars have virtually zero emissions and not even one part per million of CO2 is released during operation, a […]
