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Evidence points to the fact that Neanderthals used manganese dioxide, today commonly found in batteries, to light fires some 50,000 years ago.
This week Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio won his very first Academy award for best actor. Of course, he was there and took the stage for his acceptance speech. What happened next didn't surprise those familiar with DiCaprio's concerns outside the movie business: he spoke about the imminent threat of climate change, calling it ‘the most existential crisis our civilization has ever known.’
A tragedy is just waiting to happen in one of the largest cities in the Middle East, engineers warn. The Iraqis who built the dam structure for the Mosul dam warn that the structure is “increasingly precarious” and threatens to kill 1 million people. They also said the government’s answer has been ridiculous. The Mosul […]
We tend to think of slavery as something that’s long extinct, but according to several reports, there are more slaves today than at any time in history. Now, a new study found that forced labor among migrant domestic workers is widespread in Asia. More than 70 percent of 4,100 women surveyed, citizens of the Philippines and Indonesia, said […]
In neighborhoods with high crime rates, past research showed that women who perceive they are at risk will generally be attracted to physically formidable and dominant mates (PPFDM). Yes, I know, it's a hilarious classification. But while this finding isn't all that surprising, there's a new research by a team at University of Leicester, UK which suggests this is true even when there isn't much or any risk of physical confrontation at all. In other words, women who feel vulnerable or victimized no matter the circumstances will find comfort in dating PPFDM (now you have a new shorthand to call your meatier friends; enjoy!).
A new study has mapped the genetic variations responsible for differences in the distribution, shape and colour of facial and scalp hair.
Astronaut Scott Kelly is returning home after a year in space, aboard the International Space Station. While there, Capt Scott Kelly shared spectacular images of our planet via Twitter, as well as documenting everyday life in outer space. Here are just a few of them, with the accompanying tweets:
Today is homecoming day for a record-setting crew. Three Expedition 46 crew members from the International Space Station are finishing packing the Soyuz TMA-18M spacecraft for the ride home today, ending their record-setting mission. In November 2012, NASA, the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos), and their international partners selected two veteran spacefarers for a one-year mission […]
A research team from University College in London has calculated that in the last five years, the ten biggest cities have increased their climate adaptation spending by a quarter. But they also found that it’s capital, not people, that we’re investing the most to protect. Beyond the moral implications this entails, it also means that poor […]
In what are some pretty counter-intuitive findings, a UCLA study found that most people oppose same-sex marriage because they feel it threatens their own relationships and way of life.
Many consumers now choose to exclusively buy products labeled with an eco-certificate which supposedly testifies that manufacturing was made in sustainable manner. Do these actually work? One of the few studies on the subject seems to suggest that the impact is positive, at least in Chile and related to deforestation.
Unfortunately, most people would, even when they've been shown it's not functioning properly.
Unearthed in southern China, this ancient fossil bears the most detailed and well preserved nervous system ever found.
It's official - New Zealanders can now tie the knot in spaghetti. The Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster is now legally recognized as being allowed to carry on wedding ceremonies.
Archaeologists have uncovered one of the biggest and best-preserved wheels from the Bronze Age, dating from nearly 3,000 years ago. The wheel holds a special place in human culture – even though we rarely give wheels a second thought, they basically revolutionized our world, allowing us to redefine transportation. After all, there’s a reason why something […]
Fewer guns lead to fewer homicides. Will this convince anyone in the U.S., though?
In the 1990s, a famous study found animals in Yellowstone National Park, like elk, bred in fewer numbers and ate less after wolves were re-introduced. That seems like something bound to happen when you introduce an apex predator in a new ecosystem. However, what the study pointed out, in fact, was that most of the elk population suffered not as a result of attack from wolves, but rather simply due to them knowing wolves where now sharing the same park. In other words, fear produced such intense ripples that it altered the entire ecosystem. This was very controversial, and a team of Canadian researchers sought to replicate the findings on an island of fearless raccoons.
The focus point of prosthetics today is, understandably, restoring ability, function and form to those who have lost a limb. But the same technology can be used to augment a healthy body, allowing a person to perform tasks outside of our body's limitations.
“My intention is to build up a permanent base station on the Moon,” Jan Wörner, Director General of the European Space Agency (ESA), says without hesitation.
An MIT research team has developed a new technology that will allow for the creation of lighter and thinner solar cells than ever before. While the team says there is still work to be done before making them commercially available, the panels already proved their efficacy in laboratory settings. They hope that their work will power […]
Scientists in China have created a platform for generating sperm cells that could one day treat male infertility - in other words, they've created sperm in a dish.
One group combined water collecting traits from the awesome Namib desert beetle, cactus and pitcher plant to devise a material that seemingly makes water out of thin air.
President Obama will mark the start of a year-long precision medicine trial with a summit at the White House. 170 people are involved in the program, which aims to enroll 79,000 volunteer participants by the end of this year to supply personal data that will eventually be used to improve health and treat disease. Precision medicine is […]
DiCaprio took to the stage to present his acceptance speech, and tackled climate change in front of millions of people watching the Academy Awards, calling it 'the most existential crisis our civilisation has ever known.'
Alistair Evans of Monash University in Australia took a refreshing look at hominid teeth evolution. He found human evolution was much simpler than previously thought, but also that wisdom teeth considerably shrank around the time complex tools began to be used.
There's a tune to oxygen, carbon and any other element from the periodic table.
A team from Cornell University’s School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering has found a way to arrange quantum dots together in an almost perfect structure.
Recent archaeological findings in the Timna region in Israel's southern Arava Valley showcase the surprising variety and quality of the clothes worn some 3,000 years ago.
A new gene-snipping enzyme was successful in removing strands of HIV genetic material in mice trials. If the enzyme can prove its reliability in human trials it might revolutionize how we fight the virus forever.
If you sprinkle water on a hot plate, it will evaporate. Basic physics, really. If the plate is really hot (well above the boiling point of water) something very interesting happens, which the untrained eye might discard as uneventful. The droplets will dance around the plate on a cushion of its own vapor -- this form of levitation is called the Leindenfrost effect. This layer is about 100 nanometers wide, and for the first time a team of researchers has imaged it.
Research shows that those who exercise stand a far better chance of not getting getting cancer. Those who did get cancer, but recovered, can delay or completely avert cancer from showing up again by putting in hours in the gym.
Human psychology works in surprising ways, due to our inherent biases. Stubborn people are always hard to convince, but researchers have identified some of the points that sometimes cause people to change their minds about something.
Plants and mushrooms growing sometimes accumulate dangerous levels of radioactivity. But until now, this hasn’t been confirmed for truffles, and researchers wanted to see whether truffles too accumulate radioactive material – the results were quite surprising. The Chernobyl accident was a catastrophic nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power […]
Clearly, this isn't your regular truck. It's a custom build that allows masons to erect free-standing tunnels very fast. The roller-covered arched rear temporarily supports the Lego-like brick structures, which are then locked in place without the need for an adhesive.
Stop for a moment and think about the traditional image of a US innovator. He’s probably a brilliant college drop-out who doesn’t want to be constrained by the system so he sets out and does his own thing, changing the world and making lots of money in the process. Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, […]
University of Washington researchers want to flip Wi-Fi energy use upside down. They've invented a new protocol and technique that uses 10,000 less energy. The same signal can be used to power devices without the need of an external power source. Cameras, temperature or motion sensors can all be power and connected to the internet at the same time using 'passive Wi-Fi.'
The European Southern Observatory (ESO) unveiled a new bedazzling image of the Milky Way, snapped by the APEX telescope in Chile’s Atacama Desert.
Medicine has developed hugely when it comes to treating burn victims.
It’s quite possibly the most common unit of measure; we often guide our lives based on the humble kilogram, but what is a kilogram really? In other words, how do we know when a kilogram really is exactly a kilogram? In a few days, one of the most reliable measures of a kilo will be […]
Out-of-towners using marijuana in Colorado are at a higher risk to end up in the emergency room, according to a new study.
Research narrowed down Planet Nine's orbit and confirmed there indeed seems to be a massive planet in the far reaches of our Solar System, "but not just anywhere".
A new study finds why our unconscious prejudices can influence the speed at which we associate certain terms and concepts depending on how we perceive the two elements.
Pushing around Atlas actually has a purpose, besides annoying the robot.
Massachusetts' state officials plan to designate the uninhibited island Mount Zion as a safe haven for the endangered timber rattlesnakes. The 1,350-acre wide site will be populated with adult snakes and authorities will keep a close watch on their progress.
Depending on the alignment of Mars and Earth, as well as the speed of propulsion, a spacecraft could reach the Red Planet as soon as 150 days. So far, NASA spacecraft have made 13 trips to Mars, with seven landings. The most recent -- that of the Curiosity rover -- took 253 days from launch on Earth to touchdown on Mars. There's now reason to believe, however, that this journey could be significantly made faster to the point it only takes 3 days, according to a NASA researcher.
Doctors are seeing a massive rise in the demands for the so-called vaginal seeding procedure, despite no evidence that this actually helps. Also called ‘microbirthing’, the process involves taking a swab from the mother’s vagina and rubbing it over the baby’s mouth, eyes, face and skin shortly after a C-section birth. The idea is that […]
A new paper from New York University researchers suggests that most people do hear an internal voice while they’re reading. The insights from this analysis lend some support to theories that say auditory hallucinations are inner voices that are incorrectly identified as not belonging to the self. So when you read something do you “hear” […]
A large biotech lab is now under a government animal welfare investigation after thousands of animals went "inexplicably" missing from their facilities.
Most modern prosthetics try to look like the real deal, while still featuring underlying robotics. Two researchers at the University of Washington’s Department of Computer Science & Engineering wanted to try another approach – to create a hand that acts like its biological equivalent, even though it may not look like one. In order to do […]
Can you fly through water? It's a silly thought, but that's exactly what this snail butterfly, called Limacina helicina, seems to be doing. Researchers at Georgia Tech report that these sea snails flap their wings in a figure eight pattern very much akin to that used by airborne insects, like flies or bees.
