ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Some corals like it hot: Heat stress may help coral reefs survive climate change
• Comfy mice lead to better science: Are cold mice affecting drug testing?
• Organics probably formed easily in early solar system
• Images capture split personality of dense suspensions
• Key enzyme involved in protecting nerves from degeneration identified
• Newly discovered foot points to a new kid on the hominin block
• Honeycombs of magnets could lead to new type of computer processing
• Bees 'self-medicate' when infected with some pathogens
• Electronic nose knows when your cantaloupe is ripe
• Volcanic 'plumbing systems' exposed: Step closer to predicting large eruptions with study of mid-ocean ridge magma chambers
• Extreme weather threatens rich ecosystems
• Whether grasping Easter eggs or glass bottles, this robotic hand uses tact
• Crocodiles trump T. rex as heavyweight bite-force champions, new study shows
• Clocking an accelerating universe: First results from BOSS
• Children who develop asthma have lung function deficits as neonates, study suggests
• Precipitation impacts glacial melt, Patagonian Glacier study suggests
• ADHD is over-diagnosed, experts say
• Good news for Norwegian polar bears: PCBs levels down
• Observing the galaxy distribution when the universe was half its current age
• Link between fast food and depression confirmed
• Unexpected behaviour of microdroplets
• Benefits of taking your dog to work may not be far-fetched
• Human attention to a particular portion of an image alters the way the brain processes visual cortex responses to that image
• Pattern of large earthquakes on San Jacinto fault identified

Some corals like it hot: Heat stress may help coral reefs survive climate change Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:59 PM PDT Scientists working in the central Pacific have discovered that coral which has survived heat stress in the past is more likely to survive it in the future. The study paves the way towards an important road map on the impacts of ocean warming, and will help scientists identify the habitats and locations where coral reefs are more likely to adapt to climate change.

Comfy mice lead to better science: Are cold mice affecting drug testing? Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:59 PM PDT Nine out of 10 drugs successfully tested in mice and other animal models ultimately fail to work in people, and one reason may be that laboratory mice are cold, according to an expert. Scientists report that given the proper materials, mice will build a cozy nest that allows them to naturally regulate their temperatures to a comfortable level.

Organics probably formed easily in early solar system Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:58 PM PDT Complex organic compounds, including many important to life on Earth, were readily produced under conditions that likely prevailed in the primordial solar system. Scientists came to this conclusion after linking computer simulations to laboratory experiments.

Images capture split personality of dense suspensions Posted: 30 Mar 2012 01:49 PM PDT Stir lots of small particles into water, and the resulting thick mixture appears highly viscous. When this dense suspension slips through a nozzle and forms a droplet, however, its behavior momentarily reveals a decidedly non-viscous side. Physicists have recorded this surprising behavior in laboratory experiments using high-speed photography that can capture action taking place in one hundred-thousandths of a second or less.

Key enzyme involved in protecting nerves from degeneration identified Posted: 30 Mar 2012 01:48 PM PDT A new animal model of nerve injury has brought to light a critical role of an enzyme called Nmnat in nerve fiber maintenance and neuroprotection. Understanding biological pathways involved in maintaining healthy nerves and clearing away damaged ones may offer scientists targets for drugs to mitigate neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington's and Parkinson's, as well as aid in situations of acute nerve damage, such as spinal cord injury.

Newly discovered foot points to a new kid on the hominin block Posted: 30 Mar 2012 10:40 AM PDT It seems that "Lucy" was not the only hominin on the block in northern Africa about 3 million years ago.

Honeycombs of magnets could lead to new type of computer processing Posted: 30 Mar 2012 09:32 AM PDT Scientists take an important step in developing a material using nano-sized magnets that could lead to new electronic devices. Researchers have demonstrated that large arrays of nano-magnets can be used to store computable information.

Bees 'self-medicate' when infected with some pathogens Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:10 AM PDT Honey bees "self-medicate" when their colony is infected with a harmful fungus, bringing in increased amounts of antifungal plant resins to ward off the pathogen.

Electronic nose knows when your cantaloupe is ripe Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:10 AM PDT Have you ever been disappointed by a cantaloupe from the grocery store? Too ripe? Not ripe enough? Researchers might have found a way to make imperfectly ripe fruit a thing of the past.

Volcanic 'plumbing systems' exposed: Step closer to predicting large eruptions with study of mid-ocean ridge magma chambers Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:10 AM PDT Two new studies into the "plumbing systems" that lie under volcanoes could bring scientists closer to predicting large eruptions. International teams of researchers studied the location and behavior of magma chambers on Earth's mid-ocean ridge system -- a vast chain of volcanoes along which Earth forms new crust.

Extreme weather threatens rich ecosystems Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:05 AM PDT Extreme weather such as hurricanes, torrential downpours and droughts will become more frequent in pace with global warming. Consequently, this increases the risk for species extinction, especially in bio diverse ecosystems such as coral reefs and tropical rainforests.

Whether grasping Easter eggs or glass bottles, this robotic hand uses tact Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:05 AM PDT It may be difficult to imagine, but pouring juice into a plastic cup can be a great challenge to a robot. While one hand holds the glass bottle firmly, the other one must gently grasp the cup. Researchers have now developed a robotic hand that can accomplish both tasks with ease and yet including the actuators is scarcely larger than a human arm. This was made possible by a novel string actuator, making use of small electric motors to twist strings. The robotic hand is thus powerful yet delicate and could one day be deployed as a helper around the house or in catastrophic scenarios.

Crocodiles trump T. rex as heavyweight bite-force champions, new study shows Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:02 AM PDT Biologists have found in a study of all 23 living crocodilian species that crocodiles can kill with the strongest bite force measured for any living animal. The study also revealed that the bite forces of the largest extinct crocodilians exceeded 23,000 pounds, a force two-times greater than the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex.

Clocking an accelerating universe: First results from BOSS Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:18 AM PDT First spectroscopic results from BOSS give the most detailed look yet at the time when dark energy turned on some six billion light years ago, as the expansion of the universe was slipping from the grasp of matter's mutual gravitational attraction, and expansion began to accelerate.

Children who develop asthma have lung function deficits as neonates, study suggests Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:18 AM PDT Children who develop asthma by age seven have deficits in lung function and increased bronchial responsiveness as neonates, a new study suggests.

Precipitation impacts glacial melt, Patagonian Glacier study suggests Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:17 AM PDT Glaciers play a vital role in Earth's climate system, and it's critical to understand what contributes to their fluctuation. Increased global temperatures are frequently viewed as the cause of glacial melt, but a new study of Patagonia's Gualas Glacier highlights the role of precipitation in the glacier's fluctuation.

ADHD is over-diagnosed, experts say Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:17 AM PDT What experts and the public have already long suspected is now supported by representative data: ADHD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is over-diagnosed. The study showed that child and adolescent psychotherapists and psychiatrists tend to give a diagnosis based on heuristics, unclear rules of thumb, rather than adhering to recognized diagnostic criteria. Boys in particular are substantially more often misdiagnosed compared to girls.

Good news for Norwegian polar bears: PCBs levels down Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:13 AM PDT In a study of PCBs in polar bear cubs in Svalbard, researchers have found that blood levels of PCBs and related contaminants in polar bear cubs appear to have dropped by as much as 59 per cent between 1998 and 2008.

Observing the galaxy distribution when the universe was half its current age Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:13 AM PDT Astronomers have completed the most accurate measurement yet of the distribution of galaxies between five and six billion years ago. This was the key 'pivot' moment at which the expansion of the universe stopped slowing down due to gravity and started to accelerate instead, due to a mysterious force dubbed "dark energy". The nature of this "dark energy" is one of the big mysteries in cosmology today, and scientists need precise measurements of the expansion history of the universe to unravel this mystery – BOSS provides this kind of data.

Link between fast food and depression confirmed Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:13 AM PDT A new study along the same lines as its predecessors shows how eating fast food is linked to a greater risk of suffering from depression.

Unexpected behaviour of microdroplets Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:13 AM PDT Physicists agree that laminar flow of liquids has been well understood and described in detail from the theoretical point of view. Researchers have, however, observed that droplets of chemical substances flowing in a carrier liquid inside microchannels -- although presenting laminar flow inside them -- present multiple mysteries.

Benefits of taking your dog to work may not be far-fetched Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:12 AM PDT Man's best friend may make a positive difference in the workplace by reducing stress and making the job more satisfying for other employees, according to a new study.

Human attention to a particular portion of an image alters the way the brain processes visual cortex responses to that image Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:12 AM PDT Human attention to a particular portion of an image alters the way the brain processes visual cortex responses to that image. Our ability to ignore some, but not other stimuli, allows us to focus our attention and improve our performance on a specific task. Researchers are beginning to understand how humans make sense of a perceptually cluttered world.

Pattern of large earthquakes on San Jacinto fault identified Posted: 29 Mar 2012 02:04 PM PDT The San Jacinto Fault Zone is a seismically active, major component of the overall southern San Andreas Fault system. Researchers have mapped evidence of past ruptures consistent with very large earthquakes along the Clark Fault, an individual strand associated with the SJF.

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