ScienceDaily: Top Science News

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• Interplanetary dust particles could deliver water and organics to jump-start life on Earth
• Psychologists document the age our earliest memories fade
• Mars could have supported life: Ten years on Mars leads to livable mud
• The scent of cancer: Detecting cancer with fruit fly's antenna
• Rainforests in Far East shaped by humans for the last 11,000 years
• Plant scientists unravel a molecular switch to stimulate leaf growth
• A thousand years ago, Central Europeans digested milk as well as us today
• Lab-grown, virus-free stem cells repair retinal tissue in mice

Interplanetary dust particles could deliver water and organics to jump-start life on Earth Posted: 24 Jan 2014 01:12 PM PST Researchers have discovered that interplanetary dust particles could deliver water and organics to the Earth and other terrestrial planets. "It is a thrilling possibility that this influx of dust has acted as a continuous rainfall of little reaction vessels containing both the water and organics needed for the eventual origin of life on Earth and possibly Mars," said Hope Ishii, study co-author.

Psychologists document the age our earliest memories fade Posted: 24 Jan 2014 10:57 AM PST Although infants use their memories to learn new information, few adults can remember events in their lives that happened prior to the age of three. Psychologists have now documented that age seven is when these earliest memories tend to fade into oblivion, a phenomenon known as "childhood amnesia." The study is the first empirical demonstration of the onset of childhood amnesia, and involved interviewing children about past events in their lives.

Mars could have supported life: Ten years on Mars leads to livable mud Posted: 24 Jan 2014 06:37 AM PST Some of the oldest minerals ever analyzed by NASA's Mars Opportunity Rover show that around four billion years ago Mars had liquid water so fresh it could have supported life.

The scent of cancer: Detecting cancer with fruit fly's antenna Posted: 24 Jan 2014 05:27 AM PST Researchers have, for the first time, detected cancer cells using the olfactory senses of fruit flies.

Rainforests in Far East shaped by humans for the last 11,000 years Posted: 24 Jan 2014 05:26 AM PST New research shows that the tropical forests of South East Asia have been shaped by humans for the last 11,000 years. The rain forests of Borneo, Sumatra, Java, Thailand and Vietnam were previously thought to have been largely unaffected by humans, but the latest research suggests otherwise.

Plant scientists unravel a molecular switch to stimulate leaf growth Posted: 24 Jan 2014 05:26 AM PST Cell division is essential for growth and development of all multicellular organisms. In plants, leaf growth consists of two different phases. A first phase is characterized by intense cell division, which leads to the formation of many new cells. During the second phase, cell division activity declines, the cells elongate and acquire a certain expertise. Biologists have now identified a molecular switch that stimulates leaf growth.

A thousand years ago, Central Europeans digested milk as well as us today Posted: 23 Jan 2014 07:19 PM PST Back in the Middle Ages, Central Europeans were already capable of digesting milk, yogurt and cheese just as well as most people of European descent are today. Researchers have discovered that the population of the medieval town of Dalheim had a similar genetic predisposition for milk digestion to present-day Germans and Austrians. Moreover, the study reveals that lactose tolerance was more widespread than previously believed.

Lab-grown, virus-free stem cells repair retinal tissue in mice Posted: 23 Jan 2014 07:19 PM PST Investigators have developed human induced-pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) capable of repairing damaged retinal vascular tissue in mice. The stem cells, derived from human umbilical cord-blood and coaxed into an embryonic-like state, were grown without the conventional use of viruses, which can mutate genes and initiate cancers, according to the scientists. Their safer method of growing the cells paves the way for a stem cell bank of cord-blood derived iPSCs to advance regenerative medicine research.

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