Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Robotic Bat: A Sneaky Spy
A palm-sized "robo-bat" with shape memory alloy is designed for surveillance.
Potato famine disease striking home gardens in U.S.
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Late blight, which caused the Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s and 1850s, is killing potato and tomato plants in home gardens from Maine to Ohio and...
Blur's noise and distortion reversed
Errant pixels and blurry regions in a photo, whether digital or scanned, are the bane of photographers everywhere. Moreover, in vision processing research degraded photos are common and require restoration...
Stem Cells' 'Suspended' State Preserved By Key Step, Scientists Report
Scientists have identified a gene that is essential for embryonic stem cells to maintain their all-purpose, pluripotent state. Exploiting the finding may lead to a greater understanding of how cells...
Straighten Up And Fly Right: Moths Benefit More From Flexible Wings Than Rigid
New research using high-speed digital imaging shows that, at least for some insects, wings that flex and deform, something like what happens to a heavy beach towel when you snap...
NYC Museum's Deep Freeze Lab Will Store Endangered Species' DNA
The American Museum of Natural History will receive endangered species samples from the National Park Service Freezing genetic samples from plant and animal species is all the rage these days, with projects...
Variants of 'umami' taste receptor contribute to our individualised flavour worlds
Using a combination of sensory, genetic, and in vitro approaches, researchers from the Monell Centre confirm that the T1R1-T1R3 taste receptor plays a role in human umami (amino acid) taste...
Plastics chemical retards growth, function of adult reproductive cells
Bisphenol A, a chemical widely used in plastics and known to cause reproductive problems in the offspring of pregnant mice exposed to it, also has been found to retard the...
Tests raise life extension hopes
A compound discovered on the South Pacific's Easter Island may help to fight the ageing process, research suggests.
Toxic Chemicals Affect Steroid Hormones Differently In Humans And Invertebrates
In a study with important consequences for studies on the effects of chemicals on steroid responses in humans, scientists have found that -- contrary to earlier assumptions -- enzymes used...
Drug helps monkeys, rabbits survive anthrax
CHICAGO (Reuters) - An experimental antibody treatment helped rabbits and monkeys survive a deadly dose of anthrax bacteria and proved safe in humans, too, researchers at Human Genome Sciences said...
From pythons to fungus, species invading US
(AP) -- A pet Burmese python broke out of a glass cage last week and killed a 2-year-old girl in her Florida bedroom. The tragedy became the latest and...
Rare blue lobster attracting visitors to Charlottetown shop
A rare blue lobster named Donald is attracting visitors to a store in Charlottetown.
Scientists lay out gene map of Korean man
Scientists have sequenced the entire gene map of a Korean male and linked DNA variations unique to him to possible susceptibility to various cancers and other diseases.
Human genetics: One gene, twenty years
When the cystic fibrosis gene was found in 1989, therapy seemed around the corner. Two decades on, biologists still have a long way to go, finds Helen Pearson.
Mexico to boost young scientists in private companies
One hundred fellowships will be provided for young scientists to work in private companies.
Keeping harmful bacteria from progressing
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers from the University of Wyoming and an institute in Germany have completed a project that, for the first time, has identified how sunlight changes activity of a...
Brain topography study may aid diagnoses
CHICAGO, July 8 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say they are mapping the dimensions of human brain structures to improve the diagnosis of mental disorders such as schizophrenia.
DNA gets nanotubes sorted out
Short DNA strings separate carbon nanotubes according to their structure
South Asia News in brief: 25 June–8 July 2009
India tracks possible swine flu mutation, Nepalese scientists study glacial lakes, an improved method to track aerosols, and more.
Sahel nations may lose maize by 2050
As African nations heat up, many could use maize varieties cultivated in hotter nations. Not so for a band of countries in the Sahel.
It's official, beloved polar bear Knut's a Berliner
The Berlin Zoo said Wednesday it will pay $600,000 to the Neumuenster zoo to settle a financial dispute over ownership of the nearly 3-year-old bear.
Coral and Brittle Star: 'Til Death Do Us Part
Brittle stars attach to this coral, forever.
Elephant-size Loopholes Sustain Thai Ivory Trade
Legal loopholes and insufficient law enforcement mean that Thailand continues to harbor the largest illegal ivory market in Asia, says a new report.
Where the sun does most damage
Skin cancer’s location on the body depends on the body’s distance from the equator
Researcher Looks to the Oceans for Bioactive Natural Products as Chemo-preventatives for Pancreatic Cancer
Reseachers are looking to the oceans as a rich source of bioactive natural products that inhibit inflammation as potential novel chemo-preventatives of pancreatic cancer. The uniqueness, chemical diversity and complexity...
Key Gene For Bone Development Discovered: When Mutated It Lead To Dwarfism
Scientists have just discovered the gene behind Recessive Omodysplasia, a rare skeletal disease characterized by short-limbed dwarfism and craniofacial anomalies. The work reports the identification, on chromosome 13, of a...
An eye in the sky watching forests disappear
Remote sensing is crucial for getting the measure of forest loss. Countries don't need their own satellites but they do need training.