All Stories
- Life
Jigsaw genetics
Fragments of a fetus's genome can be pieced together from the mother's blood to allow prenatal diagnosis of genetic diseases.
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Dirty money 1: Expect germs
China’s yuan banknotes are bacterial magnets, relatively speaking, while Australian dollars circulate virtually germfree. The difference traces to a number of factors — not least being what they’ve been printed on, a new international study concludes.
- Health & Medicine
New blood test may predict some heart risk
People carrying high levels of a protein called cardiac troponin T are more likely to have heart failure or die from cardiovascular problems, two studies show.
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- Space
Crab nebula outbursts shock astronomers
Short-lived gamma-ray flares recently recorded from the Crab nebula supernova remnant, known for its steady emissions, are perplexing researchers and forcing them to consider new models for particle acceleration.
- Space
Beast at galaxy core sits, lacking spin
New observations suggest that the Milky Way's central black hole rotates slowly or not at all, reinforcing its image as a gentle gravitational giant.
- Tech
Terrorist-resistant ‘source’ of moly-99 hits the U.S.
Molybdenum-99 is the radioactive feedstock for the most widely used diagnostic nuclear-medicine isotope. On December 6, the first commercial batch of moly-99 that had been produced using a terrorist-resistant process arrived in the United States from a reactor in South Africa.
- Psychology
Connected at church, happy with life
People who feel best about their lives combine religious identity with congregational friendships, a survey finds.
- Life
Friendly fire blamed in some H1N1 deaths
A poorly targeted immune response to the 2009 pandemic flu virus caused young adults and the middle-aged to suffer more than usual.
- Math
Outstanding, superlinear cities
By a new mathematical method, New York City proves average and San Francisco exceptional.
- Physics
Light can generate lift
Researchers create a lightfoil that can push small objects perpendicularly.
- Earth
Icequake swarms portend some avalanches
By keeping an ear to the ice, scientists can predict impending glacial crack-ups two weeks in advance.
