All Stories
- Animals
Aphids make their own bright colors
The insects’ ancestors adapted fungal DNA for manufacturing vital compounds.
- Space
Measuring the weakest of forces
Precise measurements could be used to map tiny fluctuations in the surface properties of materials.
- Space
Mediterranean microfossils offer hope for finding life on Mars
A discovery in sulfate minerals on Earth suggests the possibility of similar signs of life on the Red Planet.
- Life
DNA comparison of identical twins finds no silver bullet for MS
The first study of its kind suggests an unknown environmental cause for multiple sclerosis, but future research could still yield a genetic trigger.
- Health & Medicine
Vitamin E, diabetes drug may reverse fatty liver disease
Test results in obese people suggest these two treatments may work against cirrhosis precursor.
- Physics
Army takes gun acoustics beyond ‘bang’
Dissecting the sound of weapon fire may give soldiers an edge.
- Space
Frozen asteroid
Scientists publish two new studies showing evidence of ice on object in asteroid belt.
- Paleontology
Dinos molted for a new look
In one species, adolescents appear to have sprouted a new type of feathers as they matured.
- Materials Science
Infection, kill thyself
Scientists devise wound dressings that trick bacteria into suicide.
- Health & Medicine
Chili pepper holds hot prospects for painfree dieting
A cousin of the chemical that packs the heat in chilis not only can rev up the body’s metabolism but actually encourage it to preferentially burn fat, according to a new trial in obese men and women. And the kicker: The molecule is itself so fat that it can’t fit into the receptors that would ordinarily register pain.
- Humans
Vision gets better with the right mind-set
Volunteers’ eyesight improved when they believed that they could see particularly well.
- Health & Medicine
This off-white rice may be heart healthy
The outer coating of a semi-polished rice – a layer which manufacturers ordinarily polish off of brown rice in the process of making it white – offers cardiovascular benefits, new data indicate.
