News
- Humans
Title IX: Women are catching up, but . . .
Though a federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in academic settings has fostered women's participation in science, they still lag behind men in salaries and research opportunities.
- Astronomy
Young star’s glow suggests planet find
The X-ray outburst of a young, sunlike star might provide new insights about planet formation.
- Health & Medicine
Computers read mammograms to detect breast cancer
Mammogram–scanning computers can help radiologists detect breast cancers that would otherwise escape diagnosis.
- Planetary Science
A little bit of Mars on Earth
Scouring an ice field in Antarctica, scientists have made the latest discovery of a chunk of rock that was blasted from Mars and fell to Earth.
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Invasive Genes: Humans incorporate DNA from parasite
Bits of foreign DNA from the parasite that causes Chagas' disease becomes integrated into the DNA of infected hosts, marking the first time that parasitic DNA has ever been found in the human genome.
- Chemistry
Velcro Therapy: Branching polymer wards off scarring after eye surgery
Specially designed polymer molecules called dendrimers reduce scar tissue formation after glaucoma surgery, dramatically improving the procedure's outcome.
- Astronomy
Universal Truths: Distant quasars reveal content, age of universe
Using quasars as searchlights on the distant universe, astronomers have mapped the distribution of gas between galaxies with unprecedented precision, allowing precise determinations of the age of the universe.
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Lighting Up the Rainbow: Color perception tied to early visual experience
A study of baby monkeys finds that exposure to natural light in the year after birth fosters their ability to recognize colors as lighting gets brighter or dimmer.
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Gutless Wonder: New symbiosis lets worm feed on whale bones
A newly discovered genus of marine worm can take nourishment from sunken whale skeletons, thanks to a previously unknown form of symbiosis.
- Ecosystems
Fish Stew: Species interplay makes fisheries management tricky in the long run
Annual fluctuations in certain fish populations can be best understood and controlled by accounting for ecological factors, such as predation by other fish, in addition to fisheries harvests.
- Health & Medicine
Prion Proof? Evidence grows for mad cow protein
Misfolded proteins known as prions can cause disease when injected into the brains of genetically engineered mice.
- Humans
EPA to fine DuPont over ingredient in Teflon
The Environmental Protection Agency says it may levy a fine surpassing $300 million against DuPont for concealing evidence that it was contaminating the environment with perfluorooctanoic acid.
