News
- Math
Proof clarifies a map-folding problem
Researchers have developed an efficient algorithm to determine, given a collection of creases on a piece of paper, whether a sequence of simple folds produces a flat result, like a folded road map.
- Chemistry
Researchers stretch for improved surfaces
A surprisingly simple, new technique could create better coatings for everything from medical implants to ship hulls.
- Tech
Ink-jet dots form transistor spots
A new technique makes ink-jet printing of transistor circuits possible from conductive polymer inks.
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Great tits inherit egg spots from mom
An unusual study of eggshell spots suggests that there may be a gene for spottiness on the great tit's female sex chromosome.
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Nightlife: Marsupial meets mistletoe
A tiny marsupial in Argentina turns out to disperse mistletoe seeds, a job once presumed to be for the birds.
- Paleontology
Subway dig in L.A. yields fossil trove
Fossil finds made when a subway line was extended from Los Angeles into the San Fernando Valley include bones of mastodons, ground sloths, extinct bison and camels, and 39 new species of fish.
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First Plant Genome Thrills Biologists
The unveiling of the genetic blueprint of the tiny thale cress ushers in a new era in plant biology.
- Earth
New accord targets long-lived pollutants
Negotiators drafted an agreement to ban or phase out some of the world's most persistent and toxic pollutants.
- Health & Medicine
Antibiotics, vitamins stall stomach cancer
A 6-year study shows that vitamin C, beta-carotene, and antibiotics can reverse premalignant conditions that could otherwise lead to stomach cancer.
- Physics
Silk and soap settle a century-old flap
The leading explanation for why flags flap in the breeze has run afoul of new experimental findings.
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Gene implicated in development of autism
A gene involved in fetal-brain development may predispose people to develop autism or several related disorders.
- Earth
Wafting pesticides taint far-flung frogs
Agricultural pesticides blowing into California's wilderness areas have played a role in mysterious declines in frog populations.
