News
- Archaeology
Barley elevated Central Asian farmers to ‘the roof of the world’
Hardy western crops allowed villagers to settle in the cold, thin air atop the Tibetan Plateau.
By Bruce Bower - Neuroscience
Breathing returns to paralyzed rats
Scar tissue–busting enzyme plus rehabilitation therapy improves respiration long after rats’ initial spinal cord injuries.
By Meghan Rosen - Life
Springs bring gecko stickiness to human scale
Springs of a stretchy alloy let gecko-inspired adhesives work at human scales to climb glass walls or grab space junk.
By Susan Milius - Neuroscience
Protein production prevents sleep-loss forgetfulness
Boosting levels of certain proteins in mice prevented memory problems associated with sleep deprivation.
- Health & Medicine
Aspirin’s heart benefits not a slam dunk
No survival gain found in people age 60 and over who took daily dose of aspirin.
By Nathan Seppa - Psychology
Right questions could help spot devious air passengers
Training airport security agents to ask detail-oriented questions of travelers may help unmask liars.
By Bruce Bower - Neuroscience
‘Bath salts’ reduce communication in rat brains
The recreational drugs known as bath salts cause a loss of communication between areas in the rat brain.
- Neuroscience
Magnets in helmets might make football safer
The repulsive force of magnets in football helmets could slow the impact of collisions, reducing concussion danger and making the game safer.
- Planetary Science
Two travelers from far beyond Neptune return home
Two bodies approaching from the edge of the solar system may have been tossed out there by Jupiter over 4 billion years ago.
- Environment
Spiders enlisted as pollution sensors for rivers
Hunting arachnids provide a better picture of chemical threats to food web.
By Beth Mole - Life
Study finds lack of evidence for infanticide link to monogamy
A new study contradicts idea that the rise of infanticide among mammals drove the evolution of monogamy.
By Susan Milius - Climate
Lightning strikes will surge with climate change
Climate warming could boost lightning strikes in the United States by roughly 50 percent over the next century.