News
- 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.
- Neuroscience
Stopped brain clock saves memory in hamsters
Broken timekeeper in brain may explain some memory problems, hamster study suggests.
By Meghan Rosen - Astronomy
Philae lander reveals stunning, unsettling view of comet
Concerns are surfacing about the Rosetta mission lander Philae’s ability to fully explore comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.