News
- Life
Ancient birds wiped out huge insects
Competition in the air trumped the advantage of extra atmospheric oxygen.
By Devin Powell - Life
Antiaging protein helps set daily rhythms
Changing levels of sirtuin in the brain alter activity patterns in mice.
- Chemistry
Flerovium and livermorium debut on periodic table
New element names honor the contributions of Russian and American laboratories.
- Humans
Stone Age art gets animated
Cave paintings and decorated disks provided moving experiences in ancient Europe.
By Bruce Bower - Physics
Quantum teleportation leaps forward
Two teams report beaming information about particles over long distances, a step toward creating satellite quantum communication networks.
- Astronomy
Milky Way will be hit head-on
The Andromeda galaxy is destined to slam directly into ours, new observations from the Hubble Space Telescope show.
- Genetics
Poppies make more than opium
A 10-gene cluster controls the flowers’ production of a valuable cough suppressant and antitumor compound.
- Life
Treatment helps paralyzed rats walk
A combination of drugs, electrical stimulation and therapy can restore lost connections between lower limbs and brain.
- Life
Blue-green algae release chemical suspected in some amphibian deformities
Retinoic acid levels high in waterways rich in cyanobacteria blooms.
By Susan Milius - Earth
Supervolcanoes evolve superquickly
Huge underground chambers of magma appear and erupt within just several centuries, a study of California rocks suggests.
- Chemistry
Youngsters can sniff out old people’s scent
Body odor changes detectably with age, becoming mellower in men and not at all offensive in either sex — even to young people.
- Health & Medicine
Fever in pregnancy linked to autism
Pregnant women who run a high temperature that goes untreated may double their risk of having an autistic child, a study finds.
By Nathan Seppa