News
-
Health & MedicinePromising HIV gel fails in latest trial
Halted in trials, an anti-HIV gel is ineffective, but may not add to risk of infection, as previously thought.
-
ArchaeologyGreeks followed a celestial Olympics
A Greek gadget discovered more than a century ago in a 2,100-year-old shipwreck not only tracked the motion of heavenly bodies and predicted eclipses, but also functioned as a sophisticated calendar and mapped the four-year cycle of the ancient Greek Olympics.
By Ron Cowen -
Planetary ScienceCassini finds liquid ethane on Titan
After years of speculation, planetary scientists have now confirmed that Titan has at least one lake made of liquid ethane.
By Ron Cowen -
LifeHow the snake got its fangs
A study of snake embryos suggests that fangs evolved once, then moved around in the head to give today’s snakes a variety of bites.
By Amy Maxmen -
Health & MedicineCalcium’s possible role in Alzheimer’s
A new study in mice finds that plaques associated with Alzheimer’s wreak havoc on calcium’s role in cell signaling.
-
PaleontologySoft tissue in fossils still mysterious
New research suggests modern biofilms could contaminate ancient fossils.
By Sid Perkins -
Health & MedicineTo catch a cheat
Drug test cheaters find quick fixes on the Web, but toxicologists aren’t so easily fooled.
-
LifeNature’s chronic boozers
Tree shrews pub-crawl nightly from flower to flower for fermented palm nectar.
By Susan Milius -
Health & MedicineStatins versus dementia
Statins, developed to fight cholesterol, may also prevent some dementia, a study of older Hispanics finds.
By Nathan Seppa -
ComputingBuilding ‘The Matrix’
Simulating new materials could help in building them — but only quantum simulators could fully model reality. A team reports a first step in realizing quantum simulation.
-
Health & MedicineA chink in flu’s armor
Finding the shape of a protein that enables the flu virus to replicate points to ways to combat the disease.
-
EcosystemsNomadic ants hunt mushrooms
A species of ants not well understood surprises researchers with a nomadic lifestyle, roaming the rainforest on fungal forays.
By Susan Milius