News
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AstronomyHefty Find: Density has starring role in making stars massive
Astronomers find new insights into how massive stars form.
By Ron Cowen -
True Blue: Electron jumps make protein shine like an LED
A protein thought to be fluorescent instead emits light the way an LED does, suggesting that some living things might do the same.
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AnthropologyHairy Forensics: Isotopes can identify the regions where a person may have lived
The proportions of certain chemical isotopes in someone's hair can help detectives pin down that individual's region of origin and track their recent movements, a finding that could be particularly useful in forensic investigations.
By Sid Perkins -
AnimalsGreat spots for white sharks
The great white sharks of the eastern Pacific may be genetically isolated from the world's other white sharks, and tagging data reveal that the animals stick to specific routes and destinations.
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Health & MedicineSun, inflammation speed aging of skin
Gene profiles show inflammation is the key to making skin age, and sun exposure speeds the process.
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New dating finds oldest coral yet
A sample of a black coral from a depth of 400 meters turns to be 4,200 years old.
By Susan Milius -
EarthDioxin’s long reach
Breast development is delayed in teenage girls who were exposed to the organic pollutant dioxin in the womb and in their mothers' breast milk.
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TechDiamond detectors
The quantum states of single diamond impurities work as magnetic sensors that could enable nuclear magnetic resonance to detect single atoms.
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EcosystemsPredators return
Warming waters could push new predators into Antarctica's delicate ecosystems.
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AgricultureResistance to Bt crops emerges
Resistance to pest-killing cotton crops is spreading among one species of caterpillar, but techniques to prevent the spread of resistance appear to be working for five other species.
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Gene variants shield against depression
Some child-abuse victims possess specific variations in a stress-regulating gene that decrease their likelihood of developing moderate or severe depression as adults, a research team reports.
By Bruce Bower -
Internet Seduction: Online sex offenders prey on at-risk teens
Most online sex crimes involve adults seducing psychologically vulnerable teenagers into sexual relationships, a finding at odds with public fears of Internet-using children falling prey to deceptive, violent sexual predators.
By Bruce Bower