News
- Earth
Double-acting bacteria immobilize toxic nanoparticles
Bacteria lurking in the bowels of an abandoned Wisconsin mine might help remove toxic metals from polluted water.
- Animals
West Nile virus hits bird populations
West Nile virus has hammered populations of five common North American birds.
- Planetary Science
Eris dwarfs Pluto
Ex-planet Pluto suffers another demotion, as observations show that it's much less massive than Eris, another distant denizen of the outer solar system.
- Tech
A computer in every cell
Artificial genes inserted into cells make RNA molecules that can perform logical computations.
- Animals
Profiles in Courtship: Flirting male fish show their best sides
Courting male guppies that sport a tad more orange on one side of their bodies than on the other tend to flash that brighter side at females.
- Paleontology
Jurassic CSI: Fossils indicate central nervous system damage
Fossils found in the head-thrown-back position, the so-called "dead bird" pose, probably died from central nervous system damage.
- Chemistry
Beyond Ethanol: Synthetic fuel offers promising alternative
A faster, simpler manufacturing technique could make a synthetic biofuel into an even stronger competitor to ethanol.
- Materials Science
Needling Cells: Stem cells could take their cues from silicon nanowires
Scientists have grown mouse stem cells on a bed of silicon nano-needles, hoping that they will be able to guide the cells' development through electrical stimulation.
- Paleontology
Winged dragon
A quarry on the Virginia–North Carolina border has yielded fossils of an unusual gliding reptile that lived in the region about 220 million years ago.
- Health & Medicine
Warning Sign: River blindness parasite shows resistance
The parasitic worm that causes river blindness seems to be developing resistance to the only drug that controls it.
- Computing
Mapping a Medusa: The Internet spreads its tentacles
After tracking how digital information weaves around the world, researchers have concluded that, structurally speaking, the Internet looks like a medusa jellyfish.
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Crossing the Line: Technique could treat brain diseases
With the help of a molecule from the rabies virus, scientists have for the first time selectively ferried a drug across the blood-brain barrier to treat a neurological disease in mice.
