News
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AstronomyGalactic Émigré: Incoming dwarf galaxy could feed its larger kin
A dwarf galaxy at the periphery of the giant Andromeda galaxy may be a pristine building block for forming galaxies in the modern-day universe.
By Ron Cowen -
AnimalsScary Singing: Precise birds signal, ‘Don’t mess with us’
A pair of magpie-larks can advertise their toughness by the precision of the duets they sing.
By Susan Milius -
Health & MedicineBlending In: Dissolvable stents promise to protect arteries
A biodegradable magnesium stent props open clogged blood vessels and then dissolves, circumventing the problems linked to permanent metal stents.
By Nathan Seppa -
AnthropologyChicken of the Sea: Poultry may have reached Americas via Polynesia
Polynesians may have traveled back and forth to South America more than 600 years ago, introducing chickens to the Americas in the process.
By Bruce Bower -
TechNanotech bubbles
Creating large-scale, regular arrays of nanoscale components is now almost as easy as blowing bubbles.
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ChemistryIn a Fix: Agricultural chemicals disturb a natural relationship
Several pesticides can disrupt a partnership that enables certain plants to take up nitrogen by enlisting the help of bacteria.
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Health & MedicineGuilt by Association: Whole-genome scans yield disease clues
In a sweeping demonstration of the power of the new biology, researchers have linked two dozen genetic variations to six major diseases.
By Brian Vastag -
Health & MedicineAnimal-to-human diseases could be right at home
A new map of where SARS or Ebola might erupt next highlights North America and Western Europe as likely sources.
By Brian Vastag -
Health & MedicineBeware the bats
Fruit bats in Bangladesh regularly trigger small outbreaks of Nipah virus, a measleslike pathogen that causes brain inflammation and death.
By Brian Vastag -
Health & MedicinePhages break up plaques
Phages, viruses that infect bacteria, dissolve plaques in the brains of mice with an Alzheimer's-like disease.
By Brian Vastag -
Health & MedicineSticky treatment for staph infections
Honey from New Zealand gums up bacteria, offering a potential new means of combating difficult-to-treat infections.
By Brian Vastag -
AstronomyCrash will determine solar system’s fate
The solar system already lies in the suburbs of the Milky Way, but the sun and its planets will be yanked even farther away about 5 billion years from now.
By Ron Cowen