Uncategorized
- Ecosystems
Pigeons usually let best navigator take the lead
One bird usually leads the flock, but sometimes another gets a turn at the helm.
- Life
Scientists name large but elusive lizard
Though locals knew of it, the 2-meter cousin to Komodo dragons had escaped scientific description.
By Susan Milius - Life
Gene variants linked to Crohn disease have little effect, study finds
A genetic variant linked to Crohn disease does not raise the average person’s risk of developing the condition, a new study finds.
- Chemistry
Superheavy element 117 makes debut
An international team of researchers fill a gap in the periodic table, and lay another stepping stone along the path to the “island of stability.”
- Health & Medicine
Languages use different parts of brain
Different areas are active depending how the grammar of a sentence conveys meaning.
- Climate
Alaskan peatlands expanded rapidly as ice age waned
The rapid growth of Alaskan wetlands before 8,600 years ago was due to hotter summers and colder winters, which could spell trouble in a warmer world, a new study suggests.
By Sid Perkins - Life
Insulin-producing cells can regenerate in diabetic mice
Animal study finds that the pancreas can spontaneously regenerate beta cells.
- Life
Researchers figure out how flies taste water
A study identifies the cell membrane protein that flies use to detect water’s flavor.
- Math
Million-dollar math prize awarded, but not necessarily accepted
The reclusive mathematician who proved the Poincaré conjecture may or may not claim his prize.
- Life
When two hyenas get the giggles
Laughs of higher-status individuals are more posh, a study in a captive colony suggests.
By Susan Milius - Anthropology
Inca cemetery holds brutal glimpses of Spanish violence
Bones from a 500-year-old cemetery have yielded the first direct evidence of Inca death at Spaniards’ hands.
By Bruce Bower - Health & Medicine
Bees forage with their guts
Researchers show that a gene helps honeybees choose between nectar and pollen.