Uncategorized
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19892
In this article, researcher Curtis Marean refers to Stone Age people using a reddish pigment for “body coloring or other symbolic acts.” What reason is there for jumping to this conclusion? As with cave painting and figurines, there seems to be an undue emphasis on symbolism and a supposition that everything has to have “meaning,” […]
- Anthropology
Going Coastal: Sea cave yields ancient signs of modern behavior
A South African cave yields evidence of complex, symbolic behavior among ancient people about 164,000 years ago, the oldest such indications yet.
- Health & Medicine
Better Than Pap: Virus test detects cervical cancer
A new test for human papillomavirus (HPV) detects cervical cancer more reliably than traditional Pap smears.
- Humans
The Ignobility of Wrinkles
A theoretical study of the way skin, apple peel, and bedsheets wrinkle has won this year's Ig Nobel Prize in Physics.
- Humans
Letters from the October 20, 2007, issue of Science News
Well, read Margit L. Bleecker appears to have discovered that those who score highly on reading tests also score highly on tests of memory, attention, and concentration (“How reading may protect the brain,” SN: 8/18/07, p. 110). I don’t find that highly surprising. Ivan MannHoover, Ala. How it happened stance “Alien Pizza, Anyone?” (SN: 8/18/07, […]
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Stem Cells from Virgin Eggs
Making embryonic stem cells from unfertilized eggs might bypass many ethical concerns, but important scientific hurdles remain.
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Emotional memory
The action of a stress hormone could be why emotionally charged events form especially vivid and durable memories.
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Bacteria thrive by freeloading
Mutant bacteria thrive by freeloading off their hard-working kin, but these slackers revert to working normally if they become too numerous.
- Materials Science
Feet of clay, but superstrong
Gluing together nanoscale clay particles with a simple adhesive creates a strong but flexible material.
- Tech
CD players could serve as cheap lab tools
Ordinary CD disc players can be adapted to perform chemical assays and possibly medical diagnoses.
- Astronomy
Motion of two nearby galaxies clouds the picture
The Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are not gravitationally bound to the Milky Way, but are relative newcomers passing by for the first time.
- Planetary Science
Titan: Land of lakes—and drizzle
A newly assembled mosaic of radar images of Saturn's moon Titan shows what appear to be hydrocarbon lakes and seas.
