Uncategorized
- Earth
Light reaches deep in southeast Pacific
In a remote part of the southeastern Pacific where marine life is sparse, ultraviolet light penetrates to unprecedented depths.
By Sid Perkins - Health & Medicine
TB medication offers pain relief
An antibiotic once used to treat tuberculosis may offer relief from chronic pain.
By Jenny Pegg - Astronomy
Shedding light on the precursor to a supernova
A supernova lights up its surroundings, revealing evidence of what made the star explode.
By Ron Cowen - Health & Medicine
Statin reduces dementia risk
A popular anticholesterol drug reduces older adults' chances of developing dementia.
By Brian Vastag -
19864
A simpler explanation for orangutans walking upright like humans is that this feature evolved in a common ancestor that did not include African apes. In other words, orangutans, not chimpanzees, are our closest living relatives. This would make sense of all the similarities in sexuality, reproduction, physiology, anatomy, and behavior that are unique to humans […]
By Science News - Anthropology
Red-Ape Stroll
Wild orangutans regularly walk upright through the trees, raising the controversial possibility that the two-legged stance is not unique to hominids.
By Bruce Bower - Earth
Signs of Life?
Life's effects on a planet's terrain show up only in surprisingly subtle ways.
By Sid Perkins - Humans
Letters from the August 4, 2007, issue of Science News
Here comes the sun When “Reaching for Rays: Scientists work toward a solar-based energy system” (SN: 5/26/07, p. 328) says that “scientists don’t expect traditional silicon-based solar cells to become competitive with fossil fuels,” one has to ask, “Ever?” Can anyone accurately predict the future price of polysilicon or of fossil fuels? Peter A. KaczowkaLenox, […]
By Science News - Ecosystems
Bee All
With continuing concerns about the decline of honeybees in North America—and especially the newly recognized Colony Collapse Disorder—here’s a site to learn more about the important role these and other bees play in plant health and agriculture. This academic site links to plenty of related places on the Web that also address threats to not […]
By Science News - Humans
From the July 24, 1937, issue
Records of floods are written in mud, predictions that locusts will invade areas once thought safe, and the Eiffel Tower hosts the world's most powerful television transmitter.
By Science News - Physics
Slick serpent
Oil poured into a pan of the same liquid drags along a surrounding air layer, which can make it skip in and out of the surface before it mixes in.
- Astronomy
Heavenly Chemistry: Astronomers announce astrophysical anion
Astronomers' discovery of a rare negatively charged organic molecule sheds light on conditions in interstellar gas clouds, where amino acids, sugars, and other prebiologic compounds form.
By Ron Cowen