Uncategorized
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Goal-Oriented Brain Cells: Neurons may track action as a prelude to empathy
Nerve cells located toward the back of a monkey's brain appear to assist in discerning the goals of specific actions.
- Ecosystems
Where Tuna Go: Atlantic fish mix for feeding, not spawning
The largest high-tech tag study yet of Atlantic bluefin tuna suggests that two groups mix on feeding grounds but spawn on opposite sides of the ocean.
- Astronomy
Shell of a finding
A new X-ray portrait of a supernova remnant suggests that this shell of hot gas may be hard to discern if the interstellar medium around the exploded star has extremely low density.
- Earth
Bed of Armor: Large rocks hold fast in flooding streams
The relative proportions of rocks of various sizes in gravel-lined streams remain constant, even during substantial floods.
- Chemistry
The Proper Popper: Corn kernel’s chemistry is key to its ka-pop
The secret to better popcorn popping is the crystalline structure of the kernel's hull.
- Agriculture
Insecticide Inside: Gene-modified rice cuts chemical spraying in China
In the hands of Chinese farmers, varieties of rice genetically modified to fend off insects reduce pesticide use and increase crop yields.
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Losing Sleep: Mutant flies need less shut-eye
The ability to get by on little sleep may have a strong genetic component, according to a new study in fruit flies.
- Health & Medicine
Neuron Savers: Gene therapy slows Alzheimer’s disease
Putting extra copies of the gene for a cellular growth factor into the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease appears to slow the degenerative condition.
- Health & Medicine
Zinc boosts kids’ learning
Zinc fortification improved mental skills in children with normal healthy diets, suggesting that the recommended intake for this mineral may need to be raised.
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I wonder if the enhanced learning that the researchers observed might have resulted not from the supplemental zinc per se, but from the zinc’s blocking absorption of fluoride in the juice. Most juice, especially grape and citrus, has enormous concentrations of fluoride from the pesticides used to produce it. Fluoride is known to cross the […]
- Earth
Oysters under siege: Heat and pollution
With global warming, some polluted waters could become graveyards for certain shellfish.
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When opposites don’t attract
The quirks of two kinds of European corn borers are giving researchers a way to study how a single species might split in two.
