Uncategorized
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- Animals
Windows may kill up to 988 million birds a year in the United States
Single-family homes and low-rise buildings do much more damage than skyscrapers.
- Genetics
Stone Age Spaniard had blue eyes, dark skin
Genetics of 7,000-year-old skeleton suggests blond hair, pale skin came later.
- Materials Science
Nanotube whiskers could aid robot-human interaction
Tiny hairlike sensors made from nanomaterials are more sensitive than existing devices to detect tiny pressures.
- Climate
Grape expectations
Global warming has delivered long, warm growing seasons and blockbuster vintages to the world’s great wine regions. But by mid-century, excessive heat will push premium wine-making into new territory.
- Earth
Life’s early traces
Tiny tufts, rolls and crinkles in 3.5-billion-year-old rocks add to a growing body of evidence suggesting that cellular life got a relatively quick start on Earth.
- Life
How to tell good gut microbes from bad
Researchers sort out influences of specific bacteria on body fat, the immune system.
- Humans
Small fetal size early on might carry risks later
A smaller size in first trimester of pregnancy has been linked to heart-health warning signs in childhood.
- Animals
Mantis shrimp’s bizarre visual system may save brainpower
The mantis shrimp sees each color separately with one of a dozen kinds of specialized cells, a system that may help the animal quickly see colors without a lot of brainpower.
- Planetary Science
Old rover finds new evidence of water on Mars
Opportunity’s analysis of rocks at Endeavour crater reveals chemistry that could have supported life.
- Physics
Laser builds mirror by pushing beads together
The light technique may one day be used to build giant telescopes in space.
- Science & Society
Forty finalists selected in 2014 Intel Science Talent Search
The 40 young scientists will visit Washington, D.C., March 6–12 to tour the White House and other national landmarks, present their research to judges and the public in a poster session at the headquarters of the National Geographic Society and attend a black-tie awards gala at the National Building Museum.
