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Extra-virgin olive oil, a major component of the Mediterranean diet, protects against cognitive decline. Image credit: Steve Buissinne.

Study: Extra-Virgin Olive Oil Consumption Protects against Alzheimer’s Disease

Jun 23, 2017 by News Staff

In a study published this week in the Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology, researchers from Temple University and the Sapienza University of...

A planetary mass object the size of Mars would be sufficient to produce the observed perturbations in the distant Kuiper Belt. Image credit: Heather Roper / Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona.

Mars-to-Earth-Mass Planet May Lurk in Outer Solar System: Planet 10

Jun 22, 2017 by News Staff

An unknown Mars-to-Earth-mass planet may lurk in the outer reaches of the Solar System, according to new research on the orbits of minor planets to be...

The study sheds new light on the multifaceted nature of the advanced paternal age (APA) effects and explores the intricate links between APA, autism and talent. Image credit: Mojca J.

Older Fathers Have ‘Geekier’ Sons, Research Suggests

Jun 22, 2017 by News Staff

New research published in the journal Translational Psychiatry suggests that sons of older dads are more intelligent, more focused on their interests and...

Nebamun hunting in the marshes with his wife and daughter, part of a wall painting from the tomb-chapel of Nebamun, Thebes, New Kingdom, 1350 BC. Image credit: Werner Forman Archive / Bridgeman Images.

Ancient and Modern DNA Reveal How Cats Conquered World

Jun 21, 2017 by News Staff

According to a new analysis of modern and ancient cat DNA, today’s domestic cat is a descendant of both the Near Eastern and Egyptian populations of...

The Rugege highlands forest chameleon (Kinyongia rugegensis). Image credit: Eli Greenbaum.

Three New Chameleon Species Discovered in Central Africa

Jun 20, 2017 by News Staff

A team of herpetologists, led by Dr. Eli Greenbaum, associate professor of biological sciences at the University of Texas at El Paso, has discovered three...

This is an artist's impression of an exoplanet. Image credit: Ron Miller.

Kepler Team Releases New Catalog of Exoplanet Candidates

Jun 20, 2017 by News Staff

A team of astronomers from NASA’s exoplanet-hunting Kepler mission has released a new catalog of transiting planet candidates. This is an artist’s...

The ruins of a 12th-century mosque in Harlaa, eastern Ethiopia. Image credit: Timothy Insoll, University of Exeter.

Archaeologists Unearth Ancient, Forgotten City in Eastern Ethiopia

Jun 19, 2017 by News Staff

An international team of researchers led by University of Exeter archaeologists has discovered the ruins of an ancient city — once thought to be...

Yin et al realized the satellite-based distribution of entangled photon pairs over 747 miles. Image credit: U.S. Army.

World’s First Quantum-Enabled Satellite Sets Distance Record for Quantum Entanglement

Jun 16, 2017 by News Staff

Chinese researchers have successfully demonstrated satellite-based distribution of entangled photon pairs to two locations separated by 747.5 miles (1,203...

Zhang et al used the leaves’, stems’, and roots’ extract of the willow-leaved justicia (Justicia gendarussa). Image credit: University of Illinois at Chicago.

Powerful Anti-HIV Compound Found in Asian Medicinal Plant: Patentiflorin A

Jun 16, 2017 by Enrico de Lazaro

The willow-leaved justicia (Justicia gendarussa), a medicinal plant found throughout Southeast Asia, contains a potent anti-HIV-1 compound more powerful...

Elon Musk’s Vision of Self-Sustaining Martian City, Manned Flights to Mars, Other Planets

Jun 15, 2017 by News Staff

An article entitled ‘Making Humans a Multi-Planetary Species’ presents the vision of Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX, for future manned trips to Mars and...

A reconstruction of Progura gallinacea (right), alongside a kangaroo and modern bush turkey (Alectura lathami). Image credit: Elen Shute / Kim Benson / Tony Rodd / Aaron Camens.

Giant Flying Turkeys Lived in Australia 1-3 Million Years Ago

Jun 15, 2017 by News Staff

Progura gallinacea, a species of extinct giant brush turkey that lived in Australia during the Late Pliocene and Early Pleistocene (1-3 million years ago),...

The Suriname lowland forest cottontail (Sylvilagus parentum). Image credit: UOL / IUCN.

New Species of Cottontail Rabbit Identified: Sylvilagus parentum

Jun 14, 2017 by Enrico de Lazaro

A new species of cottontail rabbit (genus Sylvilagus) has been described from the lowlands of western Suriname by Portland State University Professor Luis...

Jupiter is the oldest planet in the Solar System. Image credit: NASA.

Jupiter is Solar System’s Oldest Planet, Planetary Researchers Say

Jun 12, 2017 by News Staff

The gas giant Jupiter is not only the most massive planet in our Solar System, but it’s also the oldest, according to an international team of planetary...

This illustration shows one possible scenario for the super-Earth HD 3167d. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech.

HD 3167d: New Super-Earth Discovered around Nearby Star

Jun 11, 2017 by Natali Anderson

Dr. Jessie Christiansen, a staff scientist at the NASA Exoplanet Science Institute, and colleagues have discovered a ‘super-Earth’ exoplanet orbiting...

The gilled mushroom Gondwanagaricites magnificus lived during the Early Cretaceous, a time of dinosaurs when Gondwana was breaking apart. Image credit: Heads et al, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0178327.

Paleontologists Find Oldest Fossil Mushroom: Gondwanagaricites magnificus

Jun 9, 2017 by Natali Anderson

Gondwanagaricites magnificus represents the oldest fossil mushroom to date and the first fossil mushroom from the ancient supercontinent Gondwana. The...

This image shows a region of star formation where methyl isocyanate was found. The insert shows the molecular structure of this chemical. Image credit: L. Calcada / ESO / Digitized Sky Survey 2.

ALMA Detects Prebiotic Molecule in Multiple Protostar System

Jun 8, 2017 by News Staff

Astronomers have harnessed the power the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile to detect methyl isocyanate — a chemical building...

New Fossil Finds Push Back Origins of Homo sapiens by 115,000 Years

Jun 8, 2017 by News Staff

The fossilized remains of at least five individuals discovered at the archaeological site of Jebel Irhoud in Morocco have been dated at 315,000 years,...

The Humboldt’s flying squirrel (Glaucomys oregonensis), the third-known species of flying squirrel in North America and the 45th known species of flying squirrel in the world. Image credit: Nick Kerhoulas.

Cryptic New Species of Flying Squirrel Identified in North America

Jun 7, 2017 by News Staff

Scientists reporting in the Journal of Mammalogy on May 30 have identified a new species of flying squirrel living in the Pacific Coast region of North...

This Pluto mosaic was made from New Horizons LORRI images taken on July 14, 2015, from a distance of 49,700 miles (80,000 km). This view is projected from a point 1,118 miles (1,800 km) above Pluto’s equator, looking northeast over the dark, cratered Cthulhu Regio toward the bright, smooth expanse of icy plains called Sputnik Planum. Pluto’s North Pole is off the image to the left. This mosaic was produced with panchromatic images from the New Horizons LORRI camera, with color overlaid from the Ralph color mapper onboard New Horizons. Image credit: S.A. Stern et al.

Could Pluto’s Orbital Wobbles Create Its Mysterious Glacial Crazy-Paving?

Jun 6, 2017 by James Romero

Strange fields of polygons seen during New Horizons’ visit to Pluto could be explained by million year variations in the dwarf planet’s orbit caused...