Other Sciences News

Scientists Propose New Contributing Cause for ‘Great Oxidation Event’

Archean Earth. Image credit: Francis Reddy, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.
Mar 14, 2017 by News Staff

In the Archean Eon, more than 2.3 billion years ago, Earth’s atmosphere spent about a million years filled with a methane-rich haze; and this haze drove a large amount of hydrogen out of the atmosphere, clearing the way for massive amounts of oxygen to fill the air, according to a University of St. Andrews-led research team. Archean Earth. Image credit: Francis Reddy, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. The scientists reconstructed atmospheric...

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Modig et al found that people who had at least one child tended to live longer.

Being Parent Could Add Extra Years to Your Life

Mar 14, 2017 by News Staff

Parenthood is associated with a longer life than childlessness, particularly in older age, according to a study led by Karolinska Institute researcher...

El Sidron Neanderthals taste wild mushrooms, pine nuts and forest moss. Image credit: Abel Grau, CSIC Communication.

Neanderthals Used Plant-Based Painkillers, Ate Rhinoceros Meat, Mushrooms, Nuts, and Moss

Mar 9, 2017 by News Staff

An analysis of ancient DNA entrapped in Neanderthal dental calculus (calcified dental plaque) has revealed the complexity of Neanderthal behavior, including...

Virtual reconstructions of the Xuchang 1 and 2 skulls, superimposed on the archeological site where they were discovered. Image credit: Xiujie Wu.

Archaic Human Skulls from China Reveal Complex Mix of Trends in Time and Space

Mar 6, 2017 by News Staff

Two partial archaic human skulls unearthed in central China provide a new window into the biology and populations patterns of the immediate predecessors...

Sound-shaping metamaterial bricks and the grid to contain them. Image credit: Gianluca Memoli et al, doi: 10.1038/ncomms14608.

Researchers Invent Sound-Shaping Metamaterial

Feb 28, 2017 by News Staff

A team of researchers from the Universities of Sussex and Bristol, UK, has invented the first metamaterial that easily bends, shapes and focuses sound...

Watching birds near your home is good for mental health. Image credit: Tim Felce / CC BY-SA 2.0.

Watching Birds, Trees near Your Home is Good for Mental Health, Study Shows

Feb 27, 2017 by News Staff

According to a study led by University of Exeter researcher Daniel Cox, people living in neighborhoods with more birds, shrubs and trees are less likely...

The last glacial period occurred from 110,000 to 11,700 years ago. Image credit: Mauricio Anton.

Simple Rule Accurately Predicts when Ice Age Ends

Feb 23, 2017 by News Staff

According to an international research team led by University College London Professor Chronis Tzedakis, a simple rule can accurately predict when Earth’s...

Dopaminergic system and reward processing: dopaminergic neurons are located in the midbrain structures substantia nigra (SNc) and the ventral tegmental area (VTA); their axons project to the striatum (caudate nucleus, putamen and ventral striatum including nucleus accumbens), the dorsal and ventral prefrontal cortex; the mesolimbic dopamine pathway mediates the psychopharmacology of reward, whether that is a natural high or a drug-induced high, and is sometimes referred to as the pleasure center of the brain, with dopamine as the pleasure neurotransmitter. Image credit: Oscar Arias-Carrion et al, doi: 10.1186/1755-7682-7-29.

Study: Neurotransmitter Dopamine Plays Role in Human Bonding

Feb 20, 2017 by News Staff

Researchers have found for the first time that dopamine, a vital neurotransmitter in the brain, is involved in human bonding. The results appear in the...

Nanoparticles.

Five Ways Nanoscience is Making Science Fiction into Fact

Feb 16, 2017 by Josh Davies, Cardiff University

Russian author Boris Zhitkov wrote the 1931 short story Microhands, in which the narrator creates miniature hands to carry out intricate surgeries. And...

Morrissey et al found that there are specific groups of neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex of a rat’s brain - the region most associated with long-term memory; these neurons develop codes to help store relevant, general information from multiple experiences while, over time, losing the more irrelevant, minor details unique to each experience. This image shows a rat hippocampal neuron. Image credit: ZEISS Microscopy / CC BY 2.0.

Neuroscientists Uncover How Brain Maintains Useful Memories

Feb 15, 2017 by News Staff

A team of neuroscientists at the University of Toronto in Canada has discovered a reason why we often struggle to remember small details of past experiences....

Based on various lines of geological and geophysical evidence, particularly those accumulated in the last two decades, Nick Mortimer et al argue that Zealandia is not a collection of partly submerged continental fragments but is a coherent 4.9 million km2 continent. NC - New Caledonia; WTP - West Torres Plateau; CT - Cato Trough; Cf - Chesterfield Islands; L - Lord Howe Island; N - Norfolk Island; K - Kermadec Islands; Ch - Chatham Islands; B - Bounty Islands; An - Antipodes Islands; Au - Auckland Islands; Ca - Campbell Island. Image credit: Nick Mortimer et al, doi: 10.1130/GSATG321A.1.

Meet Zealandia, Earth’s New Continent

Feb 14, 2017 by Natali Anderson

Zealandia — a 4.9 million km2 region of the southwest Pacific Ocean — was once part of the ancient supercontinent Gondwana and today it is...

According to Brian Chin et al, married people have lower cortisol levels and steeper slopes than the unmarried ones. Image credit: Olessya.

Study: Married People Have Lower Levels of Stress Hormone Cortisol

Feb 14, 2017 by News Staff

A study led by Carnegie Mellon University researchers provides the first biological evidence to explain how marriage impacts health. According to Brian...

This image shows an ON Delayed retinal ganglion cell. Image credit: Adam Mani & Gregory W. Schwartz, Northwestern University.

Researchers Find Myopia-Causing Cells in Retina

Feb 13, 2017 by News Staff

A team of researchers at Northwestern University has discovered a type of retinal ganglion cell that may cause myopia when it dysfunctions. The study is...

A layered ruthenate Ca2RuO4-y exhibits NTE; the sintered-body structure shows colossal NTE when extremely anisotropic thermal expansion of the crystal grains produces deformation, consuming open spaces (voids) on heating; the total volume change related to NTE reaches 6.7% at most, the largest reported so far. Image credit: Koshi Takenaka et al.

Record-Breaking Material Shrinks When Heated

Feb 10, 2017 by News Staff

Most materials expand when heated, but a few materials do the opposite and contract. Researchers at Nagoya University are now adding to this curious class...

J Philip Karl et al quantify benefits of a whole-grain diet. Image credit: Tofs.

Study Reveals Health Benefits of Whole-Grain Diet

Feb 9, 2017 by News Staff

A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that substituting whole grains for refined grains increases calorie loss by...

Model depicting the FLP-7/NPR-22 neuroendocrine axis that underlies the 5-HTergic control of body fat loss. In the nervous system, an integrated 5-HT and octopaminergic circuit stimulates body fat loss. In this study, we report the discovery of a tachykinin signalling system that underlies the 5-HTergic control of body fat loss in C. elegans. The FLP-7 neuroendocrine peptide is secreted from the ASI neurons in response to 5-HT and Oct-mediated signalling. The nutrient sensor AAK-2/AMPK acts in the ASI neurons via the CREB co-regulator CRTC-1 to regulate FLP-7 release in response to 5-HT-encoded signals of food availability. Upon release, FLP-7 acts in the intestine via the NPR-22/NK2R receptor to stimulate the ATGL-1 lipase, which drives fat loss. The identification of FLP-7 and NPR-22 addresses a long-standing question about the molecular basis of the central effects of 5-HT on fat loss in peripheral tissues. Image credit: Lavinia Palamiuc et al, doi: 10.1038/ncomms14237.

Scientists Identify Brain-Signaling Molecule that Triggers Fat Burning

Feb 8, 2017 by News Staff

A research team led by Scripps Research Institute scientist Dr. Supriya Srinivasan has identified a brain hormone that appears to trigger fat burning in...

Microphotograph of the diamond anvil cell high-pressure cavity in reflected and transmitted light at 140 GPa after laser heating to > 1,500 degrees Kelvin. The sample, which consists of mixture of tI19 Na and Na2He, is in contact with He medium that is seen as a transparent area near the edge of the gasket. Image credit: Xiao Dong et al, doi: 10.1038/nchem.2716.

Researchers Create Stable Compound of Helium and Sodium

Feb 7, 2017 by Enrico de Lazaro

An international team of researchers has successfully synthesized a thermodynamically stable compound of sodium and the noble gas helium, Na2He, which...

Mark Rylance, Brie Larson, Leonardo Dicaprio, Alicia Vikander at the 88th Oscars. Image credit: ABC Television Group / CC BY-ND 2.0.

Psychology Researchers Reveal How to Win an Oscar

Feb 6, 2017 by News Staff

If you want to win an Oscar it is best to be an American actor in a movie that portrays American culture. That is the conclusion of a paper by an international...

According to Ellen Stothard et al, a weekend camping trip prevents the typical weekend circadian and sleep delay. Image credit: Unsplash.

Weekend Camping Trip Can Help Re-Set Body’s Internal Clock, New Study Says

Feb 3, 2017 by News Staff

New research published in the journal Current Biology shows that as little as 48 hours of camping can help re-set the body’s circadian rhythm, or internal...

Heat-driven transistor. Image credit: Linköping University.

Researchers Create World’s First Heat-Driven Transistor

Jan 31, 2017 by News Staff

Researchers at Linköping University in Sweden have created what they say is a heat-gated organic transistor. Heat-driven transistor. Image credit: Linköping...

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