Latest science news in Biology & Nature
Early fire use ignites discussion about the evolution of human brainpower
New evidence that early modern humans used fire in southern Africa in a controlled way to increase the quality and efficiency of stone tools is changing how researchers understand the...
Anthrax Bacteria Conspire With Viruses To Stay Alive
New research suggests that anthrax-causing bacteria conspire with viruses to extend each other's lifespan. The work reveals a previously unknown relationship between Bacillus anthracis and viruses and opens up new...
Magnetic Microbe Genome Attracting Attention For Biotech Research
The smallest organisms to use a biological compass are magnetotactic bacteria, however mysteries remain about exactly how these bacteria create their cellular magnets. In a new study, scientists have used...
Toxic Levels Of Alzheimer's Clusters In Brain Determined
Scientists know that small, grape-like clusters of a protein called the amyloid beta-protein are toxic, causing Alzheimer's (AD). By creating various sizes of clusters in the lab that exactly match...
Human mind: Sound and vision wired through same 'black box'
Sounds and images share a similar neural code in the human brain, according to a new Canadian study. In the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of...
Alcoholic Rats Show Kudzu May Help Addicted Humans
An invasive vine that is choking much of the southern U.S. may reduce cravings in human alcoholics, new rat research suggests.
Neandertals Led Bitter Lives
Ancient DNA shows ancient humans could detect bitter flavors like some humans
Genome duplication responsible for more plant species than previously thought
Extra genomes appear, on average, to offer no benefit or disadvantage to plants, but still play a key role in the origin of new species, say scientists from Indiana University...
No experience required: Category-specific brain organization in sighted and blind humans
A new study finds a surprising similarity in the way neural circuits linked to vision process information in both sighted individuals and those who have been blind since birth. The...
Light energy moves living cells in culture
ORLANDO, Fla., Aug. 12 (UPI) -- University of Central Florida scientists say they have used light energy to guide and change the orientation of living cells within lab cultures.
Galapagos Islands face a mosquito problem
LEEDS, England, Aug. 12 (UPI) -- Scientists say mosquitoes that might be carrying diseases lethal to many species of Galapagos Islands wildlife are being brought to the islands by...
Bone From Blood: Circulating Cells Form Bone Outside The Normal Skeleton
The accepted dogma has been that bone-forming cells, derived from the body's connective tissue, are the only cells able to form the skeleton. However, new research shows that specialized cells...
Killer whales visit social clubs
Hundreds of killer whales from different pods regularly meet up to socialise, scientists discover.
Cultural evolution continues throughout life says new research theory
By successively acquiring culture in the form of values, ideas, and actions throughout their lives, humans influence future learning and the capacity for cultural evolution. The number of learning opportunities...
Discovery to aid study of biological structures, molecules
Researchers in the United States and Spain have discovered that a tool widely used in nanoscale imaging works differently in watery environments, a step toward better using the instrument to...
The Pressure is on to Eradicate Deadly Organism Affecting Citrus Crops Worldwide
Citrus Huanglongbing (HLB) - also known as "citrus greening" - is a serious bacterial disease that is adversely affecting citrus groves worldwide. The disease has already been responsible for the...
Cleaner Seine brings wild salmon back to French capital
Wild salmon are returning to the River Seine for the first time in almost a century, French scientists say.
'Alien scene' of tadpoles feast
"Alien-like" scenes of tadpoles feasting on eggs from the mountain chicken frog are caught on camera.
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Nanotubes made without metal catalyst … Scientists offer new AIDS vaccine strategy … Tasmania reports record warm winter water … Potential metastatic cancer targets found ... Health/Science news from UPI.
Shape-Shifting Gel Condom Changes From Liquid to Solid To Block HIV
Though the University of Utah in Salt Lake City might not be the first place one would expect to find researchers getting experimental in the bedroom, a team of scientists there have developed...
Fire Ants "Attacked" From Air
Sarah Palin isn't the only one who supports hunting from a helicopter. The Australian government is using choppers with heat sensors to scour the land for invasive fire ants. Video.
U.S. Bear Gallbladders Sold on Black Market
Black bears poached in the U.S. for their organs and fluids may gain protection from a proposed federal law—but some experts say the legislation draws attention away from dwindling Asian bears, which are...
UK's Royal Opera House to perform 'Twitter' opera
(AP) -- It probably won't be "Madame Butterfly," but it should be fun.
‘Flying Frog’ and Miniature Deer Discovered in Himalayas
A trip trip to the Himilayas yields hundreds of new species.
CRTC plans new fall hearing into fee-for-carriage
The federal broadcast regulator has rearranged its fall schedule so it can have a hearing into the issues surrounding fee-for-carriage.
Where science feeds action, leopards win
New York, NY (August 11, 2009) Researchers from the field in South Africa demonstrate that threatened big cats truly can be saved through strategic and science-based conservation practices, according to...
Helping Albacore tuna come out of the can
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists are set to study the earbones and organs of more than 2000 albacore tuna to better understand the growth, age and breeding patterns of this increasingly important...
Radio tags reveal secrets of roadrunners
Radio tags on roadrunners are revealing the small birds can each have surprisingly large home ranges. Knowledge of the birds may shed light on the plight of species in those...