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Saturday, September 15, 2012

ScienceDaily: Top Science News

ScienceDaily: Top Science News


NASA Mars rover Opportunity reveals geological mystery: Spherical objects unlike previously found 'blueberries'

Posted: 14 Sep 2012 12:40 PM PDT

NASA's long-lived rover Opportunity has returned an image of the Martian surface that is puzzling researchers. Spherical objects concentrated at an outcrop Opportunity reached last week differ in several ways from iron-rich spherules nicknamed "blueberries" the rover found at its landing site in early 2004 and at many other locations to date.

First planets found around sun-like stars in a cluster

Posted: 14 Sep 2012 10:34 AM PDT

Astronomers have, for the first time, spotted planets orbiting sun-like stars in a crowded cluster of stars. The findings offer the best evidence yet that planets can sprout up in dense stellar environments. Although the newfound planets are not habitable, their skies would be starrier than what we see from Earth.

Getting (drugs) under your skin: Using ultrasound waves, researchers boost skin's permeability to drugs

Posted: 14 Sep 2012 10:31 AM PDT

Using ultrasound waves, engineers have found a way to enhance the permeability of skin to drugs, making transdermal drug delivery more efficient.

X-rays unravel mysterious degradation of Van Gogh painting: Protective varnish caused discoloration

Posted: 14 Sep 2012 05:09 AM PDT

Synchrotron X-ray analysis has identified why parts of a Van Gogh painting changed color over time: a supposedly protective varnish applied after the master's death has made some bright yellow flowers turn to orange-grey. The origin is a degradation process at the interface between paint and varnish. After this discovery, conservators in many museums have to newly address the question of restoring Van Gogh paintings.

Disorder of neuronal circuits in autism is reversible, new study suggests

Posted: 14 Sep 2012 05:06 AM PDT

People with autism suffer from a pervasive developmental disorder of the brain that becomes evident in early childhood. Medical researchers have identified a specific dysfunction in neuronal circuits that is caused by autism. They have also reversed these neuronal changes in an animal model. These findings are an important step in drug development for the treatment for autism.

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