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Thursday, July 11, 2013

ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

ScienceDaily: Strange Science News


The sounds of science: Melting of iceberg creates surprising ocean din

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 06:42 PM PDT

There is growing concern about how much noise humans generate in marine environments through shipping, oil exploration and other developments, but a new study has found that naturally occurring phenomena could potentially affect some ocean dwellers. Nowhere is this concern greater than in the polar regions, where the effects of global warming often first manifest themselves. The breakup of ice sheets and the calving and grounding of icebergs can create enormous sound energy, scientists say. Now a new study has found that the mere drifting of an iceberg from near Antarctica to warmer ocean waters produces startling levels of noise.

3-D-printed splint saves infant's life

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 03:36 PM PDT

Medical researchers printed a 3-D splint that saved the life of an infant born with severe tracheobronchomalacia, a birth defect that causes the airway to collapse. While similar surgeries have been preformed using tissue donations and windpipes created from stem cells, this is the first time 3D printing has been used to treat tracheobronchomalacia -- at least in a human.

Mammals can 'choose' sex of offspring, study finds

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 03:29 PM PDT

A new study shows that mammalian species can "choose" the sex of their offspring in order to beat the odds and produce extra grandchildren. In analyzing 90 years of breeding records from the San Diego Zoo, researchers were able to prove for the first time what has been a fundamental theory of evolutionary biology: that mammals rely on some unknown physiologic mechanism to manipulate the sex ratios of their offspring as part of a highly adaptive evolutionary strategy.

Researchers perform DNA computation in living cells

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 11:20 AM PDT

Chemists have performed a DNA-based logic-gate operation within a human cell. The research may pave the way to more complicated computations in live cells, as well as new methods of disease detection and treatment.

Dingoes remain top predator despite control measures

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 08:43 AM PDT

The culling of dingoes in Australia to protect livestock does not open the way for other predators to take their place, new research finds. Dingoes and red foxes are temporarily suppressed, while feral cats and goannas are not affected, which suggests that careful planning of culls, around calving time to save livestock from attacks, should not in the long term harm dingo populations or other animals in the ecosystem.

Plain surfaces transformed into low-cost touch screens

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 07:40 AM PDT

A low cost system, based on the principles of vibration and imaging that is able to track the movements of multiple fingers and of objects, can turn almost any surface into a touch-screen.

Where do astronauts go when they need 'to go?'

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 07:31 AM PDT

The first American man in space had no place "to go," and urinating in space was a tough problem for engineers to solve. A new article discusses the considerations necessary to accommodate this most basic physiological function.

Bat that sings like a bird is highly tuned to social circumstance

Posted: 10 Jul 2013 07:27 AM PDT

New research shows that Brazilian free-tailed bats (Tadarida brasiliensis) vary the way elements are combined in their songs (i.e. syntax) in response to different social contexts, which is exceedingly rare among non-human mammals.

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