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Saturday, May 24, 2014

ScienceDaily: Most Popular News

ScienceDaily: Most Popular News


A glimpse into nature's looking glass -- to find the genetic code is reassigned: Stop codon varies widely

Posted: 22 May 2014 11:14 AM PDT

It has long been assumed that there is only one 'canonical' genetic code, so each word means the same thing to every organism. Now, this paradigm has been challenged by the discovery of large numbers of exceptions from the canonical genetic code.

Very distant galaxy cluster confirmed

Posted: 21 May 2014 10:37 AM PDT

The structures and star populations of massive galaxies appear to change as they age, but much about how these galaxies formed and evolved remains mysterious. Many of the oldest and most massive galaxies reside in clusters, enormous structures where numerous galaxies are found concentrated together. Galaxy clusters in the early universe are thought to be key to understanding the lifecycles of old galaxies, but to date astronomers have located only a handful of these rare, distant structures.

Professors' super waterproof surfaces cause water to bounce like a ball

Posted: 20 May 2014 09:34 AM PDT

Engineers have spent decades studying super-hydrophobic surfaces because of the plethora of real-life applications. And while some of this research has resulted in commercial products that keep shoes dry or prevent oil from building up on bolts, scientists are also aiming to uncovering characteristics that might lead to large-scale solutions for society.

Bacteria and fungi from 1,500-year-old feces support archeological theories of Caribbean cultures

Posted: 20 May 2014 08:59 AM PDT

By evaluating the bacteria and fungi found in fossilized feces, microbiologists are providing evidence to help support archeologists' hypotheses regarding cultures living in the Caribbean over 1,500 years ago. Scientists examined the DNA preserved in coprolites from both Saladoid and Huecoid settlements and compared the bacterial and fungal populations found in each.

Mars mineral could be linked to microbes

Posted: 20 May 2014 07:05 AM PDT

Scientists have discovered that living organisms on Earth were capable of making a mineral that may also be found on Mars. Scientists had believed deposits of the clay-mineral stevensite could only be formed in harsh conditions like volcanic lava and hot alkali lakes. However researchers have now found living microbes create an environment that allows stevensite to form, raising new questions about the stevensite found on Mars.

Testing paleo diet hypothesis in test tubes: Surprising relationships between diet and hormones that suppress eating

Posted: 20 May 2014 06:35 AM PDT

By comparing how gut microbes from human vegetarians and grass-grazing baboons digest different diets, researchers have shown that ancestral human diets, so called 'paleo' diets, did not necessarily result in better appetite suppression. The study reveals surprising relationships between diet and the release of hormones that suppress eating.

Antarctica's ice losses on the rise

Posted: 19 May 2014 08:02 AM PDT

Three years of observations show that the Antarctic ice sheet is now losing 159 billion tons of ice each year -- twice as much as when it was last surveyed. Scientists have now produced the first complete assessment of Antarctic ice sheet elevation change.

Keywords hold our vocabulary together in memory

Posted: 19 May 2014 07:47 AM PDT

Like key players in social networks, scientists have found evidence that there are keywords in word networks that hold together groups of words in our memory. The existence of keywords opens up many possible real-life applications such as helping individuals with word finding after stroke. Conversely, removing a keyword through psycholinguistic tasks, could actually disrupt language processing - fracturing our word network.

Favored by God in warfare? How WWI sowed seeds for future international conflicts

Posted: 15 May 2014 12:38 PM PDT

World War I -- the "war to end all wars" -- in fact sowed seeds for future international conflicts in a way that has been largely overlooked: through religion, says a historian and author. Widespread belief in the supernatural was a driving force during the war and helped mold all three of the major religions -- Christianity, Judaism and Islam -- paving the way for modern views of religion and violence, he said.

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