ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Stock market models help researchers predict animal behavior
• Rosetta's singing comet
• Want to improve your putt? Try listening to jazz
• Facial structure predicts goals, fouls among World Cup soccer players
• Using 3-D printers to print out self-learning robots
• Twisted light waves sent across Vienna
• Why 'I'm so happy I could cry' makes sense
• Tail discovered on long-known asteroid
• Eye diseases identified by how we watch TV
• Bending but not breaking: In search of new materials
• A billion holes can make a battery
• So, you think you can clap to the beat? Beat-deafness better explained by research
• Project reduces 'alarm fatigue' in hospitals by 80 percent
• New antibiotic in mushroom that grows on horse dung
• Greater use of social media gets science, scientists noticed, study says

Stock market models help researchers predict animal behavior Posted: 12 Nov 2014 09:01 AM PST Modeling used to forecast fluctuations in the stock market has been discovered to predict aspects of animal behavior. The movement of zebrafish when mapped is very similar to the stochastic jump process, a mathematical model used by financial engineers. The model could improve the effectiveness of experiments, minimize the number of fish used, and allow researchers to make better use of their data following experiments.

Rosetta's singing comet Posted: 11 Nov 2014 08:11 AM PST A set of instruments on the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft has picked up a mysterious "song" from Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. On Wednesday, Nov. 12, Rosetta will attempt the first-ever soft landing on a comet when it dispatches its Philae lander to the surface of comet 67P.

Want to improve your putt? Try listening to jazz Posted: 12 Nov 2014 07:25 AM PST Listening to jazz music while putting can boost your performance on the putting green, according to new research. While any kind of music improves performance compared to listening to no music at all, jazz is the most effective musical genre for improving putting.

Facial structure predicts goals, fouls among World Cup soccer players Posted: 12 Nov 2014 06:31 AM PST The structure of a soccer player's face can predict his performance on the field -- including his likelihood of scoring goals, making assists and committing fouls -- according to a new study.

Using 3-D printers to print out self-learning robots Posted: 12 Nov 2014 05:41 AM PST On the third floor of the Department of Informatics in a university in Norway a there is a robotics laboratory which looks like a playroom. This is where researchers are testing how their robots can figure out how to move past barriers and other obstacles. The robotics team are currently comparing the performance of five robots which in theory should be equally good. Three of the five robots have four legs, one has three, another has six. The fewer legs, the less energy is consumed. One of the robots is fitted with single-joint legs. The others have legs with two joints.

Twisted light waves sent across Vienna Posted: 11 Nov 2014 04:22 PM PST A group of researchers from Austria have sent twisted beams of light across the rooftops of Vienna. It is the first time that twisted light has been transmitted over a large distance outdoors, and could enable researchers to take advantage of the significant data-carrying capacity of light in both classical and quantum communications.

Why 'I'm so happy I could cry' makes sense Posted: 11 Nov 2014 09:40 AM PST The phrase 'tears of joy' never made much sense to one American psychologist. But after conducting a series of studies of such seemingly incongruous expressions, she now understands better why people cry when they are happy.

Tail discovered on long-known asteroid Posted: 11 Nov 2014 08:13 AM PST Astronomers have discovered a new active asteroid, called 62412, in the Solar System's main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. It is the first comet-like object seen in the Hygiea family of asteroids.

Eye diseases identified by how we watch TV Posted: 11 Nov 2014 08:13 AM PST One of the leading causes of blindness worldwide could be detected by how our eyes respond to watching TV according to a new study. With millions of people living with undiagnosed glaucoma, the research could help speed up diagnosis, enabling clinicians to identify the disease earlier and allowing treatment to begin before the onset of permanent damage.

Bending but not breaking: In search of new materials Posted: 10 Nov 2014 01:10 PM PST Researchers have chemically engineered a new, electrically conductive nanomaterial that is flexible enough to fold, but strong enough to support many times its own weight. They believe it can be used to improve electrical energy storage, water filtration and radiofrequency shielding in technology from portable electronics to coaxial cables.

A billion holes can make a battery Posted: 10 Nov 2014 09:42 AM PST Researchers have invented a single tiny structure that includes all the components of a battery that they say could bring about the ultimate miniaturization of energy storage components.

So, you think you can clap to the beat? Beat-deafness better explained by research Posted: 10 Nov 2014 05:22 AM PST Bobbing your head, tapping your heel, or clapping along with the music is a natural response for most people, but what about those who can't keep a beat? Researchers have discovered that beat-deafness, though very rare, is a problem not simply of how people feel a pulse or move their bodies, but instead, how people synchronize with sounds they hear.

Project reduces 'alarm fatigue' in hospitals by 80 percent Posted: 10 Nov 2014 05:22 AM PST The sound of monitor alarms in hospitals can save patients' lives, but the frequency with which the monitors go off can also lead to "alarm fatigue," in which caregivers become desensitized to the ubiquitous beeping, experts say.

New antibiotic in mushroom that grows on horse dung Posted: 07 Nov 2014 07:17 AM PST A new protein with antibiotic properties has been found in a mushroom that grows on horse dung. Researchers are now exploring the various potential applications.

Greater use of social media gets science, scientists noticed, study says Posted: 06 Nov 2014 12:23 PM PST There is a connection between "h-index" -- a measure of the quality of a researcher's work and influence -- and whether the scientists interact with reporters and get mentioned on Twitter, a new study has shown.

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