ScienceDaily: Top Science News

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• Grandmas made humans live longer: Chimp lifespan evolves into human longevity, computer simulation shows
• Precisely targeted electrical brain stimulation alters perception of faces, study finds
• Analysis of dinosaur bone cells confirms ancient protein preservation
• NASA's NuSTAR spots flare from Milky Way's black hole
• Oxygen's ups and downs in early atmosphere and ocean
• Connection between Hawaii's dueling volcanoes explained
• Quasar may be embedded in unusually dusty galaxy
• Biologists record increasing amounts of plastic litter in the Arctic deep sea
• Puppies don't pick up on yawns: Dogs, like humans, show a gradual development of susceptibility to contagious yawning
• Assembly of nano-machines mimics human muscle
• Scientists build 'mechanically active' DNA material that responds with movement when stimulated
• Circuit diagram of the mouse brain: Scientists aim to analyse a whole mouse brain under the electron microscope

Grandmas made humans live longer: Chimp lifespan evolves into human longevity, computer simulation shows Posted: 23 Oct 2012 05:41 PM PDT Computer simulations provide new mathematical support for the "grandmother hypothesis" -- a famous theory that humans evolved longer adult lifespans than apes because grandmothers helped feed their grandchildren.

Precisely targeted electrical brain stimulation alters perception of faces, study finds Posted: 23 Oct 2012 02:21 PM PDT Scientists have shown that mild electrical stimulation of two nerve clusters spaced a half-inch apart in a brain structure called the fusiform gyrus caused the subject's perception of faces to instantly become distorted while leaving his perception of other body parts and inanimate objects unchanged.

Analysis of dinosaur bone cells confirms ancient protein preservation Posted: 23 Oct 2012 12:13 PM PDT A team of researchers has found more evidence for the preservation of ancient dinosaur proteins, including reactivity to antibodies that target specific proteins normally found in bone cells of vertebrates. These results further rule out sample contamination, and help solidify the case for preservation of cells -- and possibly DNA -- in ancient remains.

NASA's NuSTAR spots flare from Milky Way's black hole Posted: 23 Oct 2012 11:52 AM PDT NASA's newest set of X-ray eyes in the sky, the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR), has caught its first look at the giant black hole parked at the center of our galaxy. The observations show the typically mild-mannered black hole during the middle of a flare-up.

Oxygen's ups and downs in early atmosphere and ocean Posted: 23 Oct 2012 10:48 AM PDT Geochemists challenge the simple notion of an up-only trend for early oxygen on Earth, and provides the first compelling direct evidence for a major drop in oxygen after the gas's first rise. This drop, they say, may have ushered in more than a billion years that were marked by a return to low-oxygen concentrations at Earth's surface, including the likelihood of an oxygen-free deep ocean.

Connection between Hawaii's dueling volcanoes explained Posted: 23 Oct 2012 10:48 AM PDT A new study finds that a deep connection about 50 miles underground can explain the enigmatic behavior of two of Earth's most notable volcanoes, Hawaii's Mauna Loa and Kilauea.

Quasar may be embedded in unusually dusty galaxy Posted: 23 Oct 2012 09:45 AM PDT Hubble astronomers have looked at one of the most distant and brightest quasars in the universe and are surprised by what they did not see: the underlying host galaxy of stars feeding the quasar. The best explanation is that the galaxy is shrouded in so much dust that the stars are completely hidden everywhere. Astronomers believe that the James Webb Space Telescope will reveal the galaxy.

Biologists record increasing amounts of plastic litter in the Arctic deep sea Posted: 23 Oct 2012 07:10 AM PDT The sea bed in the Arctic deep sea is increasingly strewn with litter and plastic waste, according to researchers.

Puppies don't pick up on yawns: Dogs, like humans, show a gradual development of susceptibility to contagious yawning Posted: 23 Oct 2012 07:09 AM PDT Do you get tired when others yawn? Does your dog get tired when you yawn? New research from Sweden establishes that dogs catch yawns from humans. But not if the dogs are too young. The study found that, like humans, dogs show a developmental trend in susceptibility to contagious yawning. While dogs above seven months of age catch human yawns, younger dogs are immune to yawn contagion.

Assembly of nano-machines mimics human muscle Posted: 23 Oct 2012 07:09 AM PDT For the first time, an assembly of thousands of nano-machines capable of producing a coordinated contraction movement extending up to around ten micrometers, like the movements of muscular fibers, has been synthesized by researchers in France.

Scientists build 'mechanically active' DNA material that responds with movement when stimulated Posted: 23 Oct 2012 06:10 AM PDT Artificial muscles and self-propelled goo may be the stuff of Hollywood fiction, but the reality of it may not be that far away. By blending their areas of expertise, scientists have created a dynamic gel made of DNA that mechanically responds to stimuli in much the same way that cells do.

Circuit diagram of the mouse brain: Scientists aim to analyse a whole mouse brain under the electron microscope Posted: 23 Oct 2012 06:05 AM PDT What happens in the brain when we see, hear, think and remember? To be able to answer questions like this, neuroscientists need information about how the millions of neurons in the brain are connected to each other. Scientists have taken a crucial step towards obtaining a complete circuit diagram of the brain of the mouse, a key model organism for the neurosciences. Researchers have developed a method for preparing the whole mouse brain for a special microscopy process. With this, the resolution at which the brain tissue can be examined is so high that the fine extensions of almost every single neuron are visible.

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