ScienceDaily: Top Science News

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• Biological marker predicts susceptibility to common cold
• How predictable is evolution?
• Cassini sheds light on cosmic particle accelerators
• Mutant champions save imperiled species from almost-certain extinction
• That's the way the droplets adhere: First direct views of how drops and bubbles adhere to surfaces -- and how they let go
• Tool for reading the minds of mice developed
• Rock-paper-scissors a parable for cycles in finance, fashion, politics and more
• Theory of crystal formation complete again
• Semiconductor 'nano-shish-kebabs' created with potential for 3-D technologies
• Jurassic records warn of risk to marine life from global warming
• How seals sleep with only half their brain at a time
• Males' superior spatial ability likely is not an evolutionary adaptation; Testosterone 'side effect'?
• Quick, efficient chip cleans up common flaws in amateur photographs
• Russian fireball largest ever detected by Comprehensive Nuclear‑Test‑Ban Treaty Organization's infrasound sensors
• Effects of human exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals examined in landmark United Nations report
• 'Simplified' brain lets the iCub robot learn language
• 'Uuneven' global sea-level rise predicted
• Top predators have sway over climate
• New material interface improves functioning of non-silicon-based electronic devices
• How the whale got its teeth: Scientists explore development of unique dentition of 'toothed whales'
• Engineering 'ghost' objects: Breakthrough in scattering illusion

Biological marker predicts susceptibility to common cold Posted: 19 Feb 2013 02:21 PM PST Researchers have identified a biological marker in the immune system that -- beginning at about age 22 -- predicts our ability to fight off the common cold. The study found that the length of telomeres -- protective cap-like protein complexes at the ends of chromosomes -- predicts resistance to upper respiratory infections in young and midlife adults.

How predictable is evolution? Posted: 19 Feb 2013 02:21 PM PST Understanding how and why diversification occurs is important for understanding why there are so many species on Earth. Researchers show that similar -- or even identical -- mutations can occur during diversification in completely separate populations of E. coli evolving in different environments over more than 1000 generations. Evolution, therefore, can be surprisingly predictable.

Cassini sheds light on cosmic particle accelerators Posted: 19 Feb 2013 01:32 PM PST During a chance encounter with what appears to be an unusually strong blast of solar wind at Saturn, NASA's Cassini spacecraft detected particles being accelerated to ultra-high energies. This is similar to the acceleration that takes place around distant supernovas.

Mutant champions save imperiled species from almost-certain extinction Posted: 19 Feb 2013 01:13 PM PST Species facing widespread and rapid environmental changes can sometimes evolve quickly enough to dodge the extinction bullet. Scientists consider the genetic underpinnings of such an "evolutionary rescue."

That's the way the droplets adhere: First direct views of how drops and bubbles adhere to surfaces -- and how they let go Posted: 19 Feb 2013 01:12 PM PST A new technique provides the first direct views of how drops and bubbles adhere to surfaces -- and how they let go.

Tool for reading the minds of mice developed Posted: 19 Feb 2013 01:12 PM PST Scientists have developed a system for observing real-time brain activity in a live mouse. The device could prove useful in studying new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's.

Rock-paper-scissors a parable for cycles in finance, fashion, politics and more Posted: 19 Feb 2013 01:12 PM PST Using a grown-up version of the rock-paper-scissors game, cognitive scientists offer a new theory of the group dynamics that arise in situations as varied as cycles of fashion, fluctuations of financial markets, eBay bidding wars and political campaign strategies. "People playing this kind of game subtly influence each other, converging on similar ways of reasoning over time. The natural analogy for the process is to a flock of birds veering in concert."

Theory of crystal formation complete again Posted: 19 Feb 2013 11:07 AM PST Exactly how a crystal forms from solution is a problem that has occupied scientists for decades. Researchers are now presenting the missing piece.

Semiconductor 'nano-shish-kebabs' created with potential for 3-D technologies Posted: 19 Feb 2013 11:05 AM PST Researchers have developed a new type of nanoscale structure that resembles a "nano-shish-kebab," consisting of multiple two-dimensional nanosheets that appear to be impaled upon a one-dimensional nanowire. But looks can be deceiving, as the nanowire and nanosheets are actually a single, three-dimensional structure consisting of a single, seamless series of germanium sulfide crystals. The structure holds promise for use in the creation of new, three-dimensional technologies.

Jurassic records warn of risk to marine life from global warming Posted: 19 Feb 2013 11:05 AM PST The risk posed by global warming and rising ocean temperatures to the future health of the world's marine ecosystem has been highlighted by scientists studying fossil records.

How seals sleep with only half their brain at a time Posted: 19 Feb 2013 11:02 AM PST Biologists have identified some of the brain chemicals that allow seals to sleep with half of their brain at a time.

Males' superior spatial ability likely is not an evolutionary adaptation; Testosterone 'side effect'? Posted: 19 Feb 2013 09:13 AM PST Males and females differ in a lot of traits (besides the obvious ones) and some evolutionary psychologists have proposed hypotheses to explain why. Some argue, for example, that males' slight, but significant, superiority in spatial navigation over females -- a phenomenon demonstrated repeatedly in many species, including humans -- is probably "adaptive," meaning that over the course of evolutionary history the trait gave males an advantage that led them to have more offspring than their peers. A new analysis found no support for this hypothesis.

Quick, efficient chip cleans up common flaws in amateur photographs Posted: 19 Feb 2013 09:12 AM PST Smartphone snapshots could be instantly converted into professional-looking photographs with just the touch of a button, thanks to a new processor chip.

Russian fireball largest ever detected by Comprehensive Nuclear‑Test‑Ban Treaty Organization's infrasound sensors Posted: 19 Feb 2013 09:12 AM PST Infrasonic waves from the meteor that broke up over Russia's Ural mountains last week were the largest ever recorded by the Comprehensive Nuclear‑Test‑Ban Treaty Organization's International Monitoring System. Infrasound is low frequency sound with a range of less than 10 Hz. The blast was detected by 17 infrasound stations in the CTBTO's network, which tracks atomic blasts across the planet. The furthest station to record the sub-audible sound was 15,000km away in Antarctica.

Effects of human exposure to hormone-disrupting chemicals examined in landmark United Nations report Posted: 19 Feb 2013 08:55 AM PST Many synthetic chemicals, untested for their disrupting effects on the hormone system, could have significant health implications according to the State of the Science of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals, a new report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and WHO.

'Simplified' brain lets the iCub robot learn language Posted: 19 Feb 2013 07:26 AM PST The iCub humanoid robot will now be able to understand what is being said to it and even anticipate the end of a sentence.

'Uuneven' global sea-level rise predicted Posted: 19 Feb 2013 07:24 AM PST Sophisticated computer modelling has shown how sea-level rise over the coming century could affect some regions far more than others. The model shows that parts of the Pacific will see the highest rates of rise while some polar regions will actually experience falls in relative sea levels due to the ways sea, land and ice interact globally.

Top predators have sway over climate Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:10 AM PST Researchers have found that when the animals at the top of the food chain are removed, freshwater ecosystems emit a lot more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

New material interface improves functioning of non-silicon-based electronic devices Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:10 AM PST For the first time, researchers have designed a special material interface that has been shown to add to and to improve the functioning of non-silicon-based electronic devices, such as those used in certain kinds of random access memory. The new method could be used to design improved, more-efficient, multilevel and multifunctional devices, as well as enhanced nanoelectronic components -- such as non-volatile information storage and processing; and spintronic components -- an emerging technology that uses the natural spin of the electron to power devices.

How the whale got its teeth: Scientists explore development of unique dentition of 'toothed whales' Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:10 AM PST Whales are mammals, but they don't look like the mammals living around us, as they have a triangular fluke for tail, no hind legs and no body hair. And inside their mouths, their teeth are unfamiliar too -- being much simpler and 'peg like'. Scientists have now married together the fossil record and the embryonic development process to investigate how the whale got its teeth.

Engineering 'ghost' objects: Breakthrough in scattering illusion Posted: 19 Feb 2013 06:06 AM PST Researchers have come out with an optical device to "engineer" ghosts. Their research has opened up a completely new avenue for cognitive deception through light-matter behavior control. This would have wide applications in defense and security. The findings also pave the way for the design of new optical and microwave devices such as those for detection and communication.

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