ScienceDaily: Top Science News

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• Sifting through atmospheres of far-off worlds
• Carbon dioxide at NOAA's Mauna Loa Observatory reaches new milestone: Tops 400 parts per million
• Sacred lotus genome sequence enlightens scientists
• Potential flu pandemic lurks: Influenza viruses circulating in pigs, birds could pose risk to humans
• Do markets erode moral values? People ignore their own moral standards when acting as market participants, researchers say
• Earliest archaeological evidence of human ancestors hunting and scavenging
• Kestrels, other urban birds are stressed by human activity
• Elephant's Tomb in Carmona may have been a temple to the God Mithras
• New magnetic graphene may revolutionize electronics
• Brain diseases affecting more people and starting earlier than ever before
• Justinianic Plague was caused by bacterium Yersinia pestis, DNA of skeletal remains shows

Sifting through atmospheres of far-off worlds Posted: 10 May 2013 04:28 PM PDT Gone are the days of being able to count the number of known planets on your fingers. Today, there are more than 800 confirmed exoplanets -- planets that orbit stars beyond our sun -- and more than 2,700 other candidates. What are these exotic planets made of? Unfortunately, you cannot stack them in a jar like marbles and take a closer look. Instead, researchers are coming up with advanced techniques for probing the planets' makeup.

Carbon dioxide at NOAA's Mauna Loa Observatory reaches new milestone: Tops 400 parts per million Posted: 10 May 2013 03:06 PM PDT On May 9, the daily mean concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of Mauna Loa, Hawaii, surpassed 400 parts per million (ppm) for the first time since measurements began in 1958. Independent measurements made by both NOAA and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography have been approaching this level during the past week. It marks an important milestone because Mauna Loa, as the oldest continuous carbon dioxide measurement station in the world, is the primary global benchmark site for monitoring the increase of this potent heat-trapping gas.

Sacred lotus genome sequence enlightens scientists Posted: 10 May 2013 03:02 PM PDT The sacred lotus is a symbol of spiritual purity and longevity. Its seeds can survive up to 1,300 years, its petals and leaves repel grime and water, and its flowers generate heat to attract pollinators. Now researchers report that they have sequenced the lotus genome. Of all the plants sequenced so far -- and there are dozens -- sacred lotus bears the closest resemblance to the ancestor of all eudicots, a broad category of flowering plants that includes apple, cabbage, cactus, coffee and tobacco.

Potential flu pandemic lurks: Influenza viruses circulating in pigs, birds could pose risk to humans Posted: 10 May 2013 03:02 PM PDT In the summer of 1968, a new strain of influenza appeared in Hong Kong. This strain, known as H3N2, spread around the globe and eventually killed an estimated 1 million people. A new study reveals that there are many strains of H3N2 circulating in birds and pigs that are genetically similar to the 1968 strain and have the potential to generate a pandemic if they leap to humans. The researchers also found that current flu vaccines might not offer protection against these strains.

Do markets erode moral values? People ignore their own moral standards when acting as market participants, researchers say Posted: 10 May 2013 09:45 AM PDT Many people express objections against child labor, exploitation of the workforce or meat production involving cruelty against animals. At the same time, however, people ignore their own moral standards when acting as market participants, searching for the cheapest electronics, fashion or food. Thus, markets reduce moral concerns, new research shows.

Earliest archaeological evidence of human ancestors hunting and scavenging Posted: 10 May 2013 09:44 AM PDT A recent research study has shed new light on the diet and food acquisition strategies of some the earliest human ancestors in Africa. Beginning around two million years ago, early stone tool-making humans, known scientifically as Oldowan hominin, started to exhibit a number of physiological and ecological adaptations that required greater daily energy expenditures, including an increase in brain and body size, heavier investment in their offspring and significant home-range expansion. Demonstrating how these early humans acquired the extra energy they needed to sustain these shifts has been the subject of much debate among researchers.

Kestrels, other urban birds are stressed by human activity Posted: 10 May 2013 07:20 AM PDT American kestrels, small colorful falcons often seen perched along roadways, are abundant in urban and agricultural areas. Shorter grass makes insects, snakes, mice and other prey more visible, and signposts, fences and telephone poles provide excellent perches. However a new study shows that even species considered "tolerant" of human activity may be adversely impacted by human disturbance; Kestrels nesting in close proximity to roads and developed areas had elevated stress hormones and high rates of nest abandonment. The apparently favorable location, then, becomes an ecological trap.

Elephant's Tomb in Carmona may have been a temple to the God Mithras Posted: 10 May 2013 04:55 AM PDT The so-called Elephant's Tomb in the Roman necropolis of Carmona (Seville, Spain) was not always used for burials. The original structure of the building and a window through which the sun shines directly in the equinoxes suggest that it was a temple of Mithraism, an unofficial religion in the Roman Empire. The position of Taurus and Scorpio during the equinoxes gives force to the theory.

New magnetic graphene may revolutionize electronics Posted: 10 May 2013 04:55 AM PDT Researchers have managed to give graphene magnetic properties. The breakthrough opens the door to the development of graphene-based spintronic devices, that is, devices based on the spin or rotation of the electron, and could transform the electronics industry.

Brain diseases affecting more people and starting earlier than ever before Posted: 10 May 2013 04:55 AM PDT Scientists have found that the sharp rise of dementia and other neurological deaths in people under 74 cannot be put down to the fact that we are living longer. The rise is because a higher proportion of old people are being affected by such conditions -- and what is really alarming, it is starting earlier and affecting people under 55 years.

Justinianic Plague was caused by bacterium Yersinia pestis, DNA of skeletal remains shows Posted: 10 May 2013 04:54 AM PDT Ancient DNA analyses of skeletal remains of plague victims from the 6th century AD provide information about the phylogeny and the place of origin of this pandemic.

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