ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Universe may face a darker future: Is dark matter swallowing up dark energy?
• Himalayan Viagra fuels caterpillar fungus gold rush
• Biology meets geometry: Geometry of a common cellular structure explored
• High-intensity sound waves may aid regenerative medicine
• Planet discovered that won't stick to a schedule
• Why scratching makes you itch more
• Hubble sees 'ghost light' from dead galaxies
• Female frogs modify offspring development depending on reproduction date
• Scientists propose existence and interaction of parallel worlds: Many Interacting Worlds theory challenges foundations of quantum science
• Game technology can make emergency robots easier to control
• Economical process for micro energy harvesting
• Minutes in Criminal Procedures: Writing Style Influences Judges
• The science of charismatic voices: How one man was viewed as authoritarian, then benevolent

Universe may face a darker future: Is dark matter swallowing up dark energy? Posted: 31 Oct 2014 05:20 AM PDT New research offers a novel insight into the nature of dark matter and dark energy and what the future of our Universe might be. Scientists have found hints that dark matter, the cosmic scaffolding on which our Universe is built, is being slowly erased, swallowed up by dark energy.

Himalayan Viagra fuels caterpillar fungus gold rush Posted: 30 Oct 2014 01:50 PM PDT Overwhelmed by speculators trying to cash-in on a prized medicinal fungus known as Himalayan Viagra, two isolated Tibetan communities have managed to do at the local level what world leaders often fail to do on a global scale -- implement a successful system for the sustainable harvest of a precious natural resource, suggests new research.

Biology meets geometry: Geometry of a common cellular structure explored Posted: 30 Oct 2014 11:22 AM PDT Architecture imitates life, at least when it comes to those spiral ramps in multistory parking garages. Stacked and connecting parallel levels, the ramps are replications of helical structures found in a ubiquitous membrane structure in the cells of the body.

High-intensity sound waves may aid regenerative medicine Posted: 30 Oct 2014 11:19 AM PDT Researchers have developed a way to use sound to create cellular scaffolding for tissue engineering, a unique approach that could help overcome one of regenerative medicine's significant obstacles.

Planet discovered that won't stick to a schedule Posted: 30 Oct 2014 10:33 AM PDT For their latest discovery, astronomers have found a low-mass, low-density planet with a punctuality problem. The new planet, called PH3c, is located 2,300 light years from Earth and has an atmosphere loaded with hydrogen and helium. Its inconsistency kept it from being picked up by automated computer algorithms that search stellar light curves and identify regular dips caused by objects passing in front of stars.

Why scratching makes you itch more Posted: 30 Oct 2014 10:29 AM PDT Turns out your mom was right: scratching an itch only makes it worse. New research reveals that scratching causes the brain to release serotonin, which intensifies the itch sensation. Scientists uncovered serotonin's role in controlling pain decades ago, but this is the first time the release of the chemical messenger from the brain has been linked to itch, they say.

Hubble sees 'ghost light' from dead galaxies Posted: 30 Oct 2014 10:29 AM PDT The universe is an infinite sea of galaxies, which are majestic star-cities. When galaxies group together in massive clusters, some of them can be ripped apart by the gravitational tug of other galaxies. Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope to probe the massive galaxy cluster Abell 2744 — nicknamed Pandora's Cluster — have found forensic evidence of galaxies torn apart long ago. It's in the form of a phantom-like faint glow filling the space between the galaxies. This glow comes from stars scattered into intergalactic space as a result of a galaxy's disintegration.

Female frogs modify offspring development depending on reproduction date Posted: 30 Oct 2014 08:48 AM PDT Global warming is altering the reproduction of plants and animals, notably accelerating the date when reproduction and other life processes occur. A new study has discovered that some amphibians are capable of making their offspring grow at a faster rate if they have been born later due to the climate.

Scientists propose existence and interaction of parallel worlds: Many Interacting Worlds theory challenges foundations of quantum science Posted: 30 Oct 2014 07:16 AM PDT Academics are challenging the foundations of quantum science with a radical new theory on parallel universes. Scientists now propose that parallel universes really exist, and that they interact. They show that such an interaction could explain everything that is bizarre about quantum mechanics.

Game technology can make emergency robots easier to control Posted: 30 Oct 2014 07:07 AM PDT A method borrowed from video gaming can make remote-controlled emergency response robots easier to use -- enabling the operator to focus more on the dangerous situations they face.

Economical process for micro energy harvesting Posted: 30 Oct 2014 07:07 AM PDT The trend toward energy self-sufficient probes and ever smaller mobile electronics systems continues unabated. They are used, for example, to monitor the status of the engines on airplanes, or for medical implants. They gather the energy they need for this from their immediate environment - from vibrations, for instance. Researchers have now developed a process for the economical production of piezoelectric materials.

Minutes in Criminal Procedures: Writing Style Influences Judges Posted: 30 Oct 2014 07:07 AM PDT The formal style of interrogation records influences the reception of judges and the decisions they take – even when the actual content is the same. This was shown in a large scale study in which 645 Swiss judges participated. To date, it had only been understood that minutes containing wrong or missing statements could provoke false rulings.

The science of charismatic voices: How one man was viewed as authoritarian, then benevolent Posted: 29 Oct 2014 05:39 PM PDT When a right-wing Italian politician named Umberto Bossi suffered a severe stroke in 2004, his speech became permanently impaired. Strangely, this change impacted Bossi's perception among his party's followers -- from appearing authoritarian to benevolent. Now researchers think they know why.

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