ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Flying without wings: Losing feathers has a detrimental effect on migrating birds
• Brown fat transplant reversed type 1 diabetes without insulin in non-obese diabetic mice
• Misquotes and memes: Did Ben Franklin really say that?
• Creating a stopwatch for volcanic eruptions
• We're not alone, but the universe may be less crowded than we think
• Monitoring seawater reveals ocean acidification risks to Alaskan shellfish hatchery
• Newly discovered 48-million-year-old lizard walked on water in Wyoming
• Dagger-like canines of saber-toothed cats took years to grow
• Implantable 'artificial pancreas' could help diabetes patients control their blood sugar
• Successful heart transplant after using experimental artificial heart
• Poison ivy affects some people more than others
• What makes fireflies glow?
• Initial weight loss could predict long-term success
• Hydroelectric dams drastically reduce tropical forest biodiversity
• New epigenetic mechanism revealed in brain cells
• Amazing light-manipulating abilities of squid
• Brain activity predicts promiscuity and problem drinking
• Regenerative medicine biologists discover a cellular structure that explains fate of stem cells
• Rosetta spacecraft sees sinkholes on comet
• Human-like 'eye' in single-celled plankton: Mitochondria, plastids evolved together
• Humans evolved to be taller and faster-thinking, study suggests
• Discovery of nanotubes offers new clues about cell-to-cell communication
• Groundwater modeling breakthrough
• New storage cell for solar energy storage, nighttime conversion
• Helping students stick with online courses
• How brains make sense of the visual world
• Human brain may contain a map for social navigation
• Human brain study sheds light on how new memories are formed
• Electrical nerve stimulation can reverse spinal cord injury nerve damage in patients
• Carbon capture and storage safety investigated
• Observing the birth of a planet
• Boys more likely to have antipsychotics prescribed, regardless of age
• Indoor tanning rates drop among US adults
• Sleep deprivation could reduce intrusive memories of traumatic scenes
• Bizarre mating habits of flatworms
• Clues to inner atomic life from subtle light-emission shifts
• Improving insulation materials, down to wetting crossed fibers
• Warts and all: How St. John's Wort can make you sick
• Thin colorectal cancer patients have shorter survival than obese patients
• Evaluation of NK1 antagonists for emesis prevention in oxaliplatin chemo: SENRI trial
• Males may contribute to offspring's mental development before pregnancy
• Bow ties and cuttlefish: New insight into a visual super sense
• Open cluster of stars buried in the heart of a giant
• Controlling liquids at micro and nano scales
• People with epilepsy can benefit from smartphone apps to manage their condition
• Computer model shows how nerve cell connections form in visual cortex
• Quantum teleportation? Producing spin-entangled electrons

Flying without wings: Losing feathers has a detrimental effect on migrating birds Posted: 01 Jul 2015 06:45 PM PDT Birds that molt at the wrong time of the year could be disadvantaged, according to a new study. Birds depend on a full set of feathers for maximum efficiency when flying long distances, but the study shows that moulting has a detrimental effect on their flight performance.

Brown fat transplant reversed type 1 diabetes without insulin in non-obese diabetic mice Posted: 01 Jul 2015 12:26 PM PDT Researchers have found embryonic brown fat transplants reversed type 1 diabetes and restored glucose tolerance to normal in non-obese diabetic mice.

Misquotes and memes: Did Ben Franklin really say that? Posted: 01 Jul 2015 12:26 PM PDT As Independence Day approaches, social media is lighting up with memes and quotes from the nation's Founding Fathers. But did George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin actually say these things for which they receive so much acclaim? A scholar can tell the truth about Ben.

Creating a stopwatch for volcanic eruptions Posted: 01 Jul 2015 12:23 PM PDT According to new research, there may be a way to predict when Yellowstone volcano will erupt again.

We're not alone, but the universe may be less crowded than we think Posted: 01 Jul 2015 12:23 PM PDT There may be far fewer galaxies further out in the universe then might be expected, according to a new study.

Monitoring seawater reveals ocean acidification risks to Alaskan shellfish hatchery Posted: 01 Jul 2015 12:18 PM PDT Ocean acidification may make it difficult for Alaskan coastal waters to support shellfish hatcheries by 2040 unless costly mitigation efforts are installed to modify seawater used in the hatcheries.

Newly discovered 48-million-year-old lizard walked on water in Wyoming Posted: 01 Jul 2015 12:18 PM PDT A newly discovered, 48-million-year-old fossil, known as a 'Jesus lizard' for its ability to walk on water, may provide insight into how climate change may affect tropical species.

Dagger-like canines of saber-toothed cats took years to grow Posted: 01 Jul 2015 12:18 PM PDT The fearsome teeth of the saber-toothed cat Smilodon fatalis fully emerged at a later age than those of modern big cats, but grew at a rate about double that of their living relatives. The findings, for the first time, provide specific ages for developmental dental events in Smilodon. The eruption rate of the cat's permanent upper canines was a speedy six millimeters per month, but the teeth weren't fully developed until three years of age.

Implantable 'artificial pancreas' could help diabetes patients control their blood sugar Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:09 AM PDT Living with Type 1 diabetes requires constant monitoring of blood sugar levels and injecting insulin daily. The development of an implantable "artificial pancreas" that continuously measures a person's blood sugar, or glucose, level and can automatically release insulin as needed.

Successful heart transplant after using experimental artificial heart Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:09 AM PDT A 44-year-old woman has received a successful heart transplant, thanks to an experimental Total Artificial Heart designed for smaller patients. The patient is the first person in California to receive the smaller Total Artificial Heart, and the first patient in the world with the device to be bridged to a successful heart transplant.

Poison ivy affects some people more than others Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:08 AM PDT Three-quarters of the population will get an itchy red rash if exposed to the urushiol oil inside poison ivy's leaves, stem and roots. One-quarter of people will not have any reaction to exposure.

What makes fireflies glow? Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:08 AM PDT As fireflies are delighting children across the country with their nighttime displays, scientists are closing in on a better understanding of how the insects produce their enchanting glow.

Initial weight loss could predict long-term success Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:08 AM PDT New research using data from the reputable Look AHEAD study suggests doctors may want to look at results from a patient's first two months of intensive lifestyle intervention (ILI) to help predict his or her long-term success. These secondary analyses examined the association between initial weight loss (first two months of treatment) and long-term weight loss (eight years after initial treatment).

Hydroelectric dams drastically reduce tropical forest biodiversity Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:07 AM PDT Widely hailed as 'green' sources of renewable energy, hydroelectric dams have been built worldwide at an unprecedented scale. But new research reveals that these major infrastructure projects are far from environmentally friendly.

New epigenetic mechanism revealed in brain cells Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:06 AM PDT For decades, researchers in the genetics field have theorized that the protein spools around which DNA is wound, histones, remain constant in the brain, never changing after development in the womb. Researchers have now discovered that histones are steadily replaced in brain cells throughout life.

Amazing light-manipulating abilities of squid Posted: 01 Jul 2015 11:06 AM PDT Perhaps not the brightest of cephalopods, the California market squid (Doryteuthis opalescens) has amazing light-manipulating abilities.

Brain activity predicts promiscuity and problem drinking Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:33 AM PDT A new pair of brain-imaging studies suggest that researchers may be able to predict how likely young adults are to develop problem drinking or risky sexual behavior in response to stress. The research is part of the ongoing Duke Neurogenetics Study or DNS, which began in 2010 to better understand how interactions between the brain, genome, and environment shape risky behaviors predicting mental illnesses including depression, anxiety, and addiction.

Regenerative medicine biologists discover a cellular structure that explains fate of stem cells Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:33 AM PDT Researchers have found a previously unidentified mechanism that helps explain why stem cells undergo self-renewing divisions but their offspring do not.

Rosetta spacecraft sees sinkholes on comet Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:33 AM PDT The European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft first began orbiting comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in August 2014. Almost immediately, scientists began to wonder about several surprisingly deep, almost perfectly circular pits on the comet's surface. Now, a new study based on close-up imagery taken by Rosetta suggests that these pits are sinkholes, formed when ices beneath the comet's surface sublimate, or turn directly to gas.

Human-like 'eye' in single-celled plankton: Mitochondria, plastids evolved together Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:33 AM PDT Scientists have peered into the eye-like structure of single-celled marine plankton called warnowiids and found it contains many of the components of a complex eye.

Humans evolved to be taller and faster-thinking, study suggests Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:33 AM PDT People have evolved to be smarter and taller than their predecessors, a study of populations around the world suggests.

Discovery of nanotubes offers new clues about cell-to-cell communication Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:19 AM PDT When it comes to communicating with each other, some cells may be more "old school" than was previously thought. Certain types of stem cells use microscopic, threadlike nanotubes to communicate with neighboring cells, like a landline phone connection, rather than sending a broadcast signal.

Groundwater modeling breakthrough Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:18 AM PDT A newly discovered equation is expected to greatly improve the reliability and functionality for hundreds of important water models used by everyone from irrigators and city planners to climate scientists and botanists -- and trigger a new surge in data collection.

New storage cell for solar energy storage, nighttime conversion Posted: 01 Jul 2015 10:18 AM PDT A materials science and engineering team has developed a new energy cell that can store large-scale solar energy even when it's dark.

Helping students stick with online courses Posted: 01 Jul 2015 09:36 AM PDT Researchers showed that a dropout-prediction model trained on data from one offering of a course can help predict which students will stop out of the next offering.

How brains make sense of the visual world Posted: 01 Jul 2015 09:33 AM PDT Researchers have uncovered key principles about the way vision-neurons work, explaining how the brain uses sensory information to guide the decisions that drive behaviors.

Human brain may contain a map for social navigation Posted: 01 Jul 2015 09:33 AM PDT A study reveals how the hippocampus contributes to social behavior. The brain region that helps people tell whether an object is near or far may also guide how emotionally close they feel to others and how they rank them socially.

Human brain study sheds light on how new memories are formed Posted: 01 Jul 2015 09:33 AM PDT In the first study of its kind researchers found that neurons in a specific brain region play a key role in rapidly forming memories about every day events, a finding that may result in a better understanding of memory loss and new methods to fight it in Alzheimer's and other neurological diseases.

Electrical nerve stimulation can reverse spinal cord injury nerve damage in patients Posted: 01 Jul 2015 08:53 AM PDT Researchers find that nerve stimulation can improve the function of peripheral nerves damaged by spinal cord injury (SCI). This technique may be a new approach to preventing long-term changes in nerve and muscle function after SCI and improving SCI rehabilitation outcomes.

Carbon capture and storage safety investigated Posted: 01 Jul 2015 08:51 AM PDT A significant step has been made for potential Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) deployment, with the publication of the results from the world's first experiment into the realistic simulation of potential environmental impact of a submarine CO2 leakage.

Observing the birth of a planet Posted: 01 Jul 2015 08:48 AM PDT Astronomers have confirmed the existence of a young giant gas planet still embedded in the midst of the disk of gas and dust surrounding its parent star. For the first time, scientists are able to directly study the formation of a planet at a very early stage.

Boys more likely to have antipsychotics prescribed, regardless of age Posted: 01 Jul 2015 08:48 AM PDT Boys are more likely than girls to receive a prescription for antipsychotic medication regardless of age, researchers have found. Approximately 1.5 percent of boys ages 10-18 received an antipsychotic prescription in 2010, although the percentage falls by nearly half after age 19. Among antipsychotic users with mental disorder diagnoses, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder was the most common among youth ages 1-18, depression was the most common diagnosis among young adults ages 19-24 receiving antipsychotics.

Indoor tanning rates drop among US adults Posted: 01 Jul 2015 08:47 AM PDT Indoor tanning rates dropped among adults from 5.5 percent in 2010 to 4.2 percent in 2013, although an estimated 7.8 million women and 1.9 million men still engage in the practice, which has been linked to increased cancer risk, according to the results of a new study.

Sleep deprivation could reduce intrusive memories of traumatic scenes Posted: 01 Jul 2015 07:48 AM PDT A good night's sleep has long been recommended to those who have experienced a traumatic event. But a new study provides preliminary experimental work suggesting it could actually be the wrong thing to do.

Bizarre mating habits of flatworms Posted: 01 Jul 2015 07:48 AM PDT Failing to find a mating partner is a dent to the reproductive prospects of any animal, but in the flatworm species Macrostomum hystrix it might involve a real headache. Zoologists have discovered the extraordinary lengths to which this animal is willing to go in order to reproduce -- including apparently injecting sperm directly into their own heads.

Clues to inner atomic life from subtle light-emission shifts Posted: 01 Jul 2015 06:41 AM PDT Hyperfine structure of light absorption by short-lived cadmium atom isotopes reveals characteristics of the nucleus that matter for high precision detection methods. Atoms absorb and emit light of various wavelengths. Physicists have long known that there are some tiny changes, or shifts, in the light that gets absorbed or emitted, due to the properties of the atomic nucleus. Now, a team of scientists has elucidated the so-called hyperfine structure of cadmium atoms. Relying on a method called laser spectroscopy, they have measured variations in the energy transition within cadmium atom - Cd in the periodic table. They studied a chain of isotopes with an odd number of neutrons ranging from 59 in 107Cd to 75 in 123Cd. From these high-precision measurements, they were able to identify the physical cause of the shift within the nucleus.

Improving insulation materials, down to wetting crossed fibers Posted: 01 Jul 2015 06:41 AM PDT Scientists model the manner in which a liquid wets fibers, gaining useful insights for improving glass wool properties. Sandcastles are a prime example of how adding a small amount of liquid to a granular material changes its characteristics. But understanding the effect of a liquid wetting randomly oriented fibers in a fibrous medium remains a mystery.

Warts and all: How St. John's Wort can make you sick Posted: 01 Jul 2015 06:38 AM PDT St John's Wort can produce the same adverse reactions as antidepressants, and serious side effects can occur when the two are taken together, according to new research.

Thin colorectal cancer patients have shorter survival than obese patients Posted: 01 Jul 2015 06:38 AM PDT Although being overweight with a high body-mass index has long been associated with a higher risk for colorectal cancer, thinner patients might not fare as well after treatment for advanced cancer, according to a new study.

Evaluation of NK1 antagonists for emesis prevention in oxaliplatin chemo: SENRI trial Posted: 01 Jul 2015 06:37 AM PDT The SENRI trial has opened the window to evaluate NK1 antagonists for emesis prevention in patients taking oxaliplatin chemotherapy, results of a new study.

Males may contribute to offspring's mental development before pregnancy Posted: 01 Jul 2015 05:37 AM PDT A new study provides evidence in mice that males may play a positive role in the development of offspring's brains starting before pregnancy.

Bow ties and cuttlefish: New insight into a visual super sense Posted: 01 Jul 2015 05:37 AM PDT An experiment originally designed to test the visual abilities of octopuses and cuttlefish has given researchers an unprecedented insight into the human ability to perceive polarized light -- the super sense that most of us don't even know we have.

Open cluster of stars buried in the heart of a giant Posted: 01 Jul 2015 05:35 AM PDT This rich view of an array of colorful stars and gas was captured by the Wide Field Imager camera, on the MPG/ESO 2.2-meter telescope at ESO's La Silla Observatory in Chile. It shows a young open cluster of stars known as NGC 2367, an infant stellar grouping that lies at the center of an immense and ancient structure on the margins of the Milky Way.

Controlling liquids at micro and nano scales Posted: 01 Jul 2015 05:30 AM PDT From targeted drug delivery to the self-assembly of nano robots, new research is using super-sized atoms to reveal the behavior of liquids in microscopic channels.

People with epilepsy can benefit from smartphone apps to manage their condition Posted: 01 Jul 2015 05:30 AM PDT While many people with epilepsy can control their seizures with medication, those unpredictable and involuntary changes in behavior and consciousness can be limiting for others. Neurologists evaluated the application of smartphones in epilepsy care. Apps include seizure diaries as well as medication trackers with reminders to take the next dose of medication. In addition, apps are available to answer any questions patients with epilepsy might have, to detect potential drug interactions and to detect seizures.

Computer model shows how nerve cell connections form in visual cortex Posted: 01 Jul 2015 05:28 AM PDT Researchers develop a computer model to explain how nerve cell connections form in the visual cortex. When newborn babies open their eyes for the first time, they already possess nerve cells specialized in particular stimuli in the visual cortex of their brains - but these nerve cells are not systematically linked with each other. How do neural networks that react in a particular way to particular features of a stimulus develop over the course of time?

Quantum teleportation? Producing spin-entangled electrons Posted: 01 Jul 2015 05:28 AM PDT Scientists have successfully produced pairs of spin-entangled electrons and demonstrated, for the first time, that these electrons remain entangled even when they are separated from one another on a chip. This research could contribute to the creation of futuristic quantum networks operating using quantum teleportation, which could allow information contained in quantum bits -- qubits -- to be shared between many elements on chip, a key requirement to scale up the power of a quantum computer. The ability to create non-local entangled electron pairs -- known as Einstein-Podolsky-Rosen pairs -- on demand has long been a dream.

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