Science News
Here's a list of all the news articles that have appeared on Science a GoGo this year.
19 March 2010
Checkout clerk's days numbered as printable RFID tags become a reality
Using nanotube transistors, researchers have developed a three-step process to print single-bit RFID tags - including the antenna, electrodes and dielectric layers - onto flexible plastic. The team is now working on 16-bit tags that would hold more information as well as being printable on paper...
18 March 2010
Geometry influences stem cell differentiation
Scientists have successfully used geometrically patterned surfaces to influence the development of stem cells into either fat cells or bone cells. The new approach is a radical departure from that of many stem-cell biologists, who focus instead on uncovering the role of proteins in controlling the ultimate fate of stem cells...
17 March 2010
"Fleeing galaxies" tracked deeper into universe
A new study of distant galaxy clusters mysteriously streaming at a million miles per hour towards the constellations Centaurus and Hydra has tracked this enigmatic "dark flow" to twice the distance originally reported...
16 March 2010
Chemical in bananas inhibits HIV infection
The lectin found in bananas is a potent inhibitor of HIV, a discovery that may yield new treatments to prevent the sexual transmission of HIV, say University of Michigan Medical School researchers...
15 March 2010
Opium poppy gives up its genetic secrets
Using advanced genomics techniques to probe the structure of the opium poppy, Canadian researchers have identified a gene called codeine O-dementhylase, a discovery that they say will open the door to creating micro-organisms that can produce custom-designed painkillers...
12 March 2010
Physicists to probe flu virus for macro quantum effects
European scientists have described an experiment to test for quantum superposition states in objects composed of as many as one billion atoms, specifically, a flu virus...
10 March 2010
Matrix turns opaque materials transparent
Experiments conducted by European researchers have shown that it's possible to focus light through opaque materials and detect objects hidden behind them...
9 March 2010
Popular SSRI meds and cataracts linked, say researchers
A Canadian study has linked the diagnosis of cataracts with the class of antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, as well as between cataracts and specific drugs within that class...
8 March 2010
Brain plasticity increased with Ritalin use
Millions of children are treated with Ritalin to improve their ability to focus on tasks, but scientists now report that Ritalin also directly enhances the speed of learning...
5 March 2010
Ozone hole could be lesser of two evils
Already classed as super-greenhouse gases, the chemicals that replaced the ozone-destroying CFCs once used in air conditioners and refrigerators also appear to break down in the upper atmosphere to form oxalic acid, one of the main culprits in acid rain...
3 March 2010
New concerns over nanosilver
Scientists have found that when nanosilver - a nanoparticle growing in popularity as a bactericidal agent - is suspended in solution, its toxicity increases tenfold, causing birth defects and death in aquatic species...
2 March 2010
SETI needs to get real, urges new book
For the last 50 years, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) has been dominated by a hunt for tell-tale radio signals. But a new book suggests bold new innovations are required if we are ever to hear from our cosmic neighbors...
26 February 2010
Plastic chemical BPA found to induce epigenetic changes
Scientists from Yale have shown how the ubiquitous chemical bisphenol A (BPA) induces epigenetic changes in pregnant mice that trigger hormonal imbalances in the later life of female progeny...
25 February 2010
Astronomers cop an eyeful of giant planet's demise
An international group of astrophysicists have been documenting how the massive exoplanet known as WASP-12b is being stretched, distorted and slowly destroyed by its host star...
24 February 2010
Grizzlies moving in on polar bears' turf
Biologists have found that grizzly bears are roaming into areas that were traditionally thought of as polar bear habitats...
23 February 2010
Scientists create tiny RNA molecule with big implications
An extremely small RNA molecule created by University of Colorado scientists can catalyze a key reaction needed to synthesize proteins, lending more weight to the theory that all life on Earth evolved from primitive forms of RNA...
22 February 2010
IVF-linked chromosomal modifications prompt warning
Geneticists are recommending more rigorous health monitoring of IVF babies in later life as new research reveals links between assisted reproduction technologies and obesity and diabetes...
19 February 2010
Electric cars to moonlight as distributed power stores
With electric car numbers set to grow rapidly, scientists are exploring the potential for these vehicles to act as "distributed" storage devices for electricity which can then be fed back into the grid to create a robust and efficient electric fuel infrastructure...
18 February 2010
Revealed: new player in natural selection
The unexpected discovery of a new type of genetic variation suggests that natural selection - the force that drives evolution - is both more powerful and more complex than scientists had previously thought...
17 February 2010
Size does matter, say condom boffins
Nearly half the men who took part in a survey on condom use said they had recently experienced a badly fitting condom that resulted in breakage, slippage or penile irritation. The answer, say medicos, is to sell smaller condoms but label them as "large"...
16 February 2010
Mirror symmetry broken at 4 trillion degrees
Mirror symmetry, the behavior that normally characterizes the interactions of quarks and gluons, has been observed to break down during extremely energetic particle collisions, raising the tantalizing prospect of different symmetries governing space, time and the behavior of fundamental particles...
15 February 2010
Multiplexing technique promises quantum leap in camera performance
Researchers have developed a way of capturing high-resolution still images alongside very high-speed video - a technology based on multiple exposures that effectively turns the camera's single CCD image sensor into hundreds of virtual cameras...
12 February 2010
Researchers tracing autism's roots
New research has found that in fragile X syndrome - a genetic defect that is the best-known cause of autism - there is delayed development of the sensory cortex, the part of the brain that responds to touch, which researchers speculate may trigger a domino effect and cause further problems with the wiring of the brain...
11 February 2010
Pollinators make a beeline for caffeine and nicotine
Bees prefer nectar containing nicotine and caffeine over nectar without these substances and researchers think this could be an evolutionary development intended, as in humans, to make the bee addicted...
10 February 2010
Worm DNA preserved in tequila
Not swallowing the worm at the bottom of a bottle of mescal doesn't mean you'll avoid worminess, say scientists who have discovered that the mescal, far from destroying the DNA of the agave butterfly caterpillar, actually leeches it out of the worm and preserves it...
8 February 2010
Ability to navigate may be linked to genes
Human, animals and even fish routinely reorient themselves using landmarks and mentally visualizing the geometry of their surroundings. Now, according to new research, it appears there may also be a genetic component that plays a part in our ability to navigate the world...
5 February 2010
Samoan study reveals possible evolutionary role for homosexuality
Male homosexuality doesn’t make complete sense from an evolutionary point of view but a new study suggests that it may convey an indirect benefit by enhancing the survival prospects of close relatives. The study hypothesizes that homosexual men enhance their own genetic prospects by acting altruistically toward their nieces and nephews, thereby perpetuating some of their genes indirectly through the family line...
4 February 2010
Viagra found to enhance fetal growth
Not content with erections, Pfizer have been funding left-of-field studies for other potential applications for their stiffy dysfunction treatment. The latest finding to come from Pfizer's, er, benevolence? That the drug can enhance fetal growth – at least in pregnant sheep...
3 February 2010
Facebook use associated with depression
An alarming new study provides compelling evidence that chat rooms, online gaming and social networking sites can have a serious impact on mental health, leading to moderate to severe depression in users...
2 February 2010
White paint touted as climate remedy
Painting the roofs of buildings white has the potential to significantly cool cities, say researchers who have calculated that New York City would cool by almost 2 degrees Fahrenheit in summer...
29 January 2010
Ozone hole closure not so cool
Using a new global aerosol model, climatologists have discovered a feedback effect related to the hole's closure that could actually increase warming in the southern hemisphere...
28 January 2010
Sub-fertility linked to flame retardant exposure
The first study to investigate the impact of flame retardants - commonly found in household consumer products - on human fertility has linked exposure to the chemicals with reduced fertility in women...
27 January 2010
Antioxidants found to impair muscle function
Antioxidants increasingly have been praised for their benefits against disease and aging, but new studies show they can also seriously impair muscle function by limiting oxygen in the bloodstream...
26 January 2010
Traveling into the future... with sugar
Researchers looking into how blood glucose levels impact our thought processes have found that when we have more energy available (higher levels of blood glucose), we tend to be more future-oriented in our decision-making...
25 January 2010
Stillbirth linked directly to mother's oral bacteria
Confirming long-held suspicions, a Case Western Reserve University researcher has for the first time established a direct link between a mother's gum disease and the death of her fetus...
18 January 2010
Tying light in knots
A team of physicists has used knot theory - a branch of abstract mathematics - to create holograms where light can flow in whirls and eddies, forming lines in space called optical vortices...
15 January 2010
Antiviral drugs could create "super viruses"
Medications that kill viruses by forcing their nucleic acid to mutate rapidly might actually, in some instances, cause them to emerge from the process stronger, perhaps even more virulent than before drug treatment...
14 January 2010
Male testosterone levels surge with ovulation
Instead of using perfume to attract a mate, women may be better off going au naturel, say researchers who observed surges in testosterone when men were exposed to ovulatory odors...
13 January 2010
Poker paradox: the more hands you win, the more money you lose
Analyzing more than 27 million hands, a researcher has found that the more hands players win, the less money they're likely to collect – especially when it comes to novice players...
12 January 2010
Evolution to blame for modern-day health problems?
The ongoing pressures of human evolution could explain the rise of disorders such as autism, autoimmune diseases and reproductive disorders, say scientists who believe that evolutionary perspectives should be part of medical school curricula...
11 January 2010
Gardeners half-correct about midday watering
Gardeners have always maintained that watering plants in sunlight can damage the foliage, but new research shows that it isn't quite that simple...
8 January 2010
Physicists discover golden ratio in the quantum realm
An international team of researchers have for the first time observed a nanoscale symmetry hidden in solid state matter that shows the same attributes as the well known golden ratio from art and architecture...
7 January 2010
Cell phones reverse Alzheimer's in mice
A startling new study in mice provides the first evidence that long-term exposure to the electromagnetic emissions from cell phone use may actually protect against - and even reverse - Alzheimer's disease...
6 January 2010
Hubble captures images of earliest ever galaxies
The Hubble Space Telescope has broken the distance limit for galaxies by uncovering a primordial population of ultra-blue galaxies whose light is reaching us now after 13 billion years - just 600 to 800 million years after the Big Bang...
5 January 2010
Mind and body clash over sexual arousal
In women exposed to sexual stimuli, the responses of the mind and genitals are frequently not as closely matched as men’s, suggesting a split between women’s bodies and minds...
4 January 2010
Prions capable of evolutionary change
Scientists have discovered that prions, the tiny infectious proteins - without DNA or RNA - that can cause fatal neurodegenerative diseases such as mad cow disease, are capable of Darwinian evolution...
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