Top Science News
December 29, 2015

The back of a tiger could have been a blank canvas. Instead, nature painted the big cat with parallel stripes, evenly spaced and perpendicular to the spine. Scientists don't know exactly how stripes ... read more
A team led by researchers has created a super-strong yet light structural metal with extremely high specific strength and modulus, or stiffness-to-weight ratio. To create the super-strong but ... read more
Scientists have been given an extraordinary glimpse into how wild New Caledonian crows make and use 'hooked stick tools' to hunt for insect prey. Biologists have captured first recordings documenting ... read more
Mars's gullies may be formed by dry ice processes rather than flowing liquid water, as previously thought. Scientists show that, during late winter and spring, underneath the seasonal CO2 ice layer ... read more
Latest Top Headlines
updated 8:13pm EST

Health News
December 29, 2015

Researchers have shown that material purchases, from sweaters to skateboards, provide more frequent happiness over time, whereas experiential purchases, like a trip to the zoo, provide more intense ... read more
Cells have an infallible sense of smell that tells them which direction to grow in to move closer to the source of a scent. Now, researchers have now learned how this sense of smell ... read more
Researchers have demonstrated -- for the first time -- that targeting microbes in the gut may prevent heart disease brought on by nutrients contained ... read more
Mice that had strokes rebounded significantly faster if they received low doses of a popular sleeping aid, according to researchers. Zolpidem, better known by the trade name Ambien, has long been ... read more
Latest Health Headlines
updated 8:13pm EST

Physical/Tech News
December 29, 2015

Black holes at the heart of galaxies could swell to 50 billion times the mass of the sun before losing the discs of gas they rely on to sustain ... read more
Just in time for the release of the movie "Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens," NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has photographed what looks like a cosmic, double-bladed ... read more
The most massive black holes in the universe are often encircled by thick, doughnut-shaped disks of gas and dust. This deep-space doughnut material ultimately feeds and nourishes the growing black ... read more
Researchers have developed a metamaterial made of paper and aluminum that can manipulate acoustic waves to more than double the resolution of acoustic imaging, focus acoustic waves, and control the ... read more
Latest Physical/Tech Headlines
updated 8:13pm EST

Environment News
December 29, 2015

It is well established that white roofs can mitigate the urban heat island effect, reflecting the sun's energy back into space and reducing a city's temperature. In a new study of Guangzhou, China, ... read more
Researchers have identified hydrothermal vents in the deep sea of the Caribbean which are unlike any found before. They are unusual in their structure, formed largely of talc, rather than the more ... read more
It took 100 million years for oxygen levels in the oceans and atmosphere to increase to the level that allowed the explosion of animal life on Earth about 600 million years ago, according to a ... read more
In a broad analysis of climate change scenarios, researchers see a grim future for evergreen forests in the Southwest region of the United States. Using field reports, validated regional predictions ... read more
Latest Environment Headlines
updated 8:13pm EST

Society/Education News
December 29, 2015

A new analysis of the fossil record shows that a deep pattern in the structure of plant and animal communities remained the same for 300 million years. Then, 6,000 years ago, the pattern was ... read more
Our drinking water is to a large extent purified by millions of "good bacteria" found in water pipes and purification plants, Swedish researchers have found. So far, the knowledge about them has been ... read more
The influence of genes on intelligence varies according to people's social class in the US, but not in Western Europe or Australia, an analysis of data gathered from 14 independent studies ... read more
For the first time, researchers have quantified the amount of drag on entangled whales that is created by towing fishing gear, such as rope, buoys, ... read more
Latest Society/Education Headlines
updated 8:13pm EST