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It’s quite possibly the most common unit of measure; we often guide our lives based on the humble kilogram, but what is a kilogram really? In other words, how do we know when a kilogram really is exactly a kilogram? In a few days, one of the most reliable measures of a kilo will be […]
Out-of-towners using marijuana in Colorado are at a higher risk to end up in the emergency room, according to a new study.
The photo was taken with NASA’s Landat 8 satellite. Landsat is the longest-running enterprise for acquisition of satellite imagery of Earth, with the first one being launched in 1972. Since the end of the Little Ice Age, the ice fields of Patagonia and other parts of South America have been shrinking as global temperatures have […]
A large biotech lab is now under a government animal welfare investigation after thousands of animals went "inexplicably" missing from their facilities.
Most modern prosthetics try to look like the real deal, while still featuring underlying robotics. Two researchers at the University of Washington’s Department of Computer Science & Engineering wanted to try another approach – to create a hand that acts like its biological equivalent, even though it may not look like one. In order to do […]
MIT researchers have created a powerful new tool for energy monitoring: a citywide urban building energy model of unprecedented scale and detail.
Before life exploded in the Cambrian 542 million years ago, Earth's inhabitants were generally single-celled simple organisms.
As NASA’s New Horizons shuttle zoomed past Pluto, it snapped awesome photos not only of the “ex-planet”, but also of its moons. Now researchers are analyzing those pictures and reporting surprising finds – such as an ancient ocean on Charon, Pluto’s moon. Too big for its skin? The side of Pluto’s largest moon viewed by […]
Over one century ago, in 1879, a botanist called William Beal buried 20 glass bottles in a secret place in the campus of the Michigan State University.
According to a 2009 report, around "60 percent of Americans live in areas where air pollution has reached unhealthy levels that can make people sick"
British archaeologists have uncovered five Roman roads built over 2,000 years ago using a technology called LIDAR - a mix between LASER and RADAR.
In late 2015, Volkswagen (VW) admitted to cheating on US tests to make its diesel cars seem more green than they actually were.
When archaeology meets forensics - a team of British researchers has found three thousand year old fingerprints on the lid of an Egyptian coffin.
A new report revealed the unhealthy sleeping habits of Americans: 65% the country's population sleeps 7 hours or more, and even less get the recommended 8 hours.
Beer, liquor and wine lovers - rejoice!
Getting a solid 7-8 hours of sleep at night is vital for a healthy life. A new study confirms that, reporting that missing out on sleep or oversleeping severely increases the chance of a stroke. Researchers conducted an analysis of the health of 288,888 adults (77 percent white; nearly half 45 or older) who participated in […]
Here's one more benefit of exercise (as if we needed more): it can help you fight cancer.
Some antibiotics (including common ones) may cause serious brain disruption and other serious problems according to a new study. The study found a connection between the drugs and delirium (a disruption in brain functions that may be accompanied by hallucinations and agitation). Antibiotics are not the first drugs suspected of causing this but the fact that […]
The saddening story of global warming continues in 2016 like it did in 2015. According to NASA, this January was the warmest January on record, in more than 150 years.
It’s extremely unusual for journals to publish papers from non-scientists, but three gamers will have their thoughts covered by one of the biggest and most respected publishers: the Journal of Molecular Biology. EteRNA is a browser-based “game with a purpose”, developed by scientists at Carnegie Mellon University and Stanford University, that engages users to solve puzzles related […]
The smaller humans who lived on the Flores Island in Indonesia until 12,000 years ago were not Homo sapiens but a different species, a new study confirms.
In what has the potential to be a paradigm shift, doctors report extraordinary progress in treating patients with a severe, terminally form of leukaemia.
According to a new study, we have to increase our phosphorus-based fertilizer production 4 times if we want to satisfy global food needs by 2050.
The Easter Island is one of the biggest mysteries in human history. How people got there and where they came from, how they built the huge moai statues and why, and what brought their demise are still unsolved questions. But at leas for the latter, we may be getting a bit closer to the truth. The previously […]
A Nebraskan entrepreneur brought his own take on greenhouses, creating one that's powered by green, geothermal energy.
In what seems to be the largest study of its kind, researchers in the US have found that women’s code has a higher average rate of approval than men’s code. However, when their gender is made public, the approval rate drops significantly for women, showing a high gender bias. To examine the prevalence of gender […]
Generally regarded as a pseudoscientific treatment, acupuncture has proven itself quite effective, at least at alleviating pain.
Organic animal products seem to be significantly healthier than their non-organic counterparts.
We’ve seen unfortunate insects trapped in amber time and time again, but this time it’s something else. This time, a new species of ancient flower was found preserved in amber. The fossil species are a representative of the asterids, one of the most diverse groups that also include sunflower, coffee, potatoes and mint. Amber is […]
We’ve explored the Earth, we’ve explored the seas, we’ve even started exploring outer space but there’s one place we really haven’t explored that much – and that’s underground. Exploring underground reveals quite some secrets it turns out, as there’s a rich microbe biosphere living deep in our planet. They live a few km beneath the […]
It seems medicine is prepared to enter a new age - an age in which not only can we fix bones, cartilage and muscles, but also create new ones.
Russian scientists have found a way to use the country’s surplus of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) to protect themselves from another threat: falling meteorites and asteroids. I’m happy to see that more and more people are starting to look at ways to protect Earth in the case of an incoming asteroid. In January, NASA announced the […]
Bullying is still prevalent throughout the educational system, both in the real and in the cyber world.
The future is now – a new study found that virtual reality can help alleviate depressive symptoms. The therapy was previously tested on healthy people and showed positive results. Now, the British team tested their idea on 15 depression patients aged 23-61. Nine reported reduced depressive symptoms a month after the therapy, and 4 of them […]
The day has come and passed, but the impact could be felt for a long time; that thrilling date, the memories created and the carbon emissions will linger long after Valentine’s day has passed. According to a survey by the National Retail Federation, 36 percent of Americans (58% men; 16% women) will buy flowers for […]
Creating artificial blood vessels is a pivotal aspect of reconstructive medicine. However, time and time again this has proven very tricky to accomplish. Now, a researcher believes he has found the key: weaving blood vessels with cotton candy machines. Traditionally, researchers would allow cultured cells to spontaneously develop capillary systems of their own. This process can […]
It all started when archaeologists working in Germany made a surprising discovery, uncovering the bodies of children and of one adult man who was buried, strangely, standing upright. The cemetery was dated to 8,500 years, being one of the oldest – if not the oldest – ever found on the continent. The cemetery dates from the […]
If you’re from countries like the UK or Australia, you probably can’t understand why other countries drive on the right. If you’re from the rest of the world, you might think the Brits are crazy for driving on the left. But where does this striking difference come from? The history of driving on the left […]
She’s been called everything from a pirate to the Robin Hood of science. Alexandra Elbakyan put up a portal that now gives access over 48 million journal articles – the greater part of everything that’s ever been published. Despite a court injunction and a lawsuit from Elsevier, one of the world’s biggest publishers she’s refusing to take it […]
Wisdom, the 65-year old albatross from the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands is breaking record after record.
After a century of speculation and tantalizing results, scientists have, for the first time, confirmed the existence of gravitational waves.
When Fukushima’s nuclear accident unfolded, people fled the area without looking back. But one man realized that humans aren’t the only victims of the tragedy. Naoto Matsumura went back to Fukushima’s 12.5-mile exclusion zone to care for the abandoned animals. In 2011, one of the biggest earthquakes in recorded history struck Japan. The 9.1 temblor took even […]
The 160-megawatt concentrated-solar already has 100,000 mirrors in place, focusing sunlight to create steam and generate clean energy.
Nature, the Lancet and many other medical publishers and researchers have announced that all Zika-related scientific articles will be published freely in the wake of the recent outbreak. “We announce that Nature journals will make all papers relating to Zika virus free to access until further notice,” a statement reads. “Nature journals will also now encourage […]
Carbon dioxide acts like a greenhouse gas and can heat a planet's atmosphere - nothing new so far. But it can be so potent...
People with very low levels of physical activity may have smaller brains later in life, a new study found.
Limericks are a very specific type of poetry that emerged in England in the early years of the 18th century. It was popularized by Edward Lear in the 19th century although curiously, he didn’t coin the term “limerick”, and we don’t know where it came from. Your units are wrong! cried the teacher. Your church weighs […]
Grass could enable researchers to create the new generation of condoms and make our lives a little bit better. A team from the University of Queensland found a feasible way to extract nanocellulose from the grass and use it as an additive in latex. If you think about it, condoms haven’t changed that much in past […]
Researchers have made a stronger case for the negative effects of paracetamol on pregnant women. It was already documented that prenatal paracetamol consumption is associated with asthma; now, a team has shown that this is not because the underlying condition for which the drug was taken. Paracetamol, also known as acetaminophen and often sold under the […]
American biologists finally understand how these cute fish, measuring little more than an inch can survive in extreme environments. Don’t let their looks deceive you: the Atlantic mollies in southern Mexico are as hardcore as it gets. They can live not only in tropical freshwater, but also in brackish water, and acidic, volcanically influenced springs. Most fish […]
