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Friday, July 15, 2016

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Lucky bug eluded eternal entombment in 50 million-year-old amber

An Oregon State University scientist on Thursday described a remarkable piece of amber -fossilized tree sap - containing a mushroom, a strand of mammalian hair and the recently shed exoskeleton of an insect that got away from the oozing sticky stuff in the nick of time, escaping eternal entombment. The tiny bug looks similar to insects alive today known as walking sticks, whose stick-like appearance provides camouflage that helps keep them safe from hungry birds and other predators. "The mushroom was growing at the base of a tree," Oregon State entomologist and amber expert George Poinar said.

First Ever? Discovery of Philistine Cemetery Draws Criticism

A 3,000-year-old graveyard with the bones of about 200 individuals discovered in Ashkelon, Israel, is being hailed as the first (and only) Philistine cemetery ever found. If valid, the finding would reveal more about a mysterious people known as the Philistines. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Philistines came from the Aegean Sea region, along with other groups of people, during the 12th century B.C, at a time when cities and civilizations in Greece and the Middle East were collapsing.

'Extinct' Volcano Near Rome Rumbles to Life

A volcano outside Rome, long thought extinct, is rumbling to life. Colli Albani is a volcanic complex of hills located 19 miles (30 kilometers) from the center of Rome. There are no historical records of eruptions from Colli Albani, so it was long thought to be extinct, according to the American Geophysical Union (AGU).

'Snowfox' GPS Phone Helps Parents Keep Tabs on Young Kids

A new, screenless phone for young kids could help parents stay in touch with their children, without the adults having to worry that their kids are glued to smartphones. The new device, called Snowfox, also comes equipped with a GPS tracker, letting parents know where their kids are, while helping children learn independence by letting them roam to places where they are allowed. Snowfox's battery and low-power electronics let it operate for a week on a single charge, according to the company.

These Ducks Aren't Lame — They Can Think Abstractly

Ducklings can wrap their tiny brains around ideas like "same" and "different" even when they're scarcely more than 24 hours old, a new study finds. In a new study, newly hatched ducklings were shown paired objects that either matched each other in shape or color, or differed from each other. The researchers found that the ducklings were able to recognize and respond to other objects that were similarly grouped, a mere 30 minutes later.

Fish Venom Unveiled: Toxins Evolved Many Times, Study Shows

More than 2,000 species of fish are venomous, and a new analysis of these animals shows that the most common way they deliver their venom is through spines on their backs. The research, which analyzed the evolution of venom and its delivery mechanisms among freshwater and saltwater fish, also found that venom glands arose 18 separate times among fish. "For the first time ever, we looked at the evolution of venom across all fishes," lead author William Leo Smith, assistant curator at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute, said in a statement.

Zika Outbreak Could Be Over in 3 Years, Study Predicts

The current Zika outbreak taking place in much of South and Central America will be largely over in three years' time, a new study predicts. "The current explosive epidemic will burn itself out due to a phenomenon called herd immunity," Neil Ferguson, a professor of mathematical biology at Imperial College London's School of Public Health, said in a statement. "Because the virus is unable to infect the same person twice — thanks to the immune system generating antibodies to kill it — the epidemic reaches a stage where there are too few people left to infect for transmission to be sustained," Ferguson said.

Paper in a Top Medical Journal Has Unexpected Author: Barack Obama

In an unusual move for a sitting president, Barack Obama has published a scholarly paper in a scientific journal. The paper, which discusses the success and future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), was published Monday (July 11) in the prestigious medical journal JAMA. It may be the first time a sitting president has authored a complete academic article — with an abstract, findings and conclusions — that's been published in a scientific journal, at least in recent history.

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Thursday, July 14, 2016

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7 Weird Facts About Balance

Your inner ear plays an important role in balance. Several structures in the inner ear, together called the vestibular system, send signals to the brain that help you orient yourself and maintain balance. Many balance problems stem from conditions that affect the inner ear.

Microsoft Mines 'Minecraft' to Study Artificial Intelligence

In the pixelated cube world of "Minecraft," players can create almost anything their hearts desire. Now, Microsoft is using the popular world-building game to build and test artificial intelligence in the fictional environment. Microsoft has made a platform for artificial intelligence (AI) research using a modified version of "Minecraft" that will become available to the public following a limited release to select researchers.

Science group warns of shortcomings in U.S. missile defence

By David Alexander WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. missile defence system to counter attacks from rogue states like North Korea has no proven capability to protect the United States and is not on a credible path to achieve that goal, a science advocacy group said on Thursday. The ground-based midcourse missile defence system, which has deployed 30 interceptors in Alaska and California, has been tested under highly scripted conditions only nine times since being deployed in 2004, and failed to destroy its target two-thirds of the time, the Union of Concerned Scientists said in a report. "After nearly 15 years of effort to build the GMD homeland missile defence system, it still has no demonstrated real-world capability to defend the United States," said Laura Grego, a UCS physicist who co-authored the report.

Science group warns of shortcomings in U.S. missile defense

By David Alexander WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. missile defense system to counter attacks from rogue states like North Korea has no proven capability to protect the United States and is not on a credible path to achieve that goal, a science advocacy group said on Thursday. The ground-based midcourse missile defense system, which has deployed 30 interceptors in Alaska and California, has been tested under highly scripted conditions only nine times since being deployed in 2004, and failed to destroy its target two-thirds of the time, the Union of Concerned Scientists said in a report. "After nearly 15 years of effort to build the GMD homeland missile defense system, it still has no demonstrated real-world capability to defend the United States," said Laura Grego, a UCS physicist who co-authored the report.

Science group warns of shortcomings in U.S. missile defense

Men with Long Work Hours Cause Families to Suffer

"The job demands of men affect women, but we didn't find any evidence that the opposite was the case," said study co-author Lyn Craig, a sociologist at the University of New South Wales in Australia. Though men have dramatically increased the time they spend at home and with the family sincethe 1960s there's still no contest: Women, on average, spend nearly 5 more hours a week on household chores than men do and spend double the amount of time tending to young childrens' physical needs, according to the 2015 American Time Use Survey. To get a better understanding of those couple dynamics, Craig and her colleagues looked at the 2006 Australian Time Use Survey, which included 756 Australian couples with children at home.

'Demon Orchid' Has a 'Devil Head' and Claw-Like Petals

A new species of orchid is in a league of its own — not just because it's relatively rare, but also because scientists say it looks like the devil.

1.5-Million-Year-Old Footprints Reveal Human Ancestor Walked Like Us

The human ancestor Homo erectus may have walked similarly to the way modern humans do today, new research shows. In 2009, paleontologists discovered human-like footprints near the eastern shores of Lake Turkana in Ileret, Kenya. The fossilized tracks suggested similarities to modern human feet, including an arch, a rounded heel and a big toe aligned parallel with the other toes.

New Dinosaur Had the T. Rex Look: Tiny Arms

Like its distant relative, T. rex, a newly identified dinosaur, named Gualicho shinyae, sported small arms and hands with two clawed fingers. "We're slowly getting more information on this sort of pattern of limb reduction, and getting at this question of why tyrannosaurs and some other theropods shortened their forelimbs," said study corresponding author Peter Makovicky, curator of dinosaurs at the Field Museum in Chicago.

How Many Types of Trees Grow in the Amazon? (Hint: It's A LOT)

The new tally is the first time anyone has tried to accurately count how many species of trees live in the Amazon, the most diverse place for trees on Earth, the researchers said. "The Amazon is a truly rich place in terms of biodiversity," said the study's lead researcher, Hans ter Steege, a senior research fellow at the Naturalis Biodiversity Center in the Netherlands. In 2013, ter Steege and his colleagues estimated that there were approximately 16,000 tree species living in the Amazon.

Why the Olympics Actually Won't Cause Zika to Spread Everywhere

With the 2016 Olympic Games in Brazil less than a month away, concerns are mounting that the international event may spread the Zika virus to more countries around the world. Indeed, global travel has been contributing to the spread of virus in the Western Hemisphere since at least 2015, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). However, the new report, released today (July 13), should help quell fears for many countries that do not currently have the Zika virus: The CDC predicted that the Olympics will put only four countries at risk for importing Zika.

Souring on Artificial Sweeteners: Substances May Boost Appetite

Artificial sweeteners have gone from diet darlings — touted for allowing people to get a hit of sweetness without the calories of sugar — to a more maligned ingredient, as evidence mounts suggesting a complicated net effect on calorie consumption. Now, a new study done in fruit flies and mice offers insights into how zero-calorie sweeteners may actually increase appetite. Previous studies in both humans and animals have suggested that artificial sweeteners might promote weight gain, but that research is controversial, said Greg Neely, an associate professor of genomics at the University of Sydney in Australia and the senior author of the new study.

Meet Your Muscles: 6 Remarkable Human Muscles

The human body has more than 600 muscles, which help people walk, run, eat and even smile. The biggest muscle in the human body is the gluteus maximus, or the buttock muscles, also known as "the glutes." These muscles (there is one on each side) help move the hips and thighs, and keep the trunk of the body upright. If you consider the muscle that pulls in a single direction with the most force to be the strongest, then the calf muscle, known as the soleus, would be the winner, according to the Library of Congress.

For the first time, scientists to sequence genes in space

By Irene Klotz and Julie Steenhuysen CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla/CHICAGO (Reuters) - Given her background in researching some of the deadliest pathogens on Earth, including Ebola, colleagues of newly arrived astronaut Kate Rubins had expected her to want to do "crazy science fiction" on the International Space Station. Instead, Rubins pushed for carefully controlled experiments with a mix of a bacteria, a common virus and mouse cells, all already repeatedly sequenced and safe for testing in the space station's closed-loop environment. Rubins, a trained microbiologist who arrived at the space station on Saturday, will be using the samples to put Oxford Nanopore's MinION sequencer - a pocket-sized DNA sequencer - through its paces.

For the first time, scientists to sequence genes in space

Women doctors, scientists, welders among 11 new emojis

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (AP) — Women professionals will soon be better represented in emoji form.

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Wednesday, July 13, 2016

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Scientists surveying ocean floor turn up new fish off Alaska

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — Federal scientists sampling commercial fish species off Alaska's Aleutian Islands keep finding new species.

Solar plane lands in Egypt on penultimate leg of world tour

Solar Impulse 2, a spindly single-seat plane, flew over the Pyramids to make a smooth landing at Cairo airport at about 7:10 a.m. (0510 GMT) ending a flight leg that lasted 48 hours and 50 minutes. The plane, which began its journey in Abu Dhabi in March 2015 and is due to end it there, has been piloted in turns by Swiss aviators Andre Borschberg and Bertrand Piccard in a campaign to build support for clean energy technologies. Solar Impulse flies without a drop of fuel, its four engines powered solely by energy collected from more than 17,000 solar cells in its wings.

The Psychology of 'Pokémon Go': What's Fueling the Obsession?

Perhaps you've seen them: roving bands of (mostly) young people, gathering together with smartphones aloft, talking about something called Rattata or Squirtle.

Do Pets Really Have Secret Lives?

Fluffy and Fido may not party it up when you're away, as the spoiled terrier Max in the summer blockbuster "The Secret Life of Pets" would have you think. But that's not to say your pets live a dull, snoozeworthy existence when you head out.

Massive Florida Algae Bloom Can Be Seen from Space

A huge bloom of toxic algae that took over Florida's largest freshwater lake has been captured in stunning images taken from space.

'Ghost Fish' Seen Live for First Time

A living, swimming "ghost fish" has been seen live for the first time ever.

Robots Could Hack Turing Test by Keeping Silent

The Turing test, the quintessential evaluation designed to determine if something is a computer or a human, may have a fatal flaw, new research suggests. While it's not news that the Turing test has flaws, the new study highlights just how limited the test is for answering deeper questions about artificial intelligence, said study co-author Kevin Warwick, a computer scientist at Coventry University in England. "As machines are getting more and more intelligent, whether they're actually thinking and whether we need to give them responsibilities are starting to become very serious questions," Warwick told Live Science.

Corals 'Kiss' and Wage War, New Underwater Microscope Reveals

The new imaging system — an underwater microscope and computer interface that can be operated by a diver — was developed by the Scripps Institution of Oceanography's Jaffe Laboratory for Underwater Imaging at the University of California, San Diego. Dubbed the Benthic Underwater Microscope (BUM), it is the first microscope to image the seafloor and its inhabitants at such a small scale. Researchers used the microscope to observe tiny coral polyps in the Red Sea and in Maui.

Many Beer Makers Will Start Listing Calories on Bottles & Cans

Americans will soon start seeing calorie labels on many beer bottles and cans, thanks to new guidelines from the beer industry. Some of the biggest U.S. beer companies have agreed to list the number of calories, along with other nutritional information about their products, on their labels, according to a statement from the Beer Institute, a trade association of companies. Companies that have agreed to the new guidelines (which are voluntary) include Anheuser-Busch, MillerCoors, Heineken USA, Constellation Brands Beer Division, North American Breweries and Craft Brew Alliance, which together produce more than 80 percent of the beer sold in the U.S., the statement said.

Why It's Harder to Recover from Jet Lag When You Fly East

If you've ever found that recovery from jet lag took even longer than you expected it to, physicists have answers: A new mathematical model helps explain why flying east is tougher on jet-lag recovery. The model takes into account how certain cells in the human brain respond to crossing time zones, according to the study, published today (July 12) in the journal Chaos. These cells, called "neuronal oscillator cells," regulate people's circadian rhythm, or biological clock, by syncing up with one another and also linking up with external cues, said Michelle Girvan, an associate professor of physics at the University of Maryland and a co-author of the study.

'Pokémon Go' Catches High Praise from Health Experts

Whether it's lumbering up a giant hill to catch up with Pikachu, or trekking several blocks just to nab Magnemite, "Pokeman Go" players are getting some exercise. Indeed, the wildly popular new mobile game "Pokémon Go" is having an unintended side effect for some users: It's making them more physically active. "For a long time, the advances in technology have promoted reduced physical activity and increased time in sedentary behavior, which comes with well-known health risk," said Graham Thomas, an assistant professor of psychiatry and human behavior at the Miriam Hospital's Weight Control and Diabetes Research Center in Providence, Rhode Island.

In Cosmic First, Scientists Spy a Star's Snow Line

For the first time, astronomers have caught a glimpse of the water snow line around a star — the point in the young star's orbiting disk of debris where snow and ice first appear. Normally, that boundary huddles too close to the star for astronomers to see it, but this particular star had a sudden burst of brightness that superheated its disk, obliterating ice further out than usual. Researchers are excited to spot their first stellar snow line because of the vital part it plays in the formation of planets around young stars: The rocky section forms planets like Earth and Mars, while the snowy outskirts sprout gaseous worlds like Jupiter and Saturn.

Fearsome Argentine dinosaur had pitifully puny arms

By Will Dunham WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A newly discovered meat-eating dinosaur that prowled Argentina 90 million years ago would have had a hard time using strong-arm tactics against its prey. Scientists said on Wednesday they have unearthed fossils in northern Patagonia of a two-legged, up to 26-foot-long (8-meters-long) predator called Gualicho shinyae with arms only about 2 feet (60 cm) long, akin to a human child's. The fossils of Gualicho, named after an evil spirit feared by Patagonia's indigenous Tehuelche people, were discovered in Argentina's Rio Negro Province. Gualicho and other carnivorous dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus rex are part of a group called theropods that included Earth's largest-ever land predators.

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