A gene has been found in male cichlid fish that evolved to lure female fish so that male cichlids can deposit sperm in the females mouths. A study in BMC Biology reveals that the gene is associated…

Our brain is very good at picking up speech even in a noisy room, an adaptation essential for holding a conversation at a cocktail party, and now we are beginning to understand the neural…

The cells which thicken the womb wall during a woman's menstrual cycle contain a newly discovered type of stem cell, and could be used in the treatment of damaged and/or old tissue, according to…

Researchers are closer to understanding why humans differ so greatly from chimpanzees in the way they look, behave, think, and fight off disease, despite having genes that are nearly 99% identical.…

In a petition filed today with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, an international coalition of scientists and doctors, including the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, Association of…

Rocky terrestrial planets, perhaps like Earth, Mars or Venus, appear to be forming or to have recently formed around a star in the Pleiades ("seven sisters") star cluster, the result of "monster…

In Bad For Carbon Offsets - Not All Trees Are The Same At Reducing Global Warming, scientists noted that planting new trees as an emotional panacea for greenhouse gas emissions - that means you,…

Clinicians from the USC School of Dentistry have made the first epidemiological study of oral cancer in California and detailed a connection between the incidence of oral cancer and race and…

Dan Rhoads just started a site called Bitesize Bio - making cell and molecular biology make sense. Check it out.

When ancient retroviruses slipped bits of their DNA into the primate genome millions of years ago, they successfully preserved their own genetic legacy. Today an estimated 8 percent of the human…

The first “State of the Carbon Cycle Report” for North America, released online this week by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program, finds the continent’s carbon budget increasingly overwhelmed by…

A comparison of illness and death rates for 13 vaccine-preventable diseases in the U.S., before and after use of the vaccine, indicates there have been significant decreases in the number of cases,…

Whereas most birds are sole proprietors of their nests, some tropical species “time share” together – a discovery that helps clear up a 150-year-old evolutionary mystery, says Queen’s University…

The CO2 emissions of 50,000 power plants worldwide, the globe’s most concentrated source of greenhouse gases, have been compiled into a massive new database, called CARMA — Carbon Monitoring for…

There is little substantive evidence that binge drinking while pregnant seriously harms the developing fetus, finds a study in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. Consistently heavy…

In our first exciting episode of 'Who’s Smarter: Chimps, Baboons or Bacteria? The Power of Group IQ' ( Part I ) we showed how small-brained baboons can outsmart big-brained chimpanzees and how…

Agroforestry is the integration of trees and shrubs in agricultural areas, like farmland, to help protect the soil and in some cases to provide additional income. Reduced soil erosion, biodiversity…

A new study from the Karolinska Institutet states that consumers of Swedish moist snuff – a smokeless tobacco called 'snus' – run a higher risk of dying from cardiac arrest and stroke. Snus also…

On Sept. 21, 2007, the trial sponsors announced that vaccinations in the STEP study of Merck & Co.'s HIV vaccine (V520) were discontinued because the vaccine was not effective (see 'No Efficacy'…

A new study found that citrus juices enable more of green tea's unique antioxidants to remain after simulated digestion, making the pairing even healthier than previously thought. The study compared…