A major surprise emerging from genome sequencing projects is that humans have a comparable number of protein-coding genes as significantly less complex organisms such as the minute nematode worm…

Glaucoma is one of the most common causes of blindness worldwide. There are various types of glaucoma, all of which lead to damage in the optic nerve and progressive loss of vision. Exfoliation…

Substance abuse increases among acculturated Hispanic immigrants, according to new research presented today by Oregon State University assistant professor Scott Akins at the American Sociological…

Scientists are trying a plumber’s approach to rid the brain of the amyloid buildup that plagues Alzheimer’s patients: Simply drain the toxic protein away. That’s the method outlined in a paper…

Humans and chimpanzees share 99 percent of their genetic makeup but how those genes are used is the key difference, say Duke researchers. In two major traits that set humans apart from chimps and…

A new imaging technique developed at MIT has allowed scientists to create the first 3D images of a living cell, using a method similar to the X-ray CT scans doctors use to see inside the body. The…

Last weeks's M 7.6 West Java earthquake was detected, located and sized after only 4 minutes and 38 seconds by the German Tsunami Early Warning System (GITEWS) currently under construction in…

Scientists at Keele University in Staffordshire have questioned the safety of aluminium added to sunscreens and sunblocks. The researchers, Scott Nicholson and Dr. Christopher Exley, measured the…

Aircraft engines are more efficient at higher temperatures, but this requires thermal treatment of engine components at very specific high temperatures in excess of 1300 °C. If the heat treatment…

Scientists from the Desert Research Institute (DRI) and their collaborators have determined that Northern Hemisphere industrial pollution resulted in a seven-fold increase in black carbon (soot) in…

A new regional study shows that land-use policies in Peru have been key to tempering rain forest degradation and destruction in that country. Scientists at the Carnegie Institution’s Department of…

If you can get away from the city lights this weekend, conditions are perfect to view the annual Perseid Meteor shower that is expected to peak Sunday night and into Monday morning, August 12th and…

There are four fundamental forces at work in the universe. Gravity, electromagnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force. For centuries, science has sought one unifying theory, a…

Modern communication technologies offer many new opportunities for reaching out to people. Can it also help patients with mental disorders? Maybe. A group of investigators of the University of…

Is there a definitive test for mental illness? Not yet, but using advanced neuropsychiatric diagnostic tools including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET), mental…

Nectar-feeding bats burn sugar faster than any other mammal on Earth – and three times faster than even top-class athletes – ecologists have discovered. The findings, published in the British…

According to the Centers for Disease Control, 7% of the U.S. population has diabetes, and 90-95% of those cases are classified as type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is caused by external factors…

A two-dimensional “paper” made out of titanium-dioxide – also known as TiO2, titania and titanium white – nanowires has been developed. The nanowires have a diameter of 60 nanometers (a nanometer…

Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories in Albuquerque, N.M. and Livermore, Calif., are part of a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) -funded team led by UOP, LLC, a Honeywell…

Heart disease hits people with diabetes twice as often as people without diabetes. In those with diabetes, cardiovascular complications occur at an earlier age and often result in premature death,…