News Articles

An international team of space physicists reports that Mars is constantly losing part of its atmosphere to space as a result of pressure from solar wind pulses. Their new study in Geophysical Research Letters should help scientists better understand the evolution of Mars's atmosphere.The researchers analyzed solar wind data and satellite observations that track the flux of heavy ions leaving Mars's atmosphere. Results of the analysis showed that Mars's atmosphere does not drift away at a steady pace; instead, atmospheric escape occurs in bursts.

The asteroid 1999 RQ36 may be able to tell scientists how the solar system was born, and perhaps, shed light on how life began. The chunk of rock and dust, about 1,900 feet in diameter, also might hit us someday, according to NASA researchers studying the asteroid.Asteroids are leftovers from the cloud of gas and dust – the solar nebula -- that collapsed to form our sun and the planets about 4.5 billion years ago. As such, they contain the original material from the solar nebula, which can tell us about the conditions of our solar system's birth.In some asteroids, this material was altered by heat and chemical reactions, either because they collided with other asteroids, or because they grew so large that their interiors became molten.

A lack of free time is no longer a viable excuse for avoiding exercise, according to a new study in The Journal of Physiology. Researchers studying interval training have found that it not only takes less time than what is typically recommended, but the regimen does not have to be overly intense to be effective in helping reduce the risk of such diseases at Type 2 diabetes.The study adds to a growing body of research that has zeroed in on this particular style of exercise in which a person trains hard but for less time.

Birds communicate with their developing chicks before they hatch by leaving them messages in the egg, new research published in Science has found.By changing conditions within the egg, canary mothers leave a message for their developing chicks about the life they will face after birth. In response, nestlings adjust the development of their begging behavior.If chicks get a message that they will be reared by generous parents then they beg more vigorously for food after hatching. But chicks that are destined to be raised by meaner parents end up being much less demanding.

A study of blind scorpions published in Cladistics is challenging the long-held assumption that specialized adaptations are irreversible, evolutionary dead-ends. According to the new phylogenetic analysis of the family Typhlochactidae, scorpions currently living closer to the surface (under stones and in leaf litter) evolved independently on more than one occasion from ancestors adapted to life further below the surface (in caves). Scorpions are predatory, venomous, nocturnal arachnids that are related to spiders, mites, and other arthropods. About 2,000 species are distributed throughout the world, but only 23 species found in ten different families are adapted to a permanent life in caves. These are the specialized troglobites.

Amazon rain forests were unaffected by a major drought in 2005, neither dying nor thriving, contrary to a previously published report and claims made the by the IPCC, according to a new study in Geophysical Research Letters."We found no big differences in the greenness level of these forests between drought and non-drought years, which suggests that these forests may be more tolerant of droughts than we previously thought," said Arindam Samanta, the study's lead author from Boston University.

When we anticipate or smell a meal, the parasympathetic nervous system triggers salivation and increases insulin production in response to the expectation that glucose will be entering the blood stream. Scientists writing in Science Signaling say this response may be a risk factor for Type 2 diabetes."We think this parasympathetic response is potentially important in type 2 diabetes," said Vann Bennett, a professor in the departments of cell biology, biochemistry, at Duke. "Our study showed there is a novel mutation in the gene encoding ankyrin-B, which increases the risk of type 2 diabetes. This happens through an impairment of the insulin secretion that is added by the parasympathetic nervous system."

 Increased amounts of nitrous oxide (N2O) produced in low-oxygen (hypoxic) waters can elevate concentrations in the atmosphere, further exacerbating the impacts of global warming and contributing to ozone "holes", according to a new article published this week in Science. "As the volume of hypoxic waters move towards the sea surface and expands along our coasts, their ability to produce the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide increases," explains Dr. Codispoti of the UMCES Horn Point Laboratory. "With low-oxygen waters currently producing about half of the ocean's net nitrous oxide, we could see an additional significant atmospheric increase if these 'dead zones' continue to expand."

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have created a molecular image of a system that moves electrons between proteins in cells. The achievement is a breakthrough for biology and could provide insights to minimize energy loss in other systems, from nanoscale devices to moving electricity around the country. The research was published this week in Science.

A new study in BioScience suggests that boosting use of maize-derived ethanol will increase greenhouse gas emissions and worsen the effects of climate change as a result. The research focuses on how mandated increases in production of the biofuel in the United States will trigger land-use changes domestically and elsewhere. In response to the increased demand for maize, farmers convert additional land to crops, and this conversion can boost carbon dioxide emissions.

Several studies have shown that smokers have a lower risk of developing Parkinson's disease. But the relationship between risk for the disease and smoking may not be so simple. New research published in Neurology shows that smoking for a greater number of years may reduce the risk of the disease, but smoking a larger number of cigarettes per day made no difference.The study involved 305,468 AARP members age 50 to 71 who completed a survey on diet and lifestyle at the time and again about 10 years later. During that time, 1,662 of the people had developed Parkinson's disease, or about one-half of one percent.

High school and college students who understand that the earth is 4.5 billion years old are much more likely to understand and accept human evolution, according to a survey published this month in Evolution.The finding could give educators a new strategy for teaching evolution, since the Earth's age is typically covered in physical rather than biological science classes.Researchers surveyed 400 students enrolled in several sections of a University of Minnesota introductory biology course for non-majors.