Electric Eel Power
PhysOrg reports on a slithery new power source – the eel generator:
… Read the rest “Electric Eel Power”Electric eels channel the output of thousands of specialized cells called electrocytes to generate electric
biology
One Step Closer to the Spotless Mind.
Did I post this before? I have no way of knowing. New Scientist tells me (for what I hope is the first time) that researchers have found a single enzyme that can erase specific memories:
… Read the rest “One Step Closer to the Spotless Mind.”Several
Fart Stink Controls Blood Pressure.
Perhaps not heart-stoppingly foul, but, as LiveScience informs us, that distinctive smell is enough to give the circulatory system pause:
… Read the rest “Fart Stink Controls Blood Pressure.”The unpleasant aroma of the gas, called hydrogen
Science Art: Aurochs, Webster’s New International
I’m quite fond of the aurochs. As the feared onager was to the domestic donkey, so the aurochs to domestic cattle. Onagers gave their name to a medieval siege weapon; aurochs gave their… Read the rest “Science Art: Aurochs, Webster’s New International”
Testosterone fuels financial crisis.
The same hormone that makes men hairy (and both genders feel frisky) is to blame for the current mess on Wall Street, say researchers:
… Read the rest “Testosterone fuels financial crisis.”Scientific American reports:
Men with more of the sex
If a potato can power a clock…
…then a tree can power a forest-fire deterrent system. At least, so says Discover magazine and a group of MIT scientists who’ve started a “tree power” company… Read the rest “If a potato can power a clock…”
Space bears, more like.
New Scientist has joined the chorus of publications huddling around the cutest space invaders ever. Swedish researchers have just proved that tiny creatures called tardigrades, or “water… Read the rest “Space bears, more like.”
Insomnia, meet inflammation.
I’ve sort of known this was true for years, but now ScienceDaily confirms it: lack of sleep has a direct correlation with inflammation in the body:
… Read the rest “Insomnia, meet inflammation.”[T]he UCLA Cousins Center research
Science Art: Honey Ant, Webster’s New International
Does anyone else remember these from Insects Do The Strangest Things? Oh, what a fine children’s book that is.
From Webster’s New International Dictionary of the English … Read the rest “Science Art: Honey Ant, Webster’s New International”
The keen migratory instincts of cows.
It seems like this story hit everywhere at once, but it’s still marvelous. Here’s the BBC version of how cows always face north:
… Read the rest “The keen migratory instincts of cows.”Images from Google Earth have confirmed that
Bad choices and birth control.
LiveScience makes clear that sometimes, contraception isn’t the best decision. Or, well, doesn’t help you make the best decisions… because birth control pills befuddle… Read the rest “Bad choices and birth control.”
*More* spouses?
New Scientist has just given me stress-induced palpitations with their finding that the more wives, the longer-lived the man:
… Read the rest “*More* spouses?”After accounting for socioeconomic differences, men aged
Vegetarian spiders. Like panthers.
Bug-watchers at the 12th International Behavioral Ecology Congress have brought the world’s attention (and the attention of the fine bloggers at Greenupgrader.com) to a previously… Read the rest “Vegetarian spiders. Like panthers.”
Better than Shinola.
Dailytech.com is smiling (or is it just gas?) over the latest trick we’ve gotten E. coli to perform. Geneticists have altered the food-poisoning germ so that it excretes diesel fuel… Read the rest “Better than Shinola.”
Spicy bugs.
If you like your food a little spicy, EurekAlert.org might whet your appetite in a crawly kind of way… because hot peppers owe everything to bugs:
… Read the rest “Spicy bugs.”The spiciness is a defense mechanism