|
| ©Unknown |
| The plasticity of smell. During the first few days of life, chronic exposure to carbon dioxide (right) rather than air (left) alters the activity of projection neurons and interneurons in the fly brain - research that is first to show that the olfactory system is plastic. |
Science & Technology
Unlike the circuitry of the visual system, that of the olfactory system was thought to be hardwired: Once the neurons had formed, no amount of sensory input could change their arrangement. Now researchers at Rockefeller University and their collaborators have upturned this scientific dogma by showing that there is a sensitive period during which the external environment can alter a circuit in the fly brain that detects carbon dioxide, a gas that alerts flies to food and mates. This research, to be published in the December 6 issue of Neuron, may suggest that this brain plasticity isn't limited to the carbon dioxide detection circuit. Rather, it may be a general feature of the olfactory system itself.
More than 200 Fish and Wildlife researchers cite cases where conclusions were reversed to weaken protections and favor business, a survey finds.
More than 200 scientists employed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service say they have been directed to alter official findings to lessen protections for plants and animals, a survey released Wednesday says.
The survey of the agency's scientific staff of 1,400 had a 30% response rate and was conducted jointly by the Union of Concerned Scientists and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.
A division of the Department of the Interior, the Fish and Wildlife Service is charged with determining which animals and plants should be placed on the endangered species list and designating areas where such species need to be protected.
More than half of the biologists and other researchers who responded to the survey said they knew of cases in which commercial interests, including timber, grazing, development and energy companies, had applied political pressure to reverse scientific conclusions deemed harmful to their business.
More than 200 scientists employed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service say they have been directed to alter official findings to lessen protections for plants and animals, a survey released Wednesday says.
The survey of the agency's scientific staff of 1,400 had a 30% response rate and was conducted jointly by the Union of Concerned Scientists and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility.
A division of the Department of the Interior, the Fish and Wildlife Service is charged with determining which animals and plants should be placed on the endangered species list and designating areas where such species need to be protected.
More than half of the biologists and other researchers who responded to the survey said they knew of cases in which commercial interests, including timber, grazing, development and energy companies, had applied political pressure to reverse scientific conclusions deemed harmful to their business.
Following ground-breaking research showing that neurons in the human brain respond in an abstract manner to particular individuals or objects, University of Leicester researchers have now discovered that, from the firing of this type of neuron, they can tell what a person is actually seeing.
The discoveries of large Earth-like planets outside our Solar System, so-called "super-Earths," has prompted much speculation about just how Earth-like they may be. Recently, scientists from Harvard University suggested that these planets will, like Earth, have plate tectonics.
|
| ©Karla Davis-Salazar, courtesy Christian Wells |
| This extremely rare "death vase" was recently discovered in the 1,400-year-old grave of a member of the Maya elite. The vase is carved with sculpted scrolls, overlapping tiles meant to resemble serpent scales, and handles fashioned into the shape of bats' heads. |
An extremely rare and intricately carved "death vase" has been discovered in the 1,400-year-old grave of an elite figure from the Maya world, scientists say.
The government of South Korea is drawing up a code of ethics to prevent human abuse of robots - and vice versa.
The so-called Robot Ethics Charter will cover standards for robotics users and manufacturers, as well as guidelines on ethical standards to be programmed into robots, South Korea's Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy announced last week.
The so-called Robot Ethics Charter will cover standards for robotics users and manufacturers, as well as guidelines on ethical standards to be programmed into robots, South Korea's Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy announced last week.
|
| ©Unknown |
Toyota Motor on Thursday unveiled a robot that can play the violin as part of its efforts to develop futuristic machines capable of assisting humans in Japan's greying society.
The 1.5-metre-tall (five-foot), two-legged robot wowed onlookers with a faultless rendition of Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance.
Cloud-like structures in the background above the Sun churn from the passage of magnetic ripples called Alfvén waves, which may be responsible for the extreme heat of the Sun's corona. Vertical jets called spicules dance closer to the Sun's surface (Courtesy of Science)
It was the biggest climate event of the last 10,000 years and caused the most dramatic change in the weather since humans began farming. And it may yet hold important lessons about climate change in the 21st century.
Just over 8000 years ago, a huge glacial lake in Canada burst, and an estimated 100,000 cubic kilometres of fresh water rushed into the North Atlantic. Researchers now say they know for sure that this catastrophic event shut down the Gulf Stream and cooled parts of the northern hemisphere by several degrees for more than a hundred years.
Just over 8000 years ago, a huge glacial lake in Canada burst, and an estimated 100,000 cubic kilometres of fresh water rushed into the North Atlantic. Researchers now say they know for sure that this catastrophic event shut down the Gulf Stream and cooled parts of the northern hemisphere by several degrees for more than a hundred years.
Russian archeologists have made a unique discovery - they have found several mummies of the Greco-Roman period, which have no analogues in modern Egyptology, report head of the Egyptology Research Centre of Russian Academy of Sciences.
Well-preserved mummies of this epoch are very rare.
Well-preserved mummies of this epoch are very rare.
|
| ©Unknown |
| Al Fayoum oasis |
