Beneath a slimy fa�ade, the sea slug is somewhat of a brainiac.
At any given time within a single brain cell of this marine snail (Aplysia), more than 10,000 genes are hard at work, suggests a new study looking at aspects of the sea slug's genome.
By probing the brain of Aplysia, researchers identified more than 100 genes similar to those associated with all major human neurological diseases and more than 600 genes controlling brain development.
The findings suggest that acts of learning or the progression of brain disorders do not take place in isolation, and instead stem from interactions between large clusters of genes within many cells.
Science & Technology
Maybe females could live without males, at least for Komodo dragons. These behemoths of the reptile world can produce babies without fertilization by a male, scientists recently discovered.
Currently at London's Chester Zoo, one mother-to-be named Flora is waiting for her eight offspring to hatch, each one the result of a process called parthenogenesis-or a virgin conception.
"Parthenogenesis has never been documented in Komodo dragons before now, so this is absolutely a world first," said co-researcher Kevin Buley of Chester Zoo.
Currently at London's Chester Zoo, one mother-to-be named Flora is waiting for her eight offspring to hatch, each one the result of a process called parthenogenesis-or a virgin conception.
"Parthenogenesis has never been documented in Komodo dragons before now, so this is absolutely a world first," said co-researcher Kevin Buley of Chester Zoo.
A scientist at the University of Reading is in the vanguard of futurists who look forward to the day when most humans are implanted with computer microchips -- and he's using himself as his own guinea pig.
In Casino Royale, the latest James Bond movie, Bond is implanted with a microchip that allows headquarters to track his whereabouts and monitor his vital signs.
If a British cybernetics expert is right, the day will come when most people are implanted with chips -- and the real-life chips will do a lot more than Bond's does in the movie.
Kevin Warwick, a professor of cybernetics at the University of Reading, has first-hand knowledge. In 1998, he had a chip surgically inserted into his left arm, becoming he believes the first human ever implanted with a computer chip.
In Casino Royale, the latest James Bond movie, Bond is implanted with a microchip that allows headquarters to track his whereabouts and monitor his vital signs.
If a British cybernetics expert is right, the day will come when most people are implanted with chips -- and the real-life chips will do a lot more than Bond's does in the movie.
Kevin Warwick, a professor of cybernetics at the University of Reading, has first-hand knowledge. In 1998, he had a chip surgically inserted into his left arm, becoming he believes the first human ever implanted with a computer chip.
The tussle between computer security companies trying to protect your PC and the bad guys that try to compromise it is often characterised as an arms race.
Sometimes the security companies have the upper hand as they develop and deploy novel techniques to spot and stop malicious software of all stripes.
And sometimes, such as in 2006, the bad guys are on top. And nowhere has this been more apparent than in the realm of that old favourite - spam.
Sometimes the security companies have the upper hand as they develop and deploy novel techniques to spot and stop malicious software of all stripes.
And sometimes, such as in 2006, the bad guys are on top. And nowhere has this been more apparent than in the realm of that old favourite - spam.
After study of the Riodeva giant dinosaur fossil, three paleontologists working for the Aragon government declared the fossils found in Teruel in 2003 belong to giant dinosaurs.
Rafael Royo-Torres, Alberto Cobos and Luis Alcala, of Teurel-Dianopolis Joint Paleontology Foundation, explain this is an important discovery for the European continent as dinosaur fossils have hitherto only been found in Asia and Africa.
Rafael Royo-Torres, Alberto Cobos and Luis Alcala, of Teurel-Dianopolis Joint Paleontology Foundation, explain this is an important discovery for the European continent as dinosaur fossils have hitherto only been found in Asia and Africa.
Prague -- Czech astronomers have discovered a star outburst in the Perseus constellation, three quarters of a year earlier than expected, the Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences said on Friday.
The astronomers found that the brightness of the star fluctuates in intervals of minutes to hours, Petr Sobotka from the institute said.
The astronomers found that the brightness of the star fluctuates in intervals of minutes to hours, Petr Sobotka from the institute said.
French geologist Marie-Agn�s Courty hypothesizes that a large asteroid or comet hit the earth about 4000 years ago near the Kerguelen Islands. The impact threw millions of fragments of the ocean crust into the air that rained down upon the globe several hours later appearing like a rainshower of meteorites.
She has been investigating for fifteen years, taking samples of the soil from around the world. Her most troubling find was of fossiles of marine life from high latitudes of the southern hemisphere in the earth from the Middle East, Europe and Central Asia.
She has been investigating for fifteen years, taking samples of the soil from around the world. Her most troubling find was of fossiles of marine life from high latitudes of the southern hemisphere in the earth from the Middle East, Europe and Central Asia.
Beijing -- Not only do the moon and sun affect Earth's ocean tides, a new study by scientists has found the two heavenly bodies also affect the slippage of an Antarctic ice sheet larger than the Netherlands.
The Rutford Ice Stream of western Antarctica slips about 3 feet a day toward the sea but the rate changes 20 percent in tandem with two-week tidal cycles, according to the report.
The Rutford Ice Stream of western Antarctica slips about 3 feet a day toward the sea but the rate changes 20 percent in tandem with two-week tidal cycles, according to the report.
As the world's first explorers branched away from humanity's birthplace in east Africa some 65,000 years ago, distinct mutations accumulated in the DNA of each population, essentially providing a genetic trail for modern researchers to follow.
