Scientists have created what is believed to be the first genetically modified (GM) human embryo.
A team from Cornell University in New York produced the GM embryo to study how early cells and diseases develop. It was destroyed after five days.
Science & Technology
Europe's newest observatory has opened in one of the darkest corners of the UK.
With almost no light pollution from surrounding settlements the Kielder Observatory has breathtaking views of the night sky, according to the astronomers associated with the building.
It has been built in a remote part of the vast Kielder Water and Forest Park in Northumberland.
With almost no light pollution from surrounding settlements the Kielder Observatory has breathtaking views of the night sky, according to the astronomers associated with the building.
It has been built in a remote part of the vast Kielder Water and Forest Park in Northumberland.
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| Kielder Observatory. |
Ancient myths suggest that a giant comet may have visited the Earth a few thousand years ago, raining fireballs and meteors
Scientists are starting to recognise that the evolution of life on Earth has been affected, if not largely shaped, by its celestial environment. We now recognise that throughout its history the Earth has been bombarded by comets, small asteroids, meteorites (small rocky or iron bodies) and smaller particle and dust (meteor) showers. Over the years, astronomers have detected a substantial population of such small bodies out there in the Solar System, confirming that the threat of their impact with the Earth is a significant one. Current estimates, for example, suggest that between 10 and 30 impacts similar to the one that occurred in Tunguska in Siberia in 1908 have happened over recorded history, with perhaps one or more exploding with a force equivalent to that produced by 500 to 1000 megatonnes of TNT.
Scientists are starting to recognise that the evolution of life on Earth has been affected, if not largely shaped, by its celestial environment. We now recognise that throughout its history the Earth has been bombarded by comets, small asteroids, meteorites (small rocky or iron bodies) and smaller particle and dust (meteor) showers. Over the years, astronomers have detected a substantial population of such small bodies out there in the Solar System, confirming that the threat of their impact with the Earth is a significant one. Current estimates, for example, suggest that between 10 and 30 impacts similar to the one that occurred in Tunguska in Siberia in 1908 have happened over recorded history, with perhaps one or more exploding with a force equivalent to that produced by 500 to 1000 megatonnes of TNT.
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| ©Frontiers |
| A mediæval representation of a meteorite fall as a serpent in the sky |
We've all heard of Pavlov's dogs, the famous canines trained by Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov to associate food with the sound of a bell. Now, scientists have found that bacteria may be capable of similar behavior--an ability never seen in such simple organisms.
Researchers already know that microbes can mount simple responses to changes in their environment, such as acidity fluctuations, by altering their internal workings. If the changes are regular enough, bacteria can respond ahead of time. But systems biologist Saeed Tavazoie of Princeton University wondered if microbes were capable of more sophisticated reasoning. Could they, for example, learn to match a signal that didn't occur regularly to a probable future event? If so, the bacterium could improve its chances of survival by turning on a preemptive response to that event.
Researchers already know that microbes can mount simple responses to changes in their environment, such as acidity fluctuations, by altering their internal workings. If the changes are regular enough, bacteria can respond ahead of time. But systems biologist Saeed Tavazoie of Princeton University wondered if microbes were capable of more sophisticated reasoning. Could they, for example, learn to match a signal that didn't occur regularly to a probable future event? If so, the bacterium could improve its chances of survival by turning on a preemptive response to that event.
Recent data from the Cassini mission to Saturn have shed new light on the surface of the saturnian moon Iapetus, particularly the presence and movement of carbon dioxide.
A strange white dwarf star has been discovered in the constellation Ursa Major (Great Bear) 800 light-years away, which has a pulsating variety with carbon at its surface, not hydrogen and helium, which are usually found in such stars.
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| ©Lunarismaar |
| New class of star: An artist's impression of a carbon-rich white dwarf. Most light emitted by these hot stars is in the ultraviolet and blue part of the electromagnetic spectrum. |
On the sea ice 30 miles form the North Pole - Three broken bolts. A vital part of the first sustained effort to monitor big climate shifts at the top of the world was being threatened by three broken bolts.
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| ©New York Times |
| Broken bolts stalled efforts to retrieve instruments through a hole in the Arctic ice |
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| ©iStockphoto/Eric Delmar |
| New research on cane toads in Northern Australia has discovered a way to control the cane toad invasion using parasites and toad communication signals |
Professor Rick Shine from the University of Sydney has been studying the biology of cane toads, and will reveal his new research May 7 at the Academy of Science's peak annual event Science at the Shine Dome.
The radioactive carbon-14 produced by above-ground nuclear testing in the 1950s and '60s has helped researchers determine that the number of fat cells in a human's body, whether lean or obese, is established during the teenage years. Changes in fat mass in adulthood can be attributed mainly to changes in fat cell volume, not an increase in the actual number of fat cells.
Three hot-air balloons dropped asphalt shingles, lumber, sticks, leaves and pine needles onto a north Alabama landfill, so scientists at The University of Alabama in Huntsville could gather data needed to improve tornado warnings.
The payloads dropped by the balloons were similar to the types of debris thrown into the air by tornados that touch the ground. Scientists at UAHuntsville's Earth System Science Center hope the Doppler radar data collected will be a first step toward programming National Weather Service Doppler radar to recognize tornado debris, so more timely and precise tornado warnings might be issued.
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| ©Mariana Felix |
| UA Huntsville graduate students and staff attach a bundle of asphalt shingles to Randy Sedlak's balloon as part of an experiment to help scientists improve tornado forecasting. |
The payloads dropped by the balloons were similar to the types of debris thrown into the air by tornados that touch the ground. Scientists at UAHuntsville's Earth System Science Center hope the Doppler radar data collected will be a first step toward programming National Weather Service Doppler radar to recognize tornado debris, so more timely and precise tornado warnings might be issued.
