Blog Profile / 60-Second Science
| URL : | http://www.sciam.com/blog/60-second-science/ | |
|---|---|---|
| Filed Under: | Academics / General Science | |
| Posts on Regator: | 3065 | |
| Posts / Week: | 13 | |
| Archived Since: | November 13, 2008 | |
Blog Post Archive
What Is Geodesign–and Can It Protect Us from Natural Disasters?
As New York, New Jersey and other states hit hard during Superstorm Sandy last fall begin their long road to recovery, the decisions they make on how to rebuild are crucial to determining how well they’re weather than next big storm. The choices range from installing large storm-surge sea barriers near Staten Island and at [...]
The Race to Catalog Living Species Before They Go Extinct
The U.S. has spent several billion dollars looking for life on other planets. Shouldn’t we spend at least that much finding and identifying life on Earth? That is the argument behind a taxonomy analysis by a trio of scientists in Science, published on January 25. They argue just $500 million to $1 billion a year [...]
Does Increased Energy-Efficiency Just Spark Us to Use More?
Last year, the U.S. raised its fuel economy standards for cars and trucks for the first time in decades. By 2025, the fuel efficiency of vehicles will be required to double. As a result, oil consumption is predicted to fall and—given that the U.S. remains the world’s largest consumer of oil—global crude prices might fall [...]
Dung Beetles Follow the Stars
The humble dung beetle makes its living rolling big balls of excrement to feed its offspring and itself. But this lowly occupation doesn’t mean the insect doesn’t have its eye on the skies—even when the sun goes down. Recent research has shown that African ball-rolling dung beetles (Scarabaeus satyrus) use strong light cues from the [...]
Adaptation to Starchy Diet Was Key to Dog Domestication
They work with us, play with us and comfort us when we’re down. Archaeological evidence indicates that dogs have had a close bond with humans for millennia. But exactly why and how they evolved from their wolf ancestors into our loyal companions has been something of a mystery. Now a new genetic analysis indicates that [...]
Research into Contagious Bird Flu Starts After Moratorium
After public outcry against research into avian flu strains that can be transmitted among mammals, 40 of the top scientists working on the influenza strains signed a voluntary moratorium on research last January. The goal of the pause was to properly—and publically—weigh the potential risks and benefits of such investigations. Critics of the research noted [...]
40 Years of Health Care for Women that Includes Access to Abortion Services
Today’s political rhetoric in the U.S. makes it easy to fall into the trap of viewing abortion services as outside of women’s health care, but a recent event in Manhattan belied that logical flaw, just as Scientific American did in an editorial in its May 2012 issue. Abortion services, which can include counseling, in-clinic abortions, [...]
Asteroid Hunter Gives an Update on the Threat of Near-Earth Objects
An Earth impact by a large comet or asteroid could knock out human civilization with a single blow, as most people are now aware thanks to recent Hollywood movies and public outreach by planetary scientists. Since 1998, when NASA initiated its Spaceguard program to find comets and asteroids 1 km in diameter and larger, researchers [...]
Lance Armstrong Comes Clean—a Mixed Blessing for Sports
Lance Armstrong’s confession to Oprah Winfrey earlier this week that he’s been a drug cheat throughout his illustrious career was a mixed blessing for the sports world. On one hand, key questions have been answered and a perpetrator has been caught. We now know that cycling’s preeminent athlete over the past two decades managed to [...]
Quails Demonstrate Mastery of Camouflage to Protect Their Colorful Eggs
A quail egg is like a protein-filled, free lunch, waiting on the ground to be spotted—and devoured—by a predator. But the Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) seems to have mastered an impressive level of camouflage-manipulating behavior to keep her eggs off the menu. Female Japanese quails tend to lay distinctive eggs that are specific to each [...]
Lithium-Ion Battery Fires Could Turn Boeing Dreamliner into a Nightmare
Boeing’s Dreamliner has likely become a nightmare for the company, its airline customers and regulators worldwide. An inflight lithium-ion battery fire broke out Wednesday on an All Nippon Airways 787 over Japan, forcing an emergency landing. And another battery fire occurred last week aboard a Japan Airlines 787 at Boston’s Logan International Airport. Both battery [...]
Transplanted Bacteria Turn Up Testosterone to Protect Mice Against Diabetes
Anyone still laboring under the mistaken assumption that genes are the most important factor in determining destiny should take a look at research that is being reported in this week’s Science about a particular strain of mice that have a genetic predisposition to develop type 1 diabetes. It turns out that a key element in [...]
Cassini Spacecraft Reveals Unprecedented Saturn Storm
Just as regions of our planet have monsoon season, or tornado season, so too does Saturn have its own stormy season. Once every Saturn year or so—which corresponds to roughly 30 Earth years—a giant, churning storm works its way through the clouds of Saturn’s northern hemisphere, sometimes encircling the entire planet like a belt. Lasting [...]
Coughs Fool Patients into Unnecessary Requests for Antibiotics
No one wants a hacking cough for days or weeks on end. But research shows that it generally takes about 18 days to get over a standard cough-based illness. Most of us grow impatient after a week or so and head to the doctor to get a prescription. The problem with that recourse, however, is [...]
Docs Frequently Fail to Sniff Out Boozers
Height? Weight? Any changes in your health? Do you smoke? Simple screening in the doctor’s office can help clinicians pick up on potential health problems. But these perfunctory questions—combined with any other follow-up an individual doctor might decide to do—fail to detect one exceedingly common health issue: too much drinking. Each year more than one [...]
Breath Test Could Sniff out Infections in Minutes
Bacteria hiding in the lungs might not be able to hide much longer. Although traditional tests can take days or weeks to culture to determine the presence of certain harmful bacteria—such as those that cause tuberculosis—a much more rapid technique for detecting lung infections might be on the horizon. Researchers have developed a test that [...]
What Will It Take to Solve Climate Change?
Australia had to add a new color to its weather maps this week. Meteorologists used royal purple to denote an off-the-charts high temperature of 122 F (50 C), part of an unprecedented heat wave and ongoing wildfires occurring down under this month. On the other side of the globe, 2012 proved the hottest year on [...]
Some Barefoot Runners Tip Orthodoxy Back on Heels
Barefoot, five-finger, super-minimal, zero-drop. Whatever joggers embrace as the approach-du-jour for improving form, most of these trends stem from one physiological principal: people who grow up running sans footwear—the way our ancestors did for hundreds of thousands of years—run by landing on their fore- or mid-foot. A new study finds, however, that not all habitually [...]
Asteroids: Close and Closer, but Not Too Close for Comfort
Early this morning, while most of the U.S. slept, a once-menacing asteroid drew close to Earth on its usual rounds through the inner solar system. The 300-meter asteroid, known as Apophis, kept a comfortable distance, flying well beyond the orbit of the moon. But Apophis has not drawn so near to Earth since 2004, when [...]
CES Spotlights Will.i.am and 3 Other Mobile Entrepreneurs
LAS VEGAS—The emergence of mobile devices and the apps that make them tick has opened opportunities for entrepreneurs not seen since the height of the Internet bubble nearly 15 years ago. A panel discussion here on Tuesday at the 2013 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) spotlighted four startups—i.am+, Bump Technologies, ZocDoc and Rockmelt—banking on the [...]