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86 articles from PhysOrg

The scientist helping to develop the axolotl as a model

With its amazing capacity to regenerate tissues and organs, its ability to reproduce in a laboratory environment and the ease with which its genes can be manipulated, the Mexican salamander, or axolotl, holds enormous promise as a model for the study of regenerative medicine.

Young adults turn crushes into love, study suggests

The image of young adults living in a hookup culture with emotionally meaningless relationships might be a common theme in movies and daytime talk shows. But it does not seem to be the norm in real college life, suggests a new study from University of California, Davis, researchers.

Metal mayhem: New research finds toxic metals absorbed by Great Salt Lake plants and insects

Plants in Great Salt Lake wetland ecosystems are able to pull hazardous metal pollution from the lake and sometimes pass it up the food chain, according to work by a team of researchers from the Department of Watershed Sciences led by Edd Hammill. The study, coauthored by former master's student Maya Pendleton and current faculty Janice Brahney, Karin Kettenring, and Trisha Atwood, sampled three...

Discovery of mosquito survival tactics leaves room for new disease vector control tactics

The appendages that protrude from a mosquito's head hold the sensory systems that account for nearly all of its ability to detect and respond to a wide range of chemical signals that are critical for its reproduction and its survival. At the molecular level, these systems rely on genes that make up three families of chemosensory receptors. These genes include gustatory (taste) receptors,...

Study finds elk hoof disease may affect antlers

A disease in elk that causes deformed hooves and eventually leads to lameness and death is also associated with abnormal, asymmetrical antlers, a Washington State University-led study of hunter reports has found.

Disbanding police departments doesn't affect crime levels, says new report

Disbanding city police departments and shifting law enforcement responsibilities to county governments appears to have no effect on overall crime rates and leads to fewer police-related deaths, according to new Rice University research. But the same study indicates those communities may be less likely to report their crime statistics to the FBI.

Consumers embrace milk carton QR codes, may cut food waste

The "use-by" and "best-by" dates printed on milk cartons and gallon jugs may soon become a thing of the past, giving way to more accurate and informative QR codes. A new Cornell University study finds that consumers will use the QR codes to better depict how long the milk is drinkable and create substantially less agricultural and food waste.

Physicists demonstrate novel mechanism that can prevent light waves from spreading freely

In collaboration with the group of Professor Mordechai Segev (Technion, Israel Institute of Technology), physicists from the group of Professor Alexander Szameit (University of Rostock) have demonstrated a novel type of mechanism that can prevent light waves from spreading freely. So far, the underlying physical effect had been considered far too weak to fully arrest wave expansion. In their...

How electric fish were able to evolve electric organs

Electric organs help electric fish, such as the electric eel, do all sorts of amazing things: They send and receive signals that are akin to bird songs, helping them to recognize other electric fish by species, sex and even individual. A new study in Science Advances explains how small genetic changes enabled electric fish to evolve electric organs. The finding might also help scientists pinpoint...

Less air pollution leads to higher crop yields, study shows

Usually, increasing agricultural productivity depends on adding something, such as fertilizer or water. A new Stanford University-led study reveals that removing one thing in particular—a common air pollutant—could lead to dramatic gains in crop yields. The analysis, published June 1 in Science Advances, uses satellite images to reveal for the first time how nitrogen oxides—gases found in...

Rare 'orchid of the falls' species declared extinct in the wild

A team of botanists from Guinea and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew in the UK have sounded the death knell for a plant in the Saxicolella genus that is endemic to a single location in Guinea. The sad discovery was made by Kew botanist Dr. Martin Cheek who investigated the plant's last-known co-ordinates using Google Earth satellite scans, following a taxonomic review of the Saxicolella genus...

The persistent effects of colonialism in Caribbean science

Prior to the First World War, sprawling European empires collectively controlled roughly 80% of Earth's landmass. Following WWII, that percentage drastically shrank, as colonies and occupied territories successfully vied for their independence, leading many to assume that the colonial mindset of taking from smaller countries to support large nations had been relegated to the past.