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168,100 articles from ScienceDaily

'Living' micro-robot could detect diseases in humans

A tiny prototype robot that functions like a living creature is being developed which one day could be safely used to pinpoint diseases within the human body. Called 'Cyberplasm', it will combine advanced microelectronics with latest research in biomimicry. The aim is for Cyberplasm to have an electronic nervous system, 'eye' and 'nose' sensors derived from mammalian cells, as well as artificial...

Neutrons uncover new density waves in fermion liquids

Scientists discover zero-sound mode oscillations in super-chilled helium. Scientists have carried out the first investigation of two-dimensional fermion liquids using neutron scattering, and discovered a new type of very short wave-length density wave. The team believe their discovery will interest researchers looking at electronic systems, since high-temperature superconductivity could result...

New insights into how cells duplicate their DNA

Scientists have discovered new insights into how cells duplicate their DNA. They used an imaging method known as cryo-electron microscopy to take extremely high resolution images of how the right proteins come together at the right point on the DNA strands, forming a structure called an "origin recognition complex" (ORC). The lab's first-of-a-kind images (taken using yeast cells, which are also...

Key component in mother's egg critical for survivial of newly formed embryo

Scientists have discovered that a protein, called TRIM28, normally present in the mother's egg, is essential right after fertilization, to preserve certain chemical modifications or 'epigenetic marks' on a specific set of genes. This newly published study paves the way for more research to explore the role that epigenetics might play in...

Scientists clone 'survivor' elm trees

Scientists have found a way to successfully clone American elm trees that have survived repeated epidemics of their biggest killer -- Dutch elm disease. The breakthrough is the first known use of in vitro culture technology to clone buds of mature American elm trees.

MicroRNAs offer new hope against obesity and diabetes

Hunger has always threatened humankind. This makes it unsurprising that human bodies attempt to store all surplus nourishment in adipose tissue. In developed countries, this life-saving craving is turning into a problem and obesity -- adiposity -- is turning into a danger. Why, though, does excess fat the body ill? How does fat trigger diabetes? And can these superfluous fat reserves be turned...

Mites form friendly societies: Predatory mites who stick with familiar individuals are more efficient at finding food

For plant-inhabiting predatory mites, living among familiar neighbors reduces stress. This allows individuals to focus on other tasks and be more productive, in particular while they are foraging. The new study supports the theory that so-called 'social familiarity' reduces the cognitive, physiological and behavioral costs of group-living, leading to increased efficiency in other...

Supercomputers help explain why there is almost no anti-matter in our universe

Powerful supercomputers have shed light on the behavior of key sub-atomic particles, in a development that could help explain why there is almost no anti-matter in our universe. Physicists have reported a landmark calculation of the decay of an elementary particle called a kaon, using breakthrough techniques on some of the world's fastest supercomputers. This revealed the first experimental...

Dolphins cultivate loose alliances

Dolphins behave uniquely. On the one hand, male dolphins form alliances with others; on the other hand, they live in an open social structure. Anthropologists from the University of Zurich detected this unusual behavior in the animal kingdom in dolphins in Shark Bay,...

Milky Way image reveals detail of a billion stars

More than one billion stars in the Milky Way can be seen together in detail for the first time in a new image. Large structures of the Milky Way galaxy, such as gas and dust clouds where stars have formed and died, can be seen in the image.

Standard test may miss food ingredients that cause milk allergy

The standard test used to detect milk-protein residues in processed foods may not work as well as previously believed in all applications, sometimes missing ingredients that can cause milk allergy, the most common childhood food allergy, which affects millions of children under age 3, a scientist has...


WEDNESDAY 28. MARCH 2012


Key mechanism involved in Type 2 diabetes identified

Scientists have discovered a key protein that regulates insulin resistance -- the diminished ability of cells to respond to the action of insulin and which sets the stage for the development of the most common form of diabetes. This breakthrough points to a new way to potentially treat or forestall Type 2 diabetes, a rapidly growing global health...