Will the Miss America pageant ever be the same? "Beauty," goes the old saying, "is in the eye of the beholder." But does the beholder have to be human? Not necessarily, say computer scientists who have successfully "taught" a computer how to interpret attractiveness in women.
A genetic disorder that can cause a fatal rise in body temperature in some patients undergoing general anesthesia may hold the key to a cure for heat stroke, according to new research in Cell.
A promising vaccine being tested for Alzheimer's disease does what it is designed to do -- clear beta-amyloid plaques from the brain -- but it does not seem to help restore lost learning and memory abilities, according to a new study.
The bombardier beetle is inspiring designers of engines, drug-delivery devices and fire extinguishers to improve spray technologies. The bombardier beetle, found mainly in Africa and Asia, is remarkable in that it can fire a powerful jet of hot, toxic fluid to fight off predators such as birds and frogs.
Attractive women plus cool cars equal brisk sales for auto dealers as men snap up those cars, prompted -- or so advertising theory goes -- by the association. But is the human male really so easily swayed? Can the irrelevant image of an alluring female posing by the merchandise actually encourage a heterosexual man to purchase it? Possibly, according to a new study.
Using state-of-the-art supercomputers climate scientists have performed a 400-year high-resolution global ocean-atmosphere simulation with results that are more similar to actual observations of surface winds and sea surface temperatures.
Coral reefs could be dying out because of changes to the microbes that live in them just as much as from the direct rise in temperature caused by global warming, according to scientists. Tropical ecosystems are currently balanced on a climate change knife edge.
Scientists have succeeded in cooling atoms of a rare-earth element, erbium, to within two millionths of a degree of absolute zero using a novel trapping and laser cooling technique. Potential applications range from nanoscale sensors to quantum computing.
Scientists identified gene variants that affect the expression of neuropeptide Y, a molecule that regulates emotional responses and other functions. Inherited variations in the amount of NPY help explain why some people can withstand stress better than others. Since stress response is an important variable in vulnerability to alcohol dependence and other addictions, the finding could advance our understanding of individuals' vulnerability to these disorders.
Contrary to popular opinion, not all trans fats are bad for you. Researchers have now found that a diet with enriched levels of trans vaccenic acid (VA) -- a natural animal fat found in dairy and beef products -- can reduce risk factors associated with heart disease, diabetes and obesity.
SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea on Saturday reported a suspected outbreak of the H5 strain of bird flu at a farm in the southwest of the country, near another farm that authorities said earlier this week had an outbreak of the deadly H5N1 strain.
Ben Goldacre: However you cut the cake, we should be clear: measuring drug-related death is difficult Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:06 pm
Pleasant spell of spring likely to end abruptly, as front of cold weather moves south from Scotland Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 4 Apr 2008 | 11:01 pm
UK astronomers must make a strong case for funding if they are to stave off further woes, a funding chief says. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 5:25 pm
Europe's sophisticated new space freighter, the ATV, is captured on camera passing over Britain. Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Apr 2008 | 2:46 pm
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An ambitious vision to take people to the moon and Mars may fall apart before it even gets off the ground because of uncertain planning and inadequate funding, several experts said on Thursday.
