Bee Disease Still A Mystery, Despite New Advances In Undersanding Common Virus

Scientists are one step closer to understanding the recent demise of billions of honey bees after making an important discovery about the transmission of a common bee virus. Deformed wing virus is passed between adult bees and to their developing brood by a parasitic mite called Varroa destructor when it feeds. However, new research suggests that the virus does not replicate in Varroa, highlighting the need for further investigation.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 5 Jul 2008 | 12:00 am

Some Fundamental Interactions Of Matter Found To Be Fundamentally Different Than Thought

When an atom collides with a molecule, traditional wisdom said the atom had to strike one end of the molecule hard to deliver energy to it. People thought a glancing blow from an atom would be useless in terms of energy transfer, but that turns out not to be the case. "We have a new understanding of how energy can be transferred in collisions at the molecular scale," said Richard Zare, of Stanford University.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 5 Jul 2008 | 12:00 am

Experimental Philosophy Movement Explores Real-life Dilemmas

Imagine a business executive who thinks: "I know that this new policy will harm the environment, but I don't care at all about that -- I just want to increase profits." Is the business executive harming the environment intentionally? Faced with this question, 82 percent of people polled said yes.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 5 Jul 2008 | 12:00 am

'Mind's Eye' Influences Visual Perception

Letting your imagination run away with you may actually influence how you see the world. New research has found that mental imagery -- what we see with the "mind's eye" -- directly impacts our visual perception.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 5 Jul 2008 | 12:00 am

Circulating Tumor Cells Can Reveal Genetic Signature Of Dangerous Lung Cancers

A microchip-based device that detects and analyzes tumor cells in the bloodstream can be used to determine the genetic signature of lung tumors, allowing identification of those appropriate for targeted treatment and monitoring genetic changes that occur during therapy.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 5 Jul 2008 | 12:00 am

Following Traumatic Brain Injury, Balanced Nutrition Saves Lives

Clinician-scientists are suggesting an immediate and important change to guidelines used in the care of patients with traumatic brain injury. The researchers say that following traumatic brain injury, patients should be given nutritional supplementation through a gastric feeding tube as soon as possible, which they say can improve their chances of survival by as much as four-fold.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 5 Jul 2008 | 12:00 am

China Earthquake Rare And Unexpected, Says New Study

A new analysis of the setting for last month's devastating earthquake in China by a team of geoscientists shows that the quake resulted from faults with little seismic activity, and that similar events in that area occur only once in every 2,000 to 10,000 years, on average.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 6:00 pm

Invasive Treatment Appears Beneficial For Men And High-risk Women With Certain Coronary Syndromes

An analysis of previous studies indicates that among men and high-risk women with a certain type of heart attack or angina an invasive treatment strategy (such as cardiac catheterization) is associated with reduced risk of rehospitalization, heart attack or death, whereas low-risk women may have an increased risk of heart attack or death with this treatment.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 6:00 pm

Einstein Was Right, Astrophysicists Say

Researchers have confirmed a long-held prediction of Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity, via observations of a binary-pulsar star system. Eclipses in a unique system of two dead stars, called pulsars, has shown that one of the pair is 'wobbling' in space - just like a spinning top. The effect, called precession, is precisely as predicted by Albert Einstein and is thus a new and exciting confirmation of his theory.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 6:00 pm

Synthetic Molecules Emulate Enzyme Behavior For The First Time

When chemists want to produce a lot of a substance -- such as a newly designed drug -- they often turn to catalysts, molecules that speed chemical reactions. Many jobs require highly specialized catalysts, and finding one in just the right shape to connect with certain molecules can be difficult. Natural catalysts, such as enzymes in the human body that help us digest food, get around this problem by shape-shifting to suit the task at hand.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 6:00 pm

Smallest planet shrinks in size

The smallest planet in the Solar System has become even smaller, studies by the Messenger spacecraft show.
Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Jul 2008 | 11:42 am

The Nation's Weather (AP)

The forecast for noon, Friday, July 4, 2008 shows a system will move from the Central Plains to the Mid-Atlantic, triggering showers and storms along its path. The Northeast can expect scattered storms as a cold front sweeps through. Showers continue in the Northwest and Northern Rockies. (AP Photo/Weather Underground)AP - A wet Independence Day was forecast for much of the nation, with showers and thunderstorms projected for the Pacific Northwest, the mid-Atlantic, the Ohio Valley and the Southeast. Clear skies were expected over the northern Plains, the Great Lakes and the Southwest.



Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 11:26 am

Australia 'needs carbon trading'

An Australian government advisor on climate change calls for a national emissions trading scheme to combat global warming.
Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Jul 2008 | 11:09 am

NKorea says US, other parties slow on nuclear pact (AP)

Deputy US Secretary of State Christopher Hill speaks to reporters in a hotel in Beijing June 30. North Korea said Friday it could not discuss the next stage of denuclearisation until its negotiating partners fulfil their duties.(AFP/File/Peter Parks)AP - North Korea said Friday it will not take further steps to dismantle its nuclear program until the U.S. and its other negotiating partners award fuel oil and political benefits promised under an aid-for-disarmament deal.



Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 9:38 am

Machine music

Punk-loving robots pogo in the name of science
Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Jul 2008 | 8:55 am

Syria returns stolen marble artifact to Iraq (AP)

The Iraqi Minister of tourism and archaeology, Mohammed Abbas al-Uraibi, center, points to an ancient artifact as it is taken out of a protective casing in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, July 3, 2008. A historical artifact that had been looted from an archaeological site in Iraq and later found in Syria, was returned to the authorities in Baghdad Thursday. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)AP - Syria has returned a marble artifact to Iraq that was stolen from one of the country's archaeological sites.



Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 8:48 am

Badger cull proposals 'rejected'

The government has decided against a cull of badgers in England to control TB in cattle, the BBC understands.
Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Jul 2008 | 8:30 am

Dramatic volcanism forged Mercury's surface

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Volcanic activity has played a central role in forging the surface of Mercury, scientists said on Thursday based on data collected by a NASA spacecraft that zoomed past the closest planet to the sun in January.


Source: Reuters: Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 5:59 am

Stolen fossils back in Argentina

Four tonnes of dinosaur bones and other fossils stolen from Argentina are back home after being seized in the US.
Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 4 Jul 2008 | 3:15 am

Transgender "man" reportedly gives birth

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Thomas Beatie, who was born a woman but after surgery and hormone treatment lives as a man, has given birth to a girl at an Oregon hospital, People magazine reported on Thursday.


Source: Reuters: Science News | 4 Jul 2008 | 12:15 am

Travellers to Africa risk deadly form of malaria

Rising numbers of migrants travelling between UK and Africa mistakenly believe they are immune to the disease
Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 3 Jul 2008 | 11:05 pm

Study suggests regular heart check-ups could reduce number of athletes who die from sudden heart failure

Study suggests regular heart check-ups could reduce number of athletes who die from sudden heart failure
Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 3 Jul 2008 | 11:05 pm

Mark Lawson: We are the alien nation

Mark Lawson: Recent 'sightings' expose a collective anxiety that has more to do with security fears than ET
Source: guardian.co.uk Science | 3 Jul 2008 | 11:01 pm

Outdoor BBQ: A 700,000-year-old Ritual (LiveScience.com)

LiveScience.com - July Fourth is a celebration of outdoor cooking, as well as our nation's birthday. It's time to brush off the barbecue and throw masses of processed meat on the grill. As we all stand around waiting for the fire to die down so that we can make s'mores, it's also a time to ponder the notion that the barbecue is a ritual 700,000 years old or more, and it might have something to do with our big brains. Human ancestors started out eating whatever they could; berries, bark, fruit and bits of small animals were probably the main fare. ...
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 3 Jul 2008 | 10:15 pm

Outdoor BBQ: A 700,000-year-old Ritual

Humans switched to cooked meats and they never looked back.
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 10:10 pm

US 'pregnant man' gives birth to baby girl

An American man who was born female but underwent gender reassignment gives birth, US media report.
Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 3 Jul 2008 | 10:10 pm

Solar system a bit squashed, not nicely round

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The solar system may not be a nice round shape, but rather a bit squashed and oblong, according to data from the Voyager 2 spacecraft exploring the solar system's outer limits, scientists said on Wednesday.


Source: Reuters: Science News | 3 Jul 2008 | 9:52 pm

Mars lander's next bake test could be its last (AP)

This image acquired by NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander's Robotic Arm Camera on June 29, 2008 and released by NASA July 2, shows the trench informally called AP - The Phoenix lander's first chemical sniff of Martian soil did not turn up any trace of the building blocks of life. Its next whiff could be its last.



Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 3 Jul 2008 | 9:05 pm

Merger of US earth sciences agencies proposed (AP)

AP - From climate change to volcanoes and earthquakes, the world's growing challenges have leaders in earth science proposing a merger of agencies that study the planet.
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 3 Jul 2008 | 9:04 pm

Dramatic volcanism forged Mercury's surface (Reuters)

This is a color image of Mercury's massive Caloris basin and adjacent regions, seen in orange hues. (Handout/Courtesy of Science/AAAS/Reuters)Reuters - Volcanic activity has played a central role in forging the surface of Mercury, scientists said on Thursday based on data collected by a NASA spacecraft that zoomed past the closest planet to the sun in January.



Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 3 Jul 2008 | 8:50 pm

VIDEO: Bacteria Make Fake Snow Safer

Snow machines at ski resort use a questionable protein/bacteria slush to encourage water to freeze. Newfound microbes may be better.
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 8:05 pm

Two flu drugs help kids equally well: Japan study

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two rival flu drugs, Tamiflu and Relenza, work equally well to fight the symptoms of influenza in children, Japanese researchers reported on Thursday.


Source: Reuters: Science News | 3 Jul 2008 | 7:24 pm

Madagascar Hopes Tourism Saves 'Noah's Ark'

Ecotourism may help save the panoply of wildlife in Madagascar.
Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 3 Jul 2008 | 6:39 pm

Barcode Technology Flaws Put Some Patients at Risk

Nurses forced to use 'workarounds' to ensure medication errors are kept to minimum, study says
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 6:27 pm

Voyager Spacecraft Reveals Solar System Edge

Voyager examines energy and magnetic forces at the solar system's edge.
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 5:57 pm

Celestial Stars and Stripe Revealed in Hubble Image

Energy released from an exploding star reveals itself in an image of stars and a stripe.
Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 3 Jul 2008 | 4:54 pm

Researchers open secret cave under Mexican pyramid

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Archeologists are opening a cave sealed for more than 30 years deep beneath a Mexican pyramid to look for clues about the mysterious collapse of one of ancient civilization's largest cities.


Source: Reuters: Science News | 3 Jul 2008 | 4:22 pm

Stroke Victim Suddenly Speaks With Strange Accent

After a stroke, a woman's accent changed.
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 4:10 pm

Video: World's First Computer Is Finally Built

Charles Babbage’s 1822 design for a mechanical "difference engine" was never actually constructed...until now.
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 3:46 pm

Mars Lander's Next Bake Test Could Be Its Last

The oven in the Mars lander may only have one more chance to test soil for signs of life.
Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 3 Jul 2008 | 2:21 pm

What Are the Origins of Famous Patriotic Songs?

You may know the lyrics to these popular patriotic tunes. But you may be surprised to learn about how they began.
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 1:59 pm

Watermelon Has Viagra-Like Effect

Watermelon can help relax the body's blood vessels, similar to how Viagra works.
Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 3 Jul 2008 | 1:49 pm

Brain Food: It Works on Gerbils

Scientists have figured out how to make gerbils smarter and they hope the findings can be applied to you.
Source: Livescience.com | 3 Jul 2008 | 1:16 pm

Early Aussie Tattoos Match Rock Art

Rock art in Australia is matched with early documentations of human tattoos.
Source: Discovery News Top Stories : Discovery Channel | 3 Jul 2008 | 1:09 pm

Physics names winners and losers

UK physics and astronomy will spend nearly £2bn in the next three years, but some programmes face cuts.
Source: BBC News | Science/Nature | UK Edition | 3 Jul 2008 | 12:57 pm