Quiz: name that synonym! | Mind your language

Jamie Fahey: Now you know your popular orange vegetables from your war-torn republics, can you work out what these phrases refer to?

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 1 Jun 2011 | 5:55 am

Brand preference may be in the drink, not in the head, vodka study shows

Scientists are reporting the first identification of a chemical basis for people's preference for certain brands of vodka, which outsells rum, gin, whiskey and tequila. They found that vodka differs from simple water-ethanol solutions in ways that could alter vodka's perceived taste.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 12:00 pm

3-D models of BP oil spill in Gulf of Mexico made using ranger supercomputer

Researchers are using the Ranger supercomputer to produce 3-D simulations of the impact of BP's massive Gulf of Mexico oil spill on coastal areas.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 12:00 pm

First cloned horse using oocytes from a live mare

Researchers have achieved another cloning first with the successful delivery of a foal using oocytes from a live mare, the first such clone in the world.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 12:00 pm

Gene linked to hereditary incontinence identified

Researchers have identified the culprit gene for a rare condition that turns smiles into grimaces and impedes bladder and bowel control. Their finding provides new insight into urofacial syndrome as well as incontinence in general which affects some 20 percent of the general population.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 12:00 pm

Molecular imaging allows individualized 'dose painting' for head and neck cancers

According to new research, a multi-tracer molecular imaging technique using positron emission tomography (PET) provides detailed information about the physiological processes of cancerous tumors -- and could one day help radiation oncologists treat head and neck cancers with precision external-beam radiation therapy and improve the outcomes of therapy.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 12:00 pm

Fern's evolution gives arsenic tolerance that may clean toxic land

Isolating a gene that allows a type of fern to tolerate high levels of arsenic, researchers hope to use the finding to create plants that can clean up soils and waters contaminated by the toxic metal.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 12:00 pm

Young men more vulnerable to relationship ups and downs than women

Contrary to popular belief, the ups and downs of romantic relationships have a greater effect on the mental health of young men than women.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 9:00 am

Link between depression, abdominal obesity confirmed by new study

A new study confirms the relationship between depression and abdominal obesity, which has been linked to an increased risk for cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 9:00 am

Virus infection may trigger unusual immune cells to attack nerves in multiple sclerosis

A virus infection can incite the body to attack its own nerve tissue by activating disease-fighting cells with receptors for both virus and nerve proteins. The dual-receptor finding suggests how nerve damage might be triggered in multiple sclerosis. MS causes blindness or paralysis, depending on the affected nerves. Different viruses could influence susceptibility to MS, depending on predisposing genes, exposure to environmental factors, and a random chance that white cells were formed to recognize both a nerve protein and a pathogen.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 9:00 am

Ancient ocean may have covered third of Mars

A vast ocean likely covered one-third of the surface of Mars some 3.5 billion years ago, according to a new study. While the notion of a large, ancient ocean on Mars has been repeatedly proposed and challenged over the past two decades, the research provides further support for the idea of a sustained sea on the Red Planet more than 3 billion years ago.
Source: ScienceDaily: Latest Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 9:00 am

Hunt on for asteroid dust and solar system secrets (AP)

AP - A team of eager scientists flew into the Australian Outback on Monday to recover a Japanese space capsule they hope contains the first-ever asteroid samples that could provide clues into the evolution of the solar system.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 4:11 am

Obama plans fourth tour of Gulf oil spill (AP)

AP - President Barack Obama is going back to the Gulf of Mexico, this time venturing on to new ground tainted by oil, before he speaks to the nation about what he's seen in the afflicted states and what to expect in the weeks ahead.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 4:10 am

Oil spill is 'environment's 9/11'

US President Barack Obama says the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico will have the same impact on the US psyche as 9/11.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 4:05 am

Hard to kill

Custom proteins to reveal secrets of cancer cell survival
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 4:04 am

Sweden arrests activists over nuclear break-in (Reuters)

Reuters - Police in Sweden arrested dozens of Greenpeace activists on Monday after they broke into the Forsmark nuclear power plant ahead of a planned vote this week on whether to replace the country's existing reactors.
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 3:47 am

Barataria estuary now ground zero in oil spill (AP)

AP - The meandering sand dunes and bird islands of Barataria Bay have become the epicenter of the environmental disaster spewing from BP's offshore well. And fishermen are bitter.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 3:45 am

Nepal orders probe into slaughter of rhinos (AP)

AP - Nepal's government was investigating the poaching of rhinos in the Himalayan nation after 28 of the endangered animals were killed over the past 11 months, an official said Monday.
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 3:41 am

Obama leadership on BP spill faces testing week (Reuters)

Reuters - Barack Obama's leadership of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill faces key tests this week as the U.S. president gives his first national address on the disaster and meets top BP executives for the first time.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 3:25 am

Japanese asteroid capsule retrieved from Outback (AFP)

AFP - Scientists in Australia's vast Outback on Monday recovered a capsule that they hope contains the first piece of asteroid ever brought to Earth -- perhaps offering a glimpse into ancient space history.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 3:24 am

Call to regulate artificial life

The public want a say in how research into synthetic biology is conducted, according to a new report.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 3:05 am

Knighthood for UK chief scientist

UK chief scientific adviser John Beddington receives a knighthood in the Queen's Birthday Honours list.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 3:01 am

The nation's weather (AP)

AP - The most active weather would continue to be in the Plains on Monday as a front moved through the area and into the Ohio Valley.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 2:39 am

Hayabusa capsule recovery begins

Japanese scientists begin the process of retrieving the Hayabusa asteroid sample capsule from the Australian Outback.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 2:30 am

Prehistoric hair found in amber

Mammal hair has remained almost unchanged for 100 million years, reveal two hairs found encased in ancient amber.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 1:51 am

Exoplanet spotted on the move

Astronomers say they have tracked, for the first time, an extra-solar planet in orbit around a young star.
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 1:33 am

Soar point

Why sea eagles will not be flying over English county
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 14 Jun 2010 | 1:27 am

Starwatch with Alan Pickup

Comet McNaught

Had I been consulted about where and when the next bright comet should appear, I would not have chosen to put it low in the north at the height of summer. Not only are our nights inconveniently late and brief, but, over northern Britain, twilight floods the sky throughout the night and is brightest low in the north. In fact, that is just where must look for Comet McNaught this month.

Our chart shows the area above our northern horizon at midnight tonight. The conspicuous star near its centre is Capella in Auriga, twinkling strongly because of its low elevation. This stands 8° high for London, 10° for Manchester and almost 13° for Edinburgh. The comet's path is shown, with ticks every two days marking its position at midnight BST at the beginning of the dates labelled: at midnight tonight it is barely 0.4° (less than a Moon's breadth) below the third magnitude star Delta Persei.

The comet, C/2009 R1 McNaught is its official name, was discovered by the Scot Robert McNaught from Australia last September and will reach perihelion, its closest point to the Sun (61 million km), on July 2. Making its first ever approach to the Sun, it is closest to the Earth (170 million km) tomorrow. Observations show a strong brightening over recent weeks and it may be near mag 4.5 tonight, appearing as a round greenish blob through binoculars which may, if the sky is dark enough, also show a faint upward-pointing tail.

Expect it to continue to brighten, perhaps to better than the third magnitude before it dips lower into twilight and we lose it towards the month end. It should be particularly easy to spot when it sweeps by Capella; look for it 2.3° above-right of Capella next Sunday night and 1.7° above left of the star a day later. On the night of June 24th /25th, it stands 0.5° above left of Beta Aurigae, the most obvious star to the left of Capella.

Remember, too, that this is the peak season for noctilucent clouds and that these are most likely to appear low down in the same area of our northern sky. Cirrus–like and with a bluish sheen, these are composed of ice crystals near 82km altitude where they continue to catch the sunlight long after other lower terrestrial clouds are in shadow.

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 14 Jun 2010 | 1:00 am

Japanese space probe finds unique asteroid dust

SYDNEY (Reuters) - A Japanese space probe has landed in the Australian outback after a seven-year voyage to an asteroid, safely returning a capsule containing a unique sample of dust, Japanese mission controllers said on Monday.
Source: Reuters: Science News | 14 Jun 2010 | 12:17 am

Dark Energy and Dark Matter Might Not Exist, Scientists Allege (SPACE.com)

SPACE.com - Dark matter and dark energy are two of the most mind-boggling ingredients in the universe. Ever since these concepts were first proposed, some astronomers have worked feverishly to figure out what each thing is, while other astronomers have tried to prove they don't exist, in hopes of restoring the universe to the more understandable place many would like it to be.
Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 13 Jun 2010 | 5:15 pm

The man behind the LHC

We were honoured to have theoretical physicist Professor Sir Chris Llewellyn Smith in the studio with us.

Chris is a former director general of Cern and was instrumental in creating the Large Hadron Collider. He's now chair of the council of SESAME (Synchrotron-light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East).

Chris updates us on progress in the field of nuclear fusion, and reveals some fascinating details about his time at Cern.

Our own science correspondent Ian Sample has written a book about the LHC's quest for the Higgs boson, Massive: The Hunt for the God Particle. He was happy to tell us all about it.

Producer Andy visited the new Skin exhibition at London's Wellcome Collection, where he got to wear a "social condom".

We also highlight an experiment in science journalism we are carrying out on our website. Story Tracker. It might just revolutionise the way we cover major science stories.

After reading nearly all of the documents at the centre of the University of East Anglia hacked emails furore, Guardian environment writer Fred Pearce wrote a book that is billed as the definitive account of the scandal. The Climate Files is out this week. Listen to James Randerson's interview with Fred in full in the latest Science Weekly Extra podcast.

Finally, next weekend is Science Hack Weekend: Get Excited and Make Things with Science! at the Guardian's offices in King's Cross, London. Bring your own bunsen burner. (Actually, don't.)

What is Science Hack Weekend? According to the organisers:

"A bunch of geeks get together in the same physical space to collaborate and create awesome things, usually by mashing up APIs. A Hack Day is usually 48 hours long and involves a sleepover ...although not much sleeping happens when everyone is either hacking or playing Werewolf."

Follow the podcast on our Science Weekly Twitter feed and receive updates on all breaking science news stories from Guardian Science.

Email scienceweeklypodcast@gmail.com.

Join our Facebook group.

Listen back through our archive.

Subscribe free via iTunes to ensure every episode gets delivered. (Here is the non-iTunes URL feed).

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 13 Jun 2010 | 5:12 pm

Science Weekly Extra: The truth about the climategate emails

After reading nearly all of the documents at the centre of the UEA hacked emails, Guardian environment writer Fred Pearce discusses his new book which he claims is the definitive account of the scandal. The Climate Files is out this week.

In our regular Science Weekly podcast, Professor Sir Chris Llewellyn Smith gives his view on the whole episode.

Follow the podcast on our Science Weekly Twitter feed and receive updates on all breaking science news stories from Guardian Science.

Email scienceweeklypodcast@gmail.com.

Join our Facebook group.

Listen back through our archive.

Subscribe free via iTunes to ensure every episode gets delivered. (Here is the non-iTunes URL feed).

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 13 Jun 2010 | 5:01 pm

Doctors should warn of IVF defect risk, says report

Geneticists urge medical professionals to highlight possibility of malformation for children of couples using fertilisation treatment

Doctors should warn couples attempting to have children through fertilisation treatment that there is a small risk that the child will suffer some sort of malformation, geneticists said today.

Scientists in France looked at the records for over 15,000 children born as a result of treatment in 33 fertility centres and found that more than 4% of them had some sort of major congenital malformation.

Reporting their findings at the European Society of Human Genetics, however, they say this is lower than the 11% previously found in smaller studies, but because their study is the largest to look at the issue so far, the French team believes the lower figure is more likely to be accurate.

"We found a major congenital malformation in 4.24% of the children," said Dr Géraldine Viot, a clinical geneticist at the Maternité Port Royal hospital in Paris, "compared with the 2-3% that we had expected from previous published studies of the general population. This higher rate was due in part to an excess of heart diseases and malformations of the urogenital system. This was much more common in boys. Among the minor malformations, we found a five times higher rate of angioma, benign tumours made up of small blood vessels on or near the surface of the skin. These occurred more than twice as frequently in girls than boys."

The scientists decided there were probably multiple factors at work. The parents of malformed children were not older on average than others who went through fertility treatment, for example. "We need more research in order to understand the relationship between embryo culture media, timing of embryo transfer, the effects of ovarian stimulation, the use of ICSI, where sperm is injected directly into the egg, freezing of gametes and embryos and these disorders," said Dr Viot.

But the malformations are "a public health issue" that needs to be addressed, the scientists believe. "It is important that all doctors and also politicians are informed about this. We also need to follow up all children born after ART and to put much more effort into trying to understand which of the procedures involved is implicated in this problem," said Viot.

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 13 Jun 2010 | 4:55 pm

Japan pays small nations for support on whaling: report (AFP)

AFP - A British newspaper claimed Sunday it had evidence suggesting that Japan has bribed small nations to support its attempts to lift a 24-year-old moratorium on commercial whaling.

Source: Yahoo! News: Science News | 13 Jun 2010 | 3:41 pm

River deltas hint at ancient Martian ocean

Similar heights of channel mouths suggest they fed into one body of water.<img src="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/news/rss/today/~4/MfgJhFAVOlc" height="1" width="1"/>
Source: NatureNews - All articles published today - nature.com science feeds | 13 Jun 2010 | 3:00 pm

Good or Bad, Baby Names Have Long-lasting Effects

From the odd to the humdrum, baby names can have a lasting impact on individuals long after childhood.
Source: Livescience.com | 13 Jun 2010 | 2:31 pm

The new black is very, very black

Scientists have developed a metamaterial that reflects almost no light - making it very black indeed

To the probable disappointment of fashionistas everywhere, scientists have taken it on themselves to decide on the new black. And it is (drumroll please): black. But it's a black that's blacker than any black before it. How much more black could you get? As Spinal Tap guitarist Nigel Tuffnell said of the cover of the band's last album, Smell the Glove: "None more black."

The "blacker than black" substance developed by scientists does not occur in nature; nor is it some sort of paint. Rather, it is a "metamaterial": an intricately constructed array of tiny silver wires embedded in aluminium oxide, which does weird things to the light waves that hit it, bending them in odd ways and sending them in unnatural directions.

Made by a team of scientists led by Evgenii Narimanov of Purdue University in Indiana, the result of this metamaterial is something that reflects almost no light, meaning it looks very, very black. Why would you want such a material? Narimanov tells New Scientist that the primary application of his type of material is likely to be military, specifically in building equipment invisible to radar.

But the next stage – creating metamaterials that can manipulate visible light to the point that objects become invisible to the naked eye – is much harder, as the wavelength of visible light is thousands of times smaller than that of radio waves. So, sadly for Harry Potter fans, it will be a long time before scientists can weave a cloak of invisibility.

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 13 Jun 2010 | 1:00 pm

Vast ocean once covered Mars

Researchers believe their study of apparent marine deltas and valley networks suggest a third of Mars was once under water

Scientists have revived arguments over whether there was once an ocean on the surface of Mars by claiming that their analysis of existing data supports the hypothesis that water covered much of the red planet's northern hemisphere 3.5bn years ago.

They believe their study of apparent marine deltas and valley networks in the journal Nature Geoscience bolsters the possibility that up to a third of Mars was under about 30 cubic miles of water.

Previous spacecraft investigations have pointed to the possible presence of an ancient ocean, with supporters for the idea that there is still a substantial amount of water under the surface as liquid or ice. Climate change over millions of years might have led to the disappearance of the atmosphere, which would mean that any water on the surface would boil away.

Volcanic activity is among other explanations for apparent gullies, river valleys, flood plains, lakes, seas and other signs of water that have vanished.

Gaetano Di Achille and Bryan Hynek, of the University of Colorado, led a team that analysed the distribution of supposed ancient delta deposits and river-valley networks on Mars. They found many of the deltas were at a similar elevation and suggested these might ring an ancient shoreline, providing strong support for a vast ocean once covering the northern plains of the planet. While admitting that the idea remained one of the greatest uncertainties in Mars research, they added that: "Our findings lend credence to the hypothesis that an ocean formed on early Mars as part of a global and active hydrosphere."

Source: Science news, comment and analysis | guardian.co.uk | 13 Jun 2010 | 12:53 pm

Raw deal

Mystery plague stalks French oyster farms
Source: BBC News | Science & Environment | UK Edition | 13 Jun 2010 | 10:30 am

NASA Aircraft Videos Hayabusa Re-Entry

A stunning video of Hayabusa's atmospheric re-entry has been released. The footage was taken by an airborne laboratory inside a converted DC-8 jetliner, showing the speeding capsule and spacecraft break-up.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 13 Jun 2010 | 10:11 am

Reality TV Proves Meaner Than Fiction

Reality TV shows like "Apprentice" display more name-calling and snarky gossiping than fictional TV shows.
Source: Livescience.com | 13 Jun 2010 | 8:06 am

Windows that Work as Solar Cells

A Swiss researcher developed low-cost solar cells that can be placed in windows, for which he received the Millennium Technology Prize.
Source: Discovery News - Top Stories | 13 Jun 2010 | 7:24 am