Science news

• Ebola staff given New Year honours

  30-12-2015 23:38 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Doctors and nurses involved in the fight against the world's worst outbreak of Ebola have been recognised in the New Year Honours list.
  
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• Grizzly bear deaths rise as Yellowstone population grows

  30-12-2015 23:29
  
  CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The number of grizzly bear deaths or removals in the Yellowstone region climbed to an all-time high in 2015, but biologists say they're not worried about the animal's long-term survival in the area.
  
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• Massive Planets May Punch Puzzling Holes in Planetary Nurseries

  30-12-2015 23:10
  
  Now, observations of four young stars using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), have led researchers to conclude that Jupiter-class planets in the neighborhood around those stars are clearing out the debris near the star, effectively poking a hole in the middle of the disc, according to a statement from the European Southern Observatory (ESO), one of the partner organizations that runs ALMA. The new finding was performed while the observatory was under construction, with onl
  
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• Newspapers made digital push to keep readers and revenue in 2015

  30-12-2015 22:42 via cbc.ca
  
  Many Canadian newspapers have made the jump into digital in 2015, amid industry decline hit hard by faltering advertising revenue and sharp drops in circulation.
  
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• Aurora borealis could illuminate New Year's Eve sky across Canada

  30-12-2015 21:41 via cbc.ca
  
  A recent strong solar storm is expected to give Canadians across the country a special New Year’s Eve northern lights show.
  
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• Debate Rages Over Whether Speaking A Second Language Improves Cognition

  30-12-2015 21:15 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Some studies show that the purported “bilingual advantage” may be only a myth
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• ‘Bones’ in Milky Way could help map galactic structure

  30-12-2015 21:07
  
  Six newly discovered tendrils of interstellar gas might be “bones” of the Milky Way that could help researchers understand the scaffolding of our galaxy.
  
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• Travel distance is still a barrier to breast reconstruction after mastectomy

  30-12-2015 20:38
  Long travel distances continue to be a significant obstacle to breast reconstruction after mastectomy for breast cancer, reports a new study. The researchers analyzed the relationship between travel distance and breast reconstruction in more than 1 million US women undergoing mastectomy from 1998 to 2011.
  
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• T cells that recognize HER2 teceptor may prevent HER2+ breast cancer recurrence

  30-12-2015 20:38
  Recurrence of HER2-positive breast cancer after treatment may be due to a specific and possibly cancer-induced weakness in the patient's immune system -- a weakness that in principle could be corrected with a HER2-targeted vaccine -- according to a new study.
  
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• Parents can play a role in preventing teen fighting, research finds

  30-12-2015 20:38
  With nearly one-fourth of teens reporting fighting in the past year, a new study finds parents, who are often left out of violence prevention programs, can play an important role in reducing adolescent altercations.
  
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• New method for better treatment of breast cancer

  30-12-2015 20:38
  A novel imaging-based method for defining appropriateness of breast cancer treatment is as accurate as the current standard-of-care and could reduce the need for invasive tissue sampling, new research shows. The results suggest that the method might lead to more optimal treatment of individual patients.
  
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• Germany: Significantly fewer severely injured patients than in 2000

  30-12-2015 20:38
  About 18,000 people are severely injured every year in Germany. Earlier investigations, in 2000 and 2006, estimated that more than 32,000 people sustain multiple trauma each year. The newly calculated lower number likely reflects a reduction of severe injuries caused by road traffic and occupational accidents.
  
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• 3-D footage of nematode brains links neurons with motion and behavior

  30-12-2015 20:38
  A new instrument has allowed researchers to capture among the first 3-D recordings of neural activity in nearly the entire brain of a free-moving animal, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. The findings could provide scientists with a better understanding of how neurons coordinate action and perception in animals.
  
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• Record El Nino, climate change drive extreme weather

  30-12-2015 20:11
  
  Deadly extreme weather on at least five continents is driven in large part by a record-breaking El Nino, but climate change is a likely booster too, experts said Monday.
  
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• Space Fuel: Plutonium-238 Created After 30-Year Wait

  30-12-2015 19:53
  
  Scientists have produced a powder of plutonium-238 for the first time in nearly 30 years in the United States, a milestone that they say sets the country on a path toward powering NASA's deep-space exploration and other missions. Plutonium-238 (Pu-238) is a radioactive element, and as it decays, or breaks down into uranium-234, it releases heat. During the Cold War, the Savannah River Plant in South Carolina was pumping out Pu-238.
  
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• Bright Planets, Moon, Put on New Year's Show

  30-12-2015 18:38
  
  Three days after that, on the morning of Wednesday, Jan. 6, the shrinking crescent moon is approaching Venus and Saturn. A day later, and it has passed them, but still forms a very close grouping with the two planets.
  
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• Lunar Leap: Europe Is Reaching for a Moon Base by the 2030s

  30-12-2015 18:36
  
  The moon, supporters say, can serve as a springboard to push the human exploration of the solar system, with Mars as the horizon goal. Calling the effort a "comeback to the moon," European space planners envision a series of human missions to the lunar vicinity starting in the early 2020s. Europe's lunar intentions were clearly evident at an international symposium this month to discuss plans for a return to the moon.
  
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• Exoplanet Hunters Made Key Finds in 2015

  30-12-2015 18:36
  
  Beyond the realm of fiction, understanding these worlds remains a significant challenge that astronomers are working hard to overcome. As 2015 winds down, we caught up with noted exoplanet scientist Sara Seager, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, at the American Astronomical Society's Extreme Solar Systems III conference in Hawaii to ask her perspective on the field over the past year. The biggest steps, however, came in the slow progress made in better understanding how planets &mdas
  
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• El Nino 'could be as bad as 1998'

  30-12-2015 17:46 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Nasa warns that the effects of the current El Nino weather phenomenon could be as bad as that of 1998, the strongest on record.
  
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• Floating anti-plastic waste dam to be tested in North Sea

  30-12-2015 16:49
  
  A revolutionary floating dam that traps plastic bags, bottles and other waste choking the world's oceans will be tested at sea for the first time in 2016, the Ocean Cleanup foundation said.
  
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• AquaBounty wins federal court case to continue GMO salmon production

  30-12-2015 16:39 via cbc.ca
  
  An appeal by two environmental groups to the Federal Court of Canada to stop production of genetically-modified salmon on Prince Edward Island has failed.
  
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• Sweden allows limited wolf hunt in temporary ruling

  30-12-2015 16:34
  
  Swedish courts on Wednesday authorised the culling of 14 wolves pending a top court's decision on the legality of hunting an animal protected under European law.
  
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• Vultures dying out: Scavenger population in Africa faces same fate as India with 97% decline

  30-12-2015 16:17
  Vultures, the only vertebrates living on land that can survive from nothing but scavenging, are projected to decline by up to 97% in Africa over the next 50 years. The birds clean up dead livestock carcasses in minutes and without them, the corpses would linger, encouraging growth of all kinds of insects, and inevitably disease. In National Geographic's January issue, the life of the critically endangered vulture is explored, highlighting why they are disappearing and why we need them.
  
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• Apple agrees to pay Italy $483M in back taxes

  30-12-2015 15:57 via cbc.ca
  
  Apple has agreed to pay Italy 318 million euros (about $483 million Canadian) in taxes for several past years and its future liabilities will be determined by an international ruling, prosecutors in Milan said Wednesday.
  
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• Magnitude-4.8 earthquake widely felt across Washington state

  30-12-2015 15:56
  SEATTLE (AP) — A magnitude-4.8 earthquake in Canada jolted residents across northwest Washington state, but no major damage or injuries were reported, authorities said Wednesday.
  
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• Syrian troops backed by Russian jets enters rebel-held southern town - army

  30-12-2015 14:43
  By Suleiman Al-Khalidi BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian troops fought their way into a rebel-held town in the southern province of Deraa on Wednesday in an assault which rebels said was supported by the heaviest Russian aerial bombing campaign so far in the south. Troops were in Sheikh Maskin's main square and had taken over the eastern and northern neighbourhoods of the town which lies on a major supply route from the Syrian capital, Damascus, to the city of Deraa, the army said in a statement. A comm
  
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• Giant Comets Periodically Smash Earth, Scientists Say

  30-12-2015 14:35
  
  Giant comets that originate in the planetary fringes of the solar system pose a greater threat of colliding with Earth than do asteroids, which originate closer to the sun, a new review paper argues. No centaur poses a known immediate threat to Earth, but the discovery of this massive population has led a group of astronomers to re-assess the threat of these seemingly distant bodies to this planet. Estimates currently suggest that one of these giant comets crosses Earth's orbit on average only o
  
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• Dwarf Planet Ceres' Stretched-Out Surface Revealed in New Photos

  30-12-2015 14:35
  
  NASA's Dawn probe took a series of stunning new images of Ceres' chain of craters called Gerber Catana, from an altitude of just 240 miles (385 kilometers) – the closest the spacecraft has ever come to the dwarf planet. Among the major science findings from the close-up view is the discovery that Ceres, despite its diminutive size (only about 590 miles wide, or 950 km), displays internal stresses similar to what you would find on a larger body, such as Mars. Grooves and troughs on the surf
  
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• Pluto, Mars Water and More! The Biggest Space Stories of 2015

  30-12-2015 14:34
  NASA's New Horizons probe reached Pluto after a decade of travel across interplanetary space, exploring the most well-known dwarf planet. Ceres, Mars and the moons of Saturn also revealed their secrets. NASA's New Horizons made history in July as it zoomed by Pluto, passing within 7,800 miles (12,500 kilometers) of the dwarf planet's icy surface.
  
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• 'Lunartic' Snaps Awesome Photo of Airplane Crossing the Moon

  30-12-2015 14:34
  
  Living right on the flight path to Los Angeles International Airport delivers stunning night sky shots of the moon for astrophotographer Raul Roa. "There and then I decided to make it my goal to deliberately capture planes crossing the moon.
  
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• Baghdad Blasts: Earthquake Detectors Map Sounds of War

  30-12-2015 14:21
  
  Seismic equipment that was installed in Iraq to detect earthquakes has also recorded plenty of other big bangs — explosions from nearby mortars and car bombs. In Baghdad throughout 2006, the sound of bombs was common. What happened at the ammunition depot, captured by onlookers on video, is referred to in the military as a "cook-off," when excessive heat causes ammunition to explode prematurely.
  
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• Volcanoes Sparked an Explosion in Human Intelligence, Researcher Argues

  30-12-2015 14:20
  
  Vast lava flows may have provided humans with access to heat and fire for cooking their food millions of years ago, one researcher has proposed. That, in turn, would have enabled the evolution of human intelligence, Michael Medler, a geographer at Western Washington University, said at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union earlier this month. If cooked food provided the extra calories that allowed people to evolve big brains, and big brains are required to start fires, then how di
  
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• Tasmanian Devils' Mysterious Cancer May Come in Two Varieties

  30-12-2015 14:20
  The Tasmanian devil has long been known to suffer from an unusual type of cancer that can spread from animal to animal, but now researchers say the endangered species is plagued by at least two kinds of infectious cancer. The finding suggests that Tasmanian devils are especially prone to the emergence of contagious tumors, and that transmissible cancers may arise more frequently in nature than previously thought, scientists added. The furry, dog-size mammals are found only on the island of
  
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• Son of Hercules vs. Hydra: Altar Showing Mythical Battle Discovered

  30-12-2015 14:19
  
  An ancient marble altar showing a nude warrior battling a serpent monster has been discovered by villagers near the Akçay River in Turkey. "According to [a command in] a dream, Flavius Ouliades set this up to the [river] god Harpasos," the Greek inscription at the top of the altar reads. The altar is 2 feet (0.61 meters) high and 1.5 feet (0.45 m) wide, and is now in the Aydin Museum in Turkey.
  
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• Ingredients of Plague Risk in Western US Identified

  30-12-2015 14:18
  
  Small outbreaks of the plague still occur in the western United States, and now new research shows these clusters don't happen at random. Every year, an average of seven people in the western United States are infected with the bacteria that cause plague (Yersinia pestis). The researchers used surveillance data of plague in wild and domestic animals from all over the American West.
  
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• Camera trap system could help fight against poaching

  30-12-2015 13:46
  
  The Zoological Society London (ZSL), whose mission is to promote and achieve the world-wide conservation of animals and their habitats, says it may have taken a step closer to fulfilling that with the development of a new camera, which it calls Instant Detect.
  
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• First Dengue Fever Vaccine Gets Green Light in Three Countries

  30-12-2015 13:45 via rss.sciam.com
  
  Mosquito-borne disease affecting millions has had no approved vaccine until now
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• First Dengue Fever Vaccine Gets Green Light in 3 Countries

  30-12-2015 13:45 via rss.sciam.com
  
  The mosquito-borne disease afflicts millions, and has had no approved vaccine until now
  -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com
  
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• Giant squid makes rare appearance in Japanese port

  30-12-2015 13:33
  
  A giant squid that wandered into a Japanese port has been guided back out to sea almost a week after it was spotted, giving enthusiasts and experts a rare glimpse of the mysterious creature.
  
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• This white dwarf is hotter than the rest

  30-12-2015 12:00
  
  A new record holder for hottest white dwarf sizzles at about 250,000˚ Celsius.
  
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• The top science stories of 2015: Bob McDonald

  30-12-2015 11:00 via cbc.ca
  
  Bob McDonald compiles the most significant science stories that he covered this past year on CBC Radio's Quirks & Quarks.
  
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• Millions of people being contaminated with toxic mercury used in mines

  30-12-2015 11:00 via cbc.ca
  
  About 15 million people use mercury as they process ore as they mine for gold in developing countries. They're risking their health and the future of the environment.
  
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• Floods, earthquakes, wildfires and heat waves: the worst natural disasters of 2015

  30-12-2015 11:00 via cbc.ca
  
  Floods, cyclones, wildfires, heat waves, earthquakes and landslides made 2015 a devastating year for a lot of people around the world. We take a look at some of the worst natural disasters of the past year.
  
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• India test-fires long range surface-to-air missile developed with Israel

  30-12-2015 10:50
  
  NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India successfully test-fired on Wednesday a new long range surface-to-air missile capable of countering aerial threats at extended ranges, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushes to enhance the country's military capabilities.
  
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• VIDEO: Is it time for more laws to govern space?

  30-12-2015 10:13 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Clive Coleman investigates the statutes that have their origins in the Cold War space race.
  
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• A look ahead at 2016: What research trends will be hot—and what will not?

  30-12-2015 08:45
  
  Science staff writers offer their picks for scientific ideas and themes that are on the rise—and some that are losing steam
  
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• Worries grow over 'strongest El Nino'

  30-12-2015 08:42 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Ten of millions of people will face hunger, water shortages and disease in 2016 as the impacts of a powerful El Nino linger into 2016.
  
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• SeaWorld says California agency overreached in breeding ban

  30-12-2015 08:22
  
  SAN DIEGO (AP) — A California commission was overreaching when it banned the breeding of captive killer whales at a $100 million planned exhibit at San Diego's SeaWorld, the park claimed in a lawsuit.
  
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• Spotify hit with $150M lawsuit from Cracker frontman, alleging unpaid royalties

  30-12-2015 06:35 via cbc.ca
  
  Singer-songwriter and musician's rights advocate David Lowery has sued Spotify, claiming in a proposed class action lawsuit that the streaming giant often uses lesser-known artists' material without paying them royalties.
  
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• With Botox 'chemodenervation,' dermal fillers last longer

  30-12-2015 06:00
  
  (Wolters Kluwer Health) Hyaluronic acid fillers are a popular treatment for facial lines and wrinkles, but early degradation of fillers may limit how long their effects last. Experimental evidence supports a simple technique for prolonging the effects of HA dermal fillers: using them together with botulinum toxin, reports a paper in the January issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
  
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