Giant leap for nuclear fusion as scientists get more energy out than fuel put in
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratroy Researchers in the US have overcome a key barrier to making nuclear fusion reactors a reality. In results published in Nature, scientists have shown that they can now produce more energy than the fuel put into an experiment. The use of fusion as a source of energy remains a long way […]
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The Startling Intelligence of the Common Chicken
See InsideChickens are smart, and they understand their world, which raises troubling questions about how they are treated on factory farmsIn the animal kingdom, some creatures are smarter than others. Birds, in particular, exhibit many remarkable skills once thought to be restricted to humans: Magpies recognize their reflection in a mirror. New Caledonian crows construct […]
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Despite Small Glitch, The Comet-Chasing Craft Rosetta Has Awoken After Years Of Sleep
It was brought to life to chase comets but has been asleep for 31 months, drifting beyond the orbit of Jupiter. 20), the European spacecraftRosetta successfully turned itself on. The craft had been powered down to save energy, but is now closer to the sun and the comet that it was designed to approach and […]
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IceCube cosmic neutrinos detection: Relic particles may tell us about the big bang.
Trillions pass through your body every second but there’s only maybe a 25 percent chance that one will interact with an atom in your body in your whole lifetime. RJ: Some come from the heart of the sun; others are produced in the upper atmosphere when cosmic rays hit atoms. Then there are geoneutrinos that […]
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Mystery Rock ‘Appears’ in Front of Mars Rover
After a decade of exploring the Martian surface, the scientists overseeing veteran rover Opportunity thought theyd seen it all. That was until a rock mysteriously appeared a few feet in front of the six wheeled rover a few days ago. The science star-studded public event was held in celebration of the decade since twin rovers […]
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Inside One Of The FAA’s New Drone Test Sites
Earlier this week, flying barely under the wire of its 2013 deadline, the Federal Aviation Administration announced the six states it had selected as test sites for domestic drone use. The goal is to figure out how unmanned aerial vehicles can safely work in U.S. skies alongside commercial planes, news and police helicopters, cropdusters, and […]
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Neuroscientists plant false memories in the brain
The phenomenon of false memory has been well-documented: In many court cases, defendants have been found guilty based on testimony from witnesses and victims who were sure of their recollections, but DNA evidence later overturned the conviction. In a step toward understanding how these faulty memories arise, MIT neuroscientists have shown that they can plant […]
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The Science Of How Applause Spreads In An Audience
When people clap at a performance, they’re not really driven by how much they enjoyed what they saw, according to a new study. Instead, they decide how long to applaud based on the applause they hear around them. The research is part of a larger field in which scientists try to figure out how memes […]
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Fruits And Veggies Are Alive, Can Defend Against Herbivores
A study published online today in the journal Current Biology found that store-bought cabbage, lettuce, spinach, zucchini, sweet potatoes, carrots, and blueberries respond to light-dark cycles up to about a week after harvest. Part of the mustard family, Arabidopsis is related to produce including cabbage, broccoli, and cauliflower. So the researchers decided to see if they could […]
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An answer to a lunar mystery: Why is the moon’s gravity so uneven?
Ever since the first satellites were sent to the moon to scout landing sites for Apollo astronauts, scientists have noticed a peculiar phenomenon: As these probes orbited the moon, passing over certain craters and impact basins, they periodically veered off course, plummeting toward the lunar surface before pulling back up. As it turns out, the […]
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Study shows that adventure shapes the individual
AFP – The act of exploring helps shape the brain and adventuring is what makes each individual different, according to a study out Thursday by researchers in Germany. The findings published in the US journal Science may offer new paths to treating psychiatric diseases, scientists said. Researchers sought to pin down why identical twins are […]
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Our Very Normal Solar System Isn’t Normal Anymore
Like somewhere out there, there are planets like ours. It’s got a sun in the middle, little planets on the inside, bigger ones farther out. That’s what most of them should look like, no? We thought they should. See full story on npr.org Image courtesy of npr.org
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