Penetrating Piscine Patterns: X-Rays Reveal What's Beneath Fishes' Scales [Slide Show]
2012-02-01 07:30:00
X-rays of fish skeletons that scientists use to study evolutionary development are now displayed as art. A new exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History will feature 40 x-rays of sea creatures laid out in evolutionary sequence. X-Ray Vision: Fish Inside-Out  showcases the work of the museum’s scientists. X-rays allow researchers to study fish structures without dissections. The exhibition opens to the public on February 4 and runs until August 5.   [More]

Honey Helps Heal Wounds
2012-01-31 18:30:08
Honey soothes a sore throat. Now research suggests that it could also help fight serious skin infections. [More]

Can Cleaner Cooking and Solar Power Help Solve Energy Poverty in Africa? [Slide Show]
2012-01-31 16:01:00
KWADUKUZA, South Africa--A Zulu crowd's ululations welcomed Jacob Zuma, president of the Republic of South Africa, back to KwaZulu–Natal, his home province. He had come to tell them of his commitment to bring them, and the rest of the nation, better access to energy--as well as to announce the distribution of solar-powered hot water heaters and LED lighting systems as well as clean-burning cookstoves. [More]

Marijuana Mouth Spray: Will Cancer Pain Reliever Be Abused?
2012-01-31 14:30:00
The medical marijuana drug Sativex, which could be approved in the United States in the coming years as a treatment for pain relief, has little potential for abuse, experts say. [More]

Have Your Cake And Eat Its Package
2012-01-30 19:56:08
Picture an orange. It’s encased in a biodegradable shell--the peel’s even somewhat edible, as marmalade fans can attest. But we humans often package food in plastic, with its environmental and disposal challenges. [More]

How Much Energy Do You Waste Charging Your Cellphone?
2012-01-29 09:00:08
How many chargers do you own? One for your cellphone? Another for your laptop? Yet another for your tablet, podcast player or even electric toothbrush? It adds up. [More]

How Much Energy Do You Waste Charging Your Cell Phone?
2012-01-29 09:00:08
How many chargers do you own? One for your cell phone? Another for your laptop? Yet another for your tablet, podcast player or even electric toothbrush? It adds up. [More]

How the itch informs the scratch
2012-01-28 16:00:08
Itch. Past studies have shown that whatever the cause--perhaps just hearing me talk about itch--something triggers nerve fibers that send a signal lighting up three areas of the brain: the emotional regions; the limbic system that sparks the urge to scratch; and the cortex that tells you where to scratch. [More]

How Google's New Privacy Policy Could Affect You
2012-01-27 17:00:00
You’re on the way to a meeting. Traffic seems to be slowing. A text comes in: “You’re going to be late. Take the next exit for alternate route.” It’s from Google. [More]

Can Too Much Information Harm Patients? [Excerpt]
2012-01-27 11:00:00
Editor's Note: The following is an excerpt from The Creative Destruction of Medicine: How the Digital Revolution Will Create Better Health Care (Basic Books, 2012), by Eric Topol, a professor of innovative medicine and the director of the Scripps Translational Science Institute. [More]

Notion in Motion: Wireless Sensors Monitor Brain Waves on the Fly
2012-01-27 07:00:00
A fighter pilot heads back to base after a long mission, feeling spent. A warning light flashes on the control panel. Has she noticed? If so, is she focused enough to fix the problem? [More]

Bosses Who Work Out Are Nicer
2012-01-26 21:25:08
We've all heard exercise is good for your physical and mental wellbeing. But a good workout can actually influence the mental wellbeing of others, too. Because bosses who hit the gym tend to be less abusive to their employees. That's according to a study in the Journal of Business and Psychology . [James P. Burton, Jenny M. Hoobler and Melinda L. Scheuer, Supervisor Workplace Stress and Abusive Supervision: The Buffering Effect of Exercise ] [More]

Hydrogen and Kinetic Energy Will Keep Phones Ringing
2012-01-26 19:53:08
Carmakers learned years ago it's not easy to make a practical hydrogen fuel cell. Yet hydrogen fuel cells do work, and they're greener than batteries. So how about using a mini hydrogen fuel cell to re-charge something small--like your mobile phone battery? [More]

Race and Religion at the Ballot Box: Building a Better Bias Detector
2012-01-26 13:00:00
The color of a candidate’s skin failed to sway voters to depress the lever for either Obama or McCain in the 2008 election, immediate analyses of that contest seemed to suggest. Some pundits hailed it as the first postracial election. [More]

Cabbage Chemistry--Finding Acids and Bases
2012-01-26 10:00:00
Key concepts [More]