New research shows Egyptian fruit bats find a target by NOT aiming their guiding sonar directly at it. Instead, they alternately point the sound beam to either side of the target. The new findings suggest that this strategy optimizes the bats’ ability to pinpoint the location of a target, but also makes it harder for [...]
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Prions are a special class of proteins best known as the source for mad cow and other neurodegenerative diseases. Despite this negative reputation, a prion may also have important and very positive roles in brain function. The researchers suggest that a prion-like protein may participate in memory in higher eukaryotes, from sea slugs on up.
Extensive commercial fishing endangers dolphin populations in the Mediterranean, according to a new study by researchers in Israel.
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Researchers have generated a complete map of the areas of the genome that control which genes are “turned on” or “off.” The discovery, made in pancreatic islet cells, opens new avenues for understanding the genetic basis of type 2 diabetes and other common illnesses.
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An advancement in hybrid electric vehicle technology is providing powerful benefits beyond transportation.
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People often complain about those seemingly smug married couples who constantly refer to themselves as “we.” But a new study suggests that spouses who use “we-ness” language are better able to resolve conflicts than those who don’t.
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Scientists have made a significant step towards developing a so-called “artificial pancreas” system for managing type 1 diabetes in children. The team has developed and successfully tested a new algorithm, providing a stepping stone to home testing for the artificial pancreas.
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Most of us probably think of sperm as rather active little cells, swimming with quick movements of their “tail” or flagella. But actually sperm’s motility is in fact short lived. When in the male reproductive tract they have to rest easy, lest they wear themselves out prematurely and give up any chance of ever finding [...]
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It takes special software to map the universe from noisy data. Scientists have developed a code called MADmap to do just that for the cosmic microwave background, then posted it on the web for other interested sky mappers. Scientists probing the sky with the PACS instrument aboard the Herschel satellite have adapted MADmap to make [...]
N-acetylserotonin, the immediate precursor to melatonin, activates the same growth circuits in the brain as BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor). The results have implications for how some antidepressants function and suggest that the molecules and pathways involved in mood regulation and circadian rhythms are intertwined.
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