A Blog Around The Clock

Key To Rapid Evolution In Plants: Reproduce Early And Often:

Yale researchers have harnessed the power of 21st century computing to confirm an idea first proposed in 1916 -- that plants with rapid reproductive cycles evolve faster.

Nerve Cell Actions Made Optically Visible In Mice:

Thought processes made visible: An international team of scientists headed by Mazahir Hasan of the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg has succeeded in optically detecting individual action potentials in the brains of living animals. The scientists introduced fluorescent indicator proteins into the brain cells of mice via viral gene vectors: the illumination of the fluorescent proteins indicates both when and which neurons are communicating with each other.

Landmark Discovery Of 'Engine' That Drives Cell Movement:

How a cell assembles its internal machinery required for cell movement has been revealed for the first time.

U.S. Navy Sonar Linked To Whale Strandings, Environmental Scientists Argue:

Earlier this summer, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review a series of lower court rulings that restrict the Navy's use of sonar in submarine detection training exercises off the coast of Southern California. The court is due to hear the case after its term begins again this month.

Nearly One In Four Of World's Mammals At Risk Of Disappearing Forever:

The most comprehensive assessment of the world's mammals has confirmed an extinction crisis, with almost one in four at risk of disappearing forever, according to The IUCN Red List of Threatened Speciesâ„¢, revealed at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Barcelona.

The Green Sahara, A Desert In Bloom:

Reconstructing the climate of the past is an important tool for scientists to better understand and predict future climate changes that are the result of the present-day global warming. Although there is still little known about the Earth's tropical and subtropical regions, these regions are thought to play an important role in both the evolution of prehistoric man and global climate changes.

Individuals With Social Phobia See Themselves Differently:

Magnetic resonance brain imaging reveals that patients with generalized social phobia respond differently than others to negative comments about themselves, according to a report in the October issue of Archives of General Psychiatry, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

What Happens When We Ask Autistic Persons What Is Wrong With Them?:

To date, few studies have focused on the viewpoints of autistic persons themselves despite an increasing number of published autobiographies. The aim of this study is to highlight their personal experiences, and to compare them to scientific and medical knowledge and representations.