Culture
In television crime dramas, savvy lawyers are able to overcome improbable odds to win their cases by presenting seemingly iron-clad scientific evidence. In real-world courtrooms, however, the quality of scientific testimony can vary wildly, making it difficult for judges and juries to distinguish between solid research and so-called junk science.
Why do predators sometimes lay dormant eggs -- eggs which are hardy, but take a long time to hatch, and are expensive to produce?
That is the question that researchers from Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) set out to answer in a recent paper published in Advanced Science, a cutting-edge research journal with an impact factor of 15.804 (2019 Journal Citation Reports).
All organisms on our planet store the molecular blueprint of life in a DNA code within their genome. The digital revolution in biology, driven by DNA sequencing, enables us to read the genomes of the myriads of microbes and multi-cellular organisms that populate our world. Today, the DNA sequences of over 200,000 microbial genomes are deposited in digital genome databases and have exponentially increased our understanding of how DNA programs living systems.
A study led by Susan Tsang, a former Fulbright Research Fellow from The City College of New York, reveals dwindling populations and widespread hunting throughout Indonesia and the Philippines of the world's largest bats, known as flying foxes.
In a study with potentially far-reaching implications for criminal justice in the United States, a team of California researchers has found that algorithms are significantly more accurate than humans in predicting which defendants will later be arrested for a new crime.
When assessing just a handful of variables in a controlled environment, even untrained humans can match the predictive skill of sophisticated risk-assessment instruments, says the new study by scholars at Stanford University and the University of California, Berkeley.
Research by an international team of scientists led by University of New Mexico Professor Yemane Asmerom suggests contraction of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) during a warming Earth, leading in turn to drying of the Neotropics, including Central America, and aggravating current trends of social unrest and mass migration.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is progressive, but slow to develop -- or at least to reveal itself.
MISSOULA - Every social network has its fake news. And in animal communication networks, even birds discern the trustworthiness of their neighbors, a study from the University of Montana suggests.
The study, recently published in the top science journal Nature, is the culmination of decades' worth of research from UM alumni Nora Carlson and Chris Templeton and UM Professor Erick Greene in the College of Humanities and Sciences. It sheds a new light on bird social networks.
Seagrasses have long been known as some of Earth's most remarkable organisms--descendants of flowering land plants that have re-colonized the ocean by developing traits that allow them to grow, pollinate, and release seeded fruits while fully immersed in salty seawater.
Now, research by a joint Australian-U.S. team reveals that one group of seagrasses, Australian species of the genus Posidonia, have evolved yet another remarkable adaptation for ocean survival: a winged seed whose shape harnesses the force of underwater currents to hold it on the seafloor for rooting.
Memory performance and other cognitive abilities benefit from a good blood supply to the brain. This applies in particular to people affected by a condition known as "sporadic cerebral small vessel disease". Researchers of the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and the University Medicine Magdeburg report on this in the journal "BRAIN". Their study suggests that blood perfusion of the so-called hippocampus could play a key role in age- and disease-related memory problems.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - Influenza is a deadly virus, with about 290,000 to 650,000 deaths worldwide each year. When pandemics hit, the toll can soar: The Spanish flu of 1918 caused 40 million to 50 million deaths, the Asian flu of 1957 caused 2 million deaths, and the Hong Kong flu of 1968 caused 1 million deaths.
DALLAS, February 14, 2020 -- Consumption of cocoa may improve walking performance for patients with peripheral artery disease, according to the results of a small, preliminary, phase II research trial published today in the American Heart Association's journal Circulation Research.
The smallest proteins travel in our cells, completing deeply important tasks to keep our molecular mechanisms moving. They are responsible for transporting cargo, duplicating cells and more. Now, a research team based in Japan has uncovered more about how these proteins move.
DGIST identified causes of hypersensitivity accompanied by neurodevelopmental disorder such as autism-spectrum disorder (ASD). This is expected to make huge contributions to the early diagnosis of sensory-defective symptom brought with neurodevelopmental disorder and cancer as well as the improvement of anti-cancer drug side effects.
DGIST announced that the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences found the important mechanism of 'Abl1' gene, which is involved in the early developmental stage of inhibitory neuron for forming normal sensory circuits.
A world first review of the importance of nature play could transform children's play spaces, supporting investment in city and urban parks, while also delivering important opportunities for children's physical, social and emotional development.
Conducted by the University of South Australia the systematic review explored the impacts of nature play on the health and development of children aged 2-12 years, finding that nature play improved children's complex thinking skills, social skills and creativity.