WIN! an opportunity to take part in filming for the second season of SCI-FI SCIENCE: Physics of the Impossible

WIN! an opportunity to take part in filming for the second season of SCI-FI SCIENCE: Physics of the Impossible: "

Michio and the Science Channel are now embarking on a second season of his hit show SCI-FI SCIENCE: Physics of the Impossible. In this exciting new series, Michio has identified 12 more familiar science fiction movie and TV notions and technologies. He’ll explain how we can build them into science fact and once again he wants to know what YOU think of his designs. The next two episodes will be “Alien Contact” and “Preventing an Alien Invasion.” Read about the contest to find out how you can enter to win the opportunity to take part in filming!"

A warming world could trigger earthquakes, landslides and volcanoes

A warming world could trigger earthquakes, landslides and volcanoes: "Volcanoes, with their vast outpourings of greenhouse gases and sun-screening ash clouds, can affect climate. But what about the other way around? [More]"

Environmental Risks of Volcanic Eruptions

Environmental Risks of Volcanic Eruptions: "Michio Kaku speaks with Fox Business (April 21st) on the risks of neighboring volcanoes being triggered by Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull."

Einstein's theory fights off challengers

Einstein's theory fights off challengers: "(Chandra X-ray Center) Two new and independent studies have put Einstein's General Theory of Relativity to the test like never before. These results, made using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, show Einstein's theory is still the best game in town."

Randomness is no lottery thanks to entangled ions

Randomness is no lottery thanks to entangled ions: "Number sequences guaranteed random by quantum mechanics"

How Have Hominids Adapted to Past Climate Change?

How Have Hominids Adapted to Past Climate Change?: "

The plaster face cast of a large-nosed Neanderthal stares out into space. The extra cavities in his sinus helped trap air, which was subsequently humidified. There's nothing quite like having a warm pocket of air close to the brain to keep away the chill of the ice age, says Rick Potts , head of the Human Origins Program at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History .

The skulls of our closest ancestors tell the tale of human origins and the closeness of our evolutionary history to climate change , Potts said. The Smithsonian exhibit at the Hall of Human Origins, of which Potts is curator, explores the idea that defining evolutionary events like the discovery of fire or migration out of Africa could be direct results of a changing climate. [More]"

Turning planetary theory upside down

Turning planetary theory upside down: "(ESO) The discovery of nine new transiting exoplanets is announced today at the RAS National Astronomy Meeting. When these new results were combined with earlier observations of transiting exoplanets astronomers were surprised to find that six out of a larger sample of 27 were found to be orbiting in the opposite direction to the rotation of their host star -- the exact reverse of what is seen in our own solar system."

Using Light To Control The Brain

Using Light To Control The Brain: "

Recently there’s increasing study and focus on a remarkable approach to manipulating the activity of our brain. Scientists believe it has potential to combat psychiatric disorders like depression, narcolepsy, Parkinson’s and many others. And its source comes from an unlikely place: pond scum.

Let me back up. Two organisms, a single-celled algae and an Archeabacterium have proteins that respond to blue and yellow light. Scientists inserted the genes from these organisms into specific mouse brain cells . During initial experiments in 2007 scientists at Stanford University inserted very a fine fiber optic--50 micrometers in diameter--into specific cells in the right motor cortex of these mice. Then they flipped on a blue light. Suddenly the mouse started manically running in counter-clockwise circles. When they turned the light off, the mouse immediately stopped. [More]"

Black hole twins spew gravitational waves

Black hole twins spew gravitational waves: "Stars less metallic than we thought"

Discoverer of 'Lucy' raises questions about Australopithecus sediba, the new human species from South Africa

Discoverer of 'Lucy' raises questions about Australopithecus sediba, the new human species from South Africa: "

By now you've probably heard of Australopithecus sediba, the 1.95-million-year-old human species that made news on April 8. In a nutshell, researchers have found two beautifully preserved partial skeletons that they say represent a previously unknown member of the human family--one that may have given rise to our genus, Homo. You can read my story on the find here .

There's a lot to talk about with this discovery, so I thought I'd supplement the story with some tidbits from the cutting room floor and material that came in after my deadline. More]"

Metabolic fingerprints offer fresh clues and a new path toward personalized medicine

Metabolic fingerprints offer fresh clues and a new path toward personalized medicine: "(Technische Universitaet Muenchen) Human metabolism proves to be as variable and individual as people's appearance or build -- despite nearly identical genetic inheritance. Better understanding of the differences could, for example, lead to more effective screening and treatment for diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Pioneering 'metabolomics' as a path toward personalized medicine and nutrition, Munich area researchers have harnessed capabilities ranging from NMR and mass spectrometry to bioinformatics, all within a framework for conducting human studies."

Spectacular South African Skeletons Reveal New Species from Murky Period of Human Evolution

Spectacular South African Skeletons Reveal New Species from Murky Period of Human Evolution: "

Scientists working in South Africa have unveiled fossils of a human species new to science that they say could be the direct ancestor of our genus, Homo . Discovered in Malapa cave--just 15 kilometers from the sites of Sterkfontein, Swartkrans and Kromdrai, which have yielded a number of important human fossils--the finds comprise two partial skeletons that are nearly 1.95 million years old. The researchers have given them the name Australopithecus sediba .

The pair--an adult female and juvenile male that may have been mother and son--appear to have fallen into the cave through a hole in the cave ceiling, perhaps while attempting to access a pool of water inside. So exceptional is the preservation of the skeletons, particularly the male, that the discovery is being likened to that of the famous Lucy fossil from Ethiopia and the Turkana boy from Kenya. But the startling mix of primitive and advanced traits evident in the remains is sparking debate over where on the family tree the new species belongs and raising important questions about the dawning of Homo . [More]"

Synchrotron Rotation View of Skull of New Hominin

Synchrotron Rotation View of Skull of New Hominin: "A 95 micron synchrotron reconstruction of the U.W. 88-50 cranium. The cranium forms part of the holotype skeleton of Australopithecus sediba. Reconstruction courtesy of Paul Tafforeau, Lee Berger, the ESRF, Grenoble, and the Univ. of Witwatersrand"

International team discovers element 117

International team discovers element 117: "(DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory) An international team of scientists from Russia and the United States, including two Department of Energy national laboratories and two universities, has discovered the newest superheavy element, element 117."

The Truth about Boys and Girls (preview)

The Truth about Boys and Girls (preview): "

Parents anticipate sex differences from the first prenatal ultrasound but then seem amazed when their son goes gaga over trucks or their daughter will wear nothing but pink. Boys and girls are obviously different, and in many cases the gaps between them seem stark. But stereotypes do not always hold up to scientific scrutiny. Are boys really more aggressive and girls really more empathetic--or do we just see what we expect in them? Where true sex differences exist, are those gaps inborn, as our current Mars-Venus obsession implies, or shaped by environment--that is, by us?

A natural place to look for answers is in the brain. If there is a neurological disparity between the genders, it could explain important behavioral differences. But surprisingly, researchers have found very few large-scale differences between boys and girls in brain structure or function. Yes, boys have larger brains (and heads) than girls--from birth through old age. And girls’ brains finish growing earlier than boys’. But neither of these findings explains why boys are more active and girls more verbal or reveals a plausible basis for the consistent gaps in their reading, writing and science test scores that have parents and teachers up in arms. [More]"

HUMAN GENOME AT TEN: 5 Breakthroughs, 5 Predictions

HUMAN GENOME AT TEN: 5 Breakthroughs, 5 Predictions: "Ten years after the Human Genome Project's grand achievement, experts hail the advances and share hopes for the next decade. "

How Will American Automakers Meet New Fuel Efficiency Standards?

How Will American Automakers Meet New Fuel Efficiency Standards?: "

This week, a new Ford assembly plant in central Mexico began cranking out a first for Detroit automakers: a "dual clutch" automatic transmission designed to save fuel because it emulates a stick shift, only a computer is at the helm.

Ford is also planning to turn its entire fleet to six-speed transmissions by 2013, bumping up its average miles-per-gallon rating with more exactly calibrated gears. The transmission will be paired with a more efficient engine and will appear next year in the Ford Fiesta, a compact European model the company is reintroducing in the United States after it failed to stick in the 1970s. [More]"