Researchers have discovered the genetic controls that cause trees to stop growing and go dormant in the fall, as well as the mechanism that causes them to begin flowering and produce seeds – a major step forward in understanding the basic genetics of tree growth.
The findings were made by scientists from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Oregon State University and two other institutions, and published in the journal Science. They represent a significant fundamental
Variations in the strength of the sun have played a major role in glacial fluctuations in the tropical Andes for hundreds of years, and combined with current greenhouse gases generated by humans, paint an alarming picture for tropical glaciers in the near future.
A study conducted in part by the University of Alberta in Edmonton, along with the universities of Massachusetts, Pittsburgh, Barcelona and Caracas, shows that even modest natural variations of solar radiation in the Ve
“Printing” on the micrometer scale is the technology of the future for the production of the electronic components used for such things as flat-screen monitors or (bio)sensors. Metal surfaces a few tens of square centimeters in size can already be structured without much experimental difficulty through a combination of microcontact printing and an etching process. Researchers are currently working to develop a simple production technology that is also broadly applicable for large surfaces. A team a
Comfortable living is not why so many different life forms seem to converge at the warmer areas of the planet.
Writing this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists say higher temperatures near the equator speed up the metabolisms of the inhabitants, fueling genetic changes that actually lead to the creation of new species.
The finding – by researchers from the University of Florida, the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis
Study suggests retargeting efforts to slow or stop neural cell loss in the neurodegenerative disorder
Researchers at UC Irvine have shown that different forms of amyloid beta lead to neural damage in different ways, leading to an increasingly complex view of amyloid toxicity in the Alzheimer brain. The finding could modify the way therapeutic approaches for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease are designed.
The researchers studied the effects of different forms of the
Researchers evaluated the effects stress, depression and cortisol
Caregivers of people under psychological or physical stress, as well as those with the conditions themselves, should not overlook their oral health, according to a new study printed in the Journal of Periodontology.
The results from the study suggest that being a caregiver to relatives with dementia, hypercortisolemia (overproduction of cortisol) or stress were associated with elevated plaque levels and inc
Little-known disorder may affect as much as 2 percent of the population, studies suggest
Researchers at Harvard University and University College London have developed diagnostic tests for prosopagnosia, a socially disabling inability to recognize or distinguish faces. They’ve already used the new test and a related web site (www.faceblind.org) to identify hundreds of “face-blind” individuals, far more than scientists had identified previously.
The researchers, led
Arctic ice formed about 45 million years ago – roughly 14 million years ahead of previous predictions – according to new research published in Nature. An international team of scientists, including Brown geologist Steven Clemens, says this startling evidence shows that glaciers formed in tandem at Earth’s poles, providing important insights into global climate change.
For the first time, scientists have pulled up prehistoric geologic records from the frigid vault of the Arct
Researchers identify common sequence differences in human DNA that confer genetic susceptibility to lung cancer
In the largest genome-wide scan for lung cancer-susceptibility genes to date, scientists from The Institute of Cancer Research have identified 64 gene variants that may predispose some individuals to lung cancer. These genetic variants are known as “low-penetrance alleles” because they only occasionally stimulate tumor development. The study, which appears today in the sc
Ecosystems containing many different plant species are not only more productive, they are also better able to withstand and recover from climate extremes, pests and disease over long periods of time.
These findings, published in the June 1 issue of Nature, are the culmination of 12 years of experiments conducted by David Tilman, Regents Professor of Ecology at the University of Minnesota, to explore the value of biodiversity. The research was carried out at Cedar Creek Natural H
Enceladus, a small icy moon of Saturn, may have dramatically reoriented relative to its axis of rotation, rolling over to put an area of low density at the moon’s south pole. According to a new study, this reorientation process could explain the polar location of a region where NASA’s Cassini spacecraft recently observed icy jets and plumes indicating active geysers of water vapor spewing from the moon’s surface.
“When we saw the Cassini results, we were surprised t
Possible presence of companion star
Nearly 30 years after launch, the two Voyager spacecraft are still operational and returning useful data. In their early years they produced some of the first close up images of the large outer planets. Now as the two vehicles, flying in slightly different directions, near the edge of the solar system, they are providing clues on the shape of heliosphere, and quite possibly, the direction of the solar system through local space.
The
New report in Nature maps subsidence, addresses flooding in New Orleans
Most of New Orleans is sinking at an average rate of 6mm a year. In some areas, subsidence is occurring at a rate of as much as 29mm/year. That’s according to research published in this week’s edition of the journal Nature by scientists from the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. Titled, “Subsidence and Flooding in New Orleans,” the authors conclude that when
Key findings published in Nature
A group of ocean-drilling research scientists that explored the Arctic Ocean subseafloor in Fall 2004 have released new findings in a report to be published in Nature on June 1. The report, supported by Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) research operations, contains analyses of subseafloor sediment samples gathered from 430 meters beneath the Arctic Ocean, near the North Pole. To recover the sediments that yielded the prehistoric climate reco
In a scrambled Rubik’s cube, colorful squares clash without order. As pieces click into place in the hands of a skilled puzzle solver, the individual characters of squares dissolve as solid faces of uniform color emerge.
In the same way, barium copper silicate-also known as ’’Han Purple,’’ a vivid pigment used in ancient China-transforms from a nonmagnetic, disordered insulator into a magnetic, ordered condensate under conditions of extreme cold and hi
Imagining things from another’s perspective may help in making medical choices
If a deadly bird flu reaches America, which would you choose: To get a risky experimental vaccine now, or to forego that risk but face an even greater risk of dying in the epidemic? What would you choose for your child? What if you were in charge of public health for your community?
A new study probes how we make such tricky decisions, and how our decisions might change dramatically i
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