Recent Entries

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Jupiter Scar Likely from Titanic-Sized Asteroid

A hurtling asteroid about the size of the Titanic caused the scar that appeared in Jupiter's atmosphere on July 19, 2009, according to two papers published recently in the journal Icarus.

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Study shows canid is 'wolf in jackal's clothing'

DNA analysis has shown that the Egyptian jackal, previously believed to be a subspecies of the golden jackal, is a relative of the grey wolf.

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The lost tribe staring extinction in the face

Extraordinary new pictures of life in the depths of the Amazon jungle

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New Prehistoric Crocodile Found in "Kitchen Counters"

Fossils found in limestone slabs once destined for Italian homes.

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Quantum Entanglement Could Stretch Across Time

In the weird world of quantum physics, two linked particles can share a single fate, even when they’re miles apart.

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Thunderstorms Make Antimatter

Scientists using NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope have detected beams of antimatter produced above thunderstorms on Earth, a phenomenon never seen before.

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Explorers discover spectacular caves in Vietnam

For decades, geologists have known that Vietnam is home to some of the world's most spectacular caves, many of them largely unexplored. Now husband-and-wife cavers have documented perhaps the world's largest: Hang Son Doong, big enough in places to accommodate a New York City block of skyscrapers.

The cave in the Annamite Mountains contains a river and jungle (its name translates to "mountain river cave") and even its own thin clouds, and its end remains out of sight. It's part of a network of about 150 caves in central Vietnam near the Laotian border.

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Three Billion-Year-Old Genomic Fossils Deciphered

About 580 million years ago, life on Earth began a rapid period of change called the Cambrian Explosion, a period defined by the birth of new life forms over many millions of years that ultimately helped bring about the modern diversity of animals. Fossils help palaeontologists chronicle the evolution of life since then, but drawing a picture of life during the 3 billion years that preceded the Cambrian Period is challenging, because the soft-bodied Precambrian cells rarely left fossil imprints. However, those early life forms did leave behind one abundant microscopic fossil: DNA.

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ecs,
news

Mom's Voice Plays Special Role in Activating Newborn's Brain

A mother's voice will preferentially activate the parts of the brain responsible for language learning, say researchers from the University of Montreal and the Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre. The research team made the discovery after performing electrical recordings on the infants within the 24 hours following their birth.

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history,
news

The Mesopotamish sun is beating down

Mysteries of Mesopotamia: The Medicine and Magic

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Best Art in the Universe? Hubble 2010

Hubble Space Telescope's Amazing Pics From 2010

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Nasa captures stunning images of the far side of the moon

The images, which were taken by NASA’s Lunar Reconaissance Orbiter (LRO), have boosted the resolution of images of the far side of the moon over 100 times.

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Ancient Forest Emerges Mummified from the Arctic: Clues to Future Warming Impact

The northernmost mummified forest ever found in Canada is revealing how plants struggled to endure a long-ago global cooling.

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Solar Tsunami

Stunning 'solar tsunami' gives scientists new clues about what makes the sun explode.

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Possible Ice Volcano Spied on Titan

Scientists said Tuesday they have found the best evidence yet of ice volcanoes on Saturn's giant moon Titan. Unlike volcanoes on Earth, such a volcano on Titan may spew ice and hydrocarbons instead of molten lava.

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Fish 'extinct' for 70 years found thriving

The black kokanee, or "kunimasu" in Japanese, was thought to have died out in 1940, when a hydroelectric project made its native lake in northern Akita Prefecture more acidic.

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local

2011 Japanese sword fighting skills & Test cutting demonstration

The SFNS or San Francisco Nipponto ( Japanese Sword ) Society members will be performing the Tameshi-giri ( Test cutting ) & Ken-jitsu ( Japanese sword fighting skills ) demonstration, including the Batto-jitsu ( Sword drawing skills ) during the annual Cherry Blossom Festival Grand Parade in April, 2011.

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random,
silly

Ninja Fail

Clerk Fends Off Machete-Wielding Robber -- With Feather Duster

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movies

'The Hobbit' Is Making Room for Some 'Lord of the Rings' Characters

"Lord of the Rings" director Peter Jackson's long-awaited film(s) of "The Hobbit" -- it'll be broken up into two movies -- will finally start shooting in February, which means he needs to nail down his cast for this adaptation of the J.R.R. Tolkien book that preceded "Rings." And this week it was announced that two big stars from the "Rings" trilogy were set to reprise their elven roles in "The Hobbit": Cate Blanchett and Orlando Bloom. That seemed like good news, but then we realized something: Their characters aren't even in Tolkien's book. So why are they going to be in the movie?

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ecs,
news

Mommy Thumb

Although the condition has been around as long as parents have hoisted their children, doctors say a combination of heavier children, older new mothers, cribs that are lower to the floor and frequent scrolling and typing on smartphones has sent the number of cases skyward.