David Gelernter, a pioneering computer scientist, foresaw the modern internet but thinks computers are still too hard to use
When the sun really acts up, spewing out heaps of charged particles in a burst called a coronal mass ejection, space weather can get menacing—and future storms could be even worse than the ones we’ve experienced. Solar storms can damage power grids, fry communications satellites and disrupt aircraft electronics. A few oft-cited historical examples: a…
Archaeologists develop large-scale method to identify ancient human settlements.
The discovery of a giant meat-eating dinosaur sporting a downy coat has some scientists reimagining the look of Tyrannosaurus rex. With a killer jaw and sharp claws, T. rex has long been depicted in movies and popular culture as having scaly skin. But the discovery of an earlier relative suggests the king of dinosaurs may…
Why do some persons succumb to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) while others who suffered the same ordeal do not? UCLA scientists have linked two genes involved in serotonin production to a higher risk of developing PTSD. Published in the online edition of the Journal of Affective Disorders, the findings suggest that susceptibility to PTSD is…
Fundamental particles are the building blocks of matter, and, apparently, come in many more flavors than the basic few that make up the atoms we’re familiar with. Flavor is the name scientists give to different versions of the same type of particle. For instance, quarks (which make up the protons and neutrons inside atoms) come…
Alpha Centauri—the star system closest to our sun and the inspiration for legions of science fiction writers—harbors at least one planet and probably more, astronomers announced. The planet orbits very close to Alpha Centauri B—the smaller of two paired stars—and likely has a lava-like consistency to show for it, scientists said. As such, the new…