Medical research in the U.K. is being jeopardized by activists who have persuaded transport companies to stop importing mice, rats and rabbits for scientific experiments, a former British science minister says. The boycott affects only a tiny proportion of laboratory animals, but scientists say these particular animals are the most important ones for their research….
Studies suggest that cumulative culture is unique to people, and that collaborative learning may be the key to human advancement. But precisely where to draw the lines for culture remains unclear
Americans are less likely to believe in man-made climate change as economic conditions get tougher, new research shows. Lyle Scruggs, associate professor of political science at the University of Connecticut, says the public’s belief in climate change dropped significantly as the economy dipped and unemployment climbed in the late 2000s. And the suddenness and timing…
Targeting “messenger RNAs” may correct mutations in human mitochondrial DNA, experts at UCLA say. Currently, there is no way to successfully repair or compensate for these mutations in the human mitochondrial genome, implicated in neuromuscular diseases, metabolic defects and aging. The findings could lead to a form of gene therapy.
Russian and South Korea scientists have teamed up to recreate a woolly mammoth – a prehistoric creature that last walked the earth some 4,500 years ago. The teams aim to get to work on thawed remains of the extinct mammal recovered after global warming thawed Siberia’s permafrost. The mammoth’s tissues are to be cloned by…
Extended space travel can cause eye and brain abnormalities in astronauts, researchers have found. For the study, published online in the journal Radiology, investigators used MRI scans to examine the eyes and brains of 27 astronauts who spent an average of 108 days in space aboard the space shuttle and/or the International Space Station. Eight…
What if it is too late to save the climate by cutting greenhouse gas emissions? What if the amount of carbon dioxide already added to the atmosphere by human activity is so great that it is going to produce big temperature changes no matter what, with big shifts in rainfall and in ocean chemistry? Options…
When men get stressed, their bodies get more revved up than women’s. Now, two Australian researchers have a theory as to why — and it all boils down to a single gene. The classic “fight-or-fight” response to stress is controlled by the sympathetic nervous system — the part of our nervous system that deals with…
Use your brain to control the world. That’s the promise of the brain-machine interface, a system that directly translates your thoughts into actions. At the South by Southwest Interactive conference, Julian Bleecker and Nicolas Nova, technologists from the Near Future Laboratory, have showed how popular culture has explored the possibilities of the devices—for both good…
Continued inefficient use of water could threaten Europe’s economy, productivity and ecosystems, a report has warned. The European Environment Agency (EEA) said that the continent’s water resources were under pressure and things were getting worse. It said limited supplies were being wasted, and nations had to implement existing legislation more effectively.