This palm-sized elephant relative was just sighted for the first time in 50 years

 Posted on April 12, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  565 words  |  Fernande Dalal

A teensy animal, with a long nose, a fur tuft on its tail and big, spectacled eyes hadn't been seen in nearly half a century. That is, until a whiff of peanut butter lured the wee mouse-sized mammal out from the rocky, rugged lands of Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. The recently "rediscovered" mammal, called a Somali sengi (Elephantulus revoilii), is a species of elephant shrew. While elephant shrews are related to elephants, aardvarks and manatees — they're not elephants and they're not shrews. [Read More]

Using Creatine: A Muscular Debate

 Posted on April 12, 2023  |  4 minutes  |  844 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

Found naturally in human and animal muscles, creatine also has become a multimillion-dollar seller on the supplement market through promises of building muscles. And it appears to deliver. A number of large trials have shown creatine supplements helping people build muscle . But that may not be enough to recommend its use, some experts say. Creatine may work, but "so does ephedra," said Dr. Catherine Ulbricht, editor of Natural Standard, referring to the supplement that could help people with short-term weight loss but was linked to strokes and heart problems and was ultimately banned by the Food and Drug Administration. [Read More]

Weird 'dog bone' asteroid could be a pile of cosmic rubble

 Posted on April 12, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  478 words  |  Fernande Dalal

(opens in new tab)Astronomers have fetched some cool new views of a dog-bone-shaped asteroid orbiting between Mars and Jupiter.  Kleopatra, better known as the "dog bone asteroid" for its two-lobed shape, is about 167 miles (270 kilometers) long and has its own pair of moons. The new observations suggest that the asteroid is a loosely accumulated pile of rubble that probably formed from debris from a giant impact.  "Kleopatra is truly a unique body in our solar system," [Read More]

'Powerhouse' Produce: Researchers Rank the Top Fruits and Vegetables for Health

 Posted on April 11, 2023  |  1 minutes  |  209 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

Among fruits and vegetables, leafy greens rank as the top "powerhouse" foods, according to a new ranking of produce items based on their nutrient content. Watercress snagged the No. 1 spot, and other leafy greens rank in the top 10, according to the study. [Full story: Watercress Named Top 'Powerhouse' Veggie] To be called a powerhouse, a 100-calorie serving of the food had to provide at least 10 percent, on average, of the daily recommended intake of 17 important nutrients. [Read More]

Could the secret of supermassive black holes lie in ultralight dark matter?

 Posted on April 11, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  480 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Though scientists know there's a supermassive black hole(opens in new tab) at the center of most galaxies, they can't explain how the gravitational giants formed.  But physicists Hooman Davoudiasl, Peter Denton, and Julia Gehrlein of the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York have determined one plausible theory: a "cosmological phase transition" of ultralight dark matter(opens in new tab). According to the team's model, supermassive black holes might have formed as the universe was cooling from its hot, dense state — before the formation of galaxies. [Read More]

How Do I Love Thee? Experts Count 8 Ways

 Posted on April 11, 2023  |  9 minutes  |  1798 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

What is love?While the rest of us trade pink teddy bears and chocolate hearts, some scientists are putting love under the microscope – and the magnetic resonance imaging machine. But what is it they are studying, anyway? For this Valentine's Day, LiveScience decided to ask the experts a question once left to early-'90s chart-topping dance hits: What is love? Here's what they said. An all-encompassing thirstLucy Brown, neuroscientist at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine: [Read More]

Hubble telescope captures stunning image of the star-forming Prawn Nebula

 Posted on April 11, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  323 words  |  Fernande Dalal

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured a stunning view of the Prawn Nebula floating through deep space.  The Prawn Nebula, formally known as IC 4628, is an emission nebula located 6,000 light-years from Earth, in the constellation Scorpius(opens in new tab). Nebulas, or clouds of interstellar gas and dust, form following massive stellar explosions; in turn, this interstellar material gives life to new stars.  Stretching over 250 light-years wide, IC 4628 is believed to be a massive stellar nursery, where new stars are forming. [Read More]

Inventor Spills Wine Secret: Put It in a Blender

 Posted on April 11, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  420 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

BOSTON — Decanting wine is a common tactic among some oenophiles, and involves pouring the drink through an aerator or into a special container to let it "breathe." But inventor and amateur chef Nathan Myhrvold has an even better and faster way: Put it in the blender. This agitates the wine and makes it react with air more quickly, performing the same role as decanting but faster, Myhrvold said in a speech here at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science on Saturday (Feb. [Read More]

Japanese Billionaire Will Be First Lunar Tourist. And He Plans to Invite Artists.

 Posted on April 11, 2023  |  4 minutes  |  688 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Yusaku Maezawa, founder of clothing company ZoZo, will be the first space tourist to travel around the moon, private spaceflight company SpaceX announced tonight (Sept. 17). "Finally, I can tell you that, 'I choose to go to the moon,'" Maezawa said to cheers in the audience during the press briefing. Maezawa added, "Ever since I was a kid, I have loved the moon; just staring at the moon filled my imagination; it is always there and has continued to inspire humanity. [Read More]

Legendary, Persecuted Code-Breaker Alan Turing Finally Recognized for His Achievements

 Posted on April 11, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  389 words  |  Trudie Dory

If it weren't for the legendary World War II code-breaker Alan Turing, the outcome for the Allied forces might have looked very different. The mathematician and computer scientist has been widely credited with hastening the end of the war, thanks to his work decoding German naval messages. But only seven years after the end the war, Turing, who was gay, was convicted of "gross indecency" for his relationship with a 19-year-old man. [Read More]