North America Has Only 1 True Species of Wolf, DNA Shows

 Posted on November 21, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  775 words  |  Trudie Dory

DNA tests of wolves across North America suggest that there is just one species of the canid: the gray wolf. What's more, populations of red wolves and eastern wolves, thought to be distinct species, are actually just hybrids of gray wolves and coyotes that likely emerged in the last couple hundred years, the study found. The findings, published in the journal Science Advances on Wednesday (July 27), could have implications for the conservation of wolves considered endangered in the United States, the researchers say. [Read More]

Now Hear This: Ancient Amphitheater Acoustics Weren't So Great After All

 Posted on November 21, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  515 words  |  Trudie Dory

If you were sitting in the upper rows of the ancient Greek amphitheater of Epidaurus 2,300 years ago, could you have heard the whisper of an actor's sigh, or the crackle of a match as it flared to life, as accounts have claimed? Probably not, according to a new study. Despite extravagant descriptions of amphitheaters' superior sound quality, these impressive-looking open-air theaters from the ancient world may not have been acoustic marvels after all. [Read More]

Pet Store Puppies Tied to New Outbreak of Drug-Resistant Bacteria

 Posted on November 21, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  379 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Sure, that puppy in the window is cute, but the little furball might make you sick — puppies sold in pet stores have been linked with a new outbreak of a multidrug-resistant bacterial infection, according to health officials. This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that it is investigating an outbreak of Campylobacter — a type of bacteria that causes diarrhea — that is linked with pet store puppies. [Read More]

Rotting Balls of Fish Flesh Invade Salton Sea's Shores

 Posted on November 21, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  732 words  |  Trudie Dory

DENVER — Boneyard beaches littered with dead tilapia line the shores of California's Salton Sea. Thousands of fish die here every year, suffocated when winds stir up low-oxygen water from the lake depths. A fascinating and foul discovery on the skeleton-clad shores recently revealed the fate of the rest of the fish remains. Their flesh drops to the lake floor, where anaerobic bacteria transforms it into adipocere, also known as corpse wax, researchers from Kutztown University in Pennsylvania reported here Monday (Oct. [Read More]

SpaceX

 Posted on November 21, 2022  |  1 minutes  |  44 words  |  Fernande Dalal

SpaceX Inspiration4 astronauts return to Earth with historic splashdown off Florida coast

By Amy Thompson published 19 September 21

After three days in space, SpaceX's first all-civilian crew returned to Earth tonight, splashing down off the Florida coast to end a historic mission.

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The Secret of Fast Horses

 Posted on November 21, 2022  |  2 minutes  |  251 words  |  Trudie Dory

The secret behind the fastest thoroughbreds doesn't make a lot of horse sense. A great racehorse is more than just quick footed -- it must also be rather average. "A horse's leg resembles a pogo stick that uses energy stored in the muscles and tendons to propel the animal forwards and upwards," says Alan Wilson of the Royal Veterinary College in the UK. "Fast horses can bring their legs forward quickly in preparation for the next stride but that this is more difficult and therefore slower for large and long-legged horses. [Read More]

What Happens When an Astronaut Sneezes?

 Posted on November 21, 2022  |  1 minutes  |  210 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Best to do the sneezing inside a shuttle or the space station, not on a spacewalk, when it can get real messy, with goo sprayed all over the inside of the helmet's "windshield." Lately astronauts have been complaining about stuffy heads up there on the International Space Station. NASA doesn't think they have colds, though. Rather, the effects have more to do with pockets of carbon dioxide generated when they gather in groups, space station flight controller Heather Rarick said. [Read More]

1st matter in the universe may have been a perfect liquid

 Posted on November 20, 2022  |  3 minutes  |  485 words  |  Fernande Dalal

Smashing together lead particles at 99.9999991% the speed of the light, scientists have recreated the first matter that appeared after the Big Bang.  Out of the wreck came a primordial type of matter known as quark-gluon plasma, or QGP. It only lasted a fraction of a second, but for the first time, scientists were able to probe the plasma's liquid-like characteristics — finding it to have less resistance to flow than any other known substance — and determine how it evolved in the first moments in the early universe. [Read More]

Addiction Changes Brain Biology in 3 Stages, Experts Say

 Posted on November 20, 2022  |  5 minutes  |  1062 words  |  Patria Henriques

Experts who research addiction have long argued that it is a disease of the brain. Now, in a new paper, they present a model of addiction, broken down into three key stages, to illustrate how the condition changes human neurobiology. Essentially, each of these three phases affects the brain in a unique way, according to the review of studies, published today (Jan. 27) in The New England Journal of Medicine. These brain changes, in turn, affect a person's behavior, altering both the way they react to stress and their ability to control certain actions, the authors propose. [Read More]

Brain Scans Predict Subjective Beauty

 Posted on November 20, 2022  |  4 minutes  |  806 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

When we find something aesthetically pleasing, the sensory areas of the brain light up, and the more beautiful we find, say, a piece of art,  the greater the brain activity in certain regions, a new study shows. By further investigating the connection between humans' subjective preferences and brain activity, scientists will someday be able to pinpoint various characteristics that make a painting, musical number or other sensory experience beautiful, researchers said. [Read More]