Meteorite Holds Proof of Extraterrestrial Life — Or Not
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 534 words
| Patria Henriques
A British professor of astrobiology has asserted in breathless tones that a meteorite found in Sri Lanka contains microscopic biological fossils — indisputable proof, he claims, that life exists beyond Earth. Other scientists, however, have cast doubt on his claim.
Professor Chandra Wickramasinghe, director of the Buckingham Centre for Astrobiology at the University of Buckingham in England, states in an article from the Journal of Cosmology that diatoms — a type of microscopic algae — found in the meteorite are extraterrestrial in origin, the Huffington Post reports.
[Read More]Neanderthals Were Few and Poised for Extinction
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 601 words
| Patria Henriques
Neanderthals are of course extinct. But there never were very many of them, new research concludes.
In fact, new genetic evidence from the remains of six Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) suggests the population hovered at an average of 1,500 females of reproductive age in Europe between 38,000 and 70,000 years ago, with the maximum estimate of 3,500 such female Neanderthals.
"It seems they never really took off in Eurasia in the way modern humans did later,"
[Read More]Nicotine Takes Edge Off Anger
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 542 words
| Fernande Dalal
Smoking to relieve stress is nothing new, but now a brain imaging study shows just how nicotine can blunt our anger response.
People who received half a nicotine patch dose proved less likely to rise to provocation, compared to when they took a placebo. This may support the idea that angry or stressed-out individuals can more easily become addicted to cigarettes, researchers say.
"The findings suggest that people in anger provoking situations may be more susceptible to the effects of nicotine,"
[Read More]Photos: Tour the International Cryptozoology Museum
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 622 words
| Patria Henriques
Loren Coleman, owner of the International Cryptozoology MuseumThe International Cryptozoology Museum is the only museum of its kind in the world. Owner Loren Coleman opened the museum out of the first floor of his home about 10 years ago, but has since moved to a more central location in downtown Portland, Maine, where up to 10,000 visitors flock each year to examine evidence of Bigfoot and other cryptids – the general term for animals whose existences has yet to be substantiated.
[Read More]Rainbow meteorite discovered in Costa Rica may hold building blocks of life
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 504 words
| Arica Deslauriers
A small, soft space rock smacked into Costa Rica on April 23, 2019. And it may have carried building blocks for life.
The washing machine-sized clay fireball broke up before landing, . Locals found shards scattered between two villages, La Palmera and Aguas Zarcas. And while meteorites turn up all over Earth, these shards were special; the asteroid that spawned them was a soft remnant of the early solar system, made from the dust from the spinning nebula that would ultimately form our solar system, formed in even older stars.
[Read More]Treating Gum Disease May Treat Erectile Dysfunction
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 499 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
Better-smelling breath may not be the only way that treating gum disease benefits your sex life, new research says improving the gums may also improve erectile dysfunction.
Previous studies have linked erectile dysfunction (ED) with periodontitis (inflammation of the gums), and now, a new study of patients in Turkey shows that treating periodontitis in affected patients appears to lessen the symptoms of erectile dysfunction after three months.
"To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess a potential link between the severity of ED and the treatment of periodontal disease,"
[Read More]Watch Live: Doomsday Clock 2019 Announcement
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 2 minutes
| 306 words
| Trudie Dory
See moreUpdate on Jan. 24, at 10:30 a.m. — Read about the Doomsday Clock update on Live Science.
On Jan. 24 at 10 a.m. ET, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS) will announce the coming year's changes to an unusual clock with an ominous-sounding name — the Doomsday Clock — and you can watch it all unfold live here on Live Science, or on the BAS website.
Introduced to the world in 1947, this hypothetical timepiece represents how near humanity inches to our utter destruction (symbolized by the stroke of "
[Read More]What is postpartum depression?
Posted on October 13, 2022
| 12 minutes
| 2466 words
| Trudie Dory
(opens in new tab)Postpartum depression is clinically defined as depression following the birth of a child that lasts at least two weeks and interferes with a parent's ability to go about their daily tasks. About 14% of mothers and 4% of fathers experience postpartum depression, according to a 2010 study published in the journal Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
Having a baby is physically grueling and can also be emotionally difficult.
[Read More]'Remarkable' Discovery: Scientists Burn Saltwater
Posted on October 12, 2022
| 2 minutes
| 282 words
| Trudie Dory
ERIE, Pa. (AP)—An Erie cancer researcher has found a way to burn salt water, a novel invention that is being touted by one chemist as the "most remarkable" water science discovery in a century.
John Kanzius happened upon the discovery accidentally when he tried to desalinate seawater with a radio-frequency generator he developed to treat cancer. He discovered that as long as the salt water was exposed to the radio frequencies, it would burn.
[Read More]9 Famous Art Forgers
Posted on October 12, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 997 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
Forgery Artists"To trick the art world has been the primary motivation of nearly all of history's known forgers," writes Noah Charney, a professor and author who specializes in art history and crime, in text for an exhibit focused on one such forger who appears to break this rule.
The subject of a University of Cincinnati exhibit, Mark Landis, is unusual in this regard. Landis says he was first motivated to donate a fake drawing to a museum by a desire to please his mother and honor his father, then became addicted to the VIP treatment he received from museum staff.
[Read More]