The Grand Canyon: How Old is It?
Posted on September 8, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 935 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
The Grand Canyon seems to be fixed in time, but it is hardly permanent, and lately, neither are geologists' estimates for its age, sparking what one scientist calls "the Grand Canyon Wars."
While a recent study in the journal Science suggested that the Grand Canyon was about 16 million to 17 million years old (much older than previously thought), a new study, detailed in the journal Geology, argues that geological evidence still supports the long-standing age of 6 million years.
[Read More]Viking Jewelry Unearthed in Denmark
Posted on September 8, 2022
| 5 minutes
| 910 words
| Fernande Dalal
Several pieces of Viking jewelry, some of which contain gold, have been uncovered at a farm site in Denmark that dates as far back as 1,300 years.
Although the Vikings have a popular reputation as being raiders, they were also farmers, traders and explorers, and the craftsmanship seen in this jewelry demonstrates their artistic skills.
Archaeologists working with volunteers used metal detectors to find the jewelry in different spots throughout a farmstead on Zealand, the largest island in Denmark.
[Read More]Why an Australian COVID-19 vaccine caused false-positive HIV tests
Posted on September 8, 2022
| 2 minutes
| 284 words
| Fernande Dalal
An Australian COVID-19 vaccine that had shown promising results in early trials is being abandoned after researchers found that the shot caused false-positive results on HIV tests.
On Friday (Dec. 11), Australian officials said they had canceled an order for some 51 million doses of the vaccine, which was being developed by The University of Queensland and CSL Ltd., a local biotech company, according to The New York Times.
In an early trial with 216 participants, the vaccine appeared to be safe and to produce a robust immune response against COVID-19, according to a statement from CSL.
[Read More]'Grandma' killer whale missing from pod, feared dead
Posted on September 7, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 452 words
| Mittie Cheatwood
An aging killer whale "grandmother" in a large, extended orca family in the northeastern Pacific Ocean hasn't been seen in months and is thought to have died.
The orca (Orcinus orca), known as L47, was one of the most prolific females in the Southern Resident clan; she gave birth to seven calves that lived long enough to receive their own alphanumeric "names," more than any other Southern Resident female has produced, representatives of the Center for Whale Research (CWR) said in a statement.
[Read More]'Kangaroo Care' May Have Lasting Benefits for Human Babies
Posted on September 7, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 482 words
| Trudie Dory
For babies born prematurely, being held in their parents' arms, directly against their skin, for a few hours per day is believed to enhance development. Now, new research that followed children until age 10 suggests that the benefits of such skin-to-skin contact may be longer-lasting than previously thought.
In the study, the researchers asked 73 mothers to give their babies skin-to-skin contact for one hour per day for two weeks.For comparison, the researchers also looked at 73 premature infants who only spent time in an incubator — the standard form of care for premature infants.
[Read More]6 Ways Apple Messed Up Its T. Rex Emoji
Posted on September 7, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 482 words
| Trudie Dory
Apple's new green-and-toothy Tyrannosaurus rex emoji may be cute, but its anatomy is wildly inaccurate, a paleontologist told Live Science.
For starters, its lower teeth shouldn't be visible, and its ear and nostril are in the wrong places, said Thomas Carr, a vertebrate paleontologist and an associate professor of biology at Carthage College in Wisconsin.
Carr would know: He's helped describe several tyrannosaurs — including Daspletosaurus horneri, Teratophoneus curriei, Bistahieversor sealeyi and Appalachiosaurus montgomeriensis — all of which lived during the late Cretaceous period, before the 6-mile-wide (10 kilometers) asteroid slammed into Earth, killing the nonavian dinosaurs.
[Read More]6,500-Year-Old 'Noah' Skeleton Discovered in Museum Basement
Posted on September 7, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 561 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Scientists at the Penn Museum in Philadelphia are quite literally cleaning the skeletons out of their closets. Museum staff recently rediscovered a 6,500-year- old human skeleton that's been boxed up in the basement for 85 years.
Tucked away in a storeroom, the wooden box had no identifying numbers or catalog card. But a recent effort to digitalize some of the museum's old records brought forth new information about the mysterious box's history and the skeleton, nicknamed "
[Read More]Bizarre Dinosaur Had 4 'Wings,' Long Tail Feathers
Posted on September 7, 2022
| 3 minutes
| 634 words
| Patria Henriques
The largest "four-winged" dinosaur known has been found, and this predator has the longest feathers yet outside of birds, researchers say. This new finding yields insights on how dinosaurs may have flown, the scientists added.
The 125-million-year-old feathered dinosaur, named Changyuraptor yangi, sported feathers over its body, including its arms and legs, which made it look as if it had two pairs of wings. Its fossil was unearthed in 2012 in Liaoning province in northeastern China, which has been the center of a surge of discoveries of feathered dinosaurs over the last decade.
[Read More]Cell Phone Radiation Suckers
Posted on September 7, 2022
| 4 minutes
| 683 words
| Arica Deslauriers
Worried about cell phones causing cancer? Most doctors aren't, but if that doesn't ease your mind, a company called Aulterra has a device to neutralize cell phone radiation.
The inch-wide circular patch called the Aulterra Neutralizer contains, according to the website, a "homeopathically activated combination of natural paramagnetic and diamagnetic elements," which you stick on your cell phone to nullify radio waves otherwise destined for your brain.
The Aulterra Neutralizer sells in packs of three for $25 on the Web and at health-conscious stores such as Whole Foods, where the clientele—at least according to market research—is said to possess above-average intelligence.
[Read More]Dark Meat Can Be Heart Healthy, Study Shows
Posted on September 7, 2022
| 4 minutes
| 671 words
| Patria Henriques
Fear not the dark side. Dark meat in poultry is healthier than you might think, according to a new study by researchers at the New York University School of Medicine.
A nutrient called taurine, found abundantly in poultry dark meat, significantly lowered the risk of coronary heart disease in women with high cholesterol, the study revealed. The researchers said that taurine also might help protect against diabetes and high blood pressure.
[Read More]