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Jocelyn Bell Burnell is responsible for one of the most important astrophysics discoveries of the 20th century: the radio pulsar. The discovery, which she made as graduate student, earned a Nobel Prize in 1974. And it could one day form the basis of a "galactic positioning system" for navigating outside our solar system. But Bell Burnell didn't collect the Nobel. Instead, as NPR reported, the award went to her supervisor at the University of Cambridge, Antony Hewish — who had built the necessary radio telescope with her but didn't discover the pulsar. [Read More]

The source of an enormous floating mass of pumice spotted this week in the South Pacific Ocean off the coast of New Zealand has been discovered: NASA satellite images and other sleuthing science have pinpointed an erupting undersea volcano called the Havre Seamount as the culprit. On Aug. 9, the HMNZS Canterbury ship observed the floating pumice "island" — measuring a whopping 300 miles (482 kilometers) in length and more than 30 miles (48 km) wide — along a voyage from Auckland to Raoul Island, New Zealand. [Read More]

Sugar substitutes are found in everything from diet sodas to sugar-free candies, but scientists continue to debate whether these non-sugar sweeteners are really good for you. Now, a new review study suggests sugar substitutes don't seem to be hugely beneficial. Indeed, the researchers conclude there's no "compelling evidence" for important health benefits from non-sugar sweeteners. In their review, the researchers assessed a variety of health outcomes, including body weight, body mass index (BMI), blood sugar levels, eating behavior, heart disease and cancer. [Read More]

If you're used to being tied down to a dial-up or high-speed Internet connection that plugs directly into the back of your PC, switching to a wireless network can be liberating. If you have a laptop, setting up a wireless (or Wi-Fi) network will let you surf the Web, answer emails, or watch Web-based video from wherever you like in your home, so long as it's within the signal range of your wireless router. [Read More]

Good manners and basic social skills such as taking turns are just as important to kids' success in school as a focus on reading, writing and 'rithmetic, a new book suggests. Students should learn charm-school skills alongside the academic subjects that teachers must pass on to meet the demands of the federal No Child Left Behind Act, said co-author Stephen Elliott of Vanderbilt University. The top 10 skills that students need to succeed based on the authors' surveys of more than 8,000 teachers include: * Listen to others * Follow the steps * Follow the rules * Ignore distractions * Ask for help * Take turns when you talk * Get along with others * Stay calm with others * Be responsible for your behavior * Do nice things for others. [Read More]

Wedding RitualsTying the knot in any culture comes with a laundry list of traditions and rituals, including the old rhyme, "something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue." Here are some wedding traditions from around the world that go beyond the white dress and veil. Wardrobe ChangeIn modern China, brides pick not one wedding dress, but three. First, there's the traditional qipao or cheongsam, an embroidered, slim-fitting frock that's usually made red for weddings, because red is a strong, lucky color in Chinese culture. [Read More]

What's in a name?The "Star Wars" universe looms large in the imaginations of generations of moviegoers. Die-hard fans show their devotion in many ways: Some line up for days to catch the movies' very first screenings, some dress in lovingly detailed and painstakingly designed costumes, and others incorporate movie memorabilia into their daily wardrobe and home decoration. But some devoted "Star Wars" fans who also happen to be scientists go one step further, sharing their appreciation for the iconic movie series by giving its characters' names to newly discovered species. [Read More]

Like a giant jellyfish floating through the atmosphere, "red sprites" hover above thunderstorms in two new photographs snapped from space. Astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) captured two rare photographs of red sprites from above on Aug. 10. Red sprites are strange luminous phenomena that occur alongside more familiar lightning strikes. They're rarely seen from the ground because they occur above storms; they're also dim and hard to detect with the naked eye. [Read More]

Valentine's Day is hurtling toward us again like so much extraterrestrial debris — and, to celebrate, the venerable Christie's auction house is selling off a heart-shaped meteorite than rained hell on Siberia several decades ago. The heart-shaped hunk of space iron (dubbed "The Heart of Space" by Christie’s) is one of 45 meteorites going up for online auction from Feb. 6 to 14. While some lots are expected to sell for as little as $500, the Heart of Space could fetch upward of $500,000, according to a news release from Christie's. [Read More]

NEW YORK  – Between the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens is a broad creek tainted by 150 years of pollution. It has received toxins from the petrochemical plants, fertilizer factories and other industries that once flourished along its banks. Oil seeps into it from a 50-acre underground spill nearby. And when heavy rains flood the city's sewer system, raw sewage pours into the water. The Environmental Protection Agency designated the creek a Superfund site in 2010, triggering a lengthy evaluation and cleanup process. [Read More]