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Saturday, February 8, 2014

ScienceDaily: Top Science News

ScienceDaily: Top Science News


Social or stinky? New study reveals how animal defenses evolve

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 12:13 PM PST

Some animals are "eww" while others are "aww." Why do some animals use stinking secretions for defense, while others are social? In a new study, researchers found that noxious spraying was favored by animals that were nocturnal and mostly at risk from other animals, while sociality was favored by animals that were active during the day and potentially vulnerable to birds of prey.

Europe's oldest footprints uncovered on English coast

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 10:45 AM PST

The earliest human footprints outside of Africa have been uncovered, on the English coast, by a team of scientists. Their discovery offers researchers an insight into the migration of pre-historic people hundreds of thousands of years ago when Britain was linked by land to continental Europe.

'Steak-knife' teeth reveal ecology of oldest land predators

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:39 AM PST

The first top predators to walk on land were not afraid to bite off more than they could chew, a study has found. Researchers suggest that Dimetrodon, a carnivore that walked on land between 298 million and 272 million years ago, was the first terrestrial vertebrate to develop serrated ziphodont teeth.

Opening 'the X-files' helped researchers to understand why women and men differ in height

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:38 AM PST

Given its unique nature, the X chromosome has often been neglected when performing large-scale genetic studies. Because women have two copies of this chromosome and men only one, identifying genetic associations with X chromosomal genes can be particularly valuable in helping us to understand why some characteristics differ between sexes. Researchers have now identified novel X-chromosomal genetic variants that influence human height.

Fish biomass in the ocean may be 10 times higher than estimated: Stock of mesopelagic fish changes from 1,000 to 10,000 million tons

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:38 AM PST

With a stock estimated at 1,000 million tons so far, mesopelagic fish dominate the total biomass of fish in the ocean. However, scientists have found that their abundance could be at least 10 times higher. The results are based on the acoustic observations conducted during the circumnavigation of the Malaspina Expedition.

Click chemistry could provide total chemical DNA synthesis, study shows

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:38 AM PST

An interdisciplinary study has shown for the first time that 'click chemistry' can be used to assemble DNA that is functional in human cells, which paves the way for a purely chemical method for gene synthesis. Human cells can still read through strands of DNA correctly despite being stitched together using a linker not found in nature.

Toxin in seafood causes kidney damage in mice at levels considered safe for consumption

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:36 AM PST

Domoic acid accumulates in seafood and is toxic to the brain. Research indicates that the toxin damages kidneys at concentrations that are 100 times lower than what causes neurological effects.

Substance in photosynthesis was in play in ancient, methane-producing microbes

Posted: 07 Feb 2014 05:36 AM PST

A process that turns on photosynthesis in plants likely developed on Earth in ancient microbes 2.5 billion years ago, long before oxygen became available, according to new research.

Study shows yogurt consumption reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes

Posted: 05 Feb 2014 03:47 PM PST

New research shows that higher consumption of yogurt, compared with no consumption, can reduce the risk of new-onset type 2 diabetes by 28 percent. Scientists found that in fact higher consumption of low-fat fermented dairy products, which include all yogurt varieties and some low-fat cheeses, also reduced the relative risk of diabetes by 24 percent overall.

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