Nature : Science World Report

Apr 24, 2012 12:54 PM EDT

PNAS: Precise Molecular Surgery in the Plant Genome

The new method is based on the natural repair mechanism of plants. So-called homologous recombination repairs the genome when the genome strands in the cell break.

Apr 24, 2012 11:55 AM EDT

Molecule Movements that Make Us Think

Every thought, every movement, every heartbeat is controlled by lightning-quick electrical impulses in the brain, the muscles, and the heart. But too much electrical excitability in the membranes of the cells can cause things like epilepsy and cardiac arrhythmia. A research group at LinkÃ¶ping Uni...

Apr 24, 2012 11:37 AM EDT

'Inhabitants of Madrid' Ate Elephantsâ€™ Meat and Bone Marrow 80,000 Years Ago

Humans that populated the banks of the river Manzanares (Madrid, Spain) during the Middle Palaeolithic (between 127,000 and 40,000 years ago) fed themselves on pachyderm meat and bone marrow. This is what a Spanish study shows and has found percussion and cut marks on elephant remains in the site of...

Apr 24, 2012 11:23 AM EDT

Egg-laying Beginning of the End for Dinosaurs

They laid eggs, occupied many ecological niches with only one species and competed with one another. Researchers from the University of Zurich have uncovered the chain of events that led to the extinction of the dinosaurs.

Apr 24, 2012 11:13 AM EDT

First Fruitful, then Futile: Ammonites or the Boon and Bane of Many Offspring

For 300 million years, they were the ultimate survivors. They successfully negotiated three mass extinctions, only to die out eventually at the end of the Cretaceous along with the dinosaurs:

Apr 24, 2012 10:57 AM EDT

Mysterious 'Monster' Discovered by Amateur Paleontologist

Around 450 million years ago, shallow seas covered the Cincinnati region and harbored one very large and now very mysterious organism. Despite its size, no one has ever found a fossil of this "monster" until its discovery by an amateur paleontologist last year.

Apr 24, 2012 08:36 AM EDT

Leeches Are DNA Bloodhounds in the Jungle

Copenhagen Zoo and University of Copenhagen have in collaboration developed a new and revolutionary, yet simple and cheap, method for tracking mammals in the rainforests of Southeast Asia.

Apr 24, 2012 05:53 AM EDT

Worm Turns Sheep Clone to "Good" fat-China Scientists

Chinese scientists have cloned a genetically modified sheep containing a "good" type of fat found naturally in nuts, seeds, fish and leafy greens that helps reduce the risk of heart attacks and cardiovascular disease.

Apr 23, 2012 05:12 PM EDT

Palms Reveal the Significance of Climate Change for Tropical Biodiversity

Scientists at Aarhus University have spearheaded research results that shed new light on the processes forming the composition of species assemblages in the tropics.

Apr 23, 2012 05:05 PM EDT

Bark Beetle Management and Ecology in Southern Pine Forests

Periodic outbreaks of bark beetles can cause annual losses of millions of dollars and pose serious challenges for forest managers, and the suppression of outbreaks is particularly difficult and expensive.

Apr 23, 2012 04:35 PM EDT

Researchers Find Mechanism that Gives Plants 'Balance'

When a plant goes into defense mode in order to protect itself against harsh weather or disease, that's good for the plant, but bad for the farmer growing the plant. Bad because when a plant acts to defend itself, it turns off its growth mechanism.

Apr 23, 2012 01:47 PM EDT

ORNL Microscopy Yields First Proof of Ferroelectricity in Simplest Amino Acid

The boundary between electronics and biology is blurring with the first detection by researchers at Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory of ferroelectric properties in an amino acid called glycine.