Catherine Griffin : Science World Report

Aug 16, 2013 10:31 AM EDT

160 Million-Year-Old Mammal Fossil Reveals Secret to Successful Evolution

Scientists have uncovered a 160 million-year-old fossil of an extinct rodent-like creature from China that reveals how multituberculates, the most evolutionary successful and long-lived mammalian lineage in the fossil record, achieved their dominance.

Aug 16, 2013 09:37 AM EDT

Cosmic Turbulences in 'Dead Zones' Cause Black Holes and Stars to Form

Stars and black holes can form from rotating matter. Yet exactly how they form has long remained one of the big questions of astrophysics. Now, scientists have discovered magnetic fields can cause turbulences within "dead zones," helping them understand just how compact objects form in the cosmos.

Aug 16, 2013 09:19 AM EDT

Burmese Long-Tailed Macaques in Danger: Tool-Using Behavior May Disappear

Burmese long-tailed macaques are smart for monkeys. They use stone tools in order to crack open the hard shells of invertebrates, such as rock oysters, sea snails and crabs. Now, though, this lifestyle may be threatened. It turns out that human farming and the introduction of domestic dogs are posin...

Aug 16, 2013 08:11 AM EDT

NASA Voyager 1 Finally Leaves Solar System...Again

Voyager 1, the spacecraft currently travelling toward the far reaches of space, may have finally left our solar system. Scientists have announced that the craft has officially entered interstellar space, which could mean big news for researchers.

Aug 15, 2013 01:48 PM EDT

Smart Windows Block Heat and Provide Light with New Nanocrystals

You wouldn't necessarily think that windows are "smart." But they certainly can be, especially with the new material that scientists have developed. The newly created windows have the ability to provide selective control over visible light and heat-producing near-infrared (NIR) light.

Aug 15, 2013 11:35 AM EDT

The Origins of Cancer: Scientists Target Tumor Development

Tumors develop through a variety of processes. Now, researchers have created the first comprehensive compendium of mutational processes that drive this development. In fact, these listed processes explain most mutations found in 30 of the most common cancer types, paving the way to treating and prev...

Aug 15, 2013 10:39 AM EDT

Hubble Looks 11 Billion Years Back in Time to Explore Distant Galaxies

Hubble has taken a look back in time to catch a glimpse of how galaxies form. The instrument has examined the universe 11 billion years ago in order to explore the anatomy of distant galaxies, revealing a little bit more about these ancient systems.

Aug 15, 2013 09:47 AM EDT

Extreme Weather Events Fuel Climate Change: Drought Impacts the Carbon Cycle

Extreme weather events can sweep across our globe, greatly impacting climates and areas where they occur. Now, scientists have examined how sweltering heat and drought can have future effects, and they've discovered that these extreme weather events can help fuel climate change.

Aug 15, 2013 08:51 AM EDT

Physicists Teleport Information Over Electronic Circuit: Quantum Physics

Teleporting mass is something that you may only see in a science fiction movie. Teleporting information, though, is a completely different matter. For the first time, scientists have managed to teleport information in an electronic circuit, similar to a computer chip.

Aug 15, 2013 07:54 AM EDT

NASA Astronomers Catch Dwarf Galaxy Ramming into Large Spiral in Massive Collision

NASA astronomers have caught a dwarf galaxy in the act of ramming into a large spiral galaxy. The resulting collision is spawning a massive cloud of multimillion-degree gas, revealing for the first time how galaxies interact by crashing into one another.

Aug 15, 2013 07:14 AM EDT

Earth Orbit's Wobble Key to West Antarctic Warming in Last Ice Age

Earth's orbit can drastically affect our planet's climate. In fact, the wobbly nature of its path can cause our planet's ice ages. Now, though, scientists are uncovering a little bit more about the Northern Hemisphere's last ice age. It turns out that Antarctic warming began at least two, and perhap...

Aug 15, 2013 07:03 AM EDT

Star Reveals Magnetic Field Around Milky Way's Supermassive Black Hole

Astronomers have found something new in the center of our Milky Way Galaxy--a magnetar that has an extremely strong magnetic field. This pulsar has now allowed researchers to investigate the direct vicinity of the black hole at the center of our galaxy, revealing a little bit more about it.