Topics : Science World Report

Apr 05, 2012 12:26 PM EDT

Internet Use Promotes Democracy Best in Countries That Are Already Partially Free

Although use of the internet has been credited with helping spur democratic revolutions in the Arab world and elsewhere, a new multinational study suggests the internet is most likely to play a role only in specific situations.

Apr 05, 2012 11:02 AM EDT

17th Century Dutch Explorers Help the Atlas Reach a Major Milestone -- 30 Million Records

The Atlas of Living Australia added its 30 millionth species occurrence record last week, making it the largest collection of rich information on Australia's plants, animals and fungi.

Apr 05, 2012 10:49 AM EDT

US Students Need New Way of Learning Science

American students need a dramatically new approach to improve how they learn science, says a noted group of scientists and educators led by Michigan State University professor William Schmidt.

Apr 05, 2012 10:08 AM EDT

Ice Sheet Collapse and Sea-level Rise at the Boelling Warming 14,600 Years Ago

International scientists have shown that a dramatic sea-level rise occurred at the onset of the first warm period of the last deglaciation, known as the BÃ¸lling warming, approximately 14,600 years ago. This event, referred to as Melt-Water Pulse 1A (MWP-1A), corresponds to a rapid collapse of mas...

Apr 04, 2012 01:07 PM EDT

Single Baby Boomers Facing Increased Challenges as They Age

Nick and Bobbi Ercoline, the couple depicted on the "Woodstock" soundtrack album cover, have now been happily married for over 40 years. However, a new special issue of The Gerontologist showing the Ercolines as they look today - a portrait of successful aging - finds that their unmarried baby boome...

Apr 04, 2012 11:57 AM EDT

Does Religious Faith Lead to Greater Rewards Here on Earth?

Delayed gratification: People who are good at overcoming their immediate impulses to take small rewards now - in favor of larger rewards down the road - do better in many areas of life, including academic achievement, income, job performance and health. What life experiences develop this ability?

Apr 03, 2012 02:10 PM EDT

Bilingual Children Switch Tasks Faster Than Speakers of a Single Language

Children who grow up learning to speak two languages are better at switching between tasks than are children who learn to speak only one language, according to a study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health. However, the study also found that bilinguals are slower to acquire vocabulary ...

Apr 03, 2012 08:09 AM EDT

Sweden's Largest Facebook Study: A Survey of 1,000 Swedish Facebook Users

The surveyed women spend an average of 81 minutes per day on Facebook, whereas men spend 64 minutes. Low educated groups and low income groups who spend more time on Facebook also report feeling less happy and less content with their lives. This relationship between time spent on Facebook and well-b...

Apr 02, 2012 12:18 PM EDT

Discovery of the First Evidence for Pre-Columbian Sources of Maya Blue

Once again, science and anthropology have teamed up to solve questions concerning the fascinating, brilliantly hued pigment known as Maya Blue. Impervious to the effects of chemical or physical weathering, the pigment was applied to pottery, sculpture, and murals in Mesoamerica largely during the Cl...

Apr 02, 2012 10:52 AM EDT

Ancient Egyptian Cotton Unveils Secrets of Domesticated Crop Evolution

Scientists studying 1,600-year-old cotton from the banks of the Nile have found what they believe is the first evidence that punctuated evolution has occurred in a major crop group within the relatively short history of plant domestication.

Apr 02, 2012 07:47 AM EDT

The Role of Physics in the Sinking of the Titanic

A century on from the sinking of the Titanic, science writer Richard Corfield takes a look at the cascade of events that led to the demise of the 'unsinkable' ship, taking into account the maths and physics that played a significant part.

Apr 02, 2012 07:31 AM EDT

Picky Females Promote Diversity: UBC-IIASA Study

Picky females play a critical role in the survival and diversity of species, according to a Nature study by researchers from the University of British Columbia and the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) in Austria.