Hobbyist DNA services may be open to genetic hacking
With the growth of home DNA testing, online services such as GEDMatch, MyHeritage and FamilyTreeDNA have become popular places for people to upload their...
Scientists pinpoint neural activity’s role in human longevity
Neural excitation linked to shorter life, while suppression of overactivity appears to extend life span.
The brain’s neural activity — long implicated in disorders ranging...
‘Short sleep’ gene could protect memory function from sleep deprivation
In a new study, researchers found a gene that's ever been shown to prevent the memory deficits that normally accompany sleep deprivation.
This gene is...
Scientists discover molecule that could have helped cells thrive on early Earth
Compounds called cyclophospholipids would have held up against the planet’s harsh conditions, helping the first cells form and proliferate.
To truly understand how the body...
Researchers discover new antibiotic in tropical forest
In a new study, researchers have discovered an antibiotic produced by a soil bacterium from a Mexican tropical forest.
The new finding may help lead...
New graphene filter could remove bacteria from the air
Airborne bacteria may see what looks like a comfy shag carpet on which to settle.
But it's a trap.
Rice University scientists have transformed their laser-induced...
Plants could alert neighbors when they come under attack from pests
There’s long been a theory that talking to plants can help them grow better.
But what if plants themselves could “talk” to each other?
New research...
Scientists detect Golden Ratio in human skulls
The Golden Ratio, described by Leonardo da Vinci and Luca Pacioli as the Divine Proportion, is an infinite number often found in nature, art...
Female orgasm is evolution’s happy gift
Aristotle was puzzled. Freud had his own ideas.
But no one theory has satisfactorily answered the question: Why do women have orgasms?
Orgasms in human females...
Life’s building blocks may have formed in interstellar clouds
An experiment shows that one of the basic units of life -- nucleobases -- could have originated within giant gas clouds interspersed between the...