Category Archives: Science News

Seeking truth, learning how things work, using that knowledge to make new tools

Olive Threat, Ginkgo Genome

Something’s killing Europe’s olive trees: a bacterium that’s probably spread by insects. Scientists don’t know how to stop the disease, not yet. Other scientists analyzed the Ginkgo genome. What they found helps explain the tree’s remarkable endurance. Olive Quick Decline … Continue reading

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Brain Implants and Rewired Monkeys

Someone from the Netherlands gained a small measure of freedom after learning to use a prototype computer-brain interface. I see that, and experiments with rhesus monkeys, as a good thing. Communication, Compassion, and a Computer-Brain Interface Looking Past the Prototype … Continue reading

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Different Sorts of “Dead”

Deciding who’s dead and who’s not isn’t always easy. But getting the answer right can be a matter of life or death. “Beating Heart Cadavers” Transplants and “The Brain That Wouldn’t Die” Measuring Brain Activity Defining Life and Death “Reanimated … Continue reading

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Near-Earth Asteroids

Scientists spotted 2016 UR36 days before it passed by Earth. “Killer asteroids” headlines notwithstanding, we knew it would miss our planet by a comfortable margin. Sooner or later, though, something big will hit Earth: again. We still can’t prevent that, … Continue reading

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Right-Handedness and Evolving Jaws

At least one Homo habilis was right-handed, about 1,800,000 years ago. It’s the earliest evidence of handedness in humanity’s history. So far. Our jaws may have started out as armor plate, not gill arches. Paleontologists found a second Silurian placoderm … Continue reading

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