Science

The ancient bird, named Elektorornis chenguangi, lived 99 million years ago (Cretaceous period) and had a hyper-elongated third toe. An artist’s reconstruction of Elektorornis chenguangi, showing the possible probing function of the elongate toe. Image credit: Zhongda Zhang. Elektorornis chenguangi belongs to a group of extinct birds called Enantiornithes, the …

A team of scientists at Clemson University has discovered that CYP2B — a key enzyme involved in metabolism, particularly in the detoxification of chemicals in the body — plays a role in obesity and fatty liver disease, especially in males. Heintz et al finds that the repression or inhibition of …

  Fifty years ago yesterday, the Apollo 11 mission took off for the Moon. You can see CBS’s coverage now on YouTube, showcasing not just what happened, but how it happened. It’s the same way you, your parents, or your grandparents saw the event. I am admittedly not much for …

  Conventional wisdom holds that most large galaxies harbor supermassive black holes at their centers. Scientists also believe that only so-called “active” galaxies should have visible accretion disc of matter, but the Hubble Space Telescope has found one around a black hole with unusually low luminosity. This galaxy might bend …

Ghrelin, a hormone synthesized by endocrine cells of the stomach, is known as the ‘hunger hormone’ given its role in increasing appetite, meal initiation and food intake. A new study by researchers from the University of Southern California and University of Florida suggests that ghrelin may also be important for …

A team of physicists from the School of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Glasgow has captured an image of Bell entanglement, a strong form of quantum entanglement. Full-frame single image of Bell entanglement. Scale bar – 1 mm. Image credit: Moreau et al, doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aaw2563. Two particles which …

Insects can enter a neuropathic pain-like state after nerve injury, according to a new study in fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster). Khuong et al offer the first genetic evidence of what causes chronic pain in Drosophila melanogaster. Image credit: Virvoreanu Laurentiu. Chronic pain is defined as persistent pain that continues after …

  Humans tend to think they have a pretty good handle on how the physical world operates, but things get unspeakably weird at the small scale. Particles aren’t always particles, and sometimes those particles (or waves) behave in bizarre, counterintuitive ways. One of the strangest features of physics is quantum …

A team of researchers at the University of Massachusetts Lowell has found that chicken eggshell microparticles inserted into a hydrogel matrix can be used to strengthen bone grown in a lab for use in bone grafts and other procedures. Schematic for the fabrication of the eggshell microparticle-reinforced hydrogels and cell …

Using a technique called cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM), a team of scientists from the United States and Canada has captured atomic-level, 3D images of the Cas9 enzyme before and after cutting the DNA. The images reveal new information about how the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing works, which may help researchers develop versions …