ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Ancient environment found to drive marine biodiversity
• Climate sensitivity to CO2 more limited than extreme projections
• Spiders, webs and insects: A new perspective on evolutionary history
• Researchers decode a puzzling movement disorder
• Scientists unlock the mystery surrounding a tale of shaggy dogs
• Astronomers take a photograph of the youngest supernova right after its explosion
• Playing music alters the processing of multiple sensory stimuli in the brain
• The ABCC9 of sleep: A genetic factor regulates how long we sleep
• Development of the brain network in the fetus now measurable for the first time in the womb
• Scientists turn on fountain of youth in yeast
• Possible therapy for radiation sickness identified
• Happy, feel-good holiday seasons start with healthy choices at Thanksgiving, nutrition experts say

Ancient environment found to drive marine biodiversity Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:08 PM PST Much of our knowledge about past life has come from the fossil record -- but how accurately does that reflect the true history and drivers of biodiversity on Earth?

Climate sensitivity to CO2 more limited than extreme projections Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:08 PM PST The rate of global warming from doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide may be less than the most dire estimates of some previous studies – and, in fact, may be less severe than projected by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report in 2007. Researchers say that global warming is real and that increases in atmospheric CO2 will have multiple serious impacts. However, the most Draconian projections of temperature increases from the doubling of CO2 are unlikely.

Spiders, webs and insects: A new perspective on evolutionary history Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:07 PM PST The orb web, typical of a large number of spider species, has a single evolutionary origin, according to molecular phylogenetic research. The study presents the hypothesis that the diversification of spider webs is motivated by the need to occupy new natural habitats (trunks, stems, etc.) and to make more efficient use of natural resources.

Researchers decode a puzzling movement disorder Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:07 PM PST Neurodegenerative diseases represent one of the greatest challenges of our aging society. However, investigation into these diseases is made particularly difficult due to the limited availability of human brain tissue. Scientists have now taken a roundabout path: They reprogrammed skin cells from patients with a hereditary movement disorder into so-called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells) and obtained functional nerve cells from them. They subsequently decoded how the disease arises.

Scientists unlock the mystery surrounding a tale of shaggy dogs Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:03 PM PST Researchers have produced the first clear evidence that textiles made by the indigenous population of the Pacific coast of North America contained dog hair.

Astronomers take a photograph of the youngest supernova right after its explosion Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:03 PM PST Astronomers have obtained a never-before achieved radio astronomical photograph of the youngest supernova. Fourteen days after the explosion of a star in the galaxy Galàxia del Remolí (M51) last June, coordinated telescopes around Europe have taken a photograph of the cosmic explosion in great detail – equivalent to seeing a golf ball on the surface of the moon.

Playing music alters the processing of multiple sensory stimuli in the brain Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:02 PM PST Piano practicing fine tunes the brain circuitries that temporally bind signals from our senses. Over the years pianists develop a particularly acute sense of the temporal correlation between the movements of the piano keys and the sound of the notes played. However, they are no better than non-musicians at assessing the synchronicity of lip movements and speech. Researchers have now discovered that pianists are significantly more accurate than the non-musicians in assessing whether the finger movements on the piano and the sounds heard coincided temporally or not.

The ABCC9 of sleep: A genetic factor regulates how long we sleep Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:02 PM PST Researchers have shown that ABCC9, a known genetic factor in heart disease and diabetes, also influences the duration of sleep in humans. This function is evolutionarily conserved as knock-out of the gene reduces the duration of nocturnal sleep in fruitflies.

Development of the brain network in the fetus now measurable for the first time in the womb Posted: 24 Nov 2011 12:02 PM PST Scientists have demonstrated for the first time ever that there are fetal brain developments that can be measured using functional magnetic resonance tomography in the womb. This means that pathological changes to brain development will be detectable earlier than they are currently - and appropriate measures can be taken in good time.

Scientists turn on fountain of youth in yeast Posted: 23 Nov 2011 04:04 PM PST Researchers have successfully manipulated the life span of common, single-celled yeast organisms by figuring out how to remove and restore protein functions related to yeast aging.

Possible therapy for radiation sickness identified Posted: 23 Nov 2011 12:19 PM PST Researchers found a combination of two drugs may alleviate radiation sickness in people who have been exposed to high levels of radiation, even when the therapy is given 24 hours after the exposure occurred.

Happy, feel-good holiday seasons start with healthy choices at Thanksgiving, nutrition experts say Posted: 22 Nov 2011 10:30 AM PST While most people only gain about a pound of weight during the holiday season, that pound may never come off, increasing the likelihood of becoming overweight or obese and the risk of related health problems, according to a recent study. Dietitians recommend families maintain healthy diet and exercise habits during the holiday season beginning with Thanksgiving.

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