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Astronomers Identify Thick Disc of Older Stars in Nearby Andromeda Galaxy

By Guest PostFebruary 16, 2011Scienceandromeda, andromeda galaxy, astronomer, evolution, formation of the andromeda system, galactic evolution, hawaii, hubble imaging, keck observatory, keck telescope, m31, michael rich, michelle collins, Milky Way, motions, robert gendler, scott chapman, spiral galaxy, spiral structure, thick stellar disc

An international team of astronomers has identified for the first time a thick stellar disc in the Andromeda galaxy, the nearest large spiral galaxy to our own Milky Way.

The discovery of the thick disc, a major result from a five-year investigation, will help astronomers better understand the processes involved in the formation and evolution of large spiral galaxies like ours, according to the team, which includes UCLA research astronomer Michael Rich and colleagues from Europe and Australia. (more…)

Quest for Designer Bacteria Uncovers a Spy

By Guest PostFebruary 15, 2011Sciencebacteria helper, biosensors, coerce bacteria, directed evolution, escherichia coli, james bardwell, mcgill university, molecular assistant, shu quan, spy

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Scientists have discovered a molecular assistant called Spy that helps bacteria excel at producing proteins for medical and industrial purposes.

Bacteria are widely used to manufacture proteins used in medicine and industry, but the bugs often bungle the job. Many proteins fall apart and get cut up inside the bacteria before they can be harvested. Others collapse into useless tangles instead of folding properly, as they must in order to function normally. (more…)

Why Are Vines Overtaking the American Tropics?

By Guest PostFebruary 15, 2011Environment, ScienceAmazon, american tropics, barro colorado island, beauty kingdom, bolivian smazon, brazil, carbon, carbon storage, el nino events, english ivy, forest canopy, forests, french guiana, human communities, impact on animals, japanese honeysuckle, kudzu, liana vines, milwaukee, oliver phillips, oriental bittersweet, panama, planet, Smithsonian, south carolina, stefan schnitzer, subtropical forests, tropical forests, united states, vines

A Million-Dollar Question

Sleeping Beauty’s kingdom was overgrown by vines when she fell into a deep sleep. Researchers at the Smithsonian in Panama and the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee received more than a million dollars from the U.S. National Science Foundation to discover why real vines are overtaking the American tropics. Data from eight sites show that vines are overgrowing trees in all cases.

“We are witnessing a fundamental structural change in the physical make-up of forests that will have a profound impact on the animals, human communities and businesses that depend on them for their livelihoods,” said Stefan Schnitzer, research associate at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama and associate professor at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee. (more…)

Delving Into Manganite Conductivity

By Guest PostFebruary 14, 2011Sciencealexander goncharov, atmospheres, breakthrough, chemical compounds, conductivity, electric charges, jahn teller effect, lamno3, magnetic random access memories, magnetic sensors, magnetoresistance, manganites, maria baldini, metallic state, mysterious ways, non conductive insulating state, spintronic devices, structure, viktor struzhkin

Washington, D.C.— Chemical compounds called manganites have been studied for many years since the discovery of colossal magnetoresistance, a property that promises important applications in the fields of magnetic sensors, magnetic random access memories and spintronic devices. However, understanding—and ultimately controlling—this effect remains a challenge, because much about manganite physics is still not known. A research team lead by Maria Baldini from Stanford University and Carnegie Geophysical Laboratory scientists Viktor Struzhkin and Alexander Goncharov has made an important breakthrough in our understanding of the mysterious ways manganites respond when subjected to intense pressure. (more…)

MU, ASU Researchers’ Discovery Could Change Views of Human Evolution

By Guest PostFebruary 13, 2011Scienceearly evolution, human evolution, human locomotion, human origin, human predecessor

3.2 million-year-old human predecessor had arches in feet

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Feet arches give humans a spring in their steps, shock absorbing abilities, and stiff platforms to propel themselves forward, allowing them to walk upright consistently. Now, researchers at the University of Missouri and Arizona State University have found proof that arches existed in a predecessor to the human species that lived more than 3 million years ago. This discovery could change scientists’ views of human evolution. The study is being published this week in Science. (more…)

Two-timing Spacecraft Has Date with Another Comet

By Guest PostFebruary 12, 20111 commentSciencecomet surface, comet tempel, comets nucleus, jupiter family comet, stardust next, stardust spacecraft, two timing spacecraft

NASA’s Stardust spacecraft, equipped with the University of Chicago’s Dust Flux Monitor Instrument (DFMI), is hurtling at more than 24,000 miles an hour toward a Valentine’s Day encounter with comet Tempel 1. (more…)

For Longer-Life, Disease-Free Roses, NC State Researchers Insert Celery Gene

By Guest PostFebruary 12, 2011Sciencealcohol, botrytis, bryon sosinski, celery, Colombia, disease, ecuador, environmental factors, fungal pathogens, gene, george allen, grocery stores, john dole, john williamson, lettuce, mannitol, petal blight, plant diseases, post harvest diseases, rose, rose plants, valentine day, vase life

A rose by any other name would smell … like celery?

North Carolina State University research intended to extend the “vase life” of roses inserts a gene from celery inside rose plants to help fight off botrytis, or petal blight, one of the rose’s major post-harvest diseases.

Some fungal pathogens, the bad guys that infect plants, produce a sugar alcohol called mannitol that interferes with the plant’s ability to block disease like petal blight, which produces wilty, mushy petals – an effect similar to what happens to lettuce when it’s been in the crisper too long. (more…)

Looking at a Tough Hill to Climb? Depends on Your Point of View

By Guest PostFebruary 12, 2011Scienceangle of stairs, bottom of the hill, climbing, constancy of slant perception, dennis shaffer, descending hills, fatigue, fear of falling, inclines, judgment, mariagrace flint, overestimates, people, slope of the escalator, slope of the steps, steepness of slopes

COLUMBUS, Ohio — People tend to overestimate the steepness of slopes – and psychologists studying the phenomenon have made a discovery that refutes common ideas about how we perceive inclines in general.

For more than a decade, researchers thought that our judgment was biased by our fatigue or fear of falling, explained Dennis Shaffer, associate professor of psychology at Ohio State University’s Mansfield campus. We perceive climbing or descending hills as difficult or dangerous, so when we look at an incline, our view is clouded by the expected physical exertion or danger of traversing it. (more…)

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