Category Archives: Science

Bacteria Make Thrift a Habit

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— In these lean times, smart consumers refuse to pay a lot for throwaway items, but will shell out a little more for products that can be used again and again. The same is true of bacteria and other microbes, researchers at the University of Michigan have learned.

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New Study Shows How Tortoises, Alligators Thrived in High Arctic Some 50 Million Years Ago

A new study of the High Arctic climate roughly 50 million years ago led by the University of Colorado at Boulder helps to explain how ancient alligators and giant tortoises were able to thrive on Ellesmere Island well above the Arctic Circle, even as they endured six months of darkness each year.

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Roller Coaster Superconductivity Discovered

Washington, D.C.— Superconductors are more than 150 times more efficient at carrying electricity than copper wires. However, to attain the superconducting state, these materials have to be cooled below an extremely low, so-called transition temperature, at which point normal electrical resistance disappears. Developing superconductors with higher transition temperatures is one of physics’ greatest quests.

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U of T researcher discovers key protein involved in DNA repair

*Discovery gives insight into the way cells protect their own genetic material* 

In a groundbreaking study, U of T researchers including Professors Daniel Durocher, AnneClaude Gingras and Frank Sicheri have uncovered a protein called OTUB1 that blocks DNA damage in the cell—a discovery that may lead to the development of strategies to improve some cancer therapies.

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Asteroid Found in Gravitational “Dead Zone”

Washington, D.C.—There are places in space where the gravitational tug between a planet and the Sun balance out, allowing other smaller bodies to remain stable. These places are called Lagrangian points. So-called Trojan asteroids have been found in some of these stable spots near Jupiter and Neptune. Trojans share their planet’s orbit and help astronomers understand how the planets formed and how the solar system evolved.

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