ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

---

• Pacific salmon inherit magnetic sense of direction
• Digital music gets a cubist makeover
• Proteins snap those wrinkly fingers back into shape: Physicists model skin from wet to dry
• Sneezing sponges suggest existence of sensory organ: Discovery challenges assumptions about 'primitive' organism
• 'Entrance exam' that is key to successful pregnancy
• 'Friendly' robots could allow for more realistic human-android relationships
• Red skies discovered on extreme brown dwarf
• Evangelical Christians have higher-than-average divorce rates, new report shows
• Innovative technique creates large skin flaps for full-face resurfacing
• Wider-faced dates more attractive as short-term mates, study suggests

Pacific salmon inherit magnetic sense of direction Posted: 06 Feb 2014 10:36 AM PST A team of scientists last year presented evidence of a correlation between the migration patterns of ocean salmon and Earth's magnetic field, suggesting it may help explain how the fish can navigate across thousands of miles of water to find their river of origin. This week, scientists confirmed the connection between salmon and the magnetic field.

Digital music gets a cubist makeover Posted: 06 Feb 2014 10:34 AM PST An 8-inch wooden cube may be an unlikely spark for a musical revolution -- but that's the hope of a collaboration of electronic engineers and musicians working towards hackable electronic instruments that performers can easily modify to produce sounds in surprising new ways.

Proteins snap those wrinkly fingers back into shape: Physicists model skin from wet to dry Posted: 06 Feb 2014 08:13 AM PST You know how your fingers wrinkle up in the bath? The outer layer of your skin absorbs water and swells up, forming ridges -- but quickly returns to its old state when dry. Physicists have shown just why skin has this remarkable ability.

Sneezing sponges suggest existence of sensory organ: Discovery challenges assumptions about 'primitive' organism Posted: 06 Feb 2014 08:01 AM PST Biologists have used a variety of drugs to elicit sneezes in freshwater sponges and observed the process using fluorescent dye. Their efforts focused on the sponge's osculum, which controls water exiting the organism, including water expelled during a sneeze.

'Entrance exam' that is key to successful pregnancy Posted: 06 Feb 2014 07:07 AM PST Researchers have discovered how an 'entrance exam' set by the womb determines if the implantation of an embryo is successful; potentially a milestone for advances in pregnancy treatments.

'Friendly' robots could allow for more realistic human-android relationships Posted: 06 Feb 2014 05:24 AM PST Two 'friendly' robots, including a 3D-printed humanistic android, are helping scientists to understand how more realistic long-term relationships might be developed between humans and androids.

Red skies discovered on extreme brown dwarf Posted: 06 Feb 2014 05:23 AM PST A peculiar example of a celestial body, known as a brown dwarf, with unusually red skies has been discovered by a team of astronomers.

Evangelical Christians have higher-than-average divorce rates, new report shows Posted: 05 Feb 2014 07:32 AM PST Despite their strong pro-family values, evangelical Christians have higher-than-average divorce rates -- in fact, being more likely to be divorced than Americans who claim no religion, according to a new study.

Innovative technique creates large skin flaps for full-face resurfacing Posted: 05 Feb 2014 07:31 AM PST Patients with massive burns causing complete loss of the facial skin pose a difficult challenge for reconstructive surgeons. Now a group of surgeons has developed an innovative technique for creating a one-piece skin flap large enough to perform full-face resurfacing.

Wider-faced dates more attractive as short-term mates, study suggests Posted: 05 Feb 2014 05:00 AM PST Women may perceive men with wider faces as more dominant and more attractive for short-term relationships, according to a new study.

You are subscribed to email updates from Strange & Offbeat News -- ScienceDaily To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610