ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Toward 'vanishing' electronics and unlocking nanomaterials' power potential
• Knowing whether food has spoiled without even opening the container
• Bacterial reporters that get the scoop: Engineered gut bacteria 'remembers' what it saw
• Chicken bones tell true story of pacific migration
• Back to life after 1,500 years: Moss brought back to life after 1,500 years frozen in ice
• Fighting antibiotic resistance with 'molecular drill bits'
• How the science of deer hunting can help patients with diabetes
• Who’s afraid of math? Study finds some genetic factors
• Democrats, Republicans see each other as mindless, unless they pose a threat
• Eat more, die young: Why eating a diet very low in nutrients can extend lifespan

Toward 'vanishing' electronics and unlocking nanomaterials' power potential Posted: 17 Mar 2014 02:43 PM PDT Brain sensors and electronic tags that dissolve. Boosting the potential of renewable energy sources. These are examples of the latest research from two pioneering scientists. Tackling health and sustainability issues simultaneously, scientists are developing a vast toolbox of materials -- from magnesium and silicon to silk and even rice paper -- to make biodegradable electronics that can potentially be used in a range of applications.

Knowing whether food has spoiled without even opening the container Posted: 17 Mar 2014 02:06 PM PDT A color-coded smart tag could tell consumers whether milk has turned sour or green beans have spoiled without opening the containers, say researchers. The tag, appearing on the packaging, also could be used to determine if medications and other perishable products were still active or fresh.

Bacterial reporters that get the scoop: Engineered gut bacteria 'remembers' what it saw Posted: 17 Mar 2014 12:56 PM PDT A new engineered strain of E. coli bacteria non-destructively detected and recorded an environmental signal in the mouse gut, and remembered what it 'saw.' The advance could lead to a radically new screening tool for human gut health. "Our increasing appreciation of the role of the microbiome in health and disease is transforming the entire medical field," stated one scientist.

Chicken bones tell true story of pacific migration Posted: 17 Mar 2014 12:52 PM PDT Did the Polynesians beat Columbus to South America? Not according to the tale of migration uncovered by analysis of ancient DNA from chicken bones recovered in archaeological digs across the Pacific. The ancient DNA has been used to study the origins and dispersal of ancestral Polynesian chickens, reconstructing the early migrations of people and the animals they carried with them.

Back to life after 1,500 years: Moss brought back to life after 1,500 years frozen in ice Posted: 17 Mar 2014 09:50 AM PDT Researchers have demonstrated that, after over 1,500 years frozen in Antarctic ice, moss can come back to life and continue to grow. For the first time, this vital part of the ecosystem in both polar regions has been shown to have the ability to survive century to millennial scale ice ages. This provides exciting new insight into the survival of life on Earth.

Fighting antibiotic resistance with 'molecular drill bits' Posted: 17 Mar 2014 09:49 AM PDT In response to drug-resistant "superbugs" that send millions of people to hospitals around the world, scientists are building tiny, "molecular drill bits" that kill bacteria by bursting through their protective cell walls. Researchers have presented some of the latest developments on these drill bits, better known to scientists as antimicrobial peptides (AMPs).

How the science of deer hunting can help patients with diabetes Posted: 17 Mar 2014 07:35 AM PDT Body odor is a deer hunter's worst enemy, an alert to animals that an ominous presence is lurking, but the science behind suppressing it to give hunters an edge oddly enough could help researchers develop a life-saving device for diabetes patients. Scientists have now presented the latest advances that tie together these two seemingly unrelated fronts.

Who’s afraid of math? Study finds some genetic factors Posted: 17 Mar 2014 06:58 AM PDT A new study of math anxiety shows how some people may be at greater risk to fear math not only because of negative experiences, but also because of genetic risks related to both general anxiety and math skills. The results don't mean that math anxiety can be blamed solely or even mostly on genetic factors, the researchers emphasized. In this study, genetic factors explained about 40 percent of the individual differences in math anxiety.

Democrats, Republicans see each other as mindless, unless they pose a threat Posted: 17 Mar 2014 06:58 AM PDT We are less likely to humanize members of groups we don't belong to—except, under some circumstances, when it comes to members of the opposite political party. A new study suggests that we are more prone to view members of the opposite political party as human if we view those individuals as threatening.

Eat more, die young: Why eating a diet very low in nutrients can extend lifespan Posted: 17 Mar 2014 05:47 AM PDT A new evolutionary theory claims that consuming a diet very low in nutrients can extend lifespan in laboratory animals, a finding which could hold clues to promoting healthier aging in humans. Scientists have known for decades that severely restricted food intake reduces the incidence of diseases of old age, such as cancer, and increases lifespan. The most widely accepted theory is that this effect evolved to improve survival during times of famine.

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