ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Is salt the key to unlocking the interiors of Neptune and Uranus?
• Planet Mars behaving like a rock star
• Island rodents take on nightmarish proportions
• Conservatives demonstrate more self control than Liberals, studies suggest
• Astronomers discover 854 ultra-dark galaxies in the famous Coma Cluster
• Scientists create synthetic membranes that grow like living cells
• Bass use body's swimming muscles to suck in food
• Turning fake pills into real treatments
• Destructive power of bubbles could lead to new industrial applications
• Expanding the DNA alphabet: 'Extra' DNA base found to be stable in mammals
• Micro-tentacles created so tiny robots can handle delicate objects
• Wolves are better hunters when monkeys are around
• Intense radio emission from tiny binary star

Is salt the key to unlocking the interiors of Neptune and Uranus? Posted: 22 Jun 2015 03:24 PM PDT The interiors of several of our Solar System's planets and moons are icy, and ice has been found on distant extrasolar planets, as well. This ice must exist under extreme pressures and high-temperatures, and potentially contains salty impurities, too. New research focuses on the physics underlying the formation of the types of ice that are stable under these paradoxical-seeming conditions. It could challenge current ideas about the physical properties found inside icy planetary bodies.

Planet Mars behaving like a rock star Posted: 22 Jun 2015 03:20 PM PDT If planets had personalities, Mars would be a rock star according to recent preliminary results from NASA's MAVEN spacecraft. Mars sports a 'Mohawk' of escaping atmospheric particles at its poles, 'wears' a layer of metal particles high in its atmosphere, and lights up with aurora after being smacked by solar storms. MAVEN is also mapping out the escaping atmospheric particles.

Island rodents take on nightmarish proportions Posted: 22 Jun 2015 03:19 PM PDT Researchers have analyzed size data for rodents worldwide to distinguish the truly massive mice and giant gerbils from the regular-sized rodents. They found that the furry animals with chisel-like teeth are 17 times more likely to evolve to nightmarish proportions on islands than elsewhere. The results are in keeping with an idea called the 'island rule,' which previous studies claimed didn't apply to rodents.

Conservatives demonstrate more self control than Liberals, studies suggest Posted: 22 Jun 2015 03:18 PM PDT Evidence from three studies uncovers a 'critical difference' in self-control as a function of political ideology.

Astronomers discover 854 ultra-dark galaxies in the famous Coma Cluster Posted: 22 Jun 2015 01:20 PM PDT Astronomers have discovered 854 "ultra-dark galaxies" in the Coma Cluster. The new discovery surpasses the 2014 discovery of 47 mysterious dark galaxies by more than 800 and suggests that galaxy clusters are the key environment for the evolution of these mysterious dark galaxies.

Scientists create synthetic membranes that grow like living cells Posted: 22 Jun 2015 12:45 PM PDT Chemists and biologists have succeeded in designing and synthesizing an artificial cell membrane capable of sustaining continual growth, just like a living cell.

Bass use body's swimming muscles to suck in food Posted: 22 Jun 2015 12:45 PM PDT Bass are strong swimmers but they can't capture prey without also exerting a powerful suction into their mouths. A new study shows that the power to form that vacuum comes from the very same muscles they use to swim.

Turning fake pills into real treatments Posted: 22 Jun 2015 09:51 AM PDT A series of fascinating studies showed that many people respond positively to placebo pills -- even when they are told that the pills don't have any active ingredients. Researchers are now testing these "open-label" placebos for the first time among cancer survivors.

Destructive power of bubbles could lead to new industrial applications Posted: 22 Jun 2015 09:46 AM PDT Cavitation bubbles can kill fish and damage boat propellers. Researcher say learning more about them could harness that power for industrial uses, like safer cleaning processes.

Expanding the DNA alphabet: 'Extra' DNA base found to be stable in mammals Posted: 22 Jun 2015 09:27 AM PDT A rare DNA base, previously thought to be a temporary modification, has been shown to be stable in mammalian DNA, suggesting that it plays a key role in cellular function.

Micro-tentacles created so tiny robots can handle delicate objects Posted: 22 Jun 2015 06:23 AM PDT Robotics experts have developed microrobotic tentacles that can be the hands and fingers of small robots designed to safely handle delicate objects.

Wolves are better hunters when monkeys are around Posted: 22 Jun 2015 05:52 AM PDT Through a rare mixed-species association observed between a carnivorous predator and a potential prey, biologists have identified that solitary Ethiopian wolves will forage for rodents among grazing gelada monkey herds.

Intense radio emission from tiny binary star Posted: 22 Jun 2015 04:12 AM PDT Astronomers have determined the mass of a tiny binary star thanks to its intense radio emissions – rare in such small stars – which compels scientists to review stellar evolution models.

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