ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• In CRISPR advance, scientists successfully edit human T cells
• At what age does hard work add a shine to lousy prizes?
• Quantum networks: Back and forth are not equal distances
• Ethics of tomorrow? Should androids have the right to have children?
• Researchers identify neural signature of tunnel vision

In CRISPR advance, scientists successfully edit human T cells Posted: 27 Jul 2015 12:37 PM PDT Scientists have devised a new strategy to precisely modify human T cells using the genome-editing system known as CRISPR/Cas9. Because these immune-system cells play important roles in a wide range of diseases, from diabetes to AIDS to cancer, the achievement provides a versatile new tool for research on T cell function, as well as a path toward CRISPR/Cas9-based therapies for many serious health problems.

At what age does hard work add a shine to lousy prizes? Posted: 27 Jul 2015 09:03 AM PDT Putting in a lot of effort to earn a reward can make unappealing prizes more attractive to kindergartners, but not to preschoolers, according to new research. The findings revealed that when six-year-olds worked hard to earn stickers that they ultimately didn't like, they were loath to give them up, whereas four-year-olds were comparatively eager to give the unappealing stickers away.

Quantum networks: Back and forth are not equal distances Posted: 27 Jul 2015 09:02 AM PDT Quantum technology based on light (photons) has great potential for radically new information technology based on photonic circuits. Now researchers have discovered a new type of photonic channels, where back and forth are not equal distances. Such a system has been a missing component for building quantum photonic circuits on a large scale.

Ethics of tomorrow? Should androids have the right to have children? Posted: 27 Jul 2015 06:29 AM PDT Science fiction culture has prospered and gone from being for nerds only in the 1970s and 1980s to becoming part of popular culture in the last two decades. This particularly applies to the TV series genre, which has become mainstream with Battlestar Galactica (2004), Heroes (2006) and Fringe (2009). The science fiction of today is often about humanoid androids that are trying to become "one of us".

Researchers identify neural signature of tunnel vision Posted: 27 Jul 2015 06:25 AM PDT A new study measured brain activity while people watched clips from Alfred Hitchcock and other suspenseful films. During high suspense moments, the brain narrows what people see and focuses their attention on the story. During less suspenseful moments of the film clips, viewers devote more attention to their surroundings.

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