ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Simulation of 3-D exotic clouds on an exoplanet
• New primate species at root of tree of extant hominoids
• It's a Tyrannosaur-eat-Tyrannosaur world
• Birth of universe modelled in one of largest cosmological simulations ever run
• Scientists fur-bricates hair with inexpensive 3-D printer
• Unique feeding mechanism among marine reptiles from the age of dinosaurs
• 300 million-year-old 'supershark' fossils found in Texas
• Algorithm to 3-D print vibrational sounds
• Study solves mysteries of Voyager 1's journey into interstellar space
• Dinosaurs used nasal passages to keep brains cool
• Race starts could give some athletes an unfair advantage

Simulation of 3-D exotic clouds on an exoplanet Posted: 29 Oct 2015 04:12 PM PDT A nearby exoplanet has an atmosphere that might be similar to Earth's before life evolved. Researchers have now simulated three-dimensional exotic clouds on another world.

New primate species at root of tree of extant hominoids Posted: 29 Oct 2015 12:02 PM PDT Researchers have described the new genus and species, Pliobates cataloniae, based on a skeleton recovered from the landfill of Can Mata (Catalonia, NE Spain). The fossil remains belong to an adult female individual that weighed 4-5 kg and moved through the forest canopy by climbing and suspending below branches. Pliobates has important implications for reconstructing the last common ancestor of hominids and hylobatids. The fossil remains belong to an adult female individual named 'Laia' by her discoverers.

It's a Tyrannosaur-eat-Tyrannosaur world Posted: 29 Oct 2015 10:46 AM PDT A nasty little 66-million-year-old family secret has been leaked by a recently unearthed tyrannosaur bone. The bone has peculiar teeth marks that strongly suggest it was gnawed by another tyrannosaur. The find could be some of the best evidence yet that tyrannosaurs were not shy about eating their own kind.

Birth of universe modelled in one of largest cosmological simulations ever run Posted: 29 Oct 2015 10:45 AM PDT Researchers are sifting through an avalanche of data produced by one of the largest cosmological simulations ever performed.

Scientists fur-bricates hair with inexpensive 3-D printer Posted: 29 Oct 2015 10:42 AM PDT 3-D printers typically produce hard plastic objects, but researchers have found a way to produce hair-like strands, fibers and bristles using a common, low-cost printer. The technique for producing 3-D-printed hair is similar to -- and inspired by -- the way that gossamer plastic strands are extruded when a person uses a hot glue gun.

Unique feeding mechanism among marine reptiles from the age of dinosaurs Posted: 29 Oct 2015 09:45 AM PDT Among the many groups of marine reptiles from the Age of Dinosaurs, elasmosaurs are famous for their necks, which can have up to 76 vertebrae and make up more than half the total length of the animal. These 'sea dragons' attained worldwide distribution and vanished only during the mass extinction at the end of the Cretaceous 66 million years ago.

300 million-year-old 'supershark' fossils found in Texas Posted: 29 Oct 2015 08:22 AM PDT Even before the age of dinosaurs, big toothy predators were roaming Texas. 300 million years ago, during a time called the Carboniferous, the area surrounding what is now Dallas, Texas was flooded by a shallow sea. Fossils from this ancient environment were recently recovered from Jacksboro, Texas. Among these were two fossil braincases from massive extinct relatives of modern-day sharks.

Algorithm to 3-D print vibrational sounds Posted: 29 Oct 2015 07:34 AM PDT In creating what looks to be a simple children's musical instrument -- a xylophone with keys in the shape of zoo animals -- computer scientists have demonstrated that sound can be controlled by 3D-printing shapes. They designed an optimization algorithm and used computational methods and digital fabrication to control acoustic properties -- both sound and vibration -- by altering the shape of 2D and 3D objects.

Study solves mysteries of Voyager 1's journey into interstellar space Posted: 29 Oct 2015 07:24 AM PDT Scientists have answered the question of why NASA's Voyager 1, when it became the first probe to enter interstellar space in mid-2012, observed a magnetic field that was inconsistent with that derived from other spacecraft observations.

Dinosaurs used nasal passages to keep brains cool Posted: 29 Oct 2015 07:22 AM PDT Dinosaur nasal passages were certainly nothing to sneeze at. Possessing among the largest and most complex nasal passages seen in animals, their function has puzzled paleontologists. New research suggests that the size and shape of these nasal passages would have allowed incoming air to cool the blood making its way to the brain, maintaining the brain at an optimum temperature.

Race starts could give some athletes an unfair advantage Posted: 28 Oct 2015 09:36 AM PDT The alerting effect means competitors who have longer start processes finish slower, affecting standings aggregated across more than one heat. Effect is enough to deny a medal.

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