ScienceDaily: Most Popular News

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• Earth is around 60 million years older than previously thought -- and so is the moon, new research finds
• A life well spent: Consume now (in case you die early)
• Seafarers brought Neolithic culture to Europe, gene study indicates
• Cell phones negatively affect male fertility, new study suggests
• Does 'free will' stem from brain noise?
• To recover consciousness, brain activity passes through newly detected states
• Dark side of the moon: 55-year-old mystery solved
• Echoes of ancient Earth identified by scientists?
• New evidence links air pollution to autism, schizophrenia

Earth is around 60 million years older than previously thought -- and so is the moon, new research finds Posted: 10 Jun 2014 11:46 AM PDT The timing of the giant impact between Earth's ancestor and a planet-sized body occurred around 40 million years after the start of solar system formation. This means that the final stage of Earth's formation is around 60 million years older than previously thought, according to new research.

A life well spent: Consume now (in case you die early) Posted: 10 Jun 2014 09:20 AM PDT An early death constitutes a serious loss that should imply compensation to the deceased person. But how – when the person is dead? A team of economists argues that a 'life well spent' might entail consuming more and working less earlier in life. They construct a mathematical model to measure the economic losses associated with an early death.

Seafarers brought Neolithic culture to Europe, gene study indicates Posted: 10 Jun 2014 07:20 AM PDT Genetic evidence in modern populations suggests that Neolithic farmers from the Levant traveled mostly by sea to reach Europe. By 7,000 B.C., they were introducing their ideas and their genes to the native Paleolithic people, who had migrated to the continent 30,000 to 40,000 years before.

Cell phones negatively affect male fertility, new study suggests Posted: 09 Jun 2014 05:56 PM PDT Men who keep a cell phone in their pant pocket could be inadvertently damaging their chances of becoming a father, according to a new study. Previous research has suggested that radio-frequency electromagnetic radiation (RF-EMR) emitted by the devices can have a detrimental effect on male fertility. Most of the global adult population own mobile phones, and around 14% of couples in high and middle income countries have difficulty conceiving.

Does 'free will' stem from brain noise? Posted: 09 Jun 2014 12:35 PM PDT Our ability to make choices -- and sometimes mistakes -- might arise from random fluctuations in the brain's background electrical noise, according to a recent study. New research shows how arbitrary states in the brain can influence apparently voluntary decisions.

To recover consciousness, brain activity passes through newly detected states Posted: 09 Jun 2014 12:34 PM PDT Research shows that recovery from deep anesthesia is not a smooth, linear process but is instead a dynamic journey with specific states of activity the brain must temporarily occupy on the way to full recovery.

Dark side of the moon: 55-year-old mystery solved Posted: 09 Jun 2014 09:20 AM PDT The Man in the Moon appeared when meteoroids struck the Earth-facing side of the moon creating large flat seas of basalt that we see as dark areas called maria. But no "face" exists on farside of the moon and now, astrophysicists think they know why. This mystery is called the Lunar Farside Highlands Problem and dates back to 1959, when the Soviet spacecraft Luna 3 transmitted the first images of the "dark" side of the moon back to Earth.

Echoes of ancient Earth identified by scientists? Posted: 09 Jun 2014 08:33 AM PDT A previously unexplained isotopic ratio may represent the echoes of the ancient Earth, which existed prior to the proposed Theia collision 4.5 billion years ago. A research team has analyzed the ratios of noble gas isotopes from deep within Earth's mantle, and has compared these results to isotope ratios closer to the surface. The found that 3He to 22Ne ratio from the shallow mantle is significantly higher than the equivalent ratio in the deep mantle.

New evidence links air pollution to autism, schizophrenia Posted: 05 Jun 2014 12:57 PM PDT A new study describes how exposure to air pollution early in life produces harmful changes in the brains of mice, including an enlargement of part of the brain that is seen in humans who have autism and schizophrenia. The mice performed poorly in tests of short-term memory, learning ability, and impulsivity. Study authors say the findings are very suggestive that air pollution may play a role in autism, as well as in other neurodevelopmental disorders.

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