ScienceDaily: Most Popular News

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• Out of an hours-long explosion, a stand-in for the first stars
• Brain activity in sex addiction mirrors that of drug addiction
• Scorpions are master architects, according to new research
• Evidence of super-fast deep earthquake: Rare high-speed rupture off Russia and similar phenomena on shallow fault zones
• Want a higher GPA in college? Join a gym
• Hubble spots spiral bridge of young stars linking two ancient galaxies
• How coffee protects against Parkinson's
• Cosmic grains of dust formed in supernova explosion
• New paths into the world of quasiparticles

Out of an hours-long explosion, a stand-in for the first stars Posted: 11 Jul 2014 12:33 PM PDT Astronomers analyzing a long-lasting blast of high-energy light observed in 2013 report finding features strikingly similar to those expected from an explosion from the universe's earliest stars. If this interpretation is correct, the outburst validates ideas about a recently identified class of gamma-ray burst and serves as a stand-in for what future observatories may see as the last acts of the first stars.

Brain activity in sex addiction mirrors that of drug addiction Posted: 11 Jul 2014 12:33 PM PDT Pornography triggers brain activity in people with compulsive sexual behavior -- known commonly as sex addiction -- similar to that triggered by drugs in the brains of drug addicts, according to a a new study. However, the researchers caution that this does not necessarily mean that pornography itself is addictive.

Scorpions are master architects, according to new research Posted: 10 Jul 2014 01:15 PM PDT The burrows made by scorpions follow a very sophisticated design, beginning with a short, vertical entrance shaft that flattened out a few centimeters below the surface into a horizontal platform, new research has found. The burrows then turn sharply downwards, descending further below ground to form a dead-end chamber. This cool, humid chamber, where evaporation water loss is minimal, provides a refuge for the scorpions to rest during the heat of the day.

Evidence of super-fast deep earthquake: Rare high-speed rupture off Russia and similar phenomena on shallow fault zones Posted: 10 Jul 2014 11:16 AM PDT Scientists have discovered the first evidence that deep earthquakes, those breaking at more than 400 kilometers (250 miles) below Earth's surface, can rupture much faster than ordinary earthquakes. The finding gives seismologists new clues about the forces behind deep earthquakes as well as fast-breaking earthquakes that strike near the surface.

Want a higher GPA in college? Join a gym Posted: 10 Jul 2014 10:09 AM PDT For those students looking to bump up their grade point averages during college, the answer may not be spending more time in a library or study hall, but in a gym. New research shows that students who were members of the recreational sports and fitness centers during their freshman and sophomore years had higher GPAs than those who weren't. The research also indicated that students with memberships stayed in school longer.

Hubble spots spiral bridge of young stars linking two ancient galaxies Posted: 10 Jul 2014 07:14 AM PDT NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has photographed an unusual structure 100,000 light-years long, which resembles a corkscrew-shaped string of pearls and winds around the cores of two colliding galaxies. The unique structure of the star spiral may yield new insights into the formation of stellar superclusters that result from merging galaxies and gas dynamics in this rarely seen process.

How coffee protects against Parkinson's Posted: 10 Jul 2014 05:13 AM PDT A specific genetic variation discovered by researchers protects against Parkinson's Disease – especially for those who drink a lot of coffee. Neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's have a complicated background where both genetic factors and exposure to environmental factors are involved. In a study of a million genetic malformations, the research team identified a variant of the GRIN2A gene as a protective factor against Parkinson's. The corresponding protein is part of a complex that is thought to play a role in several neurodegenerative diseases.

Cosmic grains of dust formed in supernova explosion Posted: 09 Jul 2014 11:01 AM PDT There are billions of stars and planets in the universe. The planets are formed in dust clouds that swirled around a newly formed star. But where does the cosmic dust come from? New research shows that not only can grains of dust form in gigantic supernova explosions, they can also survive the subsequent shockwaves they are exposed to.

New paths into the world of quasiparticles Posted: 09 Jul 2014 10:59 AM PDT Quasiparticles can be used to explain physical phenomena in solid bodies even though they are not actual physical particles. Physicists have now realized quasiparticles in a quantum system and observed quantum mechanical entanglement propagation in a many-body system.

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