ScienceDaily: Strange Science News

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• Seals and sea lions likely spread tuberculosis to humans
• Life can persist in cold, dark world: Life under Antarctic ice explored
• Jurassic mammals were picky eaters, new study finds
• Turning waste from rice, parsley and other foods into biodegradable plastic
• Seeing a molecule breathe through scattering of light pulses
• Cut flowers last longer with silver nanotechnology
• Paving the way for cyborg moth 'biobots'
• A semi-artificial leaf faster than 'natural' photosynthesis
• Solar energy that doesn't block the view
• 'Tickling' your ear could be good for your heart
• Bubbling down: Discovery suggests surprising uses for common bubbles
• How worms crawl: mathematical model challenges traditional view
• Hope for healthy hearts revealed in naked mole rat studies
• Graphene rubber bands could stretch limits of current healthcare, new research finds
• New 'invisibility cloak': Octopus-inspired camouflage systems automatically read surroundings and mimic them
• Immune system is dazed and confused during spaceflight, study reveals

Seals and sea lions likely spread tuberculosis to humans Posted: 20 Aug 2014 11:00 AM PDT Scientists who study tuberculosis have long debated its origins. New research shows that tuberculosis likely spread from humans in Africa to seals and sea lions that brought the disease to South America and transmitted it to Native people there before Europeans landed on the continent.

Life can persist in cold, dark world: Life under Antarctic ice explored Posted: 20 Aug 2014 11:00 AM PDT The first breakthrough article to come out of a massive U.S. expedition to one of Earth's final frontiers shows that there's life and an active ecosystem one-half mile below the surface of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, specifically in a lake that hasn't seen sunlight or felt a breath of wind for millions of years. The life is in the form of microorganisms that live beneath the enormous Antarctic ice sheet and convert ammonium and methane into the energy required for growth.

Jurassic mammals were picky eaters, new study finds Posted: 20 Aug 2014 10:59 AM PDT New analyses of tiny fossil mammals from Glamorgan, South Wales are shedding light on the function and diets of our earliest ancestors, a team reports. Mammals and their immediate ancestors from the Jurassic period (201-145 million years ago) developed new characteristics - such as better hearing and teeth capable of precise chewing.

Turning waste from rice, parsley and other foods into biodegradable plastic Posted: 20 Aug 2014 08:05 AM PDT Your chairs, synthetic rugs and plastic bags could one day be made out of cocoa, rice and vegetable waste rather than petroleum, scientists are now reporting. The novel process they developed and their results could help the world deal with its agricultural and plastic waste problems.

Seeing a molecule breathe through scattering of light pulses Posted: 20 Aug 2014 08:04 AM PDT For the first time, chemists have succeeded in measuring vibrational motion of a single molecule with a femtosecond time resolution. The study reveals how vibration of a single molecule differs from the behavior of larger molecular groups. Seeing a single organic bipyridylethylene (BPE) molecule vibrate as a function of time was possible through the scattering of the light pulses. The method is known as time-resolved coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (tr-CARS).

Cut flowers last longer with silver nanotechnology Posted: 20 Aug 2014 08:03 AM PDT Once cut and dunked in a vase of water, flowers are susceptible to bacterial growth that shortens the length of time one has to enjoy the blooms. A few silver nanoparticles sprinkled into the water, might be the answer to longer-lasting cut flowers according to new research.

Paving the way for cyborg moth 'biobots' Posted: 20 Aug 2014 06:17 AM PDT Researchers have developed methods for electronically manipulating the flight muscles of moths and for monitoring the electrical signals moths use to control those muscles. The work opens the door to the development of remotely-controlled moths, or 'biobots,' for use in emergency response.

A semi-artificial leaf faster than 'natural' photosynthesis Posted: 20 Aug 2014 06:16 AM PDT Cooperation between chemists and biologists has resulted in a new method for the very efficient integration of photosynthetic proteins in photovoltaics. Their research offers a new immobilization strategy that yields electron transfer rates exceeding for the first time rates observed in natural photosynthesis. This discovery opens the possibility for the construction of semi-artificial leaves functioning as photovoltaic devices with drastically increased performance.

Solar energy that doesn't block the view Posted: 19 Aug 2014 05:02 PM PDT Researchers have developed a new type of solar concentrator that when placed over a window creates solar energy while allowing people to actually see through the window. It is called a transparent luminescent solar concentrator and can be used on buildings, cell phones and any other device that has a flat, clear surface.

'Tickling' your ear could be good for your heart Posted: 19 Aug 2014 05:02 PM PDT Stimulating nerves in your ear could improve the health of your heart, researchers have discovered. Scientists used a standard TENS machine like those designed to relieve labour pains to apply electrical pulses to the tragus, the small raised flap at the front of the ear immediately in front of the ear canal.

Bubbling down: Discovery suggests surprising uses for common bubbles Posted: 19 Aug 2014 09:59 AM PDT In a finding with scientific and industrial applications, researchers find that bursting bubbles can push tiny particles down into a liquid as well as up into the air.

How worms crawl: mathematical model challenges traditional view Posted: 19 Aug 2014 08:30 AM PDT A new mathematical model for earthworms and insect larvae challenges the traditional view of how these soft bodied animals get around. Researchers say that there is a far greater role for the body's mechanical properties and the local nerves which react to the surface that the animal is traveling across.

Hope for healthy hearts revealed in naked mole rat studies Posted: 19 Aug 2014 06:40 AM PDT The naked mole rat, the longest lived of rodents, shows superior cardiovascular function to old age in two studies. Cardiovascular disease is the greatest killer of humans the world over, presenting huge financial and quality-of-life issues. It is well known that the heart becomes less efficient with age in all mammals studied to date, even in the absence of overt cardiac disease. However, scientists still don't have a good understanding of how to prevent these functional declines that ultimately may lead to debilitating cardiovascular disease.

Graphene rubber bands could stretch limits of current healthcare, new research finds Posted: 19 Aug 2014 05:34 AM PDT A new type of sensor that can monitor body movements and could help revolutionize healthcare is described in a new study. "These sensors are extraordinarily cheap compared to existing technologies. Each device would probably cost pennies, making it ideal technology for use in developing countries where there are not enough medically trained staff to effectively monitor and treat patients quickly," researchers said.

New 'invisibility cloak': Octopus-inspired camouflage systems automatically read surroundings and mimic them Posted: 18 Aug 2014 05:41 PM PDT Researchers have developed a technology that allows a material to automatically read its environment and adapt to mimic its surroundings. Cunjiang Yu, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at the University of Houston and lead author of the paper, said the system was inspired by the skins of cephalopods, a class of marine animals which can change coloration quickly, both for camouflage and as a form of warning.

Immune system is dazed and confused during spaceflight, study reveals Posted: 18 Aug 2014 10:51 AM PDT Research indicates that crew members aboard the International Space Station have changes in blood cytokines that persist during flight.

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