RNA pioneer H. Gobind Khorana dies, aged 89
Har Gobind Khorana, a biochemist who rose from humble origins in rural India to win the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine in 1968, died on 9 November at the age of 89.
Secrets of a mastodon graveyard
Pleistocene mammals found preserved in the Colorado mountains may have starved to death after an earthquake transformed a lake bed into a deadly trap.
Songbirds couple up to stay in tune
Duetting songbirds react to each other’s notes as dancers do to their partner’s footsteps.
DEET scrambles insects’ sense of smell
Analysis of a DEET-resistant strain of fruitfly shows the repellent confuses smell-sensing neurons in insect antennae.
Plants and animals seek cover from climate change
Meta-study provides first direct evidence that species are moving because of global warming.
Time to rethink the Moon’s formation
Isotope dating of the Moon’s crust suggests the rock solidified at least 60 million years later than thought.
Bush’s science advisor John Marburger dies, aged 70
John H. Marburger, who died on Thursday aged 70, will be remembered as the man who staunchly defended Bush’s policies in the face of angry criticism from researchers.
Counting corpses underestimates Deepwater Horizon whale toll
A paper published today in Conservation Letters suggests that the number of whales and dolphins killed during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill could be as much as 50 times that originally reported.
Research trip to the Antarctic: Antarctic goes viral
Science journalist Jane Qiu has now reached the Palmer ecological research station on the Antarctic Peninsula, joining researchers investigating how climate change has affected the region in recent decades. Please check back for her dispatches from the bottom of the world. Read more
Research trip to the Antarctic: Arriving in Palmer
Science journalist Jane Qiu is travelling to the Palmer ecological research station on the Antarctic Peninsula, joining researchers investigating how climate change has affected the region in recent decades. Please check back for her dispatches from the bottom of the world. The R/V LM Gould sailed through a stormy blizzard for most of the night. Today, 30 November, the decks and anchor chains are covered in snow. We are well into the Gerlache Strait, the stretch of 160-kilometre long water that separates the Palmer Archipelago from the Antarctic Peninsula. The entire landscape – the placid sea, occasional icebergs and ice-draped … Read more
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Experiments reveal that crabs and lobsters feel pain
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Chemistry credit disputes under the spotlight
Chemistry credit disputes under the spotlight
Contamination created controversial ‘acid-induced’ stem cells