Science News

A group of researchers have announced they have discovered a new drug combination that can overcome cancer drug resistance, as well as reduce the size of cancerous tumors to a far greater degree than current treatments. The new approach can also be applied to any type of cancer, researchers from The University of Texas at […]

SEATTLE—The space company of billionaire Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen on Aug. 20 unveiled details of medium-lift rockets and a reusable space cargo plane it is developing, injecting more competition into the lucrative launch services market. With its rockets, Allen’s Stratolaunch Systems Corp is trying to cash in on higher demand in the coming years for […]

In 2002, renowned scientist Phillip Sharp co-founded Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. after learning about an intriguing discovery: Researchers had figured out how to “silence” biological messages sent by the genetic code in worms. Sixteen years and about $2 billion in research spending later, Alnylam has turned the concept, called RNA interference, or RNAi, into a treatment […]

In a suburban Minneapolis laboratory, a tiny company that has never turned a profit is poised to beat the world’s biggest agriculture firms to market with the next potential breakthrough in genetic engineering – a crop with “edited” DNA. Calyxt Inc, an eight-year-old firm co-founded by a genetics professor, altered the genes of a soybean […]

A landmark experiment in north Queensland could hold the key to combating the spread of mosquito-borne diseases including dengue and Zika. Australian scientists managed to wipe out more than 80 per cent of the Aedes aegypti (yellow fever mosquito) population near Innisfail, a sugar town in tropical far north Queensland, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research […]

A study shows that parents who cannot put their phones down tend to raise children who cannot behave. The study by researchers at the University of Michigan and Illinois State University, published in Nature, followed 183 sets of parents. Of the participants, 40 percent of mothers and 32 percent of the fathers said they were […]

Scientists at Australia’s Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University have made a fascinating discovery about the honeybee—that it can understand the mathematical value of zero. The discovery came after researchers attempted to train bees to recognise lower values. Using sucrose as a reward, the bees were trained to navigate toward an image with a […]

NASA may soon work to create an artificial refueling station to be placed in orbit around the moon, which can be used as a relay point for deep space exploration and to develop technologies for life support on Mars. The plan was described by the newly appointed NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine in an interview on […]

The Earth’s magnetic field, which affects everything from communication to power grids, could be about to flip, scientists said. The field, which extends thousands of miles into space and defends the planet against highly damaging solar winds, has weakened by 15 percent over the last 200 years. According to a new report from the Laboratory […]

Scientists have taught a killer whale to imitate human speech, in a new study released on Jan. 31. Research published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, revealed that an orca was able to mimic words, including “hello,” “bye bye,” and “one-two.” Scientists studied a 14-year-old killer whale named Wilkie who had previously […]

When embryos 78 and 79 survived they were given names to fit the occasion—Zhongzhong and Huahua. Created in a Shanghai lab, these two identical long-tailed macaques are the worlds first cloned monkeys, revealed on Jan. 24 in the journal Cell. Separately the monkeys’ names are just cute affectations. Put them together, however, and the propaganda, ambition, […]

The land Down Under may not have been so far down under once upon a time. Rock discovered in Australia from millions of years ago appears to have come from North America, researchers at Curtin University in Perth, Australia, say. The rocks, discovered some 250 miles (412 kilometers) west of Cairns near Georgetown in Far […]

A mysterious disease that’s killing deer across North America could spread to humans, scientists are warning. Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) is similar to Mad Cow’s disease, which eventually hopped over to humans to kill hundreds of people. The CWD, a deadly neurological disorder known to some as a “zombie” disease, can be found in deer, elk, and […]

Five sharks of a terrifying appearance have been fished out near Taiwan’s east coast, Taiwan Fisheries Institute reported on Dec. 26. The sharks are about 10-12 inches long and sport alien-like extendable jaws. They belong to the species Trigonognathus kabeyai, also known as viper shark. The creatures are very rare. Scientists first got a look […]

New research says that the hotspot underlying the Yellowstone supervolcano has a different origin than previously thought. Geologists at the University of Illinois say Yellowstone’s heat is actually being funneled east from the geologically active Pacific Coast. They used seismic waves that travel through the earth following earthquakes to produce a view underground similar to […]

LONDON–Drinking alcohol produces a harmful chemical in the body which can lead to permanent genetic damage in the DNA of stem cells, increasing the risk of cancer developing, according to research published on Wednesday. Working with mice in a laboratory, British scientists used chromosome analysis and DNA sequencing to examine the genetic damage caused by […]

Conclusive evidence of the existence of Noah’s Ark has eluded ark hunters since time immemorial. The Bible says the vessel made landfall on the “mountains of Ararat” in Turkey after 150 days in the water. A group of explorers affiliated with NAMI, a Hong Kong-based evangelical Christian group, said in 2010 that on Mount Ararat, […]

“Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree. How grungy are your branches!” That could be Rome’s version of the classic Christmas carol, which speaks instead of branches that are lovely and steadfast. Romans are up in arms over the tree that has been dubbed “Spelacchio”, roughly translated as grungy, which stands in the capital’s central Piazza […]

New details about the cigar-shaped interstellar object have emerged after scientists spent weeks studying the mysterious “alien rock.” Scientists have revealed that Oumuamua—which was caught on a telescope in October—is wrapped in a layer of organic insulation, reported the Independent. Researchers have conducted two major studies to look at what Oumuamua actually looks like and what it […]

A polar bear monitor, Leo Ikakhik, explained that a viral video of a starving polar bear may not be what it seems. “I wasn’t totally surprised. These things happen,” he told the CBC. “Mother Nature is going to do part of that. You know, it’s just part of the cycle.” The emaciated bear captured the […]