Who What Why: How do flying ants know it's mating day?
It's time for flying ant day in large parts of the UK, when they embark on their annual mating ritual. So how do the ants know it's their one day a year to mate?
The sun has finally come out, summer has arrived and with it comes the annual swarm of flying ants. This seasonal appearance occurs when the ants embark on their "nuptial" flight. This mating ritual happens on roughly the same day across the country, with some regions following a day or two afterwards. |  |
Termites explode to defend their colonies
A species of termite found in the rainforests of French Guiana takes altruism seriously: aged workers grow sacks of toxic blue liquid that they explode onto their enemies in an act of suicidal self-sacrifice to help their colonies
The “explosive backpacks” of Neocapritermes taracua, described in Science today1, grow throughout the lifetimes of the worker termites, filling with blue crystals secreted by a pair of glands on the insects' abdomens. Older workers carry the largest and most toxic backpacks. Those individuals also, not coincidentally, are the least able to forage and tend for the colony: their mandibles become dull and worn as the termites age, because they cannot be sharpened by moulting. |  |
Alan Turing pardon campaign goes to House of Lords
Campaigners fighting to get a pardon for computer pioneer Alan Turing have taken their fight to the House of Lords.
The gay codebreaker was convicted of gross indecency in 1952, when homosexual acts were illegal in the UK. He died from cyanide poisoning two years later and it was ruled at his inquest that he had committed suicide. A private members bill to grant him a pardon has been introduced in the Lords by Liberal Democrat Peer Lord Sharkey. |  |
Neanderthal-type species once roamed Africa, DNA shows
The human family tree just got another — mysterious — branch, an African “sister species” to the heavy-browed Neanderthals that once roamed Europe.
While no fossilized bones have been found from these enigmatic people, they did leave a calling card in present-day Africans: snippets of foreign DNA.
There’s only one way that genetic material could have made it into modern human populations.
While no fossilized bones have been found from these enigmatic people, they did leave a calling card in present-day Africans: snippets of foreign DNA.
There’s only one way that genetic material could have made it into modern human populations.
Pop music too loud and all sounds the same: official
Comforting news for anyone over the age of 35, scientists have worked out that modern pop music really is louder and does all sound the same.
Researchers in Spain used a huge archive known as the Million Song Dataset, which breaks down audio and lyrical content into data that can be crunched, to study pop songs from 1955 to 2010.
Researchers in Spain used a huge archive known as the Million Song Dataset, which breaks down audio and lyrical content into data that can be crunched, to study pop songs from 1955 to 2010.
Is Mythology Like Facebook?
How can you tell if an ancient story is completely fictional or based on reality? One method, says a team of physicists, is to map out the social network of the characters and test whether it looks like a real social network. When they used that method for three ancient myths, they found that the characters have surprisingly realistic relationships.
Ancient stories are called myths for a reason. No one believes that Beowulf, the hero of the Anglo-Saxon epic, slew a talking monster named Grendel. Or that the Greek gods described in The Iliad actually appeared on Earth to intervene in the Trojan War. But historians and archaeologists agree that much of those ancient narratives was based on real people and events. The supernatural features of the narrative were then layered onto reality. |  |
Loss of Arctic sea ice '70% man-made'
The radical decline in sea ice around the Arctic is at least 70% due to human-induced climate change, according to a new study, and may even be up to 95% down to humans – rather higher than scientists had previously thought.
The loss of ice around the Arctic has adverse effects on wildlife and also opens up new northern sea routes and opportunities to drill for oil and gas under the newly accessible sea bed. The reduction has been accelerating since the 1990s and many scientists believe the Arctic may become ice-free in the summers later this century, possibly as early as the late 2020s. |  |
Lung infection ailed 'Maiden' Inca mummy before sacrifice
The so-called Maiden mummy of a 15-year-old Incan girl who was sacrificed 500 years ago is giving up some secrets, revealing the teenager suffered from a bacterial lung infection at the time of her death, scientists report Wednesday.
The researchers analyzed tissue proteins, rather than DNA, from the Maiden and another young Inca mummy who died at the same time. Over the last decade, DNA techniques have proven useful in helping solve ancient mysteries, such as how King Tut died. But these techniques aren't without faults. For example, finding evidence of a malaria-causing parasite in King Tut's system doesn't necessarily mean the Egyptian king suffered any malaria symptoms. Additionally, the environment can easily contaminate DNA samples, if researchers aren't careful. |  |
In Early Italy: Ice Cream All the Rage
Ice cream was enjoyed in Italy by rich and poor alike long before freezing technology brought iced products to the masses, says new research.
Long portrayed as a luxury product that in its early days would have been enjoyed primarily by an elite set of society, ice cream was sold on the streets in Naples as long as 300 years ago. At that time, making ice cream was a laborious task which relied on large amounts of ice. Until the late 19th century, when industrial refrigeration eliminated the need for ice houses, ice was harvested from glaciers in the mountains and transported to towns and cities where it was used to cool buckets of mixes. |  |
The skin’s secret surveillance system
The skin has long been thought of as a mere physical barrier to attack by pathogens. Now, however, researchers are starting to realize that this simplistic view needs a radical rethink.
The folds, follicles and tiny oil-producing glands on the skin's surface create a multitude of diverse habitats, each with its own community of microbes1. Most of these 'commensals' live harmlessly on the skin, and their presence is thought to stop pathogenic microbes from invading the skin's habitats. But these benign residents are not just innocent bystanders — according to a paper published today in Science, skin-specific bacteria also influence the response from the host's immune system to help fight off infection. |  |
Watch the American Landscape Change as Seen From Space
The Landsat mission has been taking satellite imagery and data of Earth for 40 years. One of the primary benefits of such a record is the ability to study changing landscapes.
To celebrate the launch of the first Landsat satellite on July 23, 1972, the USGS and NASA asked the public to nominate landscapes that have undergone a lot of environmental change for a closer look. The Landsat team chose these six submissions and created customized chronicles of the change in each area.
If you're feeling inspired, you can check out these tutorials on using Landsat data and try putting your own scene together.
To celebrate the launch of the first Landsat satellite on July 23, 1972, the USGS and NASA asked the public to nominate landscapes that have undergone a lot of environmental change for a closer look. The Landsat team chose these six submissions and created customized chronicles of the change in each area.
If you're feeling inspired, you can check out these tutorials on using Landsat data and try putting your own scene together.
Simulations Will Help Keep Track of Remote Space Junk
A tiny satellite can be seen flickering high above the Earth in the simulated video above. This could be a typical serene view you might see if you went far from city lights and looked up at the night sky.
Except this virtual satellite is a dangerous piece of space junk, careening through space on what may eventually be a collision course. Researchers are now working to extend our ability to track orbital debris and help avoid such a catastrophic outcome.
Space debris, or space junk, is made up of tens of millions of man-made objects that have been discarded, lost, or left in orbit. Some pieces are fairly large — spent rocket stages or defunct satellites — but the majority is incredibly tiny, including flecks of paint and eroded bits from other spacecraft.
Except this virtual satellite is a dangerous piece of space junk, careening through space on what may eventually be a collision course. Researchers are now working to extend our ability to track orbital debris and help avoid such a catastrophic outcome.
Space debris, or space junk, is made up of tens of millions of man-made objects that have been discarded, lost, or left in orbit. Some pieces are fairly large — spent rocket stages or defunct satellites — but the majority is incredibly tiny, including flecks of paint and eroded bits from other spacecraft.
Sun may soon have four poles, say researchers
The sun may be entering a period of reduced activity that could result in lower temperatures on Earth, according to Japanese researchers.
Officials of the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan and the Riken research foundation said on April 19 that the activity of sunspots appeared to resemble a 70-year period in the 17th century in which London’s Thames froze over and cherry blossoms bloomed later than usual in Kyoto. In that era, known as the Maunder Minimum, temperatures are estimated to have been about 2.5 degrees lower than in the second half of the 20th century. |  |
Polar Field Reversal as observed with Hinode
For the first time in the world, an international research team consisting mainly of researchers from the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) and RIKEN recently discovered the phenomenon of the polarity of the polar magnetic field in the solar polar region reversing faster than expected by using the Solar Optical Telescope (SOT) mounted on the Solar Observation Satellite "Hinode." This discovery was brought about by the SOT's high spatial resolution and high-precision polarimetry, and the long-term operation steadily conducted via the "Hinode" satellite.
At present, solar activity has passed the solar minimum and is increasing slightly. Looking at the overall picture, the solar magnetic field in this solar minimum shows that the north polar region has negative polarity and the south polar region has positive polarity. The polarity of both the north and south polar regions is expected to reverse in May 2013, around the same time as the solar maximum, which is the period with the largest average number of sunspots.
At present, solar activity has passed the solar minimum and is increasing slightly. Looking at the overall picture, the solar magnetic field in this solar minimum shows that the north polar region has negative polarity and the south polar region has positive polarity. The polarity of both the north and south polar regions is expected to reverse in May 2013, around the same time as the solar maximum, which is the period with the largest average number of sunspots.