Science News

Scientists have been claiming for some time now that it was only a matter of time before they found a way to harvest stem cells without destroying the embryo. Read the rest

In my last article, I discussed the early stages of embryonic development. In this article, I’m going to address how a fertilized egg can split into two embryos. Read the rest

On July 18, President Bush vetoed the Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act, which passed the Senate with 63 votes to 37. It was the first time he’s used his veto power in his 6 years in office. Read the rest

Update 8/25/06: A group of Pluto supporters have decided to sue the IAU for violating the Administrative Procedure Act when it decided to demote Pluto to dwarf planet status. I can’t imagine this will make it very far in the court system… but what do I know?
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Today, astronomers voted to demote Pluto of its planet status after 76 years of equal status with the Big 8… can you imagine how many books and model solar system toys now have to be reproduced? Read the rest

In the Sept 2006 edition of Wired magazine, a 32 year old wants to put having kids on hold for the next few years to focus on her career. She asks whether she should consider freezing some eggs now rather than play the odds and hope for a healthy baby at 40. Wired’s response was the following: Read the rest

Author: Steve Salerno
Publisher: Crown
Year Published: 2005
Rating:
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Self-help is an $8.5 billion industry but is it doing anyone any good? In SHAM, Steve Salerno argues that there’s no proof that it has. Read the rest

Update 8/24: The news is official. Neither Xena nor Pluto are planets.
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When Xena (UB313) was found in July 2005 by Caltech’s Mike Brown and colleagues, it changed the way astronomers thought about what planets are. Next week, the International Astronomical Union will clarify the definition of a planet and either upgrade Xena to planet status or downgrade Pluto to just another object in the Kuiper Belt. It’s also possible that the asteroid Ceres and Pluto’s moon Charon will become planets. Read the rest

Charles Darwin’s trip to the Galapagos Islands significantly influenced his thinking and paved the way for his theory of evolution. Since the 1970s, Princeton biologists Peter and Rosemary Grant have been studying Darwin’s Finches and now claim that they’ve witnessed evolutionary change because of competition first hand. Read the rest

More older women are opting for fetal testing to ensure their babies won't have a congenital disease such as Down syndrome. Right now, the main way these genetic tests are done is by extracting some of the fetus' cells via amniocentesis - when the doctor uses a needle to draw fluid from the sac surrounding the fetus - or chorionic villus sampling - when the doctor takes a sampling of the placenta. However, both procedures have a 1-2% chance of ending in miscarriage. Read the rest

Last year, paleogeneticist Svante Paabo announced he was going to reconstruct the Neanderthal genome. Now, Paabo estimates he'll have a draft completed within two years. Read the rest