Science

Science

Body On A Chip

2:52pm January 17, 2014

Today we'll talk about printing body parts. I'm not talking about antics in the copy room. I mean bio-printing three dimensional human organs for medical research.

There are several types of 3D printers, but the generic model for this particular type involves a nozzle that squirts out a building material like an ink. Mounted in a frame, it moves side to side as well as up and down. This allows for travel to any point within the printer's range; “printing” material layer by layer. The result is an accurate translation of a digital computer file into a solid three dimensional object.

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A northern spotted owl in a Redwood forest.

To Save Threatened Owl, Another Species Is Shot

12:19pm January 17, 2014

by Elizabeth Shogren

The rare northern spotted owl species faces habitat loss and, now, intruding barred owls. A biologist, and the federal government, have made a difficult decision — killing one owl to ward off the extinction of another.

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The world's biggest trees, such as this large Scots pine in Spain's Sierra de Baza range, are also the world's fastest-growing trees, according to an analysis of 403 tree species spanning six continents.

An Old Tree Doesn't Get Taller, But Bulks Up Like A Bodybuilder

9:12am January 17, 2014

by Richard Harris

An aging tree's girth is good for the planet, scientists say, because it helps it suck more carbon dioxide out of the air. "It's as if, on your favorite sports team, you find out the star players are a bunch of 90-year-olds," one ecologist says.

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The Big Impact Of A Little-Known Chemical In W.Va. Spill

10:06am January 14, 2014

by Elizabeth Shogren

At the time of the accident, the CDC didn't have a standard for how much of the coal-cleaning chemical is safe in drinking water. So the agency had to come up with one.

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Science

Triad Geology

3:05pm January 10, 2014

by Shawn Fitzmaurice

From a geologic perspective, we don't usually think about the North Carolina Piedmont as being very exciting. There are no tall mountains or volcanoes right nearby.

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Science

Study: Mass Shootings Are On The Rise Across U.S.

10:21am January 10, 2014

David Greene talks to criminologist J. Pete Blair of Texas State University, and Terry Nichols of the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center, about a new study showing a dramatic increase in mass shootings in the U.S. since 2008.

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Can't Stand The Cold Snap? Don't Go To Antarctica

6:56am January 08, 2014

by Geoff Brumfiel

You think it's cold? You ain't seen nothing! Imagine what it's like at science's coldest places: from the Eastern Antarctic Plateau to the moons of Saturn to the coldest labs.

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Arctic Methane Bubbles Not As Foreboding As Once Feared

4:27pm January 06, 2014

by Richard Harris

European scientists were alarmed in 2008 when they discovered streams of methane bubbles erupting from the seafloor in Norway's high Arctic. This gas, which contributes to global warming, was apparently coming from methane ice on the seafloor. A follow-up study finds that methane bubble plumes at this location have probably been forming for a few thousand years, so they are not the result of human-induced climate change. But continued warming of ocean water can trigger more methane releases in the Arctic, with potentially serious consequences to the climate.

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Want To Make Your Life Better? Keep Track Of It

7:51am January 03, 2014

The Quantified Self movement promotes something called life logging. That means tracking all kinds of details of your life in order to improve it. To find out more about the topic, David Greene talks to two people involved with life logging: Kitty Ireland, who works for a life logging app called Saga, and to David Goldstein, who turned to life logging with the help of a coach.

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Alarm Clock Sets Off A Real Wake-Up Call

11:42am January 01, 2014

by Alix Spiegel

Later this month, a Chicago based company called Fig will ship out a new product that it believes will help keep people motivated to meet their life goals. It's an alarm clock, but an unusual one.

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