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The Periodic Table Gets Update With 4 New Elements

5:05pm January 04, 2016

The periodic table is getting an update. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry announced that four new chemical elements have been assigned atomic numbers 113, 115, 117 and 118.

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An artist's illustration shows element 117, which has now been officially added to the periodic table of the elements.

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4 New Elements Are Added To The Periodic Table

12:08pm January 04, 2016

by Bill Chappell

With the discoveries now confirmed, "The 7th period of the periodic table of elements is complete," according to the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry.

Jeffrey Iliff (left), a brain scientist at Oregon Health & Science University, has been studying toxin removal in the brains of mice. He'll work with Bill Rooney, director of the university's Advanced Imaging Research Center, to enroll people in a similar

Lack Of Deep Sleep May Set The Stage For Alzheimer's

8:29am January 04, 2016

by Jon Hamilton

A mouse's brain clears out toxins during periods of deep sleep — including toxins that form the sticky plaques associated with Alzheimer's disease. Could the same hold true for people?

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A Physicist Dreams Of Catching Dark Matter In The Act

4:55am January 01, 2016

by Joe Palca

Hold out your hand for a century, and 100 million particles of dark matter will pass through each second without leaving a trace. Still, a physicist in South Dakota thinks he may be able to catch one.

Researchers have been studying the links between TV viewing and mindless eating for years. The news isn't good for our waistlines.

Netflix And Chew: How Binge Watching Affects Our Eating Habits

6:25pm December 31, 2015

by Susmita Baral

Lots of research suggests munching while watching TV promotes mindless eating. Overall viewing time is a key factor. But the genre of what you are watching may also influence how much you consume.

The upshot from a study of more than 75,000 low-risk births is that "childbirth in the United States is very safe regardless of where you decide to do it," says Dr. Michael Greene, who directs obstetrics at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Giving Birth Outside A Hospital Is A Little Riskier For The Baby

6:29pm December 30, 2015

by Rob Stein

A big study finds the risk that the baby will die soon after delivery is twice as high if the delivery was planned for home or a birthing center versus the hospital, but such deaths are very rare.

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VIDEO: Meet The Bots That Beat The Obstacles

5:00pm December 30, 2015

by Merrit Kennedy

A robot unveiled by Disney researchers can drive up vertical surfaces. Other machines pushing boundaries: a bot that can jump on water without sinking and a bot that flies like a bird.

A 'Celtic Curse' Has Roots Stretching Back To The Bronze Age

8:28pm December 29, 2015

by Rae Ellen Bichell

In people with hemochromatosis, iron builds up and can overload the heart and other organs. Geneticists looking at 5,000-year-old human remains say the disorder may have had evolutionary advantages.

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How The Bias Known As Gambler's Fallacy Affects Our Lives

8:02pm December 29, 2015

by Shankar Vedantam

The fallacy is that we are surprised when things that are supposed to vary a lot, come down one way a number of times. We feel the next case must break the pattern. In reality, there is no pattern.

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Medical workers surround 34-day-old Noubia, the last known patient to contract Ebola in Guinea, as she was released from a Doctors Without Borders treatment center in Conakry on Nov. 28.

A Cause For Cautious Celebration: Guinea Is Ebola-Free

5:38pm December 29, 2015

by Maanvi Singh

After two years and over 2,500 deaths, the country's epidemic has officially ended, the World Health Organization says. Health groups will be watching to ensure the virus doesn't re-emerge.