Research News

Science

Harvard Honors Scientific Researchers With Ig Nobels

9:23am September 18, 2015

Winners included Michael Smith who created a pain scale for bee bites. The award for literature went to two colleagues for discovering that the word "huh" is used in languages around the world.

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Scientists think the lone star tick (center) likely transmits Heartland disease to people. And the virus probably also circulates in deer and coyotes.

Deadly Heartland Virus Is Much More Common Than Scientists Thought

4:13pm September 17, 2015

by Michaeleen Doucleff

The Heartland virus was considered rare. Scientists now say they've found signs of it circulating in animals across the Midwest, New England and the South. They think human cases have been missed.

A view inside Grotta Paglicci, in southern Italy, with wall paintings. Scientists say a 32,000-year-old stone found inside the cave was used to grind flour.

Paleo People Were Making Flour 32,000 Years Ago

5:56pm September 14, 2015

by Jeremy Cherfas

Research into an ancient stone found in a cave in Italy shows Paleolithic hunter-gatherers were grinding oats and other grains for flour. It's the earliest evidence yet of food processing in Europe.

All-Male Combat Units Performed Better Than Mixed Units, Study Concludes

3:01pm September 11, 2015

by Tom Bowman

The Marine Corps released a study that raises questions about the effectiveness of women in combat conditions. The report found that all-male units out performed mixed-gender units across the board.

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National Geographic paleoartist John Gurche used fossils from a South African cave to reconstruct the face of Homo naledi, the newest addition to the genus Homo.

South African Cave Yields Strange Bones Of Early Human-Like Species

12:38pm September 11, 2015

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Deep inside a rocky chamber, reached by a narrow crevice, researchers found more than 1,500 fossilized bones of what may be the gravesite of a creature never before identified by science.

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Navy Secretary Believes Combat Positions Should Be Open To Qualified Women

8:19am September 11, 2015

Data from an experiment to determine whether female Marines should be allowed into combat positions is out. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus tells David Greene the military benefits from an integrated force.

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Treatment From Brain Tissue May Have Spread Alzheimer's Protein

4:07pm September 10, 2015

by Jon Hamilton

Eight people who received growth hormone treatments made from human brains died decades later from a rare disease. Some also had brain damage similar to that seen in Alzheimer's, autopsies reveal.

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The Problem With Teens Is That They're Just Too Rational

4:06pm September 10, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Teenagers aren't always risk-taking gamblers; they put a lot of effort into weighing financial choices, a study finds. Adults are more apt to adopt rules and quickly make choices that are good enough.

How Sound Shaped The Evolution Of Your Brain

4:06pm September 10, 2015

by Bill McQuay

Sound gets into our brains and processed so quickly that it shapes all other perceptions, says neuroscientist Seth Horowitz. "You hear anywhere from 20 to 100 times faster than you see."

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An experimental contact lens being developed by Google can painlessly measure glucose levels in tears.

Why Google Is Going All In On Diabetes

11:09am September 09, 2015

by Christina Farr

Google made a name for itself with search technology, but it has dabbled in moonshot projects like self-driving cars. Now the company's life science unit is looking for better diabetes treatments.