Science

You want that soda bottle. But it may not be because you crave soda. It might just be that you love the idea of wrapping your fingers around its enticing shape.

Your Brain May Want That Bottle Of Soda Because It's Easy To Pick Up

12:41pm February 13, 2015

by Marc Silver

Coca-Cola has launched a small, easy-to-hold bottle in Kenya. And the size and shape could make people crave it. That's the belief of psychologist Sian Beilock, author of How the Body Knows Its Mind.

Apps Can Speed The Search For Love, But Nothing Beats A Real Date

8:13am February 13, 2015

by Maanvi Singh

Are those hours I spend swiping through Tinder getting me anywhere closer to actual romance? Yes, psychologists say. But chemistry doesn't come in an app, and that's what matters most.

A couple of male, genetically modified Aedes aegypti mosquitoes take flight.

Florida Health Officials Hope To Test GMO Mosquitoes This Spring

7:18pm February 12, 2015

by Greg Allen

The British firm that developed the strain of mosquito says it has already tested the insect in tropical countries and found it can reduce populations of disease-carrying mosquitoes by 90 percent.

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Expedition 45 poses for a Star Wars themed portrait

Space Station Astronauts In Star Wars-Themed Crew Pic

5:39pm February 12, 2015

by Scott Neuman

First there was suited-up astronaut Leland Melvin posing with his dogs. Now, a Space Station crew set for launch in September has donned Jedi robes.

Giant chunks of ice break away from the Hans Glacier in Svalbard, Norway, in 2013.

The Ice Is Talking. We Just Have To Listen

8:14am February 12, 2015

by NPR Staff

Glaciers moan and groan. They crackle, fizz and rumble. Researchers say the noises they make might help us understand how fast they're melting.

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"Flavor is the most important ingredient at the core of what we are. It created us," John McQuaid writes in his book Tasty: The Art and Science of What We Eat.

'Tasty': How Flavor Helped Make Us Human

2:57pm February 11, 2015

by NPR Staff

From an evolutionary standpoint, flavor has long helped define who we are as a species, journalist John McQuaid argues in his new book, an exploration of the art and science of taste.

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Semmelweis considered scientific inquiry part of his mission as a physician.

The Doctor Who Championed Hand-Washing And Briefly Saved Lives

2:55pm February 11, 2015

by Rebecca Davis

One of the most important medical advances may also be the simplest: hand-washing. It's the best defense against spreading disease. And its power was discovered long before anyone knew about germs.

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Cattle raised at the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center in Clay Center, Neb. A New York Times investigation of animal suffering at the federal research center has prompted a USDA review.

Outrage Over Government's Animal Experiments Leads To USDA Review

2:43pm February 11, 2015

by Allison Aubrey

Lawmakers also introduced a bill to strengthen laws protecting farm animals used in research. Both moves come out of a New York Times investigation of animal suffering at a federal research center.

Scientists say a drug that's been effective in mice acts like an "imaginary meal" in the body.

Scientists Want To Trick The Gut Into Burning Fat Without Food

2:42pm February 11, 2015

by Eliza Barclay

Researchers say they've discovered a way to jump-start fat-burning by switching on the digestion process without the presence of food. So far, it has only been tested in mice.

An image of Comet 67P/C-G taken on Feb. 6 from a distance of about 77 miles to the comet center.

Science

PHOTO: Rosetta Sends 'An Impressive New Perspective' On Comet

12:45pm February 11, 2015

by Krishnadev Calamur

The European Space Agency probe has sent a new image of Comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko from about 77 miles away.