Sustainability
Lighting May Cut Seed-Rich Bat Guano Production
Bats ate less fruit in lit areas than in dark ones, which may lessen their seed-dispersal activities needed to bring back slashed rainforests. Cynthia Graber reports.
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Stories by Cynthia Graber
The Sciences
American Water Knowledge Seems Murky
A survey finds that Americans don’t have a good handle on what common activities use the most water. Cynthia Graber reports
The Sciences
Lower Diet Diversity Threatens Crops and Us
More of the world's population is eating the same stuff, meaning more monocultural crops at risk for disease and less gut microbial diversity, a health problem for humans. Cynthia Graber reports ...
The Sciences
Molecular Analysis Resurrects Old Artworks
Analysis of great art at the molecular level can show restorers the original colors of the painting when the artist finished the last brushstroke. Cynthia Graber reports
The Sciences
Biggest Mass Extinction Was Fastest, Too
It took just 60,000 years for the End Permian extinction to wipe out 96 percent of aquatic species and 70 percent of land species some 252 million years ago. Cynthia Graber reports
The Sciences
Patriarchs Beat Their Camels (in Time)
A convergence of dating analysis for camel bones in Israel finds that the animals arrived in the area long after biblical descriptions of them are thought to have taken place. Cynthia Graber reports
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The Sciences
Narcotics Trafficking Slashes Central American Forests
Central American forests have been razed for roads and plane strips to traffic narcotics as well as agricultural operations used to launder drug money. Cynthia Graber reports
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The Sciences
Oldest Known Hearth Unearthed in Israel
Archaeologists report the discovery of a 300,000-year-old hearth, the most ancient one known, for making and using fire. Cynthia Graber reports
Mind
Great Expectations Heighten Placebo Effect
Migraine patients who were told they were getting a real drug did better than those who got the same treatment but who were told they were getting a placebo
Beyond Boston: A reporter leaves home soon after the bombings and finds some solace in science
Space
Architects Vie to Design the City of the Future--On the Moon [Slide Show]
The Moon Capital competition brought out new visions of lunar living, circa 2069
Sustainability
Are Engines the Future of Solar Power?
Stirling engines might be the best way to harvest the power provided by the sun
Sustainability
Hydrogen Power on the Cheap--Or at Least, Cheaper
Chemists have devised less expensive methods for tapping the energy potential of this ubiquitous element
The Sciences
Fact or Fiction?: Animals Like to Get Drunk
Although some tales have proved apocryphal, at least one Malaysian shrew likes to quaff brew
Health
Can Seaweed Mend a Broken Heart?
New research indicates that an alginate-based biomaterial injected into heart attack victims may stave off further damage
The Sciences
Snake Oil Salesmen Were on to Something
Snake oil really is a cure for what ails you, if that happens to be arthritis, heart disease or maybe even depression
Health
Fact or Fiction?: Fatty Foods Equal Pizza Face
Consumed fat does not reappear on your face, but it may trigger a hormonal response that leads to pimples
The Sciences
Strange but True: Whale Waste Is Extremely Valuable
According to the ancients, parfumeurs and Arab royalty, the old saying might as well go: "Worth its weight in whale waste"
