Construction of tiny, fluid-filled devices inspired by Legos
Legos have provided the inspiration for small, fluid-ferrying devices that can be built up brick-by-brick. Tools for manipulating tiny amounts of liquid, known as microfluidic devices, can be used to…
Analysis finds gender bias in peer-reviewer picks
Gender bias works in subtle ways, even in the scientific process. The latest illustration of that: Scientists recommend women less often than men as reviewers for scientific papers, a new…
Physically abused kids learn to fail at social rules for success
Physical abuse at home doesn’t just leave kids black and blue. It also bruises their ability to learn how to act at school and elsewhere, contributing to abused children’s well-documented…
If you think the Amazon jungle is completely wild, think again
Welcome to the somewhat civilized jungle. Plant cultivation by native groups has shaped the landscape of at least part of South America’s Amazon forests for more than 8,000 years, researchers…
Quantum counterfeiters might succeed
Scientists have created an ultrasecure form of money using quantum mechanics — and immediately demonstrated a potential security loophole. Under ideal conditions, quantum currency is impossible to counterfeit. But thanks…
Most Americans like science — and are willing to pay for it
Americans don’t hate science. Quite the contrary. In fact, 79 percent of Americans think science has made their lives easier, a 2014 Pew Research Center survey found. More than 60…
Volcanic eruptions nearly snuffed out Gentoo penguin colony
Penguins have been pooping on Ardley Island off the coast of the Antarctic Peninsula for a long, long time. The population there is one of the biggest and oldest Gentoo…
Readers puzzled by proton’s properties
Proton puzzlerUncertainty over the proton’s size, spin and life span could have physicists rethinking standard notions about matter and the universe, Emily Conover reported in “The proton puzzle” (SN: 4/29/17,…
Top 10 discoveries about waves
Physics fans are a lot like surfers. Both think waves are really fun. For surfers, it’s all about having a good time. For physicists, it’s about understanding some of nature’s…
Flight demands may have steered the evolution of bird egg shape
The mystery of why birds’ eggs come in so many shapes has long been up in the air. Now new research suggests adaptations for flight may have helped shape the…