Lizard Fossil Overturn Hypothesis Of Lizard Evolution
Edmonton, Canada (SPX) Aug 26, 2015 -
University of Alberta paleontologists have discovered a new species of lizard, named Gueragama sulamericana, in the municipality of Cruzeiro do Oeste in Southern Brazil in the rock outcrops of a Late Cretaceous desert, dated approximately 80 million years ago.
"The roughly 1700 species of iguanas are almost without exception restricted to the New World, primarily the Southern United States ...
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Smart phone not a smart choice when facing depression
East Lansing, MI (SPX) Aug 27, 2015 -
Depressed people who turn to their smart phones for relief may only be making things worse.
A team of researchers, that included the dean of Michigan State University's College of Communication Arts and Sciences, found that people who substitute electronic interaction for the real-life human kind find little if any satisfaction.
In a paper published in the journal Computers in Human ...
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Rare nautilus sighted for the first time in 3 decades
Seattle WA (SPX) Aug 27, 2015 -
In early August, biologist Peter Ward returned from the South Pacific with news that he encountered an old friend, one he hadn't seen in over three decades. The University of Washington professor had seen what he considers one of the world's rarest animals, a remote encounter that may become even more infrequent if illegal fishing practices continue.
The creature in question is Allonautilu ...
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As Ice Age ended, greenhouse gas rise was lead factor in melting of Earth's glaciers
Chestnut Hill, MA (SPX) Aug 25, 2015 -
A fresh look at some old rocks has solved a crucial mystery of the last Ice Age, yielding an important new finding that connects to the global retreat of glaciers caused by climate change today, according to a new study by a team of climate scientists.
For decades, researchers examining the glacial meltdown that ended 11,000 years ago took into account a number of contributing factors, par ...
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Water covers 70 percent of the Earth's surface, but only a fraction is fresh
Tampa FL (SPX) Aug 27, 2015 -
Fresh water--connecting and sustaining all aspects of life on Earth, including food and energy--is in great danger. Moreover, scientists are worried not only about fresh water; they worry that we are not worried enough about fresh water, especially in light of growing concern over recent events, such as the prolonged California drought.
The current Special Issue Section of Technology and I ...
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China arrests 12 over Tianjin blasts as toll rises
Beijing (AFP) Aug 27, 2015 -
Chinese police have arrested 12 people over giant explosions that killed at least 145 people and devastated a swathe of a Chinese port city, state media said Thursday as prosecutors probe 11 officials for neglecting their duties.
The official Xinhua news agency said the dozen formally held include the chairman and senior managers of the firm whose chemical storage facility exploded in the no ...
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Intractable pain may find relief in tiny gold rods
Kyoto, Japan (SPX) Aug 25, 2015 -
A team of scientists at Kyoto University's Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (iCeMS) has developed a novel technique using tiny gold rods to target pain receptors.
Gold nanorods are tiny rods that are 1-100 nanometers wide and long. In comparison, a human hair is 100,000 nanometers wide. The team coated gold nanorods with a special type of protein that transports fat within t ...
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