http://news.softpedia.com Softpedia News - Science Softpedia News en-us 2001 - 2013 Softpedia. All rights reserved. Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:41:48 GMT Wed, 19 Jun 2013 09:41:48 GMT News http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss 10 http://news.softpedia.com/base_img/softpedia_logo.gif http://news.softpedia.com http://news.softpedia.com/news/Obesity-Classified-as-a-Disease-by-the-American-Medical-Association-361904.shtml In the US, obesity is no longer viewed as a health problem. Granted, nobody ever said that it was not a major health problem, but few ever dared to refer to it as more than that.

However, things are about to change. Not to beat about the bush, it was only this past Tuesday when members of the American Medical Asso... (read more)]]> Wed, 19 Jun 2013 07:45:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Obesity-Classified-as-a-Disease-by-the-American-Medical-Association-361904.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Obesity-Classified-as-a-Disease-by-the-American-Medical-Association-361904.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Record-Setting-Dead-Zone-Likely-to-Form-in-the-Gulf-of-Mexico-this-Year-361888.shtml On June 18, NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) announced that, according to several estimates, the dead zone expected to form in the Gulf of Mexico this summer could grow to be roughly the size of the state of New Jersey.

For those unaware, a dead zone is basically an area of water that... (read more)]]> Wed, 19 Jun 2013 07:10:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Record-Setting-Dead-Zone-Likely-to-Form-in-the-Gulf-of-Mexico-this-Year-361888.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Record-Setting-Dead-Zone-Likely-to-Form-in-the-Gulf-of-Mexico-this-Year-361888.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/LEGO-to-Build-Curiosity-Mars-Rover-Model-361873.shtml
And it does this tens of millions of kilometers away from the nearest service station.

So it's fitting perhaps that LEGO decided to build a model of the rover for eager fans willing to depart with their hard-earned cash for the overpriced toy.

LEGO decid... (read more)]]> Wed, 19 Jun 2013 06:55:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/LEGO-to-Build-Curiosity-Mars-Rover-Model-361873.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/LEGO-to-Build-Curiosity-Mars-Rover-Model-361873.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Lucian Parfeni) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Cambodian-Jungle-Hides-1-200-Year-Old-Lost-City-Researchers-Leak-New-Information-About-It-361867.shtml Some days ago, the news broke that an ancient city by the name of Mehendraparvata had been discovered by a team of archaeologists that used state-of-the-art technology to map Cambodia's Siem Reap region.

As reported at that time, the remains of this long-lost city have spent the past 1,200 ye... (read more)]]> Wed, 19 Jun 2013 06:38:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Cambodian-Jungle-Hides-1-200-Year-Old-Lost-City-Researchers-Leak-New-Information-About-It-361867.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Cambodian-Jungle-Hides-1-200-Year-Old-Lost-City-Researchers-Leak-New-Information-About-It-361867.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/People-Who-Can-t-Start-Their-Day-Without-Coffee-Should-Quit-Drinking-It-Researchers-Say-361813.shtml
Apparently, the buzz these people think they get from their morning cup of coffee is not so much a buzz as it is a tell-tale sign that they are addicted to this drink.

Thus, those who feel tired and experience both mental fogginess and headaches whenever they attempt starting their day without drinking coffee are actually experienci... (read more)]]> Tue, 18 Jun 2013 20:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/People-Who-Can-t-Start-Their-Day-Without-Coffee-Should-Quit-Drinking-It-Researchers-Say-361813.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/People-Who-Can-t-Start-Their-Day-Without-Coffee-Should-Quit-Drinking-It-Researchers-Say-361813.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Aspirin-Could-Help-Fight-Cancer-361826.shtml
Specialists Carlo Maley explains that, as several experiments have shown, these drugs could prevent the onset of cancer by putting a leash on the built up of DNA mutations inside abnormal cells.

“Aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which are commonly available and cost-effecti... (read more)]]> Tue, 18 Jun 2013 19:41:01 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Aspirin-Could-Help-Fight-Cancer-361826.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Aspirin-Could-Help-Fight-Cancer-361826.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Physicists-Discover-Strange-New-Particle-Possibly-a-New-Form-of-Matter-361824.shtml Two teams from two different particle accelerators, one in China and one in Japan, have independently discovered a new particle that may be an entirely new form of matter, not known to science until now.

The researchers were actually studying another mysterious particle, Y(4260), but they noticed a strong bump ... (read more)]]> Tue, 18 Jun 2013 17:41:01 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Physicists-Discover-Strange-New-Particle-Possibly-a-New-Form-of-Matter-361824.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Physicists-Discover-Strange-New-Particle-Possibly-a-New-Form-of-Matter-361824.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Lucian Parfeni) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Herschel-Space-Telescope-s-Final-Moments-as-Last-Commands-Are-Issued-361792.shtml
Since then, the team has been making preparations for the space telescope's final resting place. There were some ideas of sending it crashing to the moon, but the team eventually decided to park it in a heliocentric orbit, inside Earth's orbit.

In that orbit, it should be... (read more)]]> Tue, 18 Jun 2013 13:46:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Herschel-Space-Telescope-s-Final-Moments-as-Last-Commands-Are-Issued-361792.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Herschel-Space-Telescope-s-Final-Moments-as-Last-Commands-Are-Issued-361792.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Lucian Parfeni) http://news.softpedia.com/news/NASA-Has-Picked-the-First-Deep-Space-Astronauts-361700.shtml
The agency has mentioned plans to go beyond low Earth orbit, and it may make a trip to an asteroid or even set up a deep space station near the moon. But those things are still half a decade from now, at least.

"After an extensive year-and-a-half search, NASA has a new group of potential astron... (read more)]]> Tue, 18 Jun 2013 11:11:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/NASA-Has-Picked-the-First-Deep-Space-Astronauts-361700.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/NASA-Has-Picked-the-First-Deep-Space-Astronauts-361700.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Lucian Parfeni) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Too-Much-Red-Meat-Ups-Diabetes-Risk-Study-Finds-361622.shtml People who eat too much red meat are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than people who choose to consume this type of meat in moderation, a new study argues.

The researchers now claiming that an increase in a person's daily intake of red meat significantly ups their chances of getting type two diabetes base their statements on d... (read more)]]> Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:53:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Too-Much-Red-Meat-Ups-Diabetes-Risk-Study-Finds-361622.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Too-Much-Red-Meat-Ups-Diabetes-Risk-Study-Finds-361622.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Man-Can-t-Get-Fat-No-Matter-What-He-Eats-Scientists-Explain-Why-361607.shtml Not being able to put on weight might sound like a dream to some people, but for 23-year-old Tom Staniford, one of Britain's top para-athletes, it's more of a nightmare.

When Tom was born, he had a normal weight. However, as the years went by, his body started to shake off the fat stored around Tom's face and inside h... (read more)]]> Tue, 18 Jun 2013 07:11:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Man-Can-t-Get-Fat-No-Matter-What-He-Eats-Scientists-Explain-Why-361607.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Man-Can-t-Get-Fat-No-Matter-What-He-Eats-Scientists-Explain-Why-361607.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Cheetah-Cub-Robot-Is-Almost-as-Agile-as-a-Cat-361499.shtml
In all fairness, a cat did serve as an inspiration for this robot, so it's no wonder that the high-tech cheetah can cover distances of up to seven times its body length in just one second.

Springs were used to mimic the behavior of a cat's tendons, and small motors known as actuators were made to sit for mu... (read more)]]> Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Cheetah-Cub-Robot-Is-Almost-as-Agile-as-a-Cat-361499.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Cheetah-Cub-Robot-Is-Almost-as-Agile-as-a-Cat-361499.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/400-Year-Old-Skeleton-Fetches-5-000-3-745-Bill-to-People-Who-Found-It-361335.shtml Ken Campbell and Nicole Sauve from Sarnia, southern Ontario, Canada, were shocked to find that they are supposed to cough up an impressive $5,000 (€3,745) and pay the archaeologists who dropped by and assessed a 400-year-old skeleton that the couple had found in their backyard.

The two Canadians only became... (read more)]]> Mon, 17 Jun 2013 20:11:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/400-Year-Old-Skeleton-Fetches-5-000-3-745-Bill-to-People-Who-Found-It-361335.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/400-Year-Old-Skeleton-Fetches-5-000-3-745-Bill-to-People-Who-Found-It-361335.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Snowflake-the-World-s-Only-Known-Albino-Gorilla-Was-the-Result-of-Inbreeding-361353.shtml A team of Spanish researchers writing in the scientific journal BMC Genomics claim to have solved the mystery surrounding Snowflake, an albino gorilla that died of skin cancer in 2003.

This male albino gorilla was the only one of its kind to have ever been documented by the scientific community, which is ... (read more)]]> Mon, 17 Jun 2013 19:41:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Snowflake-the-World-s-Only-Known-Albino-Gorilla-Was-the-Result-of-Inbreeding-361353.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Snowflake-the-World-s-Only-Known-Albino-Gorilla-Was-the-Result-of-Inbreeding-361353.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Obese-Mice-Father-Offspring-With-Weight-Issues-361508.shtml
What's interesting is that newborn male mice appear to be more influenced by their father's weight than female mice are. Thus, they grew to be overweight despite their being fed a low-fat diet, sources say.

The Ohio University researchers say that the findings of their investigation suggest that people, and espe... (read more)]]> Mon, 17 Jun 2013 18:51:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Obese-Mice-Father-Offspring-With-Weight-Issues-361508.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Obese-Mice-Father-Offspring-With-Weight-Issues-361508.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Massive-QE2-Asteroid-Is-Like-Nothing-Astronomers-Have-Seen-Before-361514.shtml
QE2 didn't disappoint, as astronomers are now convinced that it belongs to an entirely new class from which we have no samples and very little data.

It's unlike any of the asteroids that have created meteorites on Earth, or which have been studied by a probe.

"Asteroid QE2 is dark, red, and primitive – that is, it hasn't be... (read more)]]> Mon, 17 Jun 2013 13:18:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Massive-QE2-Asteroid-Is-Like-Nothing-Astronomers-Have-Seen-Before-361514.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Massive-QE2-Asteroid-Is-Like-Nothing-Astronomers-Have-Seen-Before-361514.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Lucian Parfeni) http://news.softpedia.com/news/1-200-Year-Old-Long-Lost-City-Discovered-in-Cambodia-361452.shtml An ancient city estimated to have been built some 1,200 years ago has recently been discovered by a team of Australian archaeologists.

Commenting on their findings, the archaeologists explain that the city of Mahendraparvata has spent the past millennium hidden beneath the forests towering over Cambodia's Siem Reap region.
read more)]]> Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:53:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/1-200-Year-Old-Long-Lost-City-Discovered-in-Cambodia-361452.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/1-200-Year-Old-Long-Lost-City-Discovered-in-Cambodia-361452.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Dinosaurs-Hit-by-Major-Cold-Snap-Some-116-Million-Years-Ago-361434.shtml Dinosaurs living in the Cretaceous period were used to feeling warm and toasty. Little did they now that they were about to be hit by a major cold snap that lasted for about 2.5 million years.

A paper recently published in the journal Nature Geoscience details how, smack in the middle of the Cretaceous period, global aver... (read more)]]> Mon, 17 Jun 2013 11:13:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Dinosaurs-Hit-by-Major-Cold-Snap-Some-116-Million-Years-Ago-361434.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Dinosaurs-Hit-by-Major-Cold-Snap-Some-116-Million-Years-Ago-361434.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/New-Subduction-Zone-Near-Spain-Will-Pull-the-Atlantic-Ocean-s-Seafloor-Into-the-Earth-s-Mantle-361266.shtml A new study published in the scientific journal Geology details how, at some point in the future, the Atlantic Ocean's seafloor will find itself embarking on a journey to our planet's core.

The study, whose lead author is João Duarte of the Monash University in Melbourne, Australi... (read more)]]> Sun, 16 Jun 2013 21:01:01 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/New-Subduction-Zone-Near-Spain-Will-Pull-the-Atlantic-Ocean-s-Seafloor-Into-the-Earth-s-Mantle-361266.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/New-Subduction-Zone-Near-Spain-Will-Pull-the-Atlantic-Ocean-s-Seafloor-Into-the-Earth-s-Mantle-361266.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Science-Explains-How-Sperm-Whales-Can-Hold-Their-Breath-for-Up-to-90-Minutes-361244.shtml There is little denying that a sperm whale's ability to spend up to 90 minutes underwater without ever feeling the need to surface for a breath of fresh air is amazing, to say the least.

An international team of researchers now claims to have figured out how it is that sperm whales can survive despite the... (read more)]]> Sun, 16 Jun 2013 19:21:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Science-Explains-How-Sperm-Whales-Can-Hold-Their-Breath-for-Up-to-90-Minutes-361244.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Science-Explains-How-Sperm-Whales-Can-Hold-Their-Breath-for-Up-to-90-Minutes-361244.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/The-Antarctic-Ice-Shelves-are-Dissolving-from-Underneath-360989.shtml A joint investigation carried out by UC Irvine scientists and other researchers has revealed that ice loss in the Antarctic is mainly due to the fact that warm oceanic waters cause the continent’s ice shelves to dissolve from underneath.

For many years, it was believed that Antarctica's ice loss was triggered by ice ca... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 21:01:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/The-Antarctic-Ice-Shelves-are-Dissolving-from-Underneath-360989.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/The-Antarctic-Ice-Shelves-are-Dissolving-from-Underneath-360989.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Male-Guppies-Father-Children-from-Beyond-the-Grave-Study-Finds-361033.shtml
Apparently, there is a perfectly reasonable and science-based explanation for why some males belonging to this species of fish become fathers at least 10 months after they died.

Wildlife researchers explain that, once the mating takes places, the female gets to choose ... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Male-Guppies-Father-Children-from-Beyond-the-Grave-Study-Finds-361033.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Male-Guppies-Father-Children-from-Beyond-the-Grave-Study-Finds-361033.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Escape-Tunnel-Discovered-at-Nazi-Death-Camp-in-Poland-360971.shtml Archaeologists digging at the site of the Sobibor Nazi death camp in Poland have reportedly found traces of an escape tunnel that measured up to 32 feet (10 meters) in length and that reached beyond the camp's border.

By the looks of it, the archaeologists came across the traces of this escape tunnel quite by accident.
<... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 20:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Escape-Tunnel-Discovered-at-Nazi-Death-Camp-in-Poland-360971.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Escape-Tunnel-Discovered-at-Nazi-Death-Camp-in-Poland-360971.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Drinking-Hot-Cocoa-Before-Going-to-Bed-Might-Prevent-Diabetes-361046.shtml
Researchers explain that, as their investigations have shown, several compounds commonly found in cocoa have a beneficial impact on an individual's circulatory system.

More precisely, they improve blood flow by causing the vessels to widen, Daily Mail ... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 19:51:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Drinking-Hot-Cocoa-Before-Going-to-Bed-Might-Prevent-Diabetes-361046.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Drinking-Hot-Cocoa-Before-Going-to-Bed-Might-Prevent-Diabetes-361046.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/This-Alien-Planet-Shouldn-t-Be-There-361106.shtml The great (or frustrating) thing about working with cutting-edge science is that things can change radically from one moment to the other.

Our telescopes have pierced the universe almost as far back the Big Bang, and we have discovered hundreds of planets outside our solar system.

Yet, theories which seem solid today may be complet... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 17:21:01 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/This-Alien-Planet-Shouldn-t-Be-There-361106.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/This-Alien-Planet-Shouldn-t-Be-There-361106.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Lucian Parfeni) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Some-Perspective-Ice-Age-vs-Current-Times-361028.shtml
The same can be said by this new XKCD comic strip that gives us all some perspective about what the Ice Ages looked like compared to today’s scenery.

The artist behind the comic decided to take up four different cities and their modern skylines: Toronto, Chicago, Boston and Montreal.

Then he compares them to the thickness of... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 12:20:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Some-Perspective-Ice-Age-vs-Current-Times-361028.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Some-Perspective-Ice-Age-vs-Current-Times-361028.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Gabriela Vatu) http://news.softpedia.com/news/World-s-First-Abs-Belonged-to-Prehistoric-Fish-That-Lived-380-Million-Years-Ago-360954.shtml The world's first six-pack dates back to 380 million years ago and belonged to prehistoric armored fish, fossil remains found and analyzed by Swedish scientists suggest.

The Uppsala University researchers reportedly came across fossil remains of an armored fish, believed to have roamed the Earth millio... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 08:58:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/World-s-First-Abs-Belonged-to-Prehistoric-Fish-That-Lived-380-Million-Years-Ago-360954.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/World-s-First-Abs-Belonged-to-Prehistoric-Fish-That-Lived-380-Million-Years-Ago-360954.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Men-Are-the-Reason-Women-Get-Menopause-Study-Finds-360938.shtml Women get menopause because of men's preference for younger women, biologist Rama Singh has concluded after spending numerous hours analyzing this phenomenon.

Apparently, menopause is not at all common in the animal kingdom. Quite the contrary, there are some who say that only human females enter menopause once they pass a certain... (read more)]]> Fri, 14 Jun 2013 08:28:00 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Men-Are-the-Reason-Women-Get-Menopause-Study-Finds-360938.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Men-Are-the-Reason-Women-Get-Menopause-Study-Finds-360938.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Mount-Everest-s-Wonders-Revealed-in-Gorgeous-Time-Lapse-Video-360698.shtml
The time-lapse video above is made up of thousands of photos that filmmaker Elia Saikaly took while visiting these harsh landscapes.

“While most climbers slept, I attempted to capture some of the magic that the Himalayan skies have to offer while climbing to the top of the world,” the fi... (read more)]]> Thu, 13 Jun 2013 20:51:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Mount-Everest-s-Wonders-Revealed-in-Gorgeous-Time-Lapse-Video-360698.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watch-Mount-Everest-s-Wonders-Revealed-in-Gorgeous-Time-Lapse-Video-360698.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru) http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watching-Helps-People-Lose-Weight-But-Only-When-the-Screen-Keeps-Flickering-360819.shtml
Researchers say that, as their investigations have shown, this flickering has the amazing ability of chasing away hunger pangs.

According to Daily Mail, it does so by not allowing your brain to focus too much on mental images of a delicious cupcake drowning in syrup or whatnot.

Other... (read more)]]> Thu, 13 Jun 2013 20:31:02 GMT Softpedia News - Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watching-Helps-People-Lose-Weight-But-Only-When-the-Screen-Keeps-Flickering-360819.shtml Science http://news.softpedia.com/news/Watching-Helps-People-Lose-Weight-But-Only-When-the-Screen-Keeps-Flickering-360819.shtml#review_zone Softpedia News (Laura Sinpetru)