This is scientific American 60 second Science, I am Christopher Intagliata, got a minute? Free smart phone apps might seem like a deal. But they can have a hidden cost: your phone's battery life. That's because free apps often serve up ads, which can
Global warming might seem like a mechanic boom after all milder temperatures in more carbon dioxide and nitrogen should feed flower. But ten years study has found that any initial positive effect on plants from climate change may soon disappear. The
This is Scientific American, 60-second science. I'm Cynthia Graber.This will just take a minute. When an animal faces a predator, its senses go into overdrive. So scientists wondered, could human anxiety be an evolutionary legacy to protect us agains
This is Scientific Americans 60 second Science, I am Steve Mirsky. If you have paraskevidekatriaphobia, today is not your day. Thats right, paraskevidekatriaphobia is fear of Friday the 13th and the accidents, mishaps and misfortunes thought by some
Spring is in the air. And so are those dang insects, hungry for a blood meal. The victim can wind up with a bunch of bites, red and itchy. So what drugs can quench that itch? Maybe none, according to a study in the Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin. Res
This is Scientific American 60 second Science I am Sophie Bushwick, got a minute? As it ages, white paper turns a distinctive yellow. But why? To find out, scientists artificially aged modern paper to reveal the changes on the molecular level. The re
As it ages white paper turns a distinctive yellow. But why? To find out, scientists artificially aged modern paper to reveal the changes on the molecular level. The research is in the Journal Physical Review Letters. For 48 days, three unbleached pap
The dengue virus depends on mosquitoes to get around, but the virus may have evolved a way to speed its spread by manipulating the behavior of masquito hosts. It makes them more blood thirsty, to quicker find a blood meal than their uninfected counte
Humans have shaped the evolution of animals for as long as we have been catching and eating them. In the days of spear hunting, speed and boldness were survival assets. But with today's high-powered rifles, the tables have turned. Animals that speed
A rabbit might outrun a fox, but stalks of wheat arent making any quick getaways. Plants, for the most part, dont flee from predators. But some primitive marine plants are breaking the rules. Marine scientists at the University of Rhode Island School
They say the beauty is in the eye of the holder. For f* Rainbow f*, that's definitely right. That's in right eye. The birds depend on their right eye for scoping out potential mates. Many males are choosy when picking a partner and the Rainbow or goo
Sauropods like Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus were the biggest beasts to ever roam the Earth. And these dinosaurs had enormously long necks. Which poses an anatomical problem: they needed to move their necks side to side and up and down to graze, but t
Nobel weeka fine time to celebrate sciences most notable achievements. As you raise your glass to this years laureates, why not toast one of chemistrys most delectable discoveries. Because its the 100th anniversary of the Maillard reaction, without w
Hair helps keep you warm, right? But hair can also keep you cooler than bare skin, as long as the hair is not too thick. So says a study in the journal PLoS ONE. Researchers studied elephants, which have very thin coats of hair. It's easy for the bea
This is Scientific American-60 Second Science. I am Christopher Intagliata. Gotta a minute? Hair helps keep you warm, right? But hair can also keep you cooler than bare skin, as long as the hair is not too thick. So says a study in a journal-Plus O
Tuberculosis killed 1.4 million people last year. One reason TB is so deadly is that TB bacteria mutate quickly. But some scientists are hoping to get a step ahead of TBs changes in the future by studying its past evolution. Remnants of TB genes can
This is Scientific Americans 60-Second Science. Im Gretchen Cuda Kroen. Got a minute? Nasty bacteria cling to the surfaces of countertops. They also stick to medical devices - like catheters - that are placed inside the human body, where they can bec
In a recent podcast, we heard the beluga whale NOC change his voice's rhythm and pitch to imitate human speech. Pretty impressive, but you ain't heard nothing yet. M K, an Asian elephant that appears to form actual words. Thats annyong,Korean for hel
Getting out grandmas good [flat work] for the holidays? Then youre probably dreading the time it takes to polish up that silver. Now imagine youre in charge of the silver collection at the metropolitan museum of art. Fortunately, for art conservators
We want our kids to grow up in a country where they have access to the best schools and the best teachers, a country that lives up to its legacy is the global leader and technology and discovery and innerbation, with all the good jobs and new busines