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Public Opinion Early Warning Signal of Terrorism, Study Shows

Stefan Lovgren — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 22:08:27 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: Alan Krueger of Princeton University says the findings challenge the notion that public opinion is irrelevant for terrorism because terrorists are extremists who act independently of their countrymen's attitudes.

National Park Service

September 11, 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York

One country’s public sentiment about the leadership of another country can be a useful indicator of how likely a terrorist attack against that second country may be, new research suggests. These results don’t show that public opinion actually causes terrorism – rather, the two are correlated.

Researchers found a positive relationship between the percentage of people in one country who disapproved of the leadership of another country and the number of terrorist attacks by people or groups from the first country against the second. This relationship appears to be independent of other factors that may be related to terrorism, such as economic conditions, civil liberties, demographics and the geographic distance between countries, the authors report.

E-mail Habits Can be Predicted, Study Shows

Stefan Lovgren — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 17:36:50 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: R. Dean Malmgren of Northwestern University says our e-mail writing is similar to letter writing of the past.

Is human activity truly random and unpredictable? A recent analysis of peoples’ letter-writing and email communication suggests not – and proves that such patterns of human correspondence can actually be modeled as complex systems. Apparently, factors like the cycle imposed by our circadian rhythms, our comfort with task repetition, and the changing needs throughout our lifetimes – mixed with a good dose of chance – provide enough information for researchers to accurately estimate when, and for how long, you might sit down to write a letter (or email) to a pen-pal.

This finding challenges previously held views that base human correspondence patterns on our need to respond to other individuals – and it also implies that other aspects of human activity might be modeled in this same, universal manner if the models take into account unique “human” variables each time.

Researchers analyzed the correspondence patterns of 16 historical writers, performers, politicians, and scientists – such as Albert Einstein – in order to reach these conclusions. They identify an underlying universality between this old-fashioned letter-writing and a more modern form of communication – email – and they say that the same model can accurately describe both of these patterns of correspondence among individuals.

Tiny T. rex Started the Trend of Terrifying Traits

Stefan Lovgren — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:10:16 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: Paleontologist Paul Sereno of the University of Chicago says the the T. rex and other giant dinosaurs did not evolve their physical features as they grew in size, but instead, they were present for feeding efficiency at all sizes of the dinosaurs during their reign in the Cretaceous Period.

Raptorex kriegsteini

When you think of Tyrannosaurus rex, you probably imagine the unique physical traits that defined the species: a large skull and tiny forearms attached to a tremendous body. But, researchers have just unearthed a much smaller tyrannosaurid in China, no more than three meters tall, that displays all the same features – and predates the T. rex by tens of millions of years.

The researchers examined the skull, teeth, nose, spine, shoulders, forearms, pelvis, and hind legs of the new fossil, comparing the features to larger evolutionary versions of tyrannosaurid dinosaurs. They conclude that the specialized feeding features, or “predatory skeletal design,” of R. kriegsteini were simply scaled up with little modification in its descendants, whose body masses eventually grew to 90 times the size of R. kriegsteini.

The researchers also use this new fossil to propose and describe three major morphological stages in the evolutionary history of tyrannosaurid dinosaurs.

Tiny Wing Details Make Big Difference in Flight, Study Shows

Stefan Lovgren — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 15:19:30 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: Adrian Thomas at the University of Oxford says the findings are useful for engineers trying to design flying machines that mimic the flapping of insects.

The rotating and twisting of an insect’s wings are an important -- and previously unappreciated – part of the flying process, new findings suggest. Previous models have treated the wing as a flat, rigid plate, despite the fact that insect wings deform dramatically in flight.

To investigate the aerodynamic benefits of this deformation, researchers first used high-speed digital cameras to track the wing motion of real locusts. They compared these results with those of a three-dimensional computer simulation, based on a model of fluid dynamics. The results matched well, validating the computer model and indicating that modern aerodynamic theory can accurately model the aerodynamics of insect flight.

The researchers then used the model to see how removing various wing features should affect the insects’ flying efficiency. They found that the curvatures on the wing’s surface and the wing’s twisting ability both play important roles in the aerodynamics of the locust’s flight.

How Will You Feel? Ask Your Neighbor

Stefan Lovgren — Wed, 13 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: Daniel Gilbert, a psychologist at Harvard University, says one of the best ways to learn if we'll like a future event is to ask someone else who's already experienced it.

A new study on speed-daters suggests that people tend to rely on their own feelings and emotions even though a stranger’s advice could be more helpful.

Whether on a date, at the grocery store, or at work, people frequently misjudge how they will react to certain social situations, and sometimes their errors can have serious consequences, the study shows.

These findings suggest that people expect their own best guess to be the most reliable predictor of their future reactions – but they actually make more accurate predictions when they know how others responded.

Heat Waves Hotter than the Sun Discovered

Stefan Lovgren — Tue, 12 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: David Jess, an astrophysicist at Queen’s University Belfast, in Northern Ireland, says the discovery may point the way to a new free energy technology.

David Jessm, Queen's University Belfast

Image captured by telescope of a region on the surface of the sun. The brighter area near the middle of the image indicates the presence of Alfvén waves, which are invisible to the unaided eye.

The theoretical existence of Alfvén waves, which are capable of heating the solar atmosphere to millions of degrees, has been confirmed with actual detection of the unique plasma waves using the Swedish Solar Telescope, researchers say.

Astrophysicists have long puzzled over why the sun’s corona, the outer part of the solar atmosphere, is millions of degrees hotter than the surface of the sun itself.

The magnetic waves, called Alfvén waves, are considered the most plausible explanation for the transfer of so much energy from the sun’s surface to its outer atmosphere.

The researchers say that the wave motion and timing is consistent with current torsional Alfvénic wave models, and they suggest that these purely magnetic plasma waves are sufficient to heat the solar corona.

Erasing Traumatic Memories Possible, Researchers Say

Stefan Lovgren — Sun, 10 May 2009 00:00:00 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: Sheena Josselyn of Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children says terrifying memories in humans may one day be erased before causing conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

Researchers have erased brain cells in mice that store fearful memories.

While the sights and sounds of a terrifying blast or crash would stay intact, the memory of the fear it caused could conceivably be erased, the researchers suggest. Their work appeared in the journal Science.

Coatings That Can Heal Their Own Scratches

Stefan Lovgren — Fri, 08 May 2009 17:36:31 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: Marek Urban, a chemist at the University of Southern Mississippi, says you may be able to get that scratch out of your car’s bumper simply by parking in a sunny spot.

Marek W. Urban, via Science/AAAS

Researchers have created a polyurethane coating that heals itself when exposed to ultraviolet light.

In the future, a beam of sunlight may be all you need to repair a scratch on your car. Researchers have developed a new polyurethane material that heals its own scratches when exposed to ultraviolet light.

This material can repair itself in less than an hour and could be used as a coating in packaging, on vehicles, or on any surface that is exposed to the environment and sunlight.

Different Parameters Possible for Extraterrestrial Life, Scientists Say

Stefan Lovgren — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: John Baross, a professor at the Center for Astrobiology and Evolution at the University of Washington, says we don't understand the limits of evolution in a carbon-based life.

John Barros of the University of Washington is one of many scientists who say a different kind of biochemistry than what is found on Earth may enable life to exist on a different planet. Extraterrestrial life may use electrical energy, wave action, or maybe even energy from bombardments, he says.

Biofuels Must Become Greener, Says Daniel Kammen

Stefan Lovgren — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 00:00:00 -0700

WHY IT MATTERS: Daniel Kammen, professor of energy at UC Berkeley, says biofuels are going to have to be greener than they are today if they're going to be a part of our future.

Biofuel is defined as solid, liquid or gaseous fuel obtained from relatively recently lifeless biological material and is different from fossil fuels, which are derived from long dead biological material.

There are various current issues with biofuel production and use, which are presently being discussed in the popular media and scientific journals. One of these issues is the so-called "food vs. fuel" dilemma, which relates to the risk of diverting farmland or crops for biofuels production.