Posts Tagged ‘University of Wisconsin Madison UW-Madison’

  • The cockroach
    The cockroach

    An extermination trick that married insecticide with sugar worked for a while — but then suddenly lost its power against roaches. Now science tells us why, as it highlights once again how human actions affect natural selection.


    Thursday, May 23rd, 2013
  • Exploring a volcano
    Exploring a volcano

    As molten rock gathers underground, a huge volcanic field in Chile is the fastest-rising land on Earth. The biggest eruptions at Laguna del Maule, if they happened today, would change our climate and planet. Scientists are racing to understand a strange unrest in a bizarre landscape.


    Thursday, May 2nd, 2013
  • Stem cell therapy: When will it help the heart?
    Stem cell therapy: When will it help the heart?

    Heart muscle is never replaced if it dies in a heart attack. Muscle cells grown from stem cells can briefly help broken hearts. Could new approaches make the healing long-term?


    Thursday, April 18th, 2013
  • Roads: helpful here, harmful there
    Roads: helpful here, harmful there

    Roads are the first insult to pristine natural areas — and a key to agricultural productivity in places where farming makes sense. Here’s a proposal to decide where roads make sense, and where they make mayhem.


    Thursday, March 21st, 2013
  • Space messengers: Private or public?
    Space messengers: Private or public?

    Meteorite hunters were out in force after the biggest impact in 100 years injured more than 1,200. Does the meteorite market damage science by sending the best samples to private collections, or does it feed science as well as the market?


    Thursday, February 28th, 2013
  • A bad climate for endangered species?
    A bad climate for endangered species?

    How will rising temperatures affect endangered species? Are there ways to abate the consequences, and are they being tested? Can we even be certain that climate change is the cause of specific declines?


    Thursday, February 14th, 2013
  • New food rules: How healthy?
    New food rules: How healthy?

    Drafts of two hefty food-safety regulations are released. What are the fundamentals of ensuring safety in the giant American food system? Where is the room for improvement? Who will (and maybe should) escape regulation?


    Thursday, January 17th, 2013
  • Screaming about screen time?
    Screaming about screen time?

    We spend ever-more hours with TV, cellphones, tablets and computers, is it rude or necessary to always answer your phone? Does distraction make you dumb? What about multitasking?


    Thursday, December 20th, 2012
  • Counting bugs in Panama
    Counting bugs in Panama

    Life is biology is species: But how many species live on Earth? About six million arthropods (insects, spiders and crustaceans), says a new study.


    Thursday, December 13th, 2012
  • Horrific Hurricanes
    Horrific Hurricanes

    How do hurricanes form? How do we predict their paths? How can we improve predictions?


    Wednesday, December 5th, 2012
  • Making spears
    Making spears

    Spears helped our ancestors eat and defend themselves. Spearmaking required ingenuity, experiments and communication. Symmetrical stone tools with damage at the tip indicate that spears were being used in South Africa half a million years ago, according to a new study.


    Thursday, November 15th, 2012
  • The science of cheese
    The science of cheese

    Cheesemaking is older than Homer’s Odyssey, but questions remain. Which bacteria make the best cheese? Must low-fat cheese taste like cardboard? Why is small-producer, “artisan” cheese becoming so popular? Why does one cheese taste different than another.


    Thursday, October 18th, 2012
  • When dead men speak…
    When dead men speak…

    British archeologists unearthed bones of Richard III, who died in 1485 after a murderous reign. How do bones, isotopes, historic records, DNA and grave goods tell us about the dead?


    Thursday, October 4th, 2012
  • West Nile virus running wild
    West Nile virus running wild

    Mosquitoes spread a lot of disease, but they are not just “flying hypodermic needles.” As we rush to protect ourselves against a virus that can cause permanent brain damage, how can we understand and control the mosquitoes that spread West Nile?


    Thursday, August 30th, 2012
  • To play, and therefore to mate
    To play, and therefore to mate

    Are we affecting the character of future generations by the way we choose mates? If choosing attractive mates tends to make the grandchildren more attractive, what about choosing mates who like to laugh or have fun?


    Thursday, August 9th, 2012


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