For more than a century, plant geneticists have been studying maize as a model system to understand the rules governing the inheritance of traits, and a team of researchers recently unveiled a previously unknown mechanism that triggers gene silencing in corn.
articles
In bee decline, fungicides emerge as improbable villain
When a Cornell-led team of scientists analyzed two dozen environmental factors to understand bumblebee population declines and range contractions, they expected to find stressors like changes in land use, geography or insecticides.
Turtles & Technology Advance Understanding of Lung Abnormality
A study of an unusual snapping turtle with one lung found shared characteristics with humans born with one lung who survive beyond infancy. Digital 3D anatomical models created by Emma Schachner, PhD, Assistant Professor of Cell Biology & Anatomy at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine, made the detailed research possible. The work is published in the December 2017 issue of The Journal of Anatomy, the cover of which features an image of the study’s 3D models.
Stanford researchers test public receptiveness to different wind energy turbines
With global carbon emissions on the rise, wind power continues to be an attractive option for states and countries looking to limit fossil fuel use and increase renewable energy. Wind already accounts for over 5 percent of electricity generation in the United States. However, a number of issues plague the low-carbon energy source, such as complaints from nearby residents about noise and the killing of hundreds of thousands of birds and bats each year that collide with turbine blades.
Moon's Crust Underwent Resurfacing After Forming from Magma Ocean
The Earth’s Moon had a rough start in life. Formed from a chunk of the Earth that was lopped off during a planetary collision, it spent its early years covered by a roiling global ocean of molten magma before cooling and forming the serene surface we know today.
Refining Pesticides to Kill Pests, Not Bees
Pyrethroid pesticides are effective. Sometimes too effective.