Heartbreaks

Thirdhand Smoke Damages Human Cells

Thirdhand Smoke Damages Human Cells - Thirdhand smoke, the residue from cigarette smoke that lingers on surfaces and in dust long after the cigarette is out and the smoke has cleared, may damage human cells, a new study finds. The researchers used two standard laboratory tests to assess the toxicity of thirdhand smoke. They showed that a compound found in smoke residue, called tobacco-specific nitrosamine, significantly damages DNA in human cells. "This is the very first study to show that thirdhand smoke is mutagenic and causes DNA damage,...

Crick DNA Nobel Medal Auctioned for $2 Million

Crick DNA Nobel Medal Auctioned for $2 Million - A Nobel Prize medal honoring the discovery of DNA's twisted ladder shape was sold at auction today (April 11) in New York for more than $2 million. Francis Crick was one of three men awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for deciphering the DNA molecule's double-helix structure in 1953. Sixty years after the discovery, the CEO of a Chinese biomedical firm paid $2,270,500 for Crick's medal and accompanying diploma at Heritage Auctions. At a separate sale yesterday, a letter...

Mysterious Sundial May Be Secret to Viking Navigation

Mysterious Sundial May Be Secret to Viking Navigation - A mysterious Viking sundial found in Greenland may have helped the ancient mariners sail at the same north-south latitude across the Atlantic, new research suggests. The study, detailed Tuesday (April 9) in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A Mathematical and Physical Sciences, suggests that the raiding Norsemen might have been even more impressive sailors than previously thought. "It is widely accepted that Norse people were excellent mariners. Now it seems they used much...

Secret Population of Orangutans Found

Secret Population of Orangutans Found Secret Population of Orangutans Found - A population of 200 of the world's rarest orangutans was found tucked away in the forests of the island of Borneo, according to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). All subspecies of Bornean orangutans are listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. But scientists estimate just 3,000 to 4,500 individuals are left in the subspecies known as Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus, making them the most severely threatened. Two-thousand of...

Must be from the Jaw-rassic period!

Must be from the Jaw-rassic period! The open mouth fossil of 195-million-year-old dolphin-like creature found on Dorset beach - The 18-inch fossil of an ichthyosaur was found near Lyme Regis - The creature's mouth is still open in the unique find The remains of a 195-million-year-old reptile have been discovered on Britain's Jurassic Coast. Geologist Richard Edmonds stumbled across the 18-inch fossil of an ichthyosaur - a dolphin-like sea creature - near Lyme Regis in Dorset. Mr Edmonds spotted a small part of the perfectly-preserved...

Sputnik II and Laika, the first dog in space, re-enters Earth's atmosphere

Sputnik II and Laika, the first dog in space, re-enters Earth's atmosphere - Laika was a stray and had been hand-picked for the mission which aimed to discover what would happen to a living creature in space The spacecraft Sputnik II re-entered the Earth's atmosphere after 162 days in space bearing a special passenger - Laika, a female part-Samoyed terrier. The 4-metre cone-shaped satellite was the second to enter Earth's orbit on 3 November 1957. It also had the distinction of carrying the first living animal into space. Laika was a...

'Da Vinci's Demons' Review: Renaissance Man, Meet Batman

'Da Vinci's Demons' Review: Renaissance Man, Meet Batman - David S. Goyer traffics in superheroes, and he's found one in 15th century Florence. The co-writer of the "Dark Knight" trilogy and the upcoming "Man of Steel," has imagined for us a Leonardo Da Vinci nearly as relatable as a billionaire who dresses up like a bat or a flying super-powered alien. That's good, because for "Da Vinci's Demons," debuting tonight, we need a steady guide through a Renaissance-era Florence that feels somewhere between gritty Gotham and sleek...