Science News

Embargoed until 2200 GMT Study of horse genes suggests domestication was 5,000 years ago

Embargoed until 2200 GMT Study of horse genes suggests domestication was 5,000 years agoBerlin - An elaborate study of genes from Ice Age and modern horses has shown that the horse was domesticated at least 5,000 years ago in a region known as the Ponto-Caspian steppe, scientists said Thursday.

That region spreads from modern-day Romania through Russia to Kazakhstan.

Astronomers find most distant signs of water in the Universe to date

Astronomers find most distant signs of water in the Universe to dateWashington, April 23: Astronomers have found the most distant signs of water in the Universe to date, in the form of water vapor contained in a jet ejected from a supermassive black hole at the center of a galaxy.

Dr. John McKean of the Netherlands Institute has made the discovery for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON).

The water emission is seen as a maser, where molecules in the gas amplify and emit beams of microwave radiation in much the same way as a laser emits beams of light.

Astronomers discover youngest and lowest mass dwarf stars

Astronomers discover youngest and lowest mass dwarf starsWashington, April 23: Astronomers have found three brown dwarfs with estimated masses of less than 10 times that of Jupiter, making them among the youngest and lowest mass sub-stellar objects detected in the solar neighborhood to date.

The observations were made by a team of astronomers working at the Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de l’Observatoire de Grenoble
(LAOG), France, using the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT).

How mice sniff out sickness

How mice sniff out sicknessLondon, Apr 23 : Swedish researchers claim to have solved the mystery of how some animals can sniff out sickness.

Ivan Rodriguez at the University of Geneva, Switzerland, and colleagues have found a type of smell receptor in mice that appears to respond to disease-related molecules produced by bacteria, viruses, or as the result of inflammation, reports New Scientist.

Gene that switches on during epilepsy development identified

Gene that switches on during epilepsy development identifiedWashington, Apr 23 : Researchers at Wake Forest University School of Medicine have identified a gene that switches on during development of epilepsy.

The discovery made while studying mice may help explain how some people without a genetic predisposition to epilepsy can develop the disorder.

Scientists clear away “cosmic dust” to get better look at youngest supernova remnant

Scientists clear away “cosmic dust” to get better look at youngest supernova remnantWashington, April 23 : Researchers at North Carolina (NC) State University have used a mathematical model that allows them to get a clearer picture of the galaxy's youngest supernova remnant by clearing away the distortions caused by "cosmic dust".

Their new data provides evidence that this remnant is from a type Ia supernova - the explosion of a white dwarf star - and raises questions about the ways in which magnetic fields affect the generation of the remnant''s cosmic ray particles.

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