Stockholm, Oct 26 : A team of archaeologists digging near the planned expansion of a roadway in Sweden have uncovered 1,700 year old artifacts made of wood, making them some of the oldest man-made wooden objects over discovered in the country.

According to a report in The Local, the find was made near Alvangen in western Sweden and provides additional clues about how farmers in the region lived during the Iron Age.

“We’ve found hundreds of wooden objects, including a wooden wheel. We’re coming much closer to the people of the Iron Age with this find. We’re really getting up close and personal,” said Bengt Nordqvist, an archaeologist from the Swedish National Heritage Board.

Washington, Oct 26 : A research spanning 20 years has determined that climate change and acid rain could actually be good for forests.

The research was undertaken by scientists at Michigan Technological University’s School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science in the northern hardwood forests of Michigan.

The team reached a surprising conclusion that moderate increases in temperature and nitrogen from atmospheric pollution actually improve forest productivity.

Washington, Oct 26 : Scientists have simulated the seismic signals that precede a volcanic eruption for the first time and created a 3-D visualization of those warning signs under controlled conditions, which could help save lives in case of an actual catastrophe.

According to a report in Newswise, the simulation has been made by an international team working out of the University of Toronto’s (U of T’s) Rock Fracture Dynamics Facility in Canada.

By performing tests on basalt rock from Sicily’s still-active volcano Mt. Etna, the team was able to record the seismic waves generated during the earthquakes that occur before volcanic eruptions.

London, Oct 26 : State-of-the-art computer graphic systems developed for movies and games have made it possible to model in unprecedented detail the swirling rings and tubes that are a characteristic of turbulent vortices.

According to a report in New Scientist, the models will help explain the forces that govern vortex decay.

This could lead to ways to control them in places where they cause problems, such as over aircraft wings or in blood vessels.

Computer graphics technology for games and movies has progressed to the point that it can render photoreal simulations of flowing liquids.

Washington, Oct 26 : A new research has confirmed for the first time that normal skin can become drier from creams.

The findings are based on Izabela Buraczewska’s study, in which she looked at what happens to the skin at the molecular level and also what positive and negative effects creams have on the skin.

Her research has revealed that differences in the pH of creams do not seem to play any role.

She also studied different oils in a seven-week treatment period, but no difference was established between mineral oil and a vegetable oil. Both oils resulted in the skin being less able to cope with external stresses.

Washington, Oct 26 : Scientists at the Department of Biological Sciences have found a previously unknown coral reef in the Seychelles.

As part of an ongoing study, Dave Smith and Dave Suggett visited Curieuse Island, which is managed by the Seychelles Centre of Marine Research and Technology-Marine Protected Areas (SCMRT-MPA).

Smith and Suggett were joined by PhD student Seb Hennige as well as local Seychelles collaborators.

The island is home to over 200 giant tortoises but it was thought no coral reefs were present.