Strange & Offbeat News -- ScienceDaily

Scientists predict Earth-like planets around most stars Posted: 04 Feb 2015 03:44 PM PST Planetary scientists have calculated that there are hundreds of billions of Earth-like planets in our galaxy which might support life, by applying a 200 year old idea to the thousands of exo-planets discovered by the Kepler space telescope.

Pigeon power: Study suggests similarity between how pigeons learn the equivalent of words and the way children do Posted: 04 Feb 2015 03:44 PM PST A new study finds pigeons can categorize 128 photographs into 16 categories of natural and humanmade objects, a skill researchers say is similar to the mechanism children use to learn words.

Possible use of medical marijuana for depression Posted: 04 Feb 2015 01:30 PM PST Scientists are studying chronic stress and depression, with a focus on endocannabinoids, which are brain chemicals similar to substances in marijuana.

The brain's social network: Nerve cells interact like friends on Facebook Posted: 04 Feb 2015 10:41 AM PST Neurons in the brain are wired like a social network, according to new research. Each nerve cell has links with many others, but the strongest bonds form between the few cells most similar to each other.

Rapid and unexpected weight gain after fecal transplant Posted: 04 Feb 2015 09:58 AM PST A woman successfully treated for a recurrent Clostridium difficile infection with stool from an overweight donor rapidly gained weight herself afterwards, becoming obese, according to a case report.

Programming safety into self-driving cars: Better AI algorithms for semi-autonomous vehicles Posted: 04 Feb 2015 08:19 AM PST For decades, researchers in artificial intelligence, or AI, worked on specialized problems, developing theoretical concepts and workable algorithms for various aspects of the field. Computer vision, planning and reasoning experts all struggled independently in areas that many thought would be easy to solve, but which proved incredibly difficult.

Full-color moving holograms in high resolution Posted: 04 Feb 2015 06:01 AM PST Three-dimensional (3D) movies, which require viewers to wear stereoscopic (i.e. Related to the technique of creating an impression of depth by showing two slightly offset flat images to each eye) glasses, have become very popular in recent years. However, the 3D effect produced by the glasses cannot provide perfect depth cues. Furthermore, it is not possible to move one's head and observe that objects appear different from different angles -- a real-life effect known as motion parallax. Now, researchers have developed a new way of generating high-resolution, full-color, 3D videos that uses holographic technology.

Giant rodent used incisors like tusks Posted: 03 Feb 2015 05:43 PM PST The largest rodent ever to have lived may have used its front teeth just like an elephant uses its tusks, a new study has found. "We concluded that Josephoartigasia must have used its incisors for activities other than biting, such as digging in the ground for food, or defending itself from predators. This is very similar to how a modern day elephant uses its tusks," an investigator said.

Tropical wasps attack intruders with unfamiliar faces Posted: 03 Feb 2015 05:43 PM PST The scientists went to the remote tropical forests of South East Asia to study this tiny wasp species. Each nest contains a family of related individuals and hundreds of nests can be clustered together to form a kind of city. Close proximity to so many other families means each colony faces persistent landing attempts by intruders from the neighborhood, and these might steal resources or theoretically lay cuckoo eggs.

One good turn: Birds swap energy-sapping lead role when flying in v-formation Posted: 02 Feb 2015 01:07 PM PST Migrating birds 'share the pain' of the arduous task of leading a v-formation, so that they can then take turns saving energy by following in another bird's wake, a new study shows.

Engineers devise genetic 'on' switch made exclusively of RNA Posted: 02 Feb 2015 08:45 AM PST Scientists have created a new 'on' switch to control gene expression -- a breakthrough that could revolutionize genetic engineering. The new genetic control mechanism is made exclusively of ribonucleic acids.