Waking the dead: Scientists reconstruct nuclear genome of extinct human being

Waking the dead: Scientists reconstruct nuclear genome of extinct human being

The reconstruction serves as blueprint that scientists can use to give a description of how the pre-historic Greenlander, Inuk, looked -- including his tendency to baldness, dry earwax, brown eyes, dark skin, the blood type A+, shovel-shaped front teeth, and that he was genetically adapted to cold temperatures, and to what extend he was predisposed to certain illnesses.

Five years ago this kind of genetic blue-printing was science fiction. Where will it lead?

Climate 'tipping points' may arrive without warning, says top forecaster

Climate 'tipping points' may arrive without warning, says top forecaster

More great news on the climate front. We may never have known what hit us. The worry is that things that we know are happening like

"the complete disappearance of Arctic sea ice in summer, leading to drastic changes in ocean circulation and climate patterns across the whole Northern Hemisphere; acceleration of ice loss from the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, .........and ocean acidification from carbon dioxide absorption"

could possibly serve as tipping points that would lead to the disruption of current climate and the world that we know and depend upon. I happen to be one of those who believe that the process has already been set in motion and likely has too much inertia to stop. Only time will tell.

Cool Sperm pictures!

Sperm swim with the help of a proton channel recently identified by scientists. The proton channel Hv1 (shown here in green) is abundant on the tails, or flagella, of human sperm. DNA (blue) and power-producing mitochondria (red) are also shown.

Like escape artists, rotifers elude enemies by drying up and -- poof! -- they are gone with the wind

Like escape artists, rotifers elude enemies by drying up and -- poof! -- they are gone with the wind

"These animals are essentially playing an evolutionary game of hide and seek," said Sherman. "They can drift on the wind to colonize parasite-free habitat patches where they reproduce rapidly and depart again before their enemies catch up. This effectively enables them to evade biotic enemies without sex, using mechanisms that no other known animals can duplicate."

No need for sex. They have an adaptation that has worked exceedingly well for 30 million years. The point is genetic perseverance and nature is conservative.

If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

Evolution impacts environment: Fundamental shift in how biologists perceive relationship between evolution and ecology

Evolution impacts environment: Fundamental shift in how biologists perceive relationship between evolution and ecology

More strands added to web of life. Organisms and their local ecosystems are intricately enmeshed, one influencing the other. No real surprise here!

Last ancestor humans shared with worms had sophisticated brain, microRNAs show

Last ancestor humans shared with worms had sophisticated brain, microRNAs show

"By looking at where in the body different microRNAs evolved, we can build a picture of ancestors for which we have no fossils, and uncover traits that fossils simply cannot show us."

Fascinating research. The mutations that gave these ancestral worms sophisticated brains helped them flourish and pass those genes down the line to every vertebrate. If I were going to choose a different career in science, molecular paleontology would be awfully tempting. This is just the tip of the iceberg.

'Broad spectrum' antiviral fights multitude of viruses

'Broad spectrum' antiviral fights multitude of viruses

This has the potential to be a REALLY big deal. Imagine a single drug that could kill ebola, HIV, hepatitis C virus, West Nile virus, Rift Valley fever virus and yellow fever viruses. This would be as important to society as the development of penicillin or the polio vaccine. And think of the implications for places like sub-Saharan Africa!