Homage for Hubble, Old Periodic Table New Debate, Drinking Temptations, and building a planet – one pebble at a time. This eclectic collection of current science news stories is brought to you by STAOBlog.
SciNews is published every Monday and Thursday. Stay tuned for more.
Biology
Movies may tempt teens to drink. Science News for Students
More than four in ten British 15-year-olds say their drinking is interfering with their life. But not all teens face the same alcohol risks, a new study finds. Those who see more drinking in movies are more likely to drink a lot themselves. The finding comes from a long-term study in the United Kingdom called the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children. Thousands of pregnant women joined the study in the early 1990s. Since then, researchers have tracked the health of their children. The new study used data from more than 5,100 of those kids, now teenagers. Read More…
Chemistry
Old periodic table could resolve today’s element placement dispute. Science News
If you ever want to open a chemistry theme restaurant, you should be sure to furnish it with 118 tables — one for each element. Note that it could not be a Greek restaurant, because then the number of tables would be limited to four. Yours, instead, would be a geek restaurant. You could call it The Periodic Tables. Read More…
Shipwrecked bubbly gives chemists a taste of the past. Science News
Champagne preserved at the bottom of the Baltic Sea for 170 years has given chemists a glimpse of past winemaking methods. Read More…
Physics
Cool Jobs: Big future for super small science. Science News for Students.
A special coating for spacecraft that is blacker than even the inky darkness of space. Artificial muscles powering minuscule motors. Ultra-tiny sponges sopping up major oil spills. These are just some of the up-and-coming uses for exceptionally small structures assembled from individual carbon atoms. While it may sound like the stuff of science fiction, it’s actually science fact — or will be soon. Read More…
News Brief: As timely as it gets. Science News for Students.
The world’s best timepiece just got even better. Last year, U.S. government scientists announced they had developed the world’s most accurate clock. Now, a year later, they report having modified this atomic clock. The improvements mean it should not lose or gain a second for 15 billion years. That is as much time that has elapsed since, well, the dawn of time. The changes make the clock about three times as precise as an earlier version. Details appeared April 21 in Nature Communications. Read More…
Earth and Space Science
Millimeter-sized stones formed our planet. Science Daily
Researchers can now explain how asteroids are formed. Our own planet also has its origins in the same process, a cosmic ocean of millimeter-sized particles that orbited the young sun, according to new research. Read More…
Space scientists pay homage to 25 years of the Hubble Space Telescope. Science Daily
It was launched 25 years ago and has given humankind a glimpse at some of the farthest and earliest cosmic phenomenon in the observable Universe. On Friday, 24 April, the HST will celebrate exactly 25 years since it was launched. Read More…
Ordering an Espresso 220 Miles Above Earth Is About to Become a Whole Lot Easier. World Science Festival
When Drake, Milton Drake that is, penned the line, “Shoot me the pot, and I’ll pour me a shot,” never in his wildest dreams could he have had space in mind. But yesterday’s successful SpaceX launch may lend new meaning to java jive. Back in 2013 Luca Parmitano, an Italian astronaut, reportedly had one main complaint about working on the International Space Station: nary a cup of espresso to be found. Having returned to Earth after five months in space, we can safely assume he has had his espresso fix by now. But soon enough, Parmitano’s colleagues still orbiting our planet may be able to sip some java while looking down on the island nation of Java. Read More…