Science News

Syria returns stolen marble artifact to Iraq

AP - Fri Jul 4, 4:48 AM ET

BAGHDAD - Syria has returned a marble artifact to Iraq that was stolen from one of the country's archaeological sites.

Weather News

  • Weather around the U.S.A. AP - Fri Jul 4, 9:14 AM ET

    Weather around the U.S.A.

  • The forecast for noon, Friday, July 4, 2008 shows a system will move from the Central Plains to the Mid-Atlantic, triggering showers and storms along its path. The Northeast can expect scattered storms as a cold front sweeps through. Showers continue in the Northwest and Northern Rockies. (AP Photo/Weather Underground)
    The Nation's Weather AP - Fri Jul 4, 7:26 AM ET

    A wet Independence Day was forecast for much of the nation, with showers and thunderstorms projected for the Pacific Northwest, the mid-Atlantic, the Ohio Valley and the Southeast. Clear skies were expected over the northern Plains, the Great Lakes and the Southwest.

  • This NOAA satellite image taken Thursday, July 3, 2008 at 1:15 PM EDT shows showers and storms associated with a cold front across the Northeast, as well as thunderstorms over the Gulf and off of the East Coast. (AP Photo/Weather Underground)
    Tropical Storm Douglas weakens AP - Fri Jul 4, 1:27 AM ET

    MEXICO CITY - Tropical Storm Douglas weakened to a depression off Mexico's coast on Thursday and was forecast to die at sea.

Space & Astronomy News

  • This NASA handout image, released on June 13, 2008 shows the Robotic Arm on NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander with a sample of martian soil as it prepares to move to the spacecraft's microscope station. Scientists with the US Phoenix lander will make their first analysis of Martian ice fragments in coming days but it could be the last done in one of the probe's small ovens, NASA said on Friday.(AFP/File/Ho)
    Phoenix scientists soon will analyze Martian ice AFP - Fri Jul 4, 2:28 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Scientists with the US Phoenix lander will make their first analysis of Martian ice fragments in coming days but it could be the last done in one of the probe's small ovens, NASA said on its website Friday.

  • This is a color image of Mercury's massive Caloris basin and adjacent regions, seen in orange hues. (Handout/Courtesy of Science/AAAS/Reuters)
    Dramatic volcanism forged Mercury's surface Reuters - Thu Jul 3, 4:50 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Volcanic activity has played a central role in forging the surface of Mercury, scientists said on Thursday based on data collected by a NASA spacecraft that zoomed past the closest planet to the sun in January.

  • Volcanoes on Mercury Solve 30-year Mystery SPACE.com - Thu Jul 3, 2:16 PM ET

    A NASA spacecraft's first flyby of Mercury has yielded a wealth of information about the inner-most planet, some of which confirms volcanism occurred there, settling a longstanding debate.

Animals/Pets News

  • Tigers Vanish in Nepal LiveScience.com - Wed Jul 2, 6:16 PM ET

    Officials are alarmed by a plunging tiger population in the Suklaphanta Wildlife Reserve in Nepal, a refuge that once boasted among the highest densities of this endangered species in the Eastern Himalayas.

  • An Indian white tiger drinks water from a pond in its enclosure at the Zoological Park in New Delhi in April 2008. Some endangered species may face an extinction risk that is up to a hundred times greater than previously thought, according to a study released Wednesday.(AFP/File/Manan Vatsyayana)
    Extinction risks vastly underestimated: study AFP - Wed Jul 2, 1:41 PM ET

    PARIS (AFP) - Some endangered species may face an extinction risk that is up to a hundred times greater than previously thought, according to a study released Wednesday.

  • A humpback whale tail. Japan is ready to spare humpback whales from its Antarctic hunt for another year if international whaling talks make progress, a senior Japanese official said Wednesday.(AFP/File/Rodrigo Buendia)
    Japan ready to spare humpbacks for another year: official AFP - Wed Jul 2, 12:43 PM ET

    TOKYO (AFP) - Japan is ready to spare humpback whales from its Antarctic hunt for another year if international whaling talks make progress, a senior Japanese official said Wednesday.

Dinosaurs & Fossils News

  • Museum confirms discovery of rare fossil AP - Thu Jun 26, 4:55 PM ET

    MARTINSVILLE, Va. - Scientists with the Virginia Museum of Natural History have confirmed the discovery of a 500 million-year-old fossil called a stromatolite.

  • This undated handout artist rendering  provided by Philip Renne shows a Ventastega. Scientists have found the fossil skull of the most primitive four-legged critter in Earth's history, a key point in the evolution from fish to animals that eventually walked on on land. At lower left are two Bothriolepis. (AP Photo/Philip Renne)
    Fossil of most primitive 4-legged creature found AP - Wed Jun 25, 8:12 PM ET

    WASHINGTON - Scientists unearthed a skull of the most primitive four-legged creature in Earth's history, which should help them better understand the evolution of fish to advanced animals that walk on land.

  • Utah announces 'major dinosaur fossil discovery' AP - Tue Jun 17, 8:39 PM ET

    SALT LAKE CITY - A newly discovered batch of well-preserved dinosaur bones, petrified trees and even freshwater clams in southeastern Utah could provide new clues about life in the region some 150 million years ago.

Biotechnology News

  • This file picture shows a genetically modified corn crop near Paillet. A review of the European Union's procedures for vetting genetically modified crops does not imply the policy will undergo far-reaching change, a French environment minister said Friday.(AFP/File/Jean-Pierre Muller)
    No revamp of EU rules on GMO crops: ministerial meeting AFP - Fri Jul 4, 1:32 PM ET

    PARIS (AFP) - A review of the European Union's procedures for vetting genetically modified crops does not imply the policy will undergo far-reaching change, a French environment minister said Friday.

  • A medical assistant sorts test tubes filled with materials for DNA testing in a file photo. (Michaela Rehle/Reuters)
    Big haul of Crohn's genes shows disease complexity Reuters - Sun Jun 29, 1:20 PM ET

    LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have linked 32 genetic variations to Crohn's disease, a bowel disorder, highlighting the complexity of many common diseases and the difficulties facing researchers seeking treatments.

  • A voter drops off an absentee ballot at the Franklin County Election Board at the Franklin County Memorial Building in March 2008 in Columbus, Ohio. Genes can affect whether people tend to vote in elections or not, according to a US study released this week that suggested that the urge to cast a ballot is inherited.(AFP/Getty Images/File/Eric Thayer)
    Genes affect voter participation: study AFP - Sat Jun 28, 12:18 PM ET

    WASHINGTON (AFP) - Genes can affect whether people tend to vote in elections or not, according to a US study released this week that suggested that the urge to cast a ballot is inherited.

Energy News

  • The founder of Pakistan's nuclear program, Abdul Qadeer Khan, is seen in this undated file photo in Islamabad, Pakistan. Disgraced nuclear scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan said Friday, July 4, 2008, in a telephone interview with The Associated Press that North Korea received centrifuges from Pakistan in a 2000 shipment supervised by the army during the rule of President Pervez Musharraf. His claims contradict his 2004 confession that he was solely responsible for spreading nuclear technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya. (AP Photo/File)
    NKorea says US, other parties slow on nuclear pact AP - Fri Jul 4, 5:38 AM ET

    SEOUL, South Korea - North Korea said Friday it will not take further steps to dismantle its nuclear program until the U.S. and its other negotiating partners award fuel oil and political benefits promised under an aid-for-disarmament deal.

  • French President Nicolas Sarkoz speaks to workers during his visit to ArcelorMittal plant, in Le Creusot, central France, Thursday, July 3, 2008. Sarkozy said France will build a second new-generation nuclear reactor. Member of Parliament Jean-Paul Anciaux, left, and general council vice-president Philippe Baumel, right, look on. (AP Photo/Gerard Cerles, Pool)
    France to build second new-generation nuclear reactor AP - Thu Jul 3, 12:22 PM ET

    LE CREUSOT, France - France will build a second new-generation nuclear reactor, President Nicolas Sarkozy said Thursday, pledging a "new industrial revolution" in an era in which fossil fuels have grown too expensive.

  • Iraq said Monday it had failed to sign technical support deals with global oil majors hoping to cash in on boosting the war-torn country's extensive but underexploited oilfields. Iraq is still negotiating with Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, Chevron and Total. Duration: 00:50. THIS VIDEO WAS ORIGINALLY FILED JUNE 30th AND IS BEING MOVED WITH "Iraq says competition deciding factor in oil deals"(AFPTV)
    Iraq says competition deciding factor in oil deals AFP - Thu Jul 3, 11:31 AM ET

    BAGHDAD (AFP) - Iraq on Thursday said it would be guided by the principle of competition when awarding contracts to global energy companies hoping to cash in on the country's vast oil and gas fields.

Most Popular Science News

  • A general view shows the Pyramid of the Sun at the Teotihuacan archaeological site in the outskirts of Mexico City February 2, 2008. (Henry Romero/Reuters)
    Researchers open secret cave under Mexican pyramid Reuters - Thu Jul 3, 12:22 PM ET

    MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Archeologists are opening a cave sealed for more than 30 years deep beneath a Mexican pyramid to look for clues about the mysterious collapse of one of ancient civilization's largest cities.

  • Tourists protect themselves from the sun as they visit the ancient Roman city of Pompeii, destroyed by the Vesuvius volcanic eruption in 79 AD, August 24, 2007. (Tony Gentile/Reuters)
    Crumbling Pompeii site in "state of emergency" Reuters - Fri Jul 4, 12:26 PM ET

    ROME (Reuters) - The Italian government declared a state of emergency at the Pompeii archaeological site on Friday to try to rescue one of the world's most important cultural treasures from decades of neglect.

  • A mosquito is about to begin feeding in this 2005 file photo. (James Gathany/CDC/Handout/Reuters)
    New West Nile virus strain may worsen epidemic Reuters - Fri Jul 4, 11:21 AM ET

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A new strain of West Nile virus is spreading better and earlier across the United States, and may thrive in hot American summers, researchers said on Thursday.