Ker Than
Latest articles by Ker Than

Gambling on Global Warming Goes Mainstream
By Ker Than published
Scientists have been wagering privately for years, now the public can bet on climate change effects. The odds, however, are not in your favor.

How Sight and Sound Can Trick Your Brain
By Ker Than published
A new study shows how auditory and visual information in the brain can work together to trick us into seeing things that are not there.

Depressed? Go Play in the Dirt
By Ker Than published
Exposure to friendly soil bacteria could improve mood just as effectively as antidepressant drugs.

Joan of Arc Relics are Fake
By Ker Than published
The relics of Joan of Arc are not the remains of the fifteenth-century French heroine and saint, but rather manufactured items made from an Egyptian mummy.

Controversial Human Ancestor Gets Major Facelift
By Ker Than published
An ancient member of the human family gets a digital makeover, revealing a mug that looks more apelike than previously thought. But not everyone is buying the result.

Rise of Modern Mammals Occurred Long After Dinosaur Demise
By Ker Than published
Modern mammals don’t owe their success to the demise of the dinosaurs, according to a new study.

Worms Live Longer on Fortified Steak and Chicken
By Ker Than published
Experiments with worms suggest humans might one day be able to eat themselves to a longer and healthier life.

Two 'Raptor' Dinosaurs Unearthed in Mongolia
By Ker Than published
The new species were unearthed in Mongolia. One ranks among the smallest non-avian dinosaurs ever discovered.

Genetically Tweaked Mice Get Human-Like Vision
By Ker Than published
Scientists have some lab mice seeing red. The animals have had their vision genetically upgraded and can now see colors invisible to normal rodents.

Predators Stifle Rapid Evolution of Prey
By Ker Than published
Scientists have identified two factors that play important roles in the fitful process of evolution.

Ancient Lizard Glided on Stretched Ribs
By Ker Than published
An ancient arboreal lizard coasted through the air on a wing-like membrane stretched across elongated ribs, a new fossil reveals.

Surprising Pace of Evolution and Extinction Revealed
By Ker Than published
New species evolve faster at high latitudes than in the tropics, but they also go extinct faster, a new study suggests.

Old Earthquake Faults are Like Worn Brake Pads
By Ker Than published
Earthquake faults are worn smooth over time by friction like the brake pads of an old car, according to a new study.

Why Children Never Leave Home: Evolution
By Ker Than published
The long childhoods and delayed maturity common in modern humans might be a recent development that first emerged only a few thousand years ago in early members of our species living in Africa.

Sun Blamed for Warming of Earth and Other Worlds
By Ker Than published
Solar activity can affect Earth's climate, but the idea that the current global warming trend is fueled by the sun is "nuts," one researcher says.

Snake with Taste for Escargot Evolves Bizarre Strategy
By Ker Than published
If the French had teeth like the Iwasaki snail-eating snake, they wouldn’t need tongs and tiny pitchforks to eat escargot.

The World's Most Explosive Tongue
By Ker Than published
The giant palm salamander of Central America shoots out its tongue with more instantaneous power than any known muscle in the animal kingdom.

Mission to Study Earth's Gaping 'Open Wound'
By Ker Than published
Scientists have discovered a large area in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean where the Earth’s crust is missing and the mantle is exposed.

Old Data Supports Global Warming Link to Stronger Hurricanes
By Ker Than published
Scientists find new evidence for a link between global warming and stronger hurricanes in old satellite data.

Huge 'Ocean' Discovered Inside Earth
By Ker Than published
Scans of Earth's deep interior reveal a vast water reservoir beneath Asia that is at least the volume of the Arctic Ocean.

Incredible Robots Walk, Roll, Climb and Cooperate
By Ker Than published
VIDEO: New "superbots" plug into each other like Lego-blocks and simulate humans, caterpillars or wheels. And they can find each other and hook up.

The Secrets (and Perils) of Sword Swallowing Revealed
By Ker Than published
Definitely don't try this at home. Scientists have documented the dangers, from "sword throat" to a scissored esophagus.
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