Science Teachers

Association of Nigeria

General Science

To Know Science is to Love It

An analysis of studies in 40 countries proves a long-standing assumption: the more a person knows about science, the more he or she tends to support scientific endeavors, regardless of other factors such as age, nationality, and education. But British sociologist Nick Allum says now that this belief has been confirmed, researchers must begin to tackle more pressing questions such as: can a better science education improve general support for the field?

Martian Water Top Science Story

What was the most important scientific achievement of 2004? The conclusive discovery by a pair of wheeled robots that Mars had vast pools of water and possibly could have sustained life, according to the editors of the journal Science. NASA’s two Mars rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, landed on the Red Planet earlier this year and have since found evidence that Mars had a watery surface. Nine other scientific achievements, including discovery of another species of human, were selected as runners-up.

Study: Sleep Essential for Creative Thinking

German scientists have proved what creative minds have known all along: answers to difficult questions might come more easily after a good night’s rest. Scientists made their discovery after giving volunteers a math test and comparing the results with those who were well rested and sleep-deprived. The German study is considered to be the first piece of evidence that creativity and problem-solving are linked to adequate sleep.

Brain Images Highlight How People Feel Pain

Do you ever wonder why some people are tougher than others when it comes to experiencing pain? According to a new study, how people perceive pain, results from differences in brain activity. Robert C. Coghill of Wake Forest University, the study’s author, notes this finding should help guide future treatments of pain.

Forgetful? Scientists Say Stress is a Cause

Although most people know stress can make you forgetful, scientists have learned how it happens. Stressful situations that involved an individual having no control were found to activate an enzyme in the brain called protein kinase C. The protein impairs the short-term memory and other functions in the prefrontal cortex, the “executive decision” part of the brain, notes Dr. Amy F.T. Arnsten of Yale Medical School. Scientists note this discovery could lead to better treatments for illnesses like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Science of Smell Scoops Nobel Prize

Two American scientists have won the Nobel Prize in Medicine for explaining how the human sense of smell works. Richard Axel of Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Columbia University in New York and Linda Buck of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle have constructed the entire process by which cells in the nose capture smelly compounds and transmit signals to the brain that are perceived as distinct aromas. Axel and Buck will share a $1.3 million award for their efforts.

How the Brain Reacts to Romance

What happens in your head when you fall in love? Researchers have found that feelings of intense romantic love are linked to activity in two areas of the brain, which have high levels of dopamine activity. But functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans found women’s brains showed emotional responses, while men’s showed activity linked to sexual arousal. The researchers also found activity in other areas of the brain changed - including one that another study showed was active when people ate chocolate.

Pluto Still a Mystery 75 Years Later

Although it’s been 75 years since the discovery of Pluto, the planet remains a mystery to scientists. Clyde Tombaugh, a young amateur astronomer at the Lowell Observatory, spotted the planet on Feb. 18, 1930. But how to categorize Pluto has been a mystery. Pluto was labeled the ninth planet in the solar system when Tombaugh made his discovery. Some astronomers, however, believe that Pluto behaves more like Kuiper Belt objects than other planets. Scientists hope to launch a probe to Pluto in 2006 to learn more about the planet.

Speeding Star Will Escape Milky Way

Scientists have observed for the first time the fastest star to escape the Milky Way. Dubbed the “outcast star,” the new star is currently in the outer reaches of the galaxy, nearly 200,000 light years away from Earth. The star has been on its present course for less than 80 million years; it may be 80 million more years before it clears the edge of the galaxy and travels into intergalactic space. Scientists also note that runaway stars have been spotted before, but all of them are still confined in our galaxy.

Chunk of Universe’s Missing Matter Found

In recent years, scientists have wondered why a certain percentage of matter has been missing from the universe. But astronomers may now have an answer to that problem. Data collected from the Chandra X-ray Observatory indicates the lost ordinary matter may be swimming in diffuse rivers of gas in an intergalactic medium too hot to see with an optical telescope. But experts warn whether the region sampled in this study is representative of the rest of the universe is unknown, and will need further analysis.

Big Bang Sound Waves Explain Galaxy Clustering

Sound waves that roared through space after the big bang left behind a subtle imprint in the way galaxies are currently clustered, according to two new studies. A British astronomer says this discovery is “especially powerful” because the two groups who worked on the project used different observations and statistical techniques to arrive at the same conclusion. Scientists also note the results bolster the standard theory that the universe is flat, and that measuring the distance between sound ripples might provide a new cosmic yardstick to probe the past.

Spacecrafts Powered by Thunder

Thunderous sound waves could one day propel spacecraft to the edge of the solar system, according to engineers who have developed a new type of acoustic engine. Stirling engines use temperature differentials between reservoirs of gas to create electricity. Funding for research about the engines will be provided by NASA.

Space Sugar a Clue to Life’s Origins

Astronomers have known about sugar in space for some time. New research, however, has revealed that a cotton candy-like cloud of simple sugar found in regions on the outer layer of the solar system could exist at extremely low temperatures. Although several scientists agree that life probably derived from a rich “primordial soup” created in the warm-water puddles of the Earth, they note this discovery offers “fresh evidence” for another popular view—that some of the basic ingredients to form life may have flown in from interstellar space aboard a comet or asteroid.