Prepare for Impact...throw an asteroid on the barbie!

     Next summer an asteroid will come rocketing through the atmosphere heading straight for Australia! Ok not exactly, actually, it will be samples of an asteroid know as Itokawa inside a capsule that will be released from Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa, as it burns up in the atmosphere.
    Hi, I’m Ashleigh, one of the research interns here at NOVA and I’ve been working on researching this story. Sadly, we can’t make the trip to Australia next June, but here are some of the details:
     In the summer of 2003 JAXA (the Japanese space program) sent Hayabusa to the asteroid to sample it, the first mission of its kind. Next June, Hayabusa (which means falcon in Japanese) will return to earth, falling, just like an asteroid. NASA and JAXA will be tracking the spacecraft using asteroid tracking software, though they anticipate that it will land in Australia.
     Once the capsule containing (hopefully) the asteroid samples has been collected, the samples will be analyzed in a lab in japan. The teams involved are the Hayabusa mission team from Japan, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA. The story of the returning spacecraft was first reported by National Geographic Daily News.

Buzz Aldrin's Rocket Experience

Why do we love physics raps? Maybe it's the same sweet cringe that makes us devour sour lime popsicles and 8 am reruns of Saved By The Bell. Who knows?

In any case, Buzz Aldrin (yes, the astronaut), Snoop Dogg, Talib Kweli, and friends have teamed up to create the king of all physics raps. It's called Rocket Experience, and that's about all I have to say about it, except that you should really check out the "making of" video for some additional surreality.

As Buzz Aldrin says, "I have only two passions: Space exploration, and hip-hop."

'Honor' to have phallus-shaped mushroom named after scientist

Image credit: Brian Perry

Not many people get to have something in nature named after them. And Dr. Robert Drewes, Curator of Herpetology for the California Academy of Sciences recognizes his good fortune. He thinks it's a 'wonderful honor' to lend his name to a new species of stinkhorn mushroom, discovered on the African island of Sao Tome. Perhaps Dr. Drewes has yet to see the new fungus, now dubbed Phallus drewesii, which is two inches long, shaped like a phallus and gives off a foul, rotting meat odor. Or perhaps he is blinded by the celebrity that often comes with having something named after you.

Our president can commiserate - not long ago, he had a new species of lichen named after him - Caloplaca obamae. Once again, he didn't have much choice in the matter since it's the finder's choice in naming the discovery. But like Dr. Drewes, I'm sure the president smiles fondly whenever he comes across his bright orange lichen. In the same way, Dr. Drewes must be so proud to look upon his namesake phallus-shaped 'shroom.

What We're Watching: Chickens, Ferrets and Cane Toads, Oh My!

Filmmaker Mark Lewis knows how to showcase an animal. This is a producer who can bring a chicken to life like you wouldn't believe. His famous documentary 'The Natural History of the Chicken' is a perfect example. In what other nature film could you watch the story of a woman who brings back to life a once frozen solid chicken using 'mouth-to-beak' resuscitation? Or who else could make an ordinary ferret extraordinary through the eyes of eccentric ferret-lover pet owners who write songs about their beloved animals and even dress them up as cowboys, hula dancers and ballerinas?

One of my favorite scenes of a documentary comes from another of Lewis' hilarious film on the Australia animal scourge: 'Cane Toads: An Unnatural History.' The scene starts with a long shot of a truck swerving back and forth along a road. The driver is speaking while he's swerving and he's talking about how he takes aim at and kills as many cane toads on the road that he can - he does it to protect the natural wildlife, which, unlike the artificially introduced toads, he truly does love. As the truck gets closer, you start to hear thumping, which you can only assume are the toads getting run over.

These amazing films are no typical nature shows - Lewis' verite style that lacks narration draws you in to a subject you never thought could interest you and keeps you coming back for more.

Check out the PBS blog Q&A with filmmaker Mark Lewis to learn more.

How many fingers am I holding up?

Concussion science has come a long way since the bad old days when head injuries were diagnosed by finger-counting. But a new study finds that minor league hockey players have trouble identifying basic concussion symptoms and don't know when its safe to get back out on the ice after a knock to the head.

That's a sobering thought to anyone who watched Chicago Blackhawk Martin Havlat lying glassy-eyed on the ice after taking a major thump during one of last week's NHL playoff games. Okay, maybe not so many people watched that (except for Canadians, Chicagoans, and Detroiters like me), but here's the kicker: Two days later, Havlat was back in the game. Not for long, though: After taking a fresh hit, he made his way off the ice and didn't come back.

Concussions aren't harmless, especially they come in pairs. NOVA scienceNOW talked about the long-lasting and frustratingly nebulous symptoms of concussion in a story story that aired last year. Even more disturbing are results from the Boston University School of Medicine, where researchers are studying the brain tissue of deceased NFL players. Many of these players were in their 30s and 40s when they died, but their brains were mottled with the same tangles neuropathologists expect to see in elderly dementia patients.

Before they died, the players had reported crippling depression, memory problems, uncontrollable emotions, and debilitating headaches. Is this what we envision for our sports heroes' golden years?

-KB

The Science of Orgasms

It's not often you find the label 'Viewer discretion advised' accompanying a science talk. But that is what this Ted Talk by author Mary Roach warns. And for good reason. In her talk, Roach, bestselling author of 'Stiff' and 'Bonk,' shows a highly disturbing movie of a pig farmer inseminating and 'manually stimulating' a female pig to improve its litter numbers.

Aside from the cringe-worthy film, the talk is actually quite interesting. But for all the crazy experiments that have been done over the years to examine orgasms, we still have no clue what evolutionary purpose the behavior serves in us. So although I'm still not sure why it's 'good for me,' I do know why it's good for a pig.

Rocking the boat

Like music? Hate invasive species? Bret Shaw has some tunes for you.

Shaw, an environmental communication specialist, teamed up with three singer/songwriters to make rockin' instructional music about preventing the spread of aquatic invasive species. (Invasive species can travel from lake to lake on contaminated boats, bait, and bilge. I don't know what bilge is but it definitely sounds like something that should be properly drained.)

There's The Ballad of Aquatic Invasive Species, the rockabilly-inspired Clean Boats, Clean Waters, and my personal favorite, One Bait, One Lake.

Take a listen...and then take comfort knowing that, when they're not singing about draining bilge tanks and Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia, these guys all have day jobs.

Stephen Cobert immortalized as beetle

If you've been following this blog religiously (as I'm sure you have been), you may have read one of our previous posts about naming a fungus after President Obama, or the one about the attempt to name a piece of the space station after Stephen Colbert.

Well it looks like Colbert will finally get his name claim to fame and - it could be argued - that it's way cooler than a presidential fungus.

Two entomologists took on Colbert's challenge to the science community to "name something cooler than a spider" after him to honor him. So the scientists named a beetle after him. And to let Colbert know about it, they sent him a picture of the bug along with a birthday card asking 'What has six legs and is way cooler than a spider?' The answer, of course is the newly discovered diving beetle from Venezuela, Agaporomorphus colberti.

It's nice to see scientists with a sense of humor similar to Stephen Colbert's.

What We're Reading: Dread

Okay, college students, here's a simple way to freak out all of your classmates:

1. Buy a label-maker
2. Print out a bunch of labels that say "GERMS"
3. Stick them on every door handle on campus

I don't suggest you actually try this (unless, say, you own stock in antibacterial soap), and I can't take credit for the idea, either: I was actually a victim of this stunt back in my Bright College Years. I don't think I've ever washed my hands so many times in a 24-hour period.

Until last week, that is, when swine flu put its germy paws on every newspaper, Twitter feed, and Facebook page in the land. I washed my hands before getting to work and on the way out the door; after touching the elevator buttons and after picking up the telephone. I started wondering, hey, aren't there germs on the water cooler spigots and the mini-fridge door? And what about the communal sponge in the communal sink? And why is everyone around me suddenly coughing and sneezing? Is that a tickle in my throat? Are my eyes looking a little red? How long has it been since I last washed my hands?

Now that H1N2 seems to be milder than we thought, it all seems a little silly, but XXX's note below is a reminder that I wasn't the only one in the throes of swine-flu freak-out. In his new book Dread, Philip Alcabes says this kind of panic is totally normal--and totally irrational. Epidemics (a class now so broadly defined that it includes everything from obesity to "affluenza") resonate with deep human fears about everything from sex to strangers. Fears of death and illness are just convenient covers for our more nebulous nightmares, Alcabes argues, and that fact has been exploited by those who aim to fuel intolerance (of the poor, of immigrants, of Jews, of Muslims) for their own political gain.

Is that reading too much into my fixation with sudsing? Was the label-maker guy making a statement about the political uses of fear? I'll have to think about it. But first, maybe I should go wash up.

Swine Flu on Twitter

I'll admit it, I've been getting a little worked up about this possible Swine Flu pandemic. So it's probably not a good idea for me to keep track of the action using social networking sites, but I just can't resist.

So I started 'following' the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Twitter. And that's how I found out there are now 2 confirmed cases of swine flu in my state (Massachusetts).

I can then go to Facebook and join one of the dozens of 'Swine Flu' members and groups out there (some funny, some serious, some just down right ridiculous).

Luckily I can then go to You Tube and watch a CDC podcast with a calm looking doctor telling me the facts (and in my mind, not to panic).

So maybe there is something to this social networking, after all (at least something more than telling me - or worse showing me - what my cousin had for breakfast this morning).

A Fungus Among Us

A researcher at UC Riverside has named a newly discovered species of lichen after President Obama. Dubbed 'Caloplaca obamae,' the orange-colored lichen is actually a cross between a fungus and an algae. The discoverer, Kerry Knudsen, collected the final samples of the lichen during the last weeks of the Obama campaign and he finished the paper announcing the discovery on Inauguration Day. According to scientific protocol, it's up to the person who discovers a new species to name it. Wonder if he had to get the President's permission. I suppose it could have been worse - he could have found a slime mold, instead.

Batman's secret

Bats have a PR problem, according to Boston University's resident bat expert, Tom Kunz. From Vermont to Virginia, bats are falling victim to a mystery illness, but does the public care? No. According to the Boston Globe,

The researchers say they are learning a harsh truth about the public's desire to save animals: Cuteness rules.

And to that, I say: Guilty as charged. Here at XXXX, our subjects are almost always easy on the eyes (adorable chimps, beautiful butterflies, and those baby seals and sea lions that make me want to get up and hug my TV). If they aren't cute, they're classic creepy-crawlies (ants, more ants, and swarms of rats). Poor bats just can't catch a break.

So biologists think that bats need a publicist, "a kind of public relations batman - to give bats an image makeover and educate people about the night creatures' ecological benefits." But I think one fact could change how people--or, women, at least--feel about bats, and here it is:

Male bats lactate.

Okay, not all or them. Just two species, so far, wild fruit bats in Malaysia and Papua New Guinea, in which Kunz and a colleague discovered "well-developed and lacteriforus ducts and underlying mammary tissue similar to that found in lactating females."

Did the boy bats evolve this ability? Or could some pathology or exposure to female hormones be to blame? The researchers aren't sure yet.

But here's something else I didn't know: Human men can lactate, too, though it's typically brought on my drug- or malnutrition-induced hormonal imbalances. Not exactly nature's way.

What, if anything, does this add anything to the ongoing debate over breast vs. bottle? Could future humans evolve a similar natural ability? Or are we just as likely to start flying and locating our insect-meals via echolocation?

Scorpion venom + nanoparticles = Good for you?

Scorpion venom with nanoparticles slows spread of brain cancer. That's the irresistible headline topping a University of Washington press release out yesterday.

It turns out that researchers have known for a while now that scorpion venom--or, more precisely, a peptide called chlorotoxin which is contained in the venom--could be a cancer-fighter. It's in human trails right now.

But adding nanoparticles to the mix makes the venom peptide twice as potent, cutting the spread of malignant cells by 98%--at least, that's how it worked on lab-grown brain cancer cells. Nanoparticles aren't totally new to the cancer-fighting arsenal (they've also been combined with chemotherapy drugs), but this application is unique because it stops the spread of cancer rather than killing cells directly.

Next, the experimental treatment will be tested out on mice.

What We're Watching: Tweenbots

Are they art? Are they science? Who cares when they're so darn cute!

Tweenbots are smiley little robots that need your help to complete a task. Kacie Kinzer, a grad student at the Interactive Telecommunications Program at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts, sets her Tweenbots loose on the streets of New York to see if regular New Yorkers will help them reach their destination. (The destination is written on a "help me!" flag sprouting out of the Tweenbot. Like I said, adorable.)

In this video, watch New Yorkers come to the aid of a Tweenbot trying to cross Washington Square Park. It's like On The Street meets R2D2.

And if you're wondering how a paper bag on wheels got so cute, it's all explained here.

Creepy or Not Creepy: Arm Implanted with Ear

Photo credit: NYTimes, Nina Sellars

The New York Times reported today on an Australian artist known as Stelarc who has been working on implanting an artificial, Bluetooth-enable ear in his arm. It's all part of his art exhibit that looks at the blurred lines between the living human form and its artificial extensions.

Stelarc has had to undergo a number of surgeries to implant the ear and has had to endure many infections along the way, delaying his 'art.' He plans to have a microphone installed in the ear on his arm, which will post all the sounds it records on the web.

I would say that this whole 'exhibit' is without a doubt 'creepy.'

What We're Watching - The Next Segway

It looks like the folks at Segway haven't just been sitting around waiting for the profits of their original people-moving invention to come in (who wouldn't want to Tour DC, Paris or even Budapest by Segway?)... They've actually been working on the next Segway - Project P.U.M.A (Personal Urban Mobility and Accessibility).

According to their blog, the vehicle can expand to hold up to two people in a seated position, runs on lithium ion batteries, goes at a speed of up to 35 mph and runs for up to 35 miles per charge.

You can check out their sleek YouTube video here.

What We're Watching - Evolution of Cuteness

A key part of researching a story for television is, well, the visual element. If there's nothing to see, it doesn't belong on TV. So it's probably not surprising that we spend a lot of time watching things on the web.

Take this Popular Science video posting on the evolution of cuteness, for example. It's actually cobbled together from YouTube home videos. Now tell me, who doesn't love to watch cuteness? We're talking instant television success (why do you think AFV is still on the air?)!

Creepy or not creepy: Robot scientist

UK researchers have created a "Robot Scientist" which, they believe, is the first robot to "discover new knowledge" using the scientific method. The robot, named Adam (of course), posed an original hypothesis about a strain of baker's yeast, devised and executed an experiment to test that hypothesis, and interpreted the results.
The work (written up by the human scientists, not the robot one) is published this week in Science.
Creepy or not creepy?

Heirloom Tomatoes - Genetic Freaks

Heirloom tomatoes are the ultimate symbol of the small, local farmer. We think of these many-colored oddly-shaped tomatoes as some of the more flavorful varieties that only come around once a year. You would think with all its many shapes and colors, this type of tomato would have enormous genetic variety. But unfortunately you'd be wrong. Heirlooms are actually a highly inbred species due to many failed breeding experiments throughout the ages.

One problem with all this inbreeding is that it has made heirlooms more susceptible to damage from its environment - the tomatoes crack more easily and tend to have less protection from many pests. So now researchers are selecting for certain genes from the tomato genome and inserting them into the heirlooms to make them more resilient without changing their taste or familiar heirloom shape. Researchers are also looking in to making regular tomatoes tastier by looking at what makes heirlooms so good - again, it's not all in their genes. It's actually more that heirloom plants grow fewer tomatoes on each vine, allowing them to have a more consolidated flavor. Who knew there was so much we could learn from an old frumpy-looking fruit?
-GR

Creepy or not creepy? Kleptomania drug

Sometimes, science fills us with awe and wonder.

Sometimes, it just creeps us out.

Remember when scientists grafted an ear on to a mouse's back? Or when a monkey operated a robot using only its mind?

It's not that these weren't great moments in science. But they carried some heavy heebie-jeebie baggage.

So, with that in mind, we're introducing a new feature called Creepy or not creepy? in which we present research that's walking that delicate line between forward-looking science and mad-scientist freak-out. Which is which? You be the judge.

Today's entry: Suppressing the compulsion to steal.

I think we're all in agreement that, aside from those Jean Valjean-stealing-a-loaf-of-bread-to-feed-his-starving-family-type situations, stealing is probably a bad thing. But it sure seems to make kleptomaniacs happy. Now, researchers at the University of Minnesota School of Medicine have given self-described kleptomaniacs a drug called naltrexone, which kills the "rush" compulsive stealers get from a good pilfer.

So is this the sweet relief kleptomaniacs (and other addicts) have been waiting for, or something more sinister? And who gets to decide which "thrills" are acceptable and which should be medicated away?