Once they're inside the female reproductive organs, sperm pull out all the stops to outrace their rivals to the egg--especially if the opponent comes from another male. The process that determines which sperm wins, called "postcopulatory sexual selection," has been difficult to tease out, until now. [More]

Scientists have successfully used geometrically patterned surfaces to influence the development of stem cells. The new approach is a departure from that of many stem-cell biologists, who focus instead on uncovering the role of proteins in controlling the fate of stem cells.

A study of the human genome has now identified genes linked to ulcerative colitis, offering clues as to what causes the condition and potential avenues for new therapies to treat the disease.

Dogs likely originated in the Middle East, a new genetic analysis by an international team of scientists indicates. Previous genetic research suggested an East Asian origin for dogs.

A new assessment of the Arctic's biodiversity reports a 26 percent decline in species populations in the high Arctic.

Babies born to mothers with obesity and exposed to passive smoking are more likely to have health problems than others. This conclusion is based on evidence of elevated levels of nucleated red blood cells in the umbilical cord.

Men and women with a history of alcohol abuse may not see long-term negative effects on their memory and thinking, but female smokers do, a new study suggests.

UYUNI, Bolivia--"Gray gold" may be the key to a future filled with hybrid or electric vehicles. That's because lithium is the most important ingredient in the batteries that power these cars. Even without many electric cars on the road today the lightest metal on Earth is more and more a mining target of multinational companies as lithium ion batteries power an increasing array of electronic gadgets. [More]

Newspaper and magazine reports about cancer appear more likely to discuss aggressive treatment and survival than death, treatment failure or adverse events, and almost none mention end-of-life palliative or hospice care, according to a report.

Researchers have developed a multilingual search engine to query a contents repository written in Interlingua using questions formulated in any language. The search engine returns a precise answer in the language in which the question was formulated.