a bit of science http://abitofscience.com/ en-us Top science news story of the day selected by a computer algo Fossil cricket reveals Jurassic love song The love song of an extinct cricket that lived 165 million years ago has been brought back to life by scientists. The song - possibly the most ancient known musical song documented to date - ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108906/ Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:01:04 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108906/ Nanowires Welded With Light At the nano level, researchers at Stanford have discovered a new way to weld together meshes of tiny wires. Their work could lead to innovative electronics and solar applications. To succeed, ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108831/ Mon, 06 Feb 2012 12:01:08 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108831/ Start-Up Nicira Plans to Disrupt Networking Giants A small company called Nicira and a few other scrappy players are pursuing what is called software-defined networking. Software-defined networking is similar to server virtualization, and it ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108789/ Mon, 06 Feb 2012 02:01:03 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108789/ Chemists develop faster, more efficient protein labeling North Carolina State University researchers have created specially engineered mammalian cells to provide a new "chemical handle" which will enable researchers to label proteins of interest more ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108773/ Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:01:03 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108773/ New super-Earth detected within the habitable zone of a nearby cool star An international team of scientists led by Carnegie's Guillem Anglada-Escud?nd Paul Butler has discovered a potentially habitable super-Earth orbiting a nearby star. The star is a member of ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108482/ Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:01:03 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108482/ A spider web's strength lies in more than its silk A study that combines experimental observations of spider webs with complex computer simulations has shown that web durability depends not only on silk strength, but on how overall web design ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107931/ Wed, 01 Feb 2012 16:01:04 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107931/ Male Spiders May Break Off Genitals To Boost Paternity Perhaps it is not a thought that crosses the minds of the average male, but spiders have more to consider than most other creatures when it comes to choosing a mate. Biologists have long known ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108168/ Wed, 01 Feb 2012 06:01:02 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/108168/ Mammals shrink at faster rates than they grow: Research helps explain large-scale size changes and recovery from mass extinctions It took about 10 million generations for terrestrial mammals to hit their maximum mass: that's about the size of a cat evolving into the size of an elephant. Sea mammals, such as whales took ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107928/ Tue, 31 Jan 2012 12:01:04 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107928/ Severe python damage to Florida's native Everglades animals documented in new study Precipitous declines in formerly common mammals in Everglades National Park in Florida have been linked to the presence of invasive Burmese pythons, according to new research. The study, the ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107929/ Mon, 30 Jan 2012 18:01:03 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107929/ Self-guided bullet prototype can hit target a mile away Take two Sandia National Laboratories engineers who are hunters, get them talking about the sport and it shouldn't be surprising when the conversation leads to a patented design for a self-guided ... http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107906/ Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:01:04 EST http://abitofscience.com/news/cluster/107906/