http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (PhysOrg.com) -- Despite being a founding principle of modern biology for 150 years, evolutionary theory has played a limited role in the field of medicine. Only in the last 20 years has Darwinian medicine emerged as a discipline unto itself. An article in this month`s issue of The Quarterly Review of Biology explains why early attempts to study disease from an evolutionary perspective failed, and how modern Darwinian medicine differs from its antecedent. http://www.physorg.com/news179686563.html Biology Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:19:48 EST news179686563 Although Charles Darwin is most well-known for his book On the Origin of Species, in which he described the process of natural selection, he greatly contributed to many specific fields within biology. As the bicentennial anniversary of Darwin's birth comes to a close, the December issue of the American Journal of Botany presents two papers exploring botanical history before the time of Darwin, Darwin's contributions to botany, and what scientists have discovered in the subsequent years following Darwin's first presentation of his many provocative ideas to the scientific community. http://www.physorg.com/news179593531.html Biology Wed, 09 Dec 2009 15:20:04 EST news179593531 (PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, are challenging long-held beliefs that human beings are wired to be selfish. In a wide range of studies, social scientists are amassing a growing body of evidence to show we are evolving to become more compassionate and collaborative in our quest to survive and thrive. http://www.physorg.com/news179512429.html Other Sciences Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:34:54 EST news179512429 (AP) -- An auction house says it is selling a rare first edition of Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" found in a family's guest lavatory in southern England. http://www.physorg.com/news178121903.html Biology Sun, 22 Nov 2009 14:30:03 EST news178121903 (PhysOrg.com) -- New research could help protect the future of a rare bird in the Galapagos Islands that was an inspiration for Darwin`s theory of evolution by natural selection, scientists report in a paper published in the Royal Society Journal Biology Letters today. http://www.physorg.com/news177779374.html Biology Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:10:55 EST news177779374 The concept of altruism has long been debated in philosophical circles, and more recently, evolutionary biologists have joined the debate. From the perspective of natural selection, altruism may have evolved because any action that improves the likelihood of a relative's survival and reproduction increases the chance of an individual's DNA being passed on. Social behavior, kin recognition, and altruism are well known in the animal kingdom; however, although plants have the ability to sense and respond to other plants, their ability to recognize kin and act altruistically has been the subject of few studies. http://www.physorg.com/news177155189.html Biology Wed, 11 Nov 2009 09:46:51 EST news177155189 (PhysOrg.com) -- Breaking up may actually not be hard to do, say scientists who've found a population of tropical butterflies that may be on its way to a split into two distinct species. http://www.physorg.com/news176654713.html Biology Thu, 05 Nov 2009 15:30:01 EST news176654713 Culture, not just genes, can drive evolutionary outcomes, according to a study released Wednesday that compares individualist and group-oriented societies across the globe. http://www.physorg.com/news175955032.html Biology Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:50:01 EST news175955032 Although advances in medical care have improved standards of living over time, humans aren't entirely sheltered from the forces of natural selection, a new study shows. http://www.physorg.com/news175185659.html Biology Mon, 19 Oct 2009 15:41:34 EST news175185659 A 21-year Michigan State University experiment that distills the essence of evolution in laboratory flasks not only demonstrates natural selection at work, but could lead to biotechnology and medical research advances, researchers said. http://www.physorg.com/news175092009.html Biology Sun, 18 Oct 2009 13:41:06 EST news175092009 A new study suggests that high mortality rates in small-bodied people, commonly known as pygmies, may be part of the reason for their small stature. The study, by Jay Stock and Andrea Migliano, both of the University of Cambridge, helps unravel the mystery of how small-bodied people got that way. http://www.physorg.com/news173974119.html Biology Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:30:07 EST news173974119 (PhysOrg.com) -- The reason some female hoofed animals have horns while others do not has long puzzled evolutionary biologists, even the great Charles Darwin. But now a survey of 117 bovid species led by Ted Stankowich, professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, suggests an answer: Females that can`t readily hide in protective cover and those who must defend a feeding territory are more likely to have horns than those who live in protective habitat or don`t defend a territory. http://www.physorg.com/news172428997.html Biology Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:50:01 EST news172428997 (PhysOrg.com) -- In an ironic twist to our understanding of life, robots may offer a greater degree of realism for studying some of the intricacies of natural selection and evolution than real organisms offer. In a recent study, scientists have used evolutionary robots to investigate the evolution of social information. Their results mirror theoretical predictions more closely than results from experiments with real organisms, and may provide an explanation for some of the observed variation in animal species. http://www.physorg.com/news172304708.html Electronics Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:30:02 EST news172304708 What happens when traits no longer give creatures a competitive edge? http://www.physorg.com/news171619970.html Biology Tue, 08 Sep 2009 09:14:37 EST news171619970 (PhysOrg.com) -- Cities are organized like brains, and the evolution of cities mirrors the evolution of human and animal brains, according to a new study by researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. http://www.physorg.com/news171209335.html Medicine & Health Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:09:38 EST news171209335 (PhysOrg.com) -- New research by University of Notre Dame anthropologist Agustin Fuentes, published recently in the European journal Anthropology Today, states that although Darwin`s basic ideas still form the core of our understandings, recent innovations in evolutionary theory help expand the way we think about evolution. http://www.physorg.com/news171135472.html Biology Wed, 02 Sep 2009 18:50:01 EST news171135472 In a vivid illustration of natural selection at work, scientists at Harvard University have found that deer mice living in Nebraska's Sand Hills quickly evolved lighter coloration after glaciers deposited sand dunes atop what had been much darker soil. The work is described this week in the journal Science. http://www.physorg.com/news170601400.html Biology Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:17:01 EST news170601400 (PhysOrg.com) -- A gene previously associated with physical traits is also dictating behaviour in a tiny fish widely regarded as a living model of Darwin's natural selection theory, according to a University of British Columbia study. http://www.physorg.com/news168674581.html Biology Wed, 05 Aug 2009 07:03:47 EST news168674581 (PhysOrg.com) -- Evidence buried in the chromosomes of animals and plants strongly suggests only one group -- mammals -- have seen their genomes shrink after the dinosaurs' extinction. What's more, that trend continues today, say Indiana University Bloomington scientists in the first issue of a new journal, Genome Biology and Evolution. http://www.physorg.com/news167935854.html Biology Mon, 27 Jul 2009 19:50:01 EST news167935854 (PhysOrg.com) -- Organisms are genetically programmed to cheat the system and have to be policed to stop them putting their needs ahead of society and thus threatening its survival, say scientists. http://www.physorg.com/news167661482.html Biology Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:38:35 EST news167661482 It's not just good manners to wait your turn -- it's actually down to evolution, according to new research by University of Leicester psychologists. http://www.physorg.com/news166337233.html Biology Thu, 09 Jul 2009 05:47:46 EST news166337233 (AP) -- As he trudges past chest-high ferns and butterflies the size of saucers, George Beccaloni scours a jungle hilltop overlooking the South China Sea for signs of a long-forgotten Victorian-era scientist. http://www.physorg.com/news165420926.html Biology Sun, 28 Jun 2009 15:16:24 EST news165420926 Four of the biologists who described the underlying causes of aging will soon share their findings with an international audience during a symposium at the upcoming World Congress of Gerontology and Geriatrics, taking place from July 5-9, 2009, in Paris, France. http://www.physorg.com/news164977370.html Medicine & Health Tue, 23 Jun 2009 12:03:19 EST news164977370 New research indicates that natural selection may shape the human genome much more slowly than previously thought. Other factors -- the movements of humans within and among continents, the expansions and contractions of populations, and the vagaries of genetic chance - have heavily influenced the distribution of genetic variations in populations around the world. The study, conducted by a team from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the University of Chicago, the University of California and Stanford University, is published June 5 in the open-access journal PLoS Genetics. http://www.physorg.com/news163414831.html Medicine & Health Fri, 05 Jun 2009 10:01:04 EST news163414831 Researchers at the University of Leeds have devised a more accurate method of dating ancient human migration - even when no corroborating archaeological evidence exists. http://www.physorg.com/news163342792.html Biology Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:00:16 EST news163342792 Researchers at Harvard University have found that humans aren't the only ones who can groove to a beat -- some other species can dance, too. This capability was previously believed to be specific to humans. The research team found that only species that can mimic sound seem to be able to keep a beat, implying an evolutionary link between the two capacities. http://www.physorg.com/news160315376.html Biology Thu, 30 Apr 2009 13:04:38 EST news160315376 (PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists at Penn State and the National Institute of Genetics in Japan have demonstrated that several statistical methods commonly used by biologists to detect natural selection at the molecular level tend to produce incorrect results. "Our finding means that hundreds of published studies on natural selection may have drawn incorrect conclusions," said Masatoshi Nei, Penn State Evan Pugh Professor of Biology and the team's leader. The team's results will be published in the Online Early Edition of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences during the week ending Friday 3 April 2009 and also in the journal's print edition at a later date. http://www.physorg.com/news157648673.html Biology Mon, 30 Mar 2009 16:18:28 EST news157648673 (AP) -- Texas will no longer require educators to teach weaknesses of all scientific theories, including evolution. http://www.physorg.com/news157356139.html Other Sciences Fri, 27 Mar 2009 16:52:11 EST news157356139 (PhysOrg.com) -- Biofilms are everywhere - in dental plaque and ear canals, on contact lenses and in water pipelines - and the bacteria that make them get more resilient with age, finds a new study in FEMS Microbiology Letters. http://www.physorg.com/news156088573.html Biology Thu, 12 Mar 2009 14:56:40 EST news156088573 Contrary to the TV sitcom where the wife experiencing strong labor pains screams at her husband to stay away from her, women rarely give birth alone. There are typically doctors, nurses and husbands in hospital delivery rooms, and sometimes even other relatives and friends. Midwives often are called on to help with births at home. http://www.physorg.com/news154120054.html Other Sciences Tue, 17 Feb 2009 19:08:17 EST news154120054