Findings from a large-scale ice drilling study on the Greenland ice sheet may revise the models used to predict how ice sheets move.

Monitoring slow earthquakes may provide a basis for reliable prediction in areas where slow quakes trigger normal earthquakes, according to geoscientists.

Limited availability of fossil fuels stimulates the search for different energy resources. The use of biofuels is one of the alternatives. Sugars derived from the grain of agricultural crops can be used to produce biofuel but these crops occupy fertile soils needed for food and feed production.

Observed in the wild, tucked away in museum collections, and even exhibited in zoos around the world — there is one mysterious creature that has been a victim of mistaken identity for more than 100 years. A team of Smithsonian scientists, however, uncovered overlooked museum specimens of this remarkable animal, which took them on a journey from museum cabinets in Chicago to cloud forests in South America to genetics labs in Washington, D.C. The result: the olinguito (Bassaricyon neblina) — the first carnivore species to be discovered in the American continents in 35 years.

Three elements commonly found at elevated levels in an Appalachian river polluted by runoff from mountaintop coal mining have distinctive chemistries that can be traced back to their source, according to a new study.

Scientists have discovered the molecular mechanism by which the deadly Ebola virus assembles, providing potential new drug targets. Surprisingly, the study showed that the same molecule that assembles and releases new viruses also rearranges itself into different shapes, with each shape controlling a different step of the virus’s life cycle.

Also referred to as jumping genes, transposons are snippets of “selfish DNA” that spread in their host genomes serving no other biological purpose but their own existence. Two geneticists now challenge that understanding. Working on the model plant Arabidopsis, they found that the COPIA-R7 transposon, which has jumped into the plant disease resistance gene RPP7, enhances the immunity of its host against a pathogenic microorganism.

Climate change is set to trigger more frequent and severe heat waves in the next 30 years regardless of the amount of carbon dioxide we emit into the atmosphere, a new study has shown.

Researchers have identified a rapid response which could help halt infectious diseases such as bird flu, swine flu and SARS before they take hold. Focusing on the avian flu virus strain H5N1, research identifies key stages in the poultry trade chain which lead to its transmission to other birds, animals and humans.