09 - 15 May 2016
Quest for discovery of microbiome
The US government is launching a new effort to study the vast, and mostly invisible, array of microbes that thrive in the human body and across ecosystems through US$121-million National Microbiome Initiative (NMI). Find source
Drastic climate costs Pakistan $4 billion last year
Pakistan is spending $4 billion a year on cotton imports to support its ailing textile industry, after erratic rainfall and drought in the country's cotton fields slammed growers and the country's economy. Find source
Digital badges motivate scientists to share data
A data-sharing campaign that involves awarding colourful badges is a surprisingly powerful incentive to get scientists to publicly share the data behind their research. Right and intention to share complete experimental data has always been a source of controversy. Find source
A sixth sense protects drivers except when TEXTING
Researchers from the University of Houston found that a sixth sense protects distracted drivers when they are being absent minded or upset, but not when they are texting. Find source
Ingestible medical robots to open at will
Using simulated stomach, a tiny origami robot is demonstrated unfolding itself from a swallowed capsule and, steered by external magnetic fields, crawl across the stomach wall to patch a wound. Find source
