JJ Nitro

1 March 2007, for National Geographic News

A mysterious set of monuments in Peru make up the oldest solar observatory in the Americas, according to a new study.

The 2,300-year-old Thirteen Towers of Chankillo were used for marking the sun's position throughout the year—an activity that was part of the sun-worshipping culture of the Inca, the study authors said.

26 February 2007, for National Geographic News

Someday soon dentists may not just pull teeth and fill cavities. They could also stick entirely new teeth back in your mouth—perhaps by dabbing just a couple of cells in an empty tooth socket.

That is, if recent research pans out.

23 February 2007, for Nature Network Boston  

The intricate patterns of tiles on the walls of ancient mosques and shrines reveal that Islamic artists of the Middle Ages created a complex class of structures called quasicrystals, which Western physicists discovered some 500 years later, according to a paper in this week’s Science.

23 February 2007, for Nature Network Boston  

Astrophysicists have gotten the first direct glimpse of the atmospheres of planets outside our solar system, and their results are surprising. Based on accepted models of planet formation, they expected to see signs of water vapor but didn’t find any.

21 February 2007, for National Geographic News

Like a slapstick comedian slipping on banana peels, Antarctica's ice sheets slide more quickly into the sea when they hit under-ice lakes, a new study shows.

But the finding is anything but funny, since the slippery motion could have serious implications for the way ice sheets respond to global warming.

16 February 2007, for Nature Network Boston

Astronomers call it HAT-P-1b, but maybe we should call it Puff Daddy.

A new study has spotted the puffiest planet anywhere, orbiting a star in another solar system.

14 February 2007, for New Scientist

A metre-long plasma-powered particle accelerator can boost electrons' energy to the same degree as a conventional machine 3-kilometres-long, experiments show.

For all it does, the diminutive accelerator is also relatively simple, consisting of a metal tube filled with gas.

14 February 2007, for Nature and Nature Network Boston

A Boston University biologist is asking New England naturalists to collect and submit data on plants and animals to get a better picture of the impacts of climate change.

Studying the effects of climate change on plant and animal populations can involve a slow and arduous process of gathering lots of data from the field. So Boston University biology professor Richard Primack is enlisting the help of ordinary people with a keen interest in nature and a sharp eye. 

9 February 2007, for Nature Network Boston

Electrons racing through circuits form the heart of today’s computers.

Bubbles of gas could also serve as bits of information, performing all the basic steps needed for computation, according to a new paper in Science from MIT.

7 February 2007, for National Geographic News  

"If I can make it there, I'm gonna make it anywhere."

This famous tune from the film New York, New York might be what shortnose sturgeon would belt out if they could sing.

That's because the endangered fish have made a surprise recovery in the Hudson River under the shadows of Manhattan's skyscrapers, a new study shows.