'Trailblazing' Science Papers Posted Online

He's rocking his inner geek, experimenting with Archimedes claim

(USER SUBMITTED) - President Obama says he'll be exercising his inner geek in an appearance on Discovery Channel show Mythbusters—but the myth he's busting has nothing to do with his birth certificate or whether he's secretly a Muslim. And unlike what usually happens on Mythbusters, he won't be blowing anything up. "I was a little frustrated with that," Obama said yesterday at the White House Science Fair. More»

(NEWSER) - Scientists have combined spider silk with metal atoms to boost web strands' already-phenomenal strength, reports Ars Technica. The breakthrough experiment advances the science of creating ever-stronger materials, as well discovering a successful method to bond metal to biological material. Experiments are already under way to make chicken eggs stronger. More»

Wave phenomenon that slows ships may affect humans, too

(NEWSER) - Swimmers sometimes complain that water can be “evil,” but water is water, right? Wrong. So-called dead water—a naval phenomenon that happens when waves form between layers of warmer and cooler water, reducing a ship’s speed—may affect swimmers too, the New Scientist reports. And it might be what’s behind the otherwise-mysterious drownings of seasoned swimmers. More»

Movement aims to capitalize on American passion for invention

(NEWSER) - Just as individual computer experts can create new programs and technological movements from home, a new generation of scientists wants to make do-it-yourself biology a household activity. Sessions such as those teaching laypeople how to extract DNA show "how much science can be about duct tape and having a few screws in the right place," one "biohacker" tells the Boston Globe. More»

How our feathered friends learn, play back song may hold answers for human speech

(NEWSER) - Being bird-brained might not be much of an insult: New MIT research paints a more intricate portrait of how songbirds learn to sing, with one part of the brain used for learning and another for singing itself. Rather than maturing from babbling to birdsong, the independent but overlapping pathways work together during different life stages. More»