A new species of tiny blenniiform fish has been discovered in the southern Caribbean. Haptoclinus dropi is only around 2cm in length with a color pattern that includes iridescence on the fins.

The proposed common name of the species is four-fin blenny, due to the division of the dorsal fin into four sections, which is a distinguishing feature of the genus and unique among blenniiform fishes. 

A few years ago, I wrote a piece for Communicating Astronomy with the Public outlining how to more effectively reach the public.(1)

I have some credibility. Science 2.0 has become a well-known movement despite not having media conglomerate backing, a marketing department, a sales force or any government funding, Not many can do that - or they probably would.

Jellyfish Blooms

Newspapers are currently reporting a surge in jellyfish numbers in the Mediterranean. 

Along with the surge in jellyfish numbers, or bloom, is a surge in bad reporting about global warming.  This is one occasion when I am on the side of the 'natural cycles' folks: jellyfish have a 20 year boom and bust natural cycle.

Female mosquitoes are predators of mammalian blood, relying on blood proteins to lay their eggs. While certain mosquito species are attracted to mammals by their emission of body heat and carbon dioxide, other species, such as Anopheles gambiae and Aedes aegypti, have evolved a strong lust for the smell of humans. Such mosquitoes are also deadly vectors that contribute to the efficient spread of human diseases such as malaria, Dengue hemorrhagic fever, West Nile fever, and chikungunya, with the latter two commonly known as urban epidemics.  

The last open seam on the steel outer cover of the Wendelstein 7-X fusion device was closed last week, which means the core of fusion device and the installation stage has been completed and it can go into operation at the Greifswald branch institute of Max Planck Institute of Plasma Physics (IPP) in 2014.

A new paper suggests women can remember faces better than men, in part because they spend more time studying features - without even knowing it.

Some Paleo Diet believers think neither food nor humanity has evolved but anthropologists disagree. They have found that diets were a 'game changer' in ancient African hominid evolution, even 3.5 million years ago.

Tests on tooth enamel indicate that prior to about 4 million years ago, Africa's hominids were eating essentially chimpanzee style, likely dining on fruits and some leaves, said University of Colorado Boulder anthropology Professor Matt Sponheimer, lead author of the study. Though grasses and sedges were readily available back then, the hominids seem to have ignored them for an extended period. 

In October 2014 and February 2016 Proxima Centauri, the red dwarf star nearest to our sun, passes in front of two other stars. Astronomers plotted Proxima Centauri's precise path in the heavens and predicted the two close encounters using data from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, meaning two opportunities in the next few years to hunt for Earth-sized planets around it.

Red dwarfs are the most common class of stars in our Milky Way galaxy. Any such star ever born is still shining today. There are about 10 red dwarfs for every star like our sun. Red dwarfs are less massive than other stars. Because lower-mass stars tend to have smaller planets, red dwarfs are ideal places to go hunting for Earth-sized planets.

Fibromyalgia affects up to 2% of the U.S. population, mostly older women. What is it? No one really knows, it is a blanket term for symptoms like widespread pain, unexplained fatigue, headaches, and sleep disturbances. What causes it? No one knows but self-reported results suggest patients have increased sensitivity to a range of stimuli and up to 92% say weather conditions exacerbate their symptoms. 

Cross off that last one, say Dutch psychologists in Arthritis Care&Research. Temperature, sunshine, and precipitation have no impact on fibromyalgia symptoms in female patients.   

You've heard of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) but less well-known is canine compulsive disorder (CCD).  The causes of OCD, which affects about 2 percent of the population, are unknown and the disorder often goes untreated or undiagnosed for decades. People with OCD often exhibit repetitive behaviors or persistent thoughts that are time consuming and interfere with daily routines.