An animal model of recent human evolution found that a single mutation produced several traits common in East Asian people, from thicker hair to denser sweat glands. They also modeled the spread of the gene mutation across Asia and North America, concluding that it most likely arose about 30,925 years ago in what is today central China. 

Previous research identified the mutation as a strong candidate for positive selection. That is, evidence within the genetic code suggested the mutant gene conferred an evolutionary advantage, though what advantage was unclear.  

2012 was the 40th anniversary since President Richard Nixon signed the Clean Water Act and established regulations for the discharge of pollutants to waterways - and even lets the government declare water itself as a pollutant. 

Despite sewage treatment plants becoming more widespread, sewage can still be a major source for both naturally occurring hormones found in the environment and from both pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs).

Lulu, the iOS and Android app for reviewing and objectifying men, had a good first week, reaching the Top 20 in the U.S App. store with over 100,000 downloads. 

 On Lulu, girls anonymously ridicule and rate men on appearance, humor, manners, ambition, first kiss, sex, and commitment. So if you want to know if that guy you met has a #CleanBathroom or is #CheaperThanABigMac, this is for you. 

Like 75 percent of online gamers, it helps to at least pretend to be a woman. If you admit to being a man, or your Facebook login is a man, you get the rejection: "Dude, you're a dude." Perhaps due to keeping out icky men, so far people are being nice. The worst condemnation a man can get, though, is an ex-girlfriend saying he is a keeper...for someone else. 

Although robotic jockeys for camel racing have been successfully deployed for several years now, some have voiced concerns about them – for many of the 'bots are configured to vigorously cane the competing camels. (Hi-res photographic example here – the Swiss-made KMEL - manufactured by the K-Team Corporation – note the robotic whipping mechanism).

Like the term 'junk DNA', the idea of 'primitive' reflexes is contextually confusing to some people outside biology. In reality, after millions of years of evolution, even a primitive reflex is sophisticated. 

Every two years physicists and astrophysicists who work in the area of neutrino physics get together in the wonderful setting of Palazzo Franchetti, a historical palace on the Canal Grande in Venice, Italy, to discuss the latest results of experiments and theoretical ideas, and to plan for the future.

Some controversial modern psychologists claim that conservatives and liberals don't just differ in political ideology, correlation and causation is inferred in actual personality templates and even genetics - yes, that would mean Americans are evolving into two distinct species separate from the rest of the planet. So in that odd framework they have decided American liberals are conscientious, conservatives are reactionary, conservatives are afraid of uncertainty, liberals are open to new experiences, etc. 

New satellite images show that the ozone hole over Antarctica in 2012 was the smallest seen in the past decade. Long-term observations show that Earth’s ozone has been strengthening. The ozone sensor on Europe’s MetOp weather satellite continues the long-term monitoring of atmospheric ozone started by its predecessors on the ERS-2 and Envisat satellites. 

It is somewhat surreal to see the discovery of the largest prime number paraded on prime time broadcast media. Mathematicians around the world are asked to explain the significance of this discovery in layman’s terms, which is up there with physicists trying to explain what the Large Hadron Collider actually does.

Below you’ll see a pretty sparky Sky News interview by Eugenia Cheng, a senior lecturer at the University of Sheffield. Just notice at the very end how jolly pleased with themselves the newscasters seem to be.

Genome sequences of seven well-studied ant species give researchers a detailed look at molecular mechanisms - including what may be a basis for complex behavioral differences in two worker castes in the Florida carpenter ant, Camponotus floridanus - basically, epigenetics.