PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] -- Even behind bars it can be a hard question to raise, but new research suggests that asking female inmates whether they have a history of exchanging sex for money or drugs can help identify whether they are at heightened risk for serious health consequences.

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The lady salamander that shuns male companionship may reap important benefits.

For instance, when a predator snaps off her tail.

New research from The Ohio State University compared an all-female population of mole salamanders to a related heterosexual species and found they grew their tails back 36 percent faster. The unisexual salamanders (part of the Ambystoma genus) contain DNA of up to five species and reproduce primarily by cloning themselves.

Rainwater may play an important role in the process that triggers earthquakes, according to new research.

Researchers from the University of Southampton, GNS Science (New Zealand), the University of Otago, and GFZ Potsdam (Germany), identified the sources and fluxes of the geothermal fluids and mineral veins from the Southern Alps of New Zealand where the Pacific and Australian Plates collide along the Alpine Fault.

From careful chemical analyses, they discovered that fluids originating from the mantle, the layer below the Earth's crust, and fluids derived from rainwater, are channelled up the Alpine Fault.

April 29, 2016 - A modified surgical technique may provide a simpler approach to the surgical treatment for one type of chronic headache, according to an "Ideas and Innovations" paper in the May issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery®, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

While women's tennis is arguably far more interesting than the men's game, there are some who want to make it more like the male version, or at least more competitive between women.

In a Journal of Sports Economics paper, the authors examined the differences between men's and women's tournament scores from the 24 top men's and 23 top women's singles tournaments of the 2010 season. They evaluated the "tightness," or competitiveness of a match according to how close the set scores were. Men's sets were consistently closer (6-4, 7-5), while women's sets tended to be more lopsided, with scores of 6-2, 6-1.

Madagascan Darwin's bark spider (Caerostris darwini) are a sexually size dimorphic species from Madagascar, with females several times larger and heavier than males.

If you want a weird science project for school, kids, these are the way to go. C. darwini has a rich sexual repertoire that not only involves sexual cannibalism and genital mutilation, but also oral sex. Males of this species routinely salivate onto female genitalia.

Oral sexual contact is rare in the animal kingdom, except in mammals, where fellatio-like behaviors are known in macaques, lemurs, bonobos, hyenas, cheetahs, lions, dolphins and bats. However, cunnilingus-like behaviors, like the one shown in this spider are even rarer.

BALTIMORE, MD - Compared to a national sample of heterosexual parents, gay fathers report similar parenting behavior and measures of wellbeing in their children, according to new research to be presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) 2016 Meeting.
The study, "Experiences of Children with Gay Fathers," was conducted via an online survey, receiving responses from 732 gay fathers in 47 U.S. states. Participants responded to the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire, which includes questions about children's well-being, such as academic achievement, self-esteem and peer relationships.

BALTIMORE, MD - Children who live with smokers end up in the doctor's office or hospital more often than those not exposed to tobacco smoke, according to new research being presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies 2016 Meeting.

For the research abstract, "Tobacco Smoke Exposure and Health Care Utilization among Children Nationwide," researchers analyzed 2011-2012 data from the National Survey on Children's Health, which is conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease and Control Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics. They looked at patterns of health care utilization among children ranging in age from newborn to 17 who were living with smokers compared with those who not exposed to tobacco smoke at home.

Jena (Germany) With the arrival of spring many insects leave their winter quarters. Presently swarms of the mining bee (Andrena vaga) emerge along sandy river valleys. These whitish-grey haired wild bees live in galleries and cavities in the ground. They feed on nectar and pollen mostly collected from willow trees. "Sometimes the first bees come out very early, weeks before it would actually be their time," says PD Dr Hans Pohl of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (Germany). This usually indicates that the insects are infested by specific parasites, explains the entomologist. The native twisted-winged parasites (Strepsiptera) use the wild bees as 'incubators' for their own offspring - in a quite ruthless manner.