Indian push to put the Bose in boson

Ben Doherty India's scientific community is pushing for greater recognition of the Bengali physicist who is the boson's namesake.

Single embryo IVF transfers have better chance of survival

Julie Robotham THE chance that a baby conceived using in-vitro fertilisation will be stillborn or die soon after birth is reduced dramatically when only a single embryo is returned to the mother's uterus, according to a Sydney study that adds powerful extra weight to specialists' campaign against double embryo transfer.

B-Day for Higgs

Peter Spinks The world's most sought-after particle, the Higgs boson, is a force-carrier believed to endow all matter particles with mass, though until now it has proved frustratingly reluctant to show itself.

Confirmed: the Higgs boson does exist

DEBORAH SMITH IT exists.

'We've observed a new particle': leaked video reveals apparent 'God particle' confirmation

James Manning A video mistakenly posted online appears to confirm that scientists have discovered the elusive Higgs boson particle.

Evidence of 'God particle' found

Scientists believe the so-called God particle that might explain the underpinnings of the universe is real, and they are about to present their evidence to the world.

Rising ocean temperatures have tide turning in favour of scorching sibling El Nino

Nicole Hasham OUR dams are full, the lambs are fat and the sprinklers are running again. But weather experts are warning Australia's east coast to brace for a return to dry conditions, perhaps even drought, as another El Nino event looms.

Comments 199

Scientists close in on 'God particle'

DEBORAH SMITH IN WHAT would be one of the most significant finds in a century, scientists are expected to announce the existence of a new particle tonight that could be the famed Higgs boson.

Comments 148

Sprint style

Forget the jog slog and fit in a sprint for maximum weight loss results

Nicky Phillips SPRINT training for 60 minutes a week burns the same amount of body fat in men as jogging for seven hours a week, Sydney scientists report.

Comments 46

Bayside fossil an ancient sea bird

Nicky Phillips A fossil uncovered on a Melbourne beach belonged to a giant prehistoric bird with a five-metre wing span and serrated beak, scientists report.

Hold on a second and let it sync in

Bridie Smith Time will stand still for a second on Sunday morning when the nation's timekeepers add a second to keep the atomic clock in sync with the Earth.

Study

More reasons to stand up for your health

Marjie Gilliam You may want to sit down before you read this - but best not to. Study after study has shown not only that being inactive is bad for your fitness but also that sitting for long periods each day may shorten your lifespan.

Comments 4

Science overhaul criticised for its mysterious ways

Catherine Armitage THE draft national senior secondary science curriculum will be unmanageable to teach, will narrow student options and take away teachers' ability to cater for different student interests, NSW educators say.

Snakes alive - if only he'd been seeing double

DEBORAH SMITH CAPTURING the Holy Grail of Australian reptiles turned out to be something of an anti-climax for Gavin Bedford.

Girl gets vein grown from her own stem cells for transplant

Alok Jha LONDON: Scientists have successfully transplanted a vein made from a 10-year-old girl's own stem cells into her body. It is the first time such an operation has been reported and marks an important step in the practical ability of doctors to use stem cells to grow replacement cells for damaged or diseased tissue.

Invasive species ride tsunami debris to US

When a floating dock the size of a boxcar washed up on a sandy beach in Oregon, beachcombers got excited because it was the largest piece of debris from last year's tsunami in Japan to show up on the US West Coast.

Exploring ecosystems takes plenty of guts

Nicky Phillips AT THE headquarters of the Secretariat of the Pacific Community in Noumea, Elodie Vourey pulls the stomach of a bigeye tuna from a large plastic bag and puts it on a white tray.

Putting a tag on tuna stocks

Changing the eating habits of Pacific island communities from endangered big fish to smaller species makes healthy sense, writes Nicky Phillips.

Glowing goddess proves to be a bright spot on a dull day, and Venus was her name

DEBORAH SMITH ''THIS is like kids in a candy store,'' said 11-year-old Kane Horsfield, as his classmates screamed with excitement every time the clouds cleared and the sun came out.

X-37B: is this Operation Bewilder the Chinese?

The X-37B set to return to Earth after more than a year orbiting in space ... but its mission remains shrouded in secrecy.

The humans who outrun horses

David Stipp In a running race between humans and horses the winner would seem obvious. Think again.

Cloudy with a chance of transit, but not in orbit

DEBORAH SMITH THE only person who does not have to worry about the weather when observing tomorrow's rare transit of Venus is Don Pettit, an astronaut on board the International Space Station.

Rise and shine: clock arrives at perfect time for Venus trip across Sun

DEBORAH SMITH On Wednesday the planets will align, providing the last chance in a lifetime to witness Venus travel across the face of the Sun.

Scientists find a tomato is bursting with genes

NICHOLAS WADE The tomato, whose genome has just now been decoded, turns out to be one well-endowed vegetable, possessing 31,760 genes.

Cook app transits the centuries

John Elder and Tim Barlass Thanks to technology, the task of measuring the transit of Venus across the sun has never been easier.

Array of hope: science the winner as rivals share prize

Deborah Smith IT WILL be a team effort of cosmic discovery.

Science writer hopes Venus will inspire love of the universe

Deborah Smith DAVA SOBEL plans to travel to an observatory high on a mountain in California to witness next month's rare celestial event - a transit of Venus.

A share in the cosmos

Deborah Smith Australia and its rival bidder for the world's biggest telescope may end up collaborating.

Angry, sad or happy - it's all in the eye of the beholder

John Bohannon A study of people's perceptions of computer-generated faces suggests that facial expressions may not be universal and that our culture strongly shapes the way we read and express emotions.