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Tag Archives: germs

People can sicken animals

By Amanda Leigh Mascarelli / April 17, 2013

Wildlife can sometimes become infected with germs shed by people

Posted in Animals, Body & Health | Tagged biological pollution, bobcats, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, cats, clams, crabs, ecology, emerging infectious disease, explainer, feces, filter feeders, germs, marine mammals, Melissa Miller, microbe, microbiology, mollusk, mussels, Oysters, parasite, pathogen, Pollution, runoff, sea otters, terms: pets, toxoplasma, toxoplasmosis, wetlands, wildcat, wildlife

Deadly new virus emerges

By Janet Raloff / March 19, 2013

Microscopic photo of the new germ, shown in false color. Credit: NIAID/NIH

A mysterious infection has been spreading for almost a year

Posted in Body & Health | Tagged CDC, Centers for Disease Control, coronavirus, epidemic, Eric Snijder, genes, germs, getinvolved, Gwen Stephens, immune system, immunity, infections, inflammation, Leiden University Medical Center, lung disease, microbiology, Mohamed Zaki, mucus, mutate, mutations, pandemic, pneumonia, Saliva, SARS, Saudi Arabia Ministry of Health, Susan Gerber, Tina Saey

Piercing a buried polar lake

By Janet Raloff / January 29, 2013

This 1,000-meter hose — spooled onto an enormous and very heavy container — was used as a drill to pierce deeply through Antarctica’s ice. Credit: J. Raloff/Science News for Kids

Researchers in Antarctica drilled through a half-mile of ice to reach water that hasn’t had contact with the atmosphere for thousands of years.

Posted in Earth | Tagged Antarctic Sun, Antarctica, bacteria, Brent Christner, ecology, ecosystems, Frank Rack, germs, getinvolved, hot-water drill, ice sheet, Jill Mikucki, John Priscu, Lake Ellsworth, Lake Vostok, Lake Whillans, Louisiana State University, Martin Siegert, microbes, microbiology, polar science, South Pole, subglacial lakes, Tristy Vick-Majors, University of Bristol, University of Montana, University of Nebraska, University of Tennessee, viruses, WISSARD

Bacteria learn new trick

By Stephen Ornes / October 12, 2012

A decades-long experiment growing E. coli bacteria showed the microbes evolved the ability to eat a new food. Flasks of the germs turned cloudy when the bacteria ate citrate. Credit: Brian Baer and Neerja Hajela

Scientists show evolution in action in decades-long E. coli study

Posted in Microbes, Fungi & Algae | Tagged Adaptation, bacteria, biology, Bruce Levin, citric acid, E. coli, Emory University, evolution, evolutionary biology, evolve, genes, germs, getinvolved, Massey University, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Biology, Michigan State University, mutate, mutations, Paul Rainey, Richard Lenski, Zachary Blount

Living long beneath the sea

By Stephen Ornes / October 11, 2012

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Microbes in the mud beneath the seafloor may live millions of years, redefining what it means to be old and alive

Posted in Microbes, Fungi & Algae | Tagged Aarhus University, astrobiology, bacteria, biology, clay, Europa, feature, germs, Hans Roy, Karen Lloyd, Knorr, life, Mars, microbes, Pacific Ocean, prehistory, Seth Shostak, SETI, SETI Institute, Titan, topstories, University of Tennessee

Airports that speed germs’ spread

By Stephen Ornes / August 13, 2012

A computer simulation of a disease outbreak shows that airports like those in New York City and Los Angeles would help spread germs. Credit: Christos Nicolaides/MIT

Scientists identify which U.S airports are able to spread disease most effectively

Posted in Body & Health | Tagged airports, disease, epidemic, epidemiology, germs, getinvolved, Honolulu, infections, Los Angeles, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT, New York, Ruben Juanes, swine flu, vaccination