Using the powerful one-two combo of NASA’s Swift satellite and the Gemini Observatory, astronomers have detected a mysterious type of cosmic explosion farther back in time than ever before. The explosion, known as a short gamma-ray burst (GRB), took place 7.4 billion years ago, more than halfway back to the Big Bang. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

Imagine a bracelet or a watch that morphs into something else when you take it off. Perhaps it becomes a phone, or perhaps a small computer screen and keyboard. Researchers are just a few years away from bringing to life revolutionary morphing devices known as programmable matter which can change size, shape and function. picked by AutumnLotus 11 months ago

A chunk of a US Airways wing separated during a flight from Orlando to Philadelphia and cracked a passenger's window. picked by dollyllama 2 years ago

Scientists in the US have created a breakthrough substance that can change in seconds when exposed to liquid, shifting from hard plastic to soft and back again. The material, inspired by the skin of sea cucumbers, has astounding "mechanical morphing characteristics." picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago

The 1950s was the decade of the test pilot and the experimental aircraft, as aviation technology turned to the jet engine and pushed its limits in both speed and endurance. With the world divided in Cold War, the stakes were high. Jet aircraft dominated both U.S. and Soviet arsenals and the data returned by subsonic and supersonic test flights had implications for the coming space race as well. picked by deEPCHIll 1 year ago

"Obama did not plagiarize his whole campaign from Jimmy Smits fictional campaign on The West Wing. No, no, The West Wing plagiarized Obama's campaign from the future." picked by gammerus 2 years ago

After a long day spent socializing or learning who to flirt with, scientists say fruit flies need to sleep longer, shedding light on what sleep may actually do for humans. Sleep remains a mystery. To delve into why people need to sleep, neurogeneticist Indrani Ganguly-Fitzgerald at the Neurosciences Institute in San Diego, Calif., and her colleagues Paul Shaw and Jeff Donlea at Washington Univers... read full post picked by 2manyusernames 3 years ago

At the end of the 1,300km journey, rescuers at Vnukova airport were initially unable to take off his coat and shoes because his arms and legs were so badly frozen. Crazy kid. picked by misswinkle 2 years ago

Newborn stars shine like celestial sparklers in a new portrait of the nearby Triangulum Galaxy – the most detailed ultraviolet image of a galaxy ever taken. Astronomers will use the image, taken by NASA's Swift telescope, to create an "age map" of the galaxy's components to understand how galaxies evolve over time. picked by AutumnLotus 2 years ago