The Discovery Files

University of Chicago scientists have identified a brain region that appears central to perceiving the combination of color and motion. They discovered a unique population of neurons that shift in sensitivity toward different colors and directions depending on what is being attended--the red jersey of a receiver headed toward an end zone, for example. The study sheds light on a fundamental neurological process that is a key step in the biology of attention.

An international team of researchers led by the University of Arizona has sequenced the complete genome of African rice. The genetic information will enhance scientists' and agriculturalists' understanding of the growing patterns of African rice, as well as enable the development of new varieties that are more resilient and may help solve global hunger challenges.

To fight back against counterfeit drugs and other forms of counterfeiting, researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a way to make labels that change when you breathe on them, revealing a hidden image.

Researchers at UC Berkeley and MIT are developing computer algorithms to compensate for an individual's visual impairment, and creating vision-correcting displays that enable users to see text and images clearly without wearing eyeglasses or contact lenses.

Scientists at the University of Illinois tracked the movements of individual honey bees for several weeks and made two discoveries: Some foraging bees are busier than others; and if those busy bees disappear, others will take their place.

Contrary to previous assumptions, researchers at UC Davis found that preschoolers are able to gauge the strength of their memories and make decisions based on their self-assessments.

The first preclinical study of an anti-cancer technology developed by Rice and Northeastern Universities found that a novel combination of existing clinical treatments can instantaneously detect and kill only cancer cells.

University of Missouri experiments mark the first time scientists have shown that a plant responds to an ecologically relevant sound in its environment.

A team of mathematicians from the American Institute of Mathematics has created models that help identify which crops to plant where and when.

Researchers at Duke University have developed software that tracks and records infants' activity during videotaped autism screening tests.

Scientists at the University of Nevada, Reno have shown that draining of the aquifer for agricultural irrigation in California's Central Valley results in upward flexing of the earth's surface and the surrounding mountains due to the loss of mass within the valley.

It is better to give than to receive--at least if you're an adolescent and you enjoy giving, suggests a study conducted by researchers at UCLA and the University of Illinois at Urbana.

A new type of supercapacitor that can hold a charge when it takes a lickin' has been developed by engineers at Vanderbilt University. It is the first "multi-functional" energy storage device that can operate while subject to realistic static and dynamic loads.

Complex networks researchers at Indiana University have developed a tool that helps anyone determine whether a Twitter account is operated by a human or an automated software application known as a social bot.

An engineering breakthrough at Drexel University will allow cancer researchers to create live tumors with a 3-D printer to test the efficacy of treatments and study a tumor's behavior outside the body.