Lisa M Krieger

This illustration provided by the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics shows artist's renderings of planets Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f compared with Venus and the Earth. Scientists have found the two Earth-sized planets orbiting a distant star, an encouraging sign for prospects of finding life elsewhere. The discovery shows that such planets exist and that they can be detected by the Kepler spacecraft, said Francois Fressin of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass. They’re the smallest planets found so far outside the solar system. Scientists are seeking Earth-sized planets as potential homes for extraterrestrial life, said Fressin, who reports the new findings in a paper published online Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2011 by the journal Nature. (AP Photo/Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics)

Two Earth-sized planets discovered

Last updated Wednesday, December 21, 2011 - 11:04am

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- NASA's Kepler mission has found the first Earth-size planets orbiting a sun-like star outside our solar system. But they're too hot to support liquid water -- or life.

Features, Astronomers, Planets, Science, Solar system, Space, NASA     Read more     Comments
The West Nile virus has done so well because it took advantage of a species that thrives around people: the American Robin. The American Robin is widely distributed throughout North America, wintering south of Canada from Florida to central Mexico and along the Pacific Coast. It is the state bird of Connecticut, Michigan, and Wisconsin.

West Nile outbreaks linked to 'super-spreader' birds

Last updated Thursday, October 27, 2011 - 10:31am

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Like any new immigrant, the deadly West Nile virus became American almost immediately after landing on our shores -- altering itself to fit in, and then infecting a popular backyard bird to secure a firm foothold in its new home.

That is the startling conclusion of a decade-long analysis by University of California-Santa Cruz biologist Marm Kilpatrick, who explored the ecology of an infectious disease that killed five Californians this summer and sickened another 197, up from 82 last year.

Birds, Disease, Migratory birds, Research, West Nile Virus, National     Read more     Comments
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