News in Science - ABC

NEWS ANALYSIS: This year's Australian federal budget was predictably light on support for science research and development, say commentators, who are pinning their hopes on next year's budget.

NEWS ANALYSIS: We can send probes to the fringes of the solar system. Swap instant messages with friends on the other side of the world. So surely we have some hi-tech help for the hundreds of thousands of people in Burma and China. Right?

Amateur astronomers now have internet access to imagery from the best telescopes on earth and in space with a new online service.

The Beijing Olympics will not just be a showcase of the world's best athletes. Weather forecasting technology will also compete to provide the Games with the most up-to-date weather forecasts possible.

Statistics might explain why people sometimes blindly cross the road as soon as they see others doing so, without first checking it's safe, researchers say.

The violent quake that shook China's Sichuan province this week is linked to a shift of the Tibetan plateau to the north and east, researchers say.

US scientists have customised nanoengines by spiking the gas with rocket fuel and adding carbon nanotubes to strengthen the motor's microsized frame.

Scientists have long wondered about how a planet as small as Mercury could have kept its iron core fluid enough to account for the planet's magnetic field.

Volcanic ash raining down from the Chilean volcano Chaiten may cause long-term environmental damage and harm the health of people and animals in picturesque Patagonia, scientists say.

The argument over why honey is so sticky has been settled, and it seems both sides were right all along.

The once-green Sahara turned to desert over thousands of years rather than in an abrupt shift as once thought, according to a study that may help understanding of future climate changes.

Chewed-up or burned seaweed discarded more than 14,000 years ago confirm that people were in Chile at least that long ago and sheds light on what their culture was like, researchers report.

An orbital x-ray telescope has found a chunk of matter in the universe whose existence had long been theorised but evidence for which had been lacking, researchers say.

NEWS ANALYSIS: Burmese authorities could have had as much as 72 hours notice of the devastating Cyclone Nargis, say Australian researchers.

Genome sequencing of Australia's platypus, an animal so unusual it was thought to be a hoax when sent to Europe in the 18th century, has moved the evolution of sex determination in humans forward more than 160 million years.