http://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. (Phys.org) —Mars has lost much of its original atmosphere, but what's left remains quite active, recent findings from NASA's Mars rover Curiosity indicate. Rover team members reported diverse findings today at the European Geosciences Union 2013 General Assembly, in Vienna. http://phys.org/news284640850.html Space & Earth Mon, 08 Apr 2013 11:54:21 EST news284640850 Using a state-of-the-art Theta-probe XPS machine experts at Newcastle University, UK, have shown the original kilogram is likely to be tens of micrograms heavier than it was when the first standard was set in 1875. And they say a suntan could be the key to helping it lose weight. http://phys.org/news276685793.html Physics Sun, 06 Jan 2013 19:00:01 EST news276685793 (Phys.org)—NASA's car-sized rover, Curiosity, has taken significant steps toward understanding how Mars may have lost much of its original atmosphere. http://phys.org/news271087521.html Space & Earth Fri, 02 Nov 2012 15:05:47 EST news271087521 The guardians of the world's most important standards of weights and measures have turned to the weird universe of quantum physics to try to resolve a dilemma. http://phys.org/news239784514.html Physics Sun, 06 Nov 2011 06:48:44 EST news239784514 Leading scientists from around the world are meeting in Britain from Thursday to consider a proposal that could eventually see Greenwich Mean Time relegated to a footnote in history. http://phys.org/news239517936.html Other Sciences Thu, 03 Nov 2011 05:45:46 EST news239517936 (PhysOrg.com) -- The General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) at its most recent meeting in Sčvres, France, has voted unanimously on a proposal to consider changes to at least some of the seven basic units (second, metre, kilogram, ampere, kelvin, mole and candela) of measurements used by most of the civilized world. This comes after years of debate concerning the kilogram, ampere, kelvin, and mole in particular. Of these, the kilogram has come under the most fire as it’s still based on a hunk of metal kept under lock and key in a vault in Paris. It’s been the subject of debate ever since it was discovered in 1948 that its mass had changed. http://phys.org/news238839666.html Physics Wed, 26 Oct 2011 09:22:33 EST news238839666 (AP) -- Wildlife groups will boycott Sri Lanka's first census of elephants because they fear the count is a "smoke screen" for capturing and domesticating the animals. http://phys.org/news232112007.html Biology Tue, 09 Aug 2011 13:10:01 EST news232112007 Scientists said Monday they were moving closer to coming up with a non-physical definition of the kilo after discovering the metal artefact used as the international standard had shed a little weight. http://phys.org/news215074031.html Physics Mon, 24 Jan 2011 06:47:36 EST news215074031 For the first time in history, a change will be made to the atomic weights of some elements listed on the Periodic table of the chemical elements posted on walls of chemistry classrooms and on the inside covers of chemistry textbooks worldwide. http://phys.org/news211643254.html Chemistry Wed, 15 Dec 2010 13:47:52 EST news211643254 Taking the first steps of what would be a major historical advance in the science of measurement, the National Institute of Standards and Technology is participating in a worldwide effort to recommend major revisions to the International System of Units (SI), the modern metric system that is the basis of global measurements in commerce, science and other aspects of everyday life. The new SI, which would be based on seven constants of nature, would enable researchers around the world to express the results of measurements at new levels of consistency and accuracy. http://phys.org/news207402415.html Physics Wed, 27 Oct 2010 12:50:18 EST news207402415 Current gym dogma holds that to build muscle size you need to lift heavy weights. However, a new study conducted at McMaster University has shown that a similar degree of muscle building can be achieved by using lighter weights. The secret is to pump iron until you reach muscle fatigue. http://phys.org/news200747288.html Medicine & Health Wed, 11 Aug 2010 12:11:21 EST news200747288 (PhysOrg.com) -- Sedimentary rocks created more than 2.4 billion years ago sometimes have an unusual sulfur isotope composition thought to be caused by the action of ultra violet light on volcanically produced sulfur dioxide in an oxygen poor atmosphere. Now a team of geochemists can show an alternative origin for this isotopic composition that may point to an early, oxygen-rich atmosphere. http://phys.org/news159111288.html Space & Earth Thu, 16 Apr 2009 14:35:26 EST news159111288