Most flowers have both male and female parts - but some flowering plants have separate male and female flowers.

A gene protects grains (wheat, rice, corn, barley) from disease. Our species owes its survival in part to the stoutness of the disease-resistant gene in grains.

A dwarf galaxy in the direction of the constellation Pegasus is being stripped of its gas, according to astronomers. A galaxy needs its gas to create new stars. So we might be seeing this galaxy near the end of its ability to form stars.

Scientists at work in the Arctic say the pace of change there is now so rapid that some creatures might not be able to adapt. For example, Arctic ringed seals give birth and nurse their young in caves dug out on the snow-covered ice.

Astronomers estimate the total luminosity of the central dozen or so light-years of the Milky Way to be equal to about 10 million suns. But the center of our galaxy is 27,000 light-years away.

David Deutsch talks about quantum computers in his book, The Fabric of Reality, and "tries to present a unified world view that incorporates all our best knowledge."

Astronomers can figure out the mass of a star using a formula based on Kepler's Law. They can also deduce mass by analyzing a star's color.

Will Earth survive an expanding sun? Let's take a look at the star V 391 Pegasi, 45,000 light-years away. It might reveal a possible future for our planet Earth.

The star that is the sun's new twin is called HD 101364 (or HIP 56948). Astronomers say it's almost identical to the sun. And that's interesting because our sun shines on a life-bearing planet. Stars like our sun are rare, according to astronomers. They account for only 4 percent of all stars in our Milky Way galaxy.

Astronomers have seen more evidence of dark matter, in a massive ghostly ring 5 billion light-years away. Astronomer Dan Coe said, "Dark matter is ghostly because it's everywhere in our universe. It's all around us. But we can't see it and we can't feel it. In fact, right now there might be a billion dark matter particles passing through your body every second."