Rice-growing techniques learned through thousands of years of trial and error are about to be turbocharged with DNA technology in a breakthrough hailed by scientists as a potential second "green revolution".

Over the next few years farmers are expected to have new genome sequencing technology at their disposal, helping to offset a myriad of problems that threaten to curtail production of the grain that feeds half of humanity.

If you can't seem to quit smoking, or have a tendency to become depressed, you might be able to blame your Neanderthal heritage.

After a massive study linking tens of thousands of modern people's medical records to their genetic histories, certain genes inherited from Neanderthals have been linked to psychiatric disorders, blood clotting and addictive behaviors, researchers said Friday.

Astronomers on Thursday announced that their new billion-dollar U.S. observatory has detected a gravitational wave, a phenomenon Albert Einstein predicted a century ago in his theory of general relativity. Here's what that breakthrough means.

WHAT IS A GRAVITATIONAL WAVE?

When -- or if -- that bunch of flowers arrives on Sunday for Valentine's Day, spare a thought for Edward Putland.

Putland, an agent specializing in agriculture at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), has been busy scouring roses, carnations and all other manner of flowers and plants imported through Miami's international airport, mainly from Latin America.

The machines that gave scientists their first-ever glimpse at gravitational waves are the most advanced detectors ever built for sensing tiny vibrations in the universe.

The two U.S.-based underground detectors are known as the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory, or LIGO for short.

In a landmark discovery for physics and astronomy, international scientists said Thursday they have glimpsed the first direct evidence of gravitational waves, or ripples in space-time, which Albert Einstein predicted a century ago.

When two black holes collided some 1.3 billion years ago, the joining of those two great masses sent forth a wobble that hurtled through space and arrived at Earth on September 14, 2015, when it was picked up by sophisticated instruments, researchers announced.

Scientists are analyzing a small blue object that plummeted from the sky and killed a man in southern India, after authorities said it was a meteorite.

The object slammed into the ground at an engineering college over the weekend, shattering a water cooler and sending splinters and shards flying. Police say a bus driver standing nearby was hit by the debris and died while being taken to a hospital.

Australian researchers have created a "bionic spinal cord" they said Tuesday could give paralyzed people hope of walking again through the power of thought, without resorting to open brain surgery.

The system would use a device the size of a paperclip implanted in a blood vessel next to the brain.

Indian authorities say a falling object that killed a bus driver and injured three others was a meteorite. If proven, it would be the first such death in recorded history.

Experts said other explanations were possible for the incident Saturday in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

Dog owners who think their beloved pets are just smarter than the others might be right, according to a report published in Britain on Monday based on intelligence tests on 68 border collies.

Researchers from the London School of Economics (LSE) and University of Edinburgh said they used a "purpose-built barn" to measure navigation ability, speed and skills in following a pointed arm.