Scientists in Japan have successfully introduced a foreign gene into a primate species for the first time, opening a new avenue for modeling human diseases, particularly brain disorders. (p. 13)

Detailed genetic analysis of the H1N1 swine flu virus indicates that its components have been present for years. The virus is still susceptible to drugs and vaccine development. (p. 12)

Nocturnal animals orient DNA in retinal cells to focus light. (p. 9)

Whether you like it or not, you’re a little different. If it makes you feel any better, so is everybody else. In fact, everybody is far more different than anybody had imagined. Scientists are only beginning to discover just how different humans are from each other at the genetic level and what those personal genetic attributes mean for health, history and the human evolutionary future. It’s true that people are 99.9 percent alike, if only minor spelling variations in the genetic instruction book are taken into account. In each person, about one in every 1,000 DNA bases — the che... (p. 16)

Brown fat is active in adult humans and could help keep people lean. (p. 10)