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http://www.sciencenews.org/view/issue/id/2255
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In This Issue
- Sequencing the dead to save the living: Reviving ancient genomes of long-extinct creatures offers a window into past extinctions—and may help prevent future die outs
- No gene is an island: Even as biologists catalog the discrete parts of life forms, an emerging picture reveals that life’s functions arise from interconnectedness
- The decider: Informing the debate over the reality of ‘free will’ requires learning something about the lateral habenula
- This week's table of contents
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December 8th, 2001
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New research confirms that alpha particles from decaying radon atoms can damage neighboring cells they don't directly hit and suggests a mechanism for this so-called bystander effect. (p. 356)
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A newly discovered lizard small enough to curl up on a dime ties for the title of the smallest of its kind in the world. (p. 356)
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A new analysis of fossil teeth indicates that the slower pace of dental development observed in people today dates back only about 100,000 years. (p. 357)
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Astronomers have unveiled the first X-ray image of Venus. (p. 357)
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Female goldeneye ducks can double their offspring by sneaking eggs into other females' nests before settling down to a nest of their own. (p. 358)
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Researchers have created molecules that assemble into a microscopic structure that mimics bone. (p. 358)
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Postponing surgery to repair a severed spinal cord in rats improves the likelihood that the operation will counteract the injury. (p. 358)
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The share of consumed fat that travels into a person's bloodstream depends on whether the person tasted fat to begin with. (p. 359)
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The unique way some flies localize sound has inspired engineers to design tiny directional microphones for hearing aids and surveillance devices. (p. 359)
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Knot theorists are getting closer to their goal of developing practical procedures for distinguishing knotted curves from unknotted ones. (p. 360)
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Two drugs, one for cancer and one for arthritis, may be effective treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. (p. 362)
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Curcumin, a spice used in yellow curry, may thwart Alzheimer's disease. (p. 362)
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A well-known antibiotic may slow the brain-cell death that causes Parkinson's disease. (p. 362)
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A drug mimicking a natural substance in the brain may offer a new therapy for epilepsy. (p. 362)
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Thinking about exercising a muscle can make it stronger. (p. 362)
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Despite much fanfare about proposed computers based on weird features of quantum mechanics, a whole array of other quantum technologies—navigation devices, chip-making equipment, atomic clocks and more—may also outshine their conventional cousins and be easier to implement than full-blown quantum computers. (p. 364)
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The dearth of neutrinos from a precision experiment casts some doubt on the prevailing model of particle physics and may indicate that a previously unrecognized extra force exists. (p. 367)
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A novel type of single-molecule transistor built around a one-molecule-thick layer of organic molecules may eventually lead to faster, denser chips because the channel through which electrons flow is so short. (p. 367)
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Africanized bees pollinate some of the big Brazilian forest trees now stranded in the middle of cleared land away from their native pollinators. (p. 367)
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The class of compounds that give beer its bitterness does two more sober jobs in Hypericum flowers. (p. 367)
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