October 11th, 2008

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In This Issue

You Are Who You Are by Default: It may be off when you’re on, but the brain network behind daydreams and a sense of self is no slacker
The Star That Ate a Mars: Astronomers study white dwarf pollution for clues to extrasolar planet ingredients
Bad Breath: Studies are homing in on which particles polluting the air are most sickening — and why
This week's table of contents

October 11th, 2008

Let’s Get Vertical

City buildings offer opportunities for farms to grow up instead of out (p. 16)
Dead — but not duds

White dwarfs shed light on physics and the fate of the cosmos (p. 26)
The Science Vote

Science News runs down what the two presidential candidates and their campaigns have been saying about science and technology issues.
The Science Vote: Linking energy to greenhouse risks
The Science Vote: Spending priorities differ
With a twinkle, pulsating stars could deliver signals from E.T.

Neutrino beams may turn Cepheids into messengers for advanced alien civilizations. (p. 5)
Snapshot of a planet beyond the solar system

After years of false alarms, astronomers may finally have recorded the first image of a planet orbiting a sunlike star beyond the solar system. (p. 8)
Around the ring

The first protons beamed out at the Large Hadron Collider (p. 8)
Pain relief to believe in

Religious believers shown pictures that evoke spiritual responses display brain activity that may contribute to feeling relief from physical pain, a new study finds. (p. 9)
Teen depression: No genes required

The family-shattering effects of a mother’s depression can prompt the same mood disorder in her children, independent of any genetic risk. (p. 9)
Female frogs play the field

A female frog insures a safe home for her young by mating with many males. (p. 10)
Giant honeybees do the wave

Giant bees coordinate and make waves that would rival those in any football stadium. Predators of the bees don’t find it cheering. (p. 10)
New ant species found

One weird ant suggests lost world of ancient ants living underground (p. 11)
This bite won't hurt a bit

A team dissects the physics of a mosquito bite, working to find a way to design gentler needles. (p. 11)
Continental clash cooled the climate

The collision between India and Asia set off events that caused long-term cooling in Earth’s climate, new research suggests. (p. 12)
New contender for Earth's oldest rocks

Observing rare isotopes in rocks along the Hudson Bay in Northern Quebec suggest the rocks have remained intact for 4.28 billion years, making them Earth's oldest. (p. 12)
Late nights and disease

Getting too little sleep may lead to health problems. A new study shows that after only one night of sleep deprivation, women have higher levels of an inflammatory molecule linked to cancer, heart disease and other illnesses. (p. 14)
Plastics chemical linked to heart disease, diabetes

Study is based on data collected from human adults and matches urine concentrations of bisphenol A with type 2 diabetes, heart disease and liver enzyme problems (p. 14)
Immune cell plays good cop, bad cop

Immune cells called macrophages aid neuron regeneration in some parts of the nervous system, but hinder regeneration in the brain and spinal cord. (p. 15)
Lo-Cal bones hold up

One study of many recent investigations of how calorie restriction affects people shows that bone density does not necessarily suffer when a person loses weight quickly. (p. 15)
First lipid hormone discovered

An omega-7 fatty acid made by fat and liver cells acts as a hormone, even mimicking the health benefits of insulin. (p. 15)
Highly wired

Men’s brain tissue shows higher density of neuron connections than similar tissue from women. (p. 15)