Feature
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Food Fix
Scientists have discovered a number of neurological connections between drug addiction and obesity.
- Math
Armor-Plated Puzzle
Behind the beautiful patterns of many viral shells lie principles of pure physics and mathematics that scientists have illuminated in recent theoretical studies.
- Health & Medicine
Targeted Attack
Scientists are piecing together the details of how mutations in a protein called EGFR can lead to cancer, and they are designing a new class of drugs to stop the protein's destructive behavior.
- Earth
Earthshaking Event
Seismic instruments have provided a wealth of information about the earthquake that rocked Sumatra on Dec. 26, 2004.
- Health & Medicine
Potent Medicine
Drugs now used to treat erectile dysfunction might soon assume multiple roles in managing heart disease and other conditions, including some that affect women and infants.
- Animals
Myth of the Bad-Nose Birds
Even though a lot of people still believe birds have no sense of smell, certain species rely on their noses for important jobs, such as finding food and shelter, and maybe even a mate.
- Paleontology
Just for Frills?
The more that paleontologists scrutinize some dinosaurs' plates, frills, and other anatomical oddities, the more they suspect that the rationale behind these features is simply the need to be recognizably different.
- Health & Medicine
Siccing Fungi on Malaria
Two independent research teams have found that fungi can kill mosquitoes or reduce the efficiency with which they transmit the malaria parasite.
- Astronomy
Cosmic Computing
The largest computer simulation of the universe ever compiled uses dark matter to shed light on the formation of galaxies and on the visible structure of the universe.
- Anthropology
The Human Wave
Anatomically modern people evolved in small groups of ancient Homo sapiens that never traveled too far but continually interbred with nearby groups, including other Homo species, creating a genetic wave that moved from Africa across Asia, a new model suggests.
- Tech
Easy Striders
New robots based on the mechanics of human walking use less energy and move more naturally than traditional bipedal robots do, suggesting new ways to approach two-legged robots and prosthetic design.
- Humans
Pushing Drugs
Pharmaceutical marketing toward both patients and physicians appears to influence which medicines get prescribed.
