Fossils found on an Indonesian island appeared to have come from a half-size Homo species that evolved during the Stone Age . BrownPeople tamed cats by about 9,500 years ago, much earlier than previously estimated, according to discoveries on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus . I. Van Den Berg/Animals Animals; (Inset) K. DebueThe discovery of the youngest planet known also produced the first evidence of organic compounds in a space region with the potential for planets to form . Scientists detected the three lightest known extrasolar planets, thereby moving closer to the goal of finding orbs that resemble Earth . Infrared spectra of a disk of debris surrounding the young star Beta Pictoris suggested the presence of a planet flanked by belts of asteroids or comets . What may be the heaviest planet ever recorded could force astronomers to revise the standard definition of a planet . NASAVENUSIAN PASSAGE. For the first time in 122 years, the silhouette of Venus was visible moving across the face of the sun. Although one of the best places to view the passage was Europe, more than 100 sky watchers on Nantucket Island watched the last 2.5 hours of the 6-hour event. As the first rays of the sun rose over the Atlantic, clouds parted to reveal a slowly moving beauty mark on the sun (; ). J. Pasachoff/Williams CollegeObservations of a wild baboon troop indicated that females inculcate peaceful attitudes in males who transfer into the group, a sign of cultural behavior . Capuchin monkeys also offered insights into what may be cultural traditions . PhotoDiscA 9-year-old border collie learned the meanings of a vast list of words taught to him by researchers, suggesting a link between simple types of thinking in dogs and toddlers . S. BausScreening embryos to produce living cell donors for sick siblings raised hopes of cures for now-intractable diseases but presented ethical dilemmas . A. Kuliev And Verlinsky/Reproductive Genetics InstituteFEELING SLEEPY. Research into the biological underpinnings of narcolepsy revealed a new diagnostic strategy and suggested that therapies could be modeled on a hormone called orexin . These dogs have a genetic defect that neutralizes orexin and gives them narcolepsy symptoms. Mignot/Stanford UniversityA marine worm was discovered that relies on a previously unknown form of symbiosis to get nourishment from sunken whale skeletons . RattenborgRED-EYE FLIGHT. Migrating white-crowned sparrows sleep only about a third as much as they do when not migrating but apparently don’t suffer any bad effects from sleep deprivation, tests showed . Rouse