Science News

All Stories by Science News

  1. Humans

    Cryptology for Kids

    Interested in learning about making and breaking codes? The National Security Agency has created an interactive Web site for kids, allowing them to play games and solve puzzles as they learn about codes, ciphers, cryptology, and more. Go to: http://www.nsa.gov/kids/

  2. 19715

    I suspect the findings in this article might be correlated with the reduction in lead exposure over the same timeframe. I wonder if the greater reduction in early-childhood blood lead for blacks might be sufficient to explain the effect described in the study. Richard B. MottRingoes, N.J. What can we conclude from these facts? Not […]

  3. 19714

    This article, I think, has it backwards. It’s not that labeled trials are more likely to be funded. Rather, well-funded, large trials are more likely to be named. We research chemists label only the important projects. The name makes the project easier to track and reference. Charles D. ShusterColumbus, Ohio

  4. Humans

    Books for Late Summer

    The writers of Science News present wide-ranging recommendations of books for readers to pack for their late-summer vacations.

  5. Humans

    From the July 25, 1936, issue

    A tricky flower photo, insect hearing, and sleeping oysters.

  6. Cool Science for Kids

    This Web site, produced by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, provides hands-on science activities for elementary-school students. It uses animation, sound, quizzes, and other techniques to encourage kids to explore biology. Activities include building a model of a butterfly emerging from a cocoon and identifying which parts of plants belong in the family salad bowl. […]

  7. 19713

    What about circumcision in the United States and Europe, not just sub-Saharan Africa, as a means of reducing AIDS? As I recall, the most recent trend among U.S. doctors is to discourage this practice as painful and unnecessary. James SeeserSt. Louis, Mo.

  8. 19712

    I applaud your coverage of the BioBlitz in the National Capital Area in this article. You only touched the surface, however. BioBlitzes are just a part of All Taxa Biodiversity Inventories that are being conducted from Great Smoky Mountains National Park to some protected areas in Europe. Specifically related to slime molds, the National Science […]

  9. Humans

    Letters from the July 29, 2006, issue of Science News

    Squeeze, please It would seem to me that instead of looking to minimize the effect of grapefruit juice in slowing the metabolism and elimination of drugs, one could cut drug dosages by taking advantage of it (“Nabbed: Culprit of grapefruit juice–drug interaction,” SN: 5/20/06, p. 317). Grapefruit juice costs less than any drug and has […]

  10. Humans

    From the July 18, 1936, issue

    Modeling cosmic rays, shining colored light on plants, and the chances of being struck by lightning.

  11. Astronomy

    Black Hole Explorations

    What would it be like to orbit a black hole—or even to fall into one? You can find out by exploring the world of black holes in a Web site created by a team at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Md. For a fully interactive multimedia experience, click “Journey to a Black Hole” […]

  12. 19711

    This article raises some questions. What about people who are physically unattractive—those whom a majority of the society considers ugly? I suspect that many people treated for body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) are unattractive by that definition. The psychiatric profession tends to deny that many of the “illnesses” it treats are the result of realities that […]