More Stories from the August 23, 2003 issue
- Astronomy
Stellar speed limit
Ripples in the fabric of space-time may put the brakes on the fastest-spinning stars in the universe and prevent them from flying apart.
- Health & Medicine
Drug reduces risks for dialysis patients
Kidney-dialysis patients getting the vitamin D drug paricalcitol survive longer than those getting a similar medication called calcitriol.
- Tech
High-flying wing destroyed in crash
The unmanned NASA aircraft that holds the world record for high-altitude flight without rocket propulsion recently broke up over the Pacific Ocean.
- Health & Medicine
Viruses, but not bacteria, tied to mental decline
Past infection by multiple common viruses may contribute to cognitive decline in some elderly people.
- Planetary Science
A warmer, fluffier Pluto
Although Pluto has been receding from the sun for more than a decade, planetary scientists have now found that between 1988 and 2002, Pluto’s atmosphere has nearly doubled in size and its temperature has increased by about 1 degree C.
- Health & Medicine
Guggul extract fails its cholesterol test
Guggul extract, long used in parts of Asia and gaining popularity in Western countries as a weapon against high cholesterol, does not appear to work.
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Livers: Better late than never
Drawing on an ancient Greek myth, researchers have given the name prometheus to a mutant strain of zebrafish that appear to have no liver early in their lives.
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Did cavefish trade eyes for good taste?
Certain blind cave-dwelling fish in Mexico may have developed more taste buds and bigger jaws as they lost their eyes.
- Health & Medicine
Prenatal Cares: Popular painkillers linked to miscarriage
A new study finds that pregnant women taking nonprescription painkillers such as ibuprofen and aspirin have a higher risk of miscarriage.
- Astronomy
It’s Raining Stardust: Spacecraft measures record amount of stellar debris
Stardust is sneaking into our solar system at three times the rate that it had just 4 years ago, and the influx of dust could triple through 2010.
- Tech
Bomb Sniffer: Cantilevers detect trace amounts of explosives
An ultra-sensitive chemical sensor uses microcantilevers to detect airborne plastic explosives within seconds.
- Animals
Musical Pairs: Egg-deploying bird species divide for a song
A new genetic analysis bolsters the idea that musical taste, rather than geography, split Africa's indigobirds into multiple species.
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Uneasy Breathing: Lung ills linked to suicidal thoughts
Patients who suffer from asthma and other lung disorders report thoughts of suicide and self-harm far more often than do people treated for other physical illnesses.
- Earth
Clearing the Air: Ozone-killing bromine is on the decline
Chemical analyses of Earth's lower atmosphere show that the overall concentration of bromine, a component of some potent ozone-destroying chemicals, has dropped by 5 percent since peaking in 1998.
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The Naked Truth? Lice hint at a recent origin of clothing
A study of genetic differences among human lice hints at the origin of clothing.
- Earth
On Shifting Ground
In earthquake-prone areas of the United States and elsewhere in the world, debates go on over whether—and how much—to reinforce buildings.
- Health & Medicine
Predicting Prostate Cancer’s Moves
To guide treatment decisions in individual cases of prostate cancer, medical researchers are using gene-expression profiling and other novel techniques to develop better predictive markers of how a given tumor will behave.
