More Stories from the February 9, 2002 issue
- Materials Science
Carbon pods are more than a pack of peas
Researchers have found that they can manipulate the electronic properties of nanoscopic carbon structures.
- Archaeology
Skulls attest to Iron Age scalping
Archaeologists identified four skulls, previously found in southern Siberia, that bore incisions attesting to the practice of scalping in that region around 2,500 years ago.
- Health & Medicine
DREAMing away pain
Mutant mice lacking a certain regulatory protein overproduce a natural opioid and are less sensitive to pain than are other mice.
- Earth
Old pesticide still makes it to Arctic
Molecules of the pesticides known as chlordanes, which belong to a class of long-lasting organochlorine pollutants, circulate in Arctic air years after they were applied in temperate latitudes.
- Health & Medicine
Heart recipients add their own cells
Transplanted hearts incorporate muscle and blood-vessel cells from their new host, suggesting that the heart may regenerate its own tissue.
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Unfertilized monkey eggs make stem cells
Scientists have for the first time obtained long-lived stem cells from monkey eggs stimulated to undergo parthenogenesis.
- Physics
Light comes to halt again—in a solid
By stopping laser light pulses cold in a crystal, storing them, and then releasing them, physicists have achieved the same feat accomplished last year in gases, but this time in a more practical material.
- Tech
Circuitry in a nanowire: Novel growth method may transform chips
Made from alternating bands of different semiconductors, a new type of superthin wire incorporates working electronic and optical devices within the wire itself, raising the prospect of making extremely tiny and versatile circuits from the striped filaments.
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Dose of caution: New antipsychotic meds produce muted benefits
A large clinical trial finds only a modest advantage for a new class of antipsychotic drugs over traditional medications in treating chronic schizophrenia.
- Earth
Hard rock jellies: Throng of rare fossils found in Midwest quarry
A Wisconsin sandstone quarry recently served up a rare scientific find nearly a half billion years in the making: fossils of an armada of jellyfish that stud the site’s stone slabs.
- Health & Medicine
Taking a toll: Antiviral drugs activate immune system
Promising antiviral drugs activate a key immune-system protein.
- Health & Medicine
Slowing lupus: Stifled inflammation limits kidney damage
A new therapy for the autoimmune disease lupus works in mice by thwarting activation of immune-system proteins called complement.
- Planetary Science
Extreme weather: Massive hurricanes meet on Jupiter
Both professional and amateur sky watchers are pointing their telescopes at Jupiter as two titanic storms in the giant planet's upper atmosphere meet each other.
- Humans
Protection money: Budget favors defense and bioterror research
The budget proposal that President Bush forwarded to Congress includes the largest-ever increase for scientific research and development, with particularly generous provisions for defense and health research programs.
- Physics
Anatomy of a Lightning Ball
Metallic fuzz, acid droplets, or other fairy dust may conjure up ball lightning (with video clips).
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Meeting Danielle the Tarantula
Insect zoos have no lions, tigers, or bears but can give plenty of thrills, courtesy of tarantulas, giant beetles, and exotic grasshoppers.
