More Stories from the March 28, 2009 issue
- Life
Prions complicit in Alzheimer’s disease
A study in mice suggests a version of prion proteins, which are known to cause the brain-wasting mad cow and Creutzfeldt-Jakob diseases, may also play a role in neuron malfunction.
- Anthropology
Modern feet step back 1.5 million years
Researchers say that 1.5-million-year-old footprints discovered in eastern Africa show that a human ancestor had modern-looking feet and walked much like people do today.
- Humans
Playing for real in a virtual world
Preteen boys and girls interacting in a virtual world display the same contrasting play styles that have been observed in real-world settings.
- Physics
Black hole constant makes unexpected appearance
A mathematical constant that emerges only in the unusual conditions of specific black hole systems has shown up in a simple Newtonian system.
- Life
Gene links autism, bellyaches
Researchers have uncovered a genetic link between autism and gastrointestinal disorders in some families.
- Health & Medicine
Popular acid blockers, anticlotting drug don’t mix
Acid-blocking drugs commonly prescribed to cardiac patients upon hospital discharge seem to interfere with an anticlotting drug.
- Paleontology
Dinosaur handprints reveal birdlike arm anatomy
Inward-facing palms evolved much earlier than previously recognized, a new study finds.
- Ecosystems
Fish shrinkage reversible, but better hurry
In an experiment, scientists show that, although it takes generations, fish can rebound from evolutionary pressures created by selective harvesting, which has pushed some populations to become small and slow-growing.
- Health & Medicine
New drug shows benefits against nasty asthma
An experimental drug called mepolizumab prevents some emergency asthma attacks in people who no longer benefit from normal doses of steroids.
- Archaeology
Horse domestication traced to ancient central Asian culture
New lines of evidence indicate that horses were domesticated for riding and milking more than 5,000 years ago by members of a hunter-gatherer culture in northern Kazakhstan.
- Health & Medicine
Chemotherapy drug may in fact strengthen some cancer cells
Research shows a standard drug for treating brain cancer can actually make some cells more aggressive.
- Physics
When the ink hits the page
Scientists investigate the physics of the most printable ink and find the most viscous inks don’t make the grade.
- Humans
Science’s next generation wins accolades
Star students receive more than $530,000 in scholarships and prizes in the Intel Science Talent Search.
- Health & Medicine
Scientists find a soup of suspects while probing milk’s link to cancer
Latest studies focus on estrogens, androgens and IGF-1.
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Science Future for March 28, 2009
Science Future April 6 Lawrence Krauss and other Scientists give public lectures as part of Arizona State University’s Origins Symposium in Tempe. Visit origins.asu.edu April 11 Food for Thought, an interdisciplinary conference on global food and agriculture issues, held at Stanford University. Visit foodforthought.stanford.edu April 12–18 National Environmental Education Week. See www.eeweek.org
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The Age of Anxiety: A History of America’s Turbulent Affair with Tranquilizers by Andrea Tone
The story of America’s shift to synthetic solutions for personal angst. Basic Books, 2009, 298 p., $26.95
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The Quantum Frontier: The Large Hadron Collider by Don Lincoln
A Fermilab scientist conveys the excitement surrounding the LHC. Johns Hopkins Univ., 2009, 172 p., $25 The Quantum Frontier: The Large Hadron Collider by Don Lincoln
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A Primer for Mathematics Competitions by Alexander Zawaira and Gavin Hitchcock
A guide to acquiring the mental equipment and problem-solving agility needed to become a successful mathlete. Oxford Univ., 2009, 344 p., $45. A Primer for Mathematics Competitions by Alexander Zawaira and Gavin Hitchcock
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Haywired: Pointless (Yet Awesome) Projects for the Electronically Inclined by Mike Rigsby
Make a smiling picture frame, a talking alarm, a no-battery electric car and more with this how-to guide for hobbyists. Chicago Review, 2009, 187 p., $16.95 Haywired: Pointless (Yet Awesome) Projects for the Electronically Inclined by Mike Rigsby
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Treaty on antiquities hinders access for museums
Treaty on antiquities hinders access for museums JAMES CUNO Like water on a leaky roof, looted artifacts are finding the path of least resistance to a buyer somewhere. Art Inst. of Chicago James Cuno, a past president of the Association of Art Museum Directors, has spent years investigating implications of a United Nations treaty: the […]
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Networks of Plunder
Archaeologists tracing the labyrinth of antiquities trafficking hope to shut it down, or at least slow it up.
- Materials Science
Cornering the Terahertz Gap
Controlling light’s path could enable invisibility or harness an intriguing but so far elusive stretch of the spectrum.
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Letters
Impossible view In “Milky Way puts on weight” (SN: 1/31/09, p. 8), you claim to show an image of the Milky Way. This image cannot be real. Worse, it creates misconceptions: As a college educator, I find that most students actually believe NASA has launched probes outside of the Milky Way to take pictures of […]
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Science Past for March 28, 1959
[Patients] to run own wing in hospital — A new wing which is being added to an English mental hospital will be run entirely by the patients. Doctors and nurses will enter it only by invitation. Administration will be by a committee of patients, which will have a room for meetings…. Patients will themselves decide […]
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Everyday Practice of Science: Where Intuition and Passion Meet Objectivity and Logic by Frederick Grinnell
A scientist attempts to demystify the scientific method. Oxford Univ., 2009, 230 p., $27.95 Everyday Practice of Science: Where Intuition and Passion Meet Objectivity and Logic by Frederick Grinnell
