Humans

  1. Humans

    From the February 29, 1936, issue

    Giant pandas on display, keeping organs alive, and light from the night sky.

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  2. Health & Medicine

    West Nile Virus

    This Web site from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examines the spread of West Nile virus across the United States, complete with up-to-date maps showing which states are hardest hit. The site also explores workplace safety, the biology behind the virus’ spread, and some fascinating history of West Nile, including the virus’ first […]

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  3. Health & Medicine

    Gender Gap: Male-only gene affects men’s dopamine levels

    A gene found only in men affects the brain's production of dopamine, a finding that may help explain why men are more likely than women to develop Parkinson's disease and other dopamine-related illnesses.

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  4. Archaeology

    Ancient Andean Maize Makers: Finds push back farming, trade in highland Peru

    Fossilized plant remains recovered from a nearly 4,000-year-old house in the Andes Mountains of southern Peru show that highland inhabitants cultivated maize and imported other plant foods from lowland forests at around the time that large societies developed in the region.

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  5. Health & Medicine

    Do Over: New MS drug may be safe after all

    The experimental drug natalizumab, which limits relapses in patients with multiple sclerosis, may get a second chance after being withdrawn from use in 2005.

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  6. Humans

    Letters from the March 4, 2006, issue of Science News

    Impure thoughts Epidemiologist Scott Davis warns, “Melatonin supplements are not regulated” the way drugs are. … “There may be all kinds of impurities and contaminants” (“Bright Lights, Big Cancer: Melatonin-depleted blood spurs tumor growth,” SN: 1/7/06, p. 8). Are you really going to tell me that you aren’t going to take melatonin—if you’re convinced that […]

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  7. Health & Medicine

    Prescription Strength Chocolate, Revisited

    Studies reported at a recent symposium on chocolate's biological impact are zeroing in on the ingredients that seem to make it good for your heart.

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  8. Humans

    From the February 22, 1936, issue

    Winter snows and densely packed matter.

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  9. Humans

    A Lunar Ski Jump

    Olympic aerialist and gold medal winner Eric Bergoust discusses the amazing possibilities of ski jumping on the moon. With audio and video. Go to: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/14feb_bigair.htm?list43643

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  10. Health & Medicine

    Birth Deterrent: Stress hormone cited in early miscarriages

    High levels of a stress hormone in newly pregnant women might make them more likely to have miscarriages.

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  11. Anthropology

    Big Woman with a Distant Past: Stone Age gal embodies humanity’s cold shifts

    A 260,000-year-old partial skeleton previously found in China represents the largest known female among human ancestors and underscores the ancient origins of large, broad bodies adapted for survival in cold conditions.

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  12. Humans

    Letters from the February 25, 2006, issue of Science News

    A squirt could hurt The fine piece about invasive sea squirts (“Squirt Alert,” SN: 12/24&31/05, p. 411) states that the critters maintain an unappetizing surface pH of 2. Does this make these mats harmful to touch? Andrew J. DolsonRichmond, Va. Robert Whitlatch of the University of Connecticut, who grows Didemnum in the lab, says it’s […]

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