Humans
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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
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Health & MedicineNanoparticles could mark spots for surgery
A new molecule studded with magnetically active ions may soon help surgeons extract, with minimal cutting, lymph nodes likely to harbor cancer.
By Ben Harder -
HumansHistorical chemistry library wows scholars
A new library in Philadelphia is home to one of the world's most extensive and valuable collections of historical chemistry texts.
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AnthropologyNeandertals may have grown up quickly
A new analysis of fossil teeth indicates that Neandertals grew to maturity at a faster pace than people do.
By Bruce Bower -
HumansFrom the May 5, 1934, issue
Steel pipes of the Boulder Canyon project, diphtheria and the blood-brain barrier, and weather effects of volcanic eruptions.
By Science News -
Health & MedicineCord Blood to the Rescue: Infusions help babies with Hurler’s syndrome
Umbilical cord blood transplants boost overall health and survival in patients with the rare hereditary condition called Hurler's syndrome.
By Nathan Seppa -
HumansA National Science Museum
If you can’t make it to Washington, D.C., to visit the recently opened Marian Koshland Science Museum of the National Academy of Sciences, check out the museum’s online exhibits. Explore how DNA analysis can catch criminals and stop epidemics, witness the potential effects of global warming, and glimpse the frontiers of scientific research. Go to: […]
By Science News -
HumansLetters from the May 8, 2004, issue of Science News
Listen carefully Perhaps Stefan Koelsch’s study should have been limited to trained musicians, rather than exclude them (“Song Sung Blue: In brain, music and language overlap,” SN: 2/28/04, p. 133: Song Sung Blue: In brain, music and language overlap). Word and visual associations in music are vigorously reinforced in movie soundtracks, cartoons, and elsewhere. But […]
By Science News -
Health & MedicineIroning Out Some Mental Limitations
Iron deficiency can subtly compromise how well a person performs multiple challenging tasks simultaneously.
By Janet Raloff -
Health & MedicineHumidity may affect LASIK surgery
High humidity can boost the chances of needing follow-up surgery after LASIK surgery for nearsightedness.
By Nathan Seppa -
Health & MedicineDelaying Dementia
The limited success of attempts to treat Alzheimer's disease with several compounds that appear able to prevent the disorder suggests that the window for derailing the development of the illness may close years before cognitive decline becomes evident.
By Ben Harder -
HumansMouse Mourned: Yoda dies at age 4
An age-defying laboratory mouse known as Yoda died peacefully in his cage in Ann Arbor, Mich., on April 22, at the age of 4 years and 12 days.
By Ben Harder -
Health & MedicineUnsettling Association: Dental X rays linked to low-birth-weight babies
Getting dental X rays while pregnant might increase a woman's risk of giving birth to a low-birth-weight baby.
By Nathan Seppa