More Stories from the December 5, 2009 issue
- Space
Cosmic rays traced to centers of star birth
By detecting gamma rays, a new generation of telescopes bolsters theory that supernovas are origin of some cosmic rays
- Climate
Mount Kilimanjaro could soon be bald
The world-renowned ice caps could disappear by 2022, new research suggests.
- Animals
Textbook case of color-changing spider reopened
Female crab spiders switch colors to match flowers but may not fool their prey
- Earth
Small earthquakes may not predict larger ones
Quakes far from tectonic plate boundaries may simply be aftershocks of ancient temblors.
- Space
Giant galaxy graveyard grows
The largest known galactic congregation is bigger than astronomers thought—and its inhabitants are all dead or dying.
- Humans
Newborn babies may cry in their mother tongues
Days after birth, French and German infants wail to the melodic structure of their languages.
- Paleontology
Pollination in the pre-flower-power era
Scorpionflies with long-reaching mouthparts may have helped plants procreate long before blossoms evolved.
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Horse genome added to growing list of barnyard genetics projects
Equines join cucumbers and pigs as the most recent additions to the roster of organisms to have their complete DNA code spelled out. The new work on horses also helps answer a key question about chromosome structures called centromeres.
- Space
Signature of antimatter detected in lightning
The signature of positrons has been found for the first time in gamma rays associated with storms on Earth.
- Life
Hormones give lantern sharks the glow
In a first, a study shows that bioluminescence can be controlled by slow-acting hormones, not rapid-fire nerve cells.
- Health & Medicine
The childhood nerve cancer neuroblastoma shows weakness
A compound that unshackles a tumor-suppressing protein called p53 can slow the growth of the malignancy in mice, a new study finds.
- Life
Newborn cells clear space in brain’s memory-maker
Rodent study offers first evidence that neurogenesis clears old memories in key part of the brain to make way for new ones.
- Ecosystems
Impatiens plants are more patient with siblings
Streamside wildflower holds back on leaf competition when roots meet close kin
- Anthropology
For Hadza, build and brawn don’t matter for choosing mates
Study of hunter-gatherer community in Tanzania shows that, across human groups, mating criteria vary.
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Science Future for December 5. 2009
December 14–18 The American Geophysical Union meets in San Francisco. See www.agu.org/meetings January 10–14Researchers convene in Washington, D.C. to discuss threats posed by invasive species. Go to www.nisaw.org for agenda February 16Deadline to submit videos about the personal impacts of neurological illnesses to the 2010 Neuro Film Festival. See www.neurofilmfestival.com
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Reading in the Brain: The Science and Evolution of a Human Invention by Stanislas Dehaene
A cognitive neuroscientist describes how the brain has adapted to reading and what can cause reading problems. Viking, 2009, 400 p., $27.95. READING IN THE BRAIN: THE SCIENCE AND EVOLUTION OF A HUMAN INVENTION BY STANISLAS DEHAENE
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Quantum Leaps by Jeremy Bernstein
Review by Tom Siegfried.
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From fringe to electromicrobiological mainstream
Trained as a microbiologist, Ken Nealson pursues many interdisciplinary endeavors. He was a pioneer in the field of geomicrobiology and has worked on astrobiology and microbial fuel cells. He holds posts at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles and the J. Craig Venter Institute in San Diego, where he uses genomics to survey […]
- Climate
Climate might be right for a deal
The upcoming Copenhagen negotiations will take steps toward an international, climate-stabilizing treaty.
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Botanical Whales
Adventures in the Tortugas reveal that seagrass fields need saving too.
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Breaking the Speed Limit
Studies examine physiology and technology to better foresee the ultimate edge of human performance.
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Letters
Jovian scars Page 8 of the August 29, 2009, Science News shows a dark impact scar on Jupiter’s surface. Similar dark areas appeared when Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 hit. Why are they dark? Clearly, we are not seeing any “subsurface dirt.” Also, the color cannot be due to some dark underlying gas. Could it be an […]
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Science Past from the issue of December 5, 1959
INSECTS WINNING RESISTANCE BATTLE — Insects appear to be winning the costly battle — $500,000 is spent each year on control — to keep them in check. Resistance to insecticides is now virtually nation-wide according to results of an extensive study.… Resistance can take many forms, research has shown. Some of these are: slow rate […]
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Living Weapons: Biological Warfare and International Security by Gregory D. Koblentz
Biological weapons pose unique threats to international security, beyond those caused by chemical and nuclear weapons, a policy expert argues. Cornell Univ. Press, 2009, 255 p., $35. LIVING WEAPONS: BIOLOGICAL WARFARE AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY BY GREGORY D. KOBLENTZ
