Science News

In the February 11 Issue:

The source of human consciousness remains elusive, but the latest brain studies offer new insights. Full story Michael Morgenstern

SN Today:

Chimps lend a hand The finding suggests nonhuman primates recognize their peers’ intentions and desires. Read the full story. | Feb 6th 2012 Found in: Life and Zoology
Little Ice Age began with a bang Frozen moss suggests climate cooling kicked off fast, possibly with help from volcanic eruptions. Read the full story. | Feb 3rd 2012 Found in: Earth and Environment
Super-Earth spotted in life-friendly zone The latest exoplanet entry creeps closer to long-sought goal of finding habitable worlds elsewhere. Read the full story. | Feb 2nd 2012 Found in: Atom & Cosmos
Addicts and siblings share brain features The finding suggests that diminished self-control and other behaviors may have a genetic component. Read the full story. | Feb 2nd 2012 Found in: Body & Brain
Some corals like it hot Western Australian reefs are faring better than their eastern counterparts, at least for now. Read the full story. | Feb 2nd 2012 Found in: Environment
Plants swap chloroplasts via grafts The energy-converting cellular organs can pass through connections, carrying genetic material with them. Read the full story. | Feb 2nd 2012 Found in: Genes & Cells and Life
Muscle massage may speed healing Rubbing sore, overworked areas trips anti-inflammatory switches in the tissue that might speed healing and ease pain. Read the full story. | Feb 1st 2012 Found in: Body & Brain and Molecules
Big volcanoes wake up fast Crystal chemistry suggests magma changes quickly before a huge eruption. Read the full story. | Feb 1st 2012 Found in: Earth and Earth Science

SN Multimedia:



Wasps airlift annoying ants In a scrap over food, being big and able to fly is an advantage	A matter of gravity Map of planetary field is sharpest ever	Brain's mirror system loves the robot Experiment may suggest why we feel sad for Wall-E

Recent News:

RSS

Arsenic-based life finding fails follow-up
2.1.12 - Tests see no evidence that microbe uses element in cellular machinery Found in: Genes & Cells and Science & Society
Spacecraft captures dust from interstellar wind
2.1.12 - Particles giving clues to composition of space beyond solar system Found in: Astronomy and Atom & Cosmos
Bird flu leaves tracks in brain
1.31.12 - Virus might create vulnerability to neurological disorders, research in mice suggests Found in: Body & Brain
No sleep, no problem, but keep the grub coming
1.30.12 - Fruit flies thrive without slumber, until food gets low Found in: Genes & Cells
Predatory pythons shift Everglades ecology
1.30.12 - As invasive snakes expand territory, some mammal populations drop by more than 90 percent Found in: Environment, Life and Science & Society
FOR KIDS: Mapping the invisible
2.3.12 - Astronomers don’t know what dark matter is, but they have mapped where it’s hiding Found in: Science News For Kids
FOR KIDS: A Ghost Lake
2.3.12 - Scientists study an ancient lake that once covered much of Utah to learn lessons for the future Found in: Science News For Kids
FOR KIDS: Lip-reading babies
2.3.12 - Before they start talking, babbling babies ‘read’ mouths Found in: Science News For Kids
Long-lived people distinguished by DNA
1.30.12 - Study finds genetic signatures of the extremely old Found in: Genes & Cells
Solar storm
1.30.12 - Solar flare sets off auroras around the Arctic Circle Found in: Astronomy and Atom & Cosmos
Fighting willpower’s catch-22
1.30.12 - Resisting desires makes ensuing ones more tempting Found in: Humans and Psychology
Catching a mood on Facebook
1.30.12 - Positive and negative emotions spread on social network Found in: Humans

Reader Favorites

Blogs:

Science & the Public Bush meat can be a viral feast
By Janet Raloff Jan 12th 2012

On the Scene Vying for the title of World's Fastest Cell
By Science News Staff Dec 5th 2011

Deleted Scenes Moony shot
By Science News Staff Oct 31st 2011

Not to Miss:

Special edition: Cosmic questions

AAAS 2011 meeting coverage

Special edition: Quantum

Slide show
An oceanic endeavor: Census of Marine Life

Slide show
Icelandic Volcano: Where fire meets ice

SN Bookshelf:

A Great Aridness: Climate Change and the Future of the American Southwest by William DeBuys
A look at how global warming could affect the American Southwest reveals a landscape in peril. Oxfo...
Buy now | More Books

Memory: Fragments of a Modern History by Alison Winter
With examples from police interrogators to hypnotized housewives, a historian describes changing vie...
Buy now | More Books

Departments:

Subscriber Alert

We have been notified that some concerned Science News subscribers have received promotions advertising subscriptions from “Publishers Billing Exchange Inc.,” “Readers Payment Service,” “National Magazine Services,” or “Publishers Periodical Service.” Please disregard these notices. These firms are not authorized agents for Science News or its publisher, Society for Science & the Public. Unfortunately, subscription orders submitted to these subscription agents can not be honored by Science News.

If you received a renewal notice or subscription offer in the mail from someone other than Science News, and have questions concerning your current subscription status, please contact our customer service agents at (800) 552-4412.