Vote on future topic | Search archives          May 4, 1985 | Vol. 127 | No. 18         Soaring pterosaur! Next spring, for the first time in more than 65 million years, the flapping shadow of a giant prehistoric flying reptile will be cast on the ground. No, scientists have not cloned the genes of the pterosaur Quetzalcoatlus northropi. Instead, the Smith­sonian’s Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., has secured funding to build a full-scale, radio-controlled flying replica of the largest animal ever... (p. 32)

Connecting the lincs As a physician, I was absolutely astounded reading “Missing lincs” (SN: 12/17/11, p. 22) and still am. We have been waiting since DNA was discovered to find this ‘what makes us human’ aspect of our biochemistry. Even in the infancy of this research, we are discovering the chemical reasons for a type of muscular dystrophy and other conditions. What I find especially illuminating is that this may be the etiology of what we call autoimmune diseases, among other problems. I am sure we will find it is a change in lincRNA balance or function that produces the change ... (p. 31)

BOILING REACTOR WILL MAKE SUPERHEATED STEAM — An Argonne National Laboratory experimental reactor achieved criticality for the first time Feb. 9 at the National Reactor Testing Station near Idaho Falls, Idaho. The plant, known as Borax 5, was built at a cost of nearly two million dollars. It will test the feasibility of making superheated steam by utilizing uranium fuel. The steam, in turn, would be used to drive a turbine to produce power. Borax 5 is designed to produce 20,000 kilowatts of thermal power at its maximum capacity. Nuclear superheated steam as used in the Borax 5 is expected to... (p. 4)

March 9–18 The British Science Association’s National Science and Engineering Week explores the theme “Our World in Motion” with events across the United Kingdom. See bit.ly/zqeESh March 17–23 Enjoy science demonstrations and hands-on fun for the whole family at the San Diego Festival of Science and Engineering. Find the schedule of events at www.sdsciencefestival.com (p. 4)

LIFE Plant species grafted together can swap DNA via energy-catching organelles. See “Plants swap chloroplasts via grafts.” HUMANS Social networks can spread users’ emotions. Learn more in “Catching a mood on Facebook.” ATOM & COSMOS A solar flare set off auroras around the Arctic Circle. See “Solar storm.” BODY & BRAIN Protein-based disease agents can jump species. Read “Prions more mobile than thought.” (p. 4)

SN Prime February 6, 2012 | Vol. 2, No. 5 Unless you’re totally disconnected from the world around you, you’ve noticed by now that everything in the world around you is connected — in a network. It’s not like the old days, when the “networks” were designated by acronyms for companies producing TV shows. Networks are more diverse now, consisting of any system of nodes connected by links: Web pages and hyperlinks, electric power plants and transmission lines, actors in movies with Kevin Bacon. Since the late 1990s, scientists have been analyzing every sort of network they ca...

Read the full article (PDF) | Vote on future topic | Search archives                       March 24, 1951 | Vol. 59 | No. 12         Plant something new The best home gardens this year will include a few of the new vegetable varieties along with the old favorites. Radishes, beets and peppers will be pretty much the same old stand-bys; some of the beans, tomatoes, onions, and squash will be recent developments. In addition, many back-yard and vacant-lot garden... (p. 32)

Finding parasitic behavior Two adjacent stories, both by Tina Hesman Saey, at first glance may appear to be unrelated but in actuality show examples of a well-known phenomenon: parasites adversely affecting the behavior of the host so that the parasite can get to its next victim. The article “Belly bacteria can boss the brain” (SN: 10/8/11, p. 9) is an example of such behavior. A stressed-out wild mouse that clings to walls and avoids swimming is a mouse that lives to breed another day. Being relaxed is no more beneficial to it than climbing to the top of the tree is for the caterpilla... (p. 31)

EFFECT OF WEIGHTLESSNESS — Astronaut John H. Glenn Jr.’s experience in weightlessness during his coming orbital flight will not be long enough to cause him any undue stress such as that suffered by Cosmonaut Titov, a U.S. Air Force expert reported. “Experiments by the Russians with animals and men as well as our own experiments indicate that man can pretty well tolerate, with little, if any discomfort, a period of four to five hours in a weightless or zero-g environment,” Col. John Paul Stapp, U.S. Air Force School of Aviation Medicine, Brooks Air Force Base, Texas, and internationally... (p. 4)

February 23 As part of National Engineers Week, talk to a child or group for Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day. Find resources at bit.ly/zXAZVP March 1 Last day to submit entries to the 2012 Kavli “Save the World Through Science & Engineering” video contest for grades 6–12. See bit.ly/w3iCjM (p. 4)