June 7, 1997

A New Gap in the Antibiotic Arsenal

A strain of staphylococcus bacteria appears resistant to all known antibiotics.

Further Readings:

Loll, P., et al. 1997. Simultaneous recognition of a carboxylate-containing ligand and an intramolecular surrogate ligand in the crystal structure of an asymmetric vancomycin dimer. Journal of the American Chemical Society 119(Feb. 19):1516.

Seachrist, L. 1996. Infections making a deadly comeback. Science News 149(Jan. 20):38.

Smaglik, P. 1997. Proliferation of pills. Science News 151(May 17):310.

Patients savor this brain disorder

Some strokes and other brain injuries leave their victims with a newfound appreciation for fine foods.

References:

Regard, M., and T. Landis. 1997. "Gourmand syndrome": Eating passion associated with right anterior lesions. Neurology 48(May):1185.

Further Readings:

Baker, L. 1995. Food addiction traced to trauma-induced changes in the brain. Addiction Letter 11(October):3.

Raloff, J. 1997. Lessons from Gourmand Syndrome. Science News Online (June 7).

Raloff, J. 1996. Prescription-strength chocolate. Science News Online (Oct. 12).

______. 1995. Coming: Drug therapy for chocoholics? Science News 147(June 17):374.

No bones about it: Gene vital to skeleton

A recently discovered gene controls the development of bone-forming cells called osteoblasts, and mutations in the gene cause a rare skeletal disorder in people.

References:

Banerjee, C., et al. 1997. Runt homology domain proteins in osteoblast differentiation: AML-3 is a major component of a bone-specific complex. Journal of Cellular Biochemistry 66(July 1):1.

Ducy, P., et al. 1997. Osf2/Cbfa1: A transcriptional activator of osteoblast differentiation Cell 89(May 30):747.

Komori, T., et al. 1997. Targeted disruption of Cbfa1 results in a complete lack of bone formation owing to maturational arrest. Cell 89(May 30):755.

Mundlos, S., et al. 1997. Mutations involving the transcription factor CBFA1 cause cleidocranial dysplasia. Cell 89(May 30):773.

Otto, F., et al. 1997. Cfba1, a candidate gene for cleidocranial dysplasia syndrome, is essential for osteoblast differentiation and bone development. Cell 89(May 30):765.

Further Readings:

Rodan, G., and S. Harada. 1997. The missing bone. Cell 89(May 30):677.

Elderly intellect may owe a lot to genes

A study of Swedish twins, all at least 80 years old, finds that genes influence cognitive abilities about as much as schooling and other environmental factors.

References:

Gottesman, I. 1997. Twins: En route to QTLs for cognition. Science 276(June 6):1522.

McClearn, G., et al. 1997. Substantial genetic influence on cognitive abilities in twins 80 or more years old. Science 276(June 6):1560.

Further Readings:

Bower, B. 1991. Same family, different lives. Science News 140(Dec. 7):376.

Mud volcano stews in chilly Arctic waters

A layer of snowy methane lies atop a warm mud volcano, the oceanographic equivalent of apple pie a la mode.

References:

Vogt, P.R., et al. 1997. Spring meeting of the American Geophysical Union. Baltimore.

Further Readings:

Monastersky, R. 1996. The mother lode of natural gas. Science News 150(Nov. 9):298.

Smaglik, P. 1997. Gauging gas reserves. Science News 151(Feb. 15):111.

Can houseflies spread the ulcer bacterium?

The microbe responsible for ulcers and other stomach ailments can live on houseflies, although it remains to be seen whether flies transmit the pathogen.

References:

Grubel, P., et al. 1997. Vector potential of houseflies (Musca domestica) for Helicobacter pylori. Journal of Clinical Microbiology 35(June):1300.

Further Readings:

Travis, J. 1995. Ulcer-causing bacteria found in water. Science News 147(June 10):367.

Astronomers make magnetic map of a star

The first detailed chart of a star's magnetic field reveals a pattern similar to that of the sun.

References:

Kemball, A.J., and P.J. Diamond. 1997. Imaging the magnetic field in the atmosphere of TX Cam. Astrophysical Journal Letters 481(June 1):L111.

Pinning down a superconductivity theory

The electron pairing mechanism responsible for superconductivity in conventional superconductors isn't necessary to account for the effect in the high-temperature superconductor thallium barium copper oxide.

References:

Tsuei, C.C., et al. 1997. Pure d(x^2 - y^2) order-parameter symmetry in the tetragonal superconductor Tl2Ba2CuO6. Nature 387(May 29):481.

Further Readings:

Buchanan, M., and B. Daviss. 1997. The heat is on. New Scientist (May 3):26.

Peterson, I. 1996. Electron pairs and waves. Science News 149(March 9):156.

Research Notes:

Astronomy

Comet reservoir gets more real

Spectra of Comet Hale-Bopp provide new evidence that the Oort cloud actually exists.

References:

Krasnopolsky, V.A., et al. Spring meeting of the American Geophysical Union. Baltimore.

X rays and comets

Several models attempt to explain the X-ray glow emitted by comets when they near the sun.

References:

Cravens, T.E., et al. 1997. Spring meeting of the American Geophysical Union. Baltimore.

Further Readings:

Cowen, R. 1996. Bright comet poses puzzle. Science News 149(June 1):346.

Behavior

Squares live longer

Emotionally stable individuals attain much better physical health and live far longer than those who encounter major depression and other forms of mental anguish.

References:

Vaillant, G. 1997. One hundred-fiftieth annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association. San Diego.

Mental disorders in Israel

A survey of Israeli adults finds that nearly half suffer from a mental disorder at some time in their lives, but only about 3 percent ever abuse alcohol or illicit drugs.

References:

Skodol, A. 1997. One hundred-fiftieth annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association. San Diego.

Further Readings:

Bower, B. 1994. Mental disorders strike about half of U.S. Science News 145(Jan. 22):55.

Biomedicine

Cell phones and pacemakers

Some cellular phones can interfere with implanted devices that regulate the heartbeat.

References:

Hayes, D., et al. Interference with cardiac pacemakers by cellular telephones. New England Journal of Medicine 336(May 22):1473.

Moles heighten skin cancer risk

The number and appearance of skin moles may indicate a person's risk of a deadly skin cancer.

References:

Clark, W., et al. Clinically recognized dysplastic nevi: A central risk factor for cutaneous melanoma. Journal of the American Medical Association 277(May 14):1439.

Earth Science

Australia's enigmatic tremor

A puzzling seismic shock in remote Australia has seismologists wondering whether the event was caused by an earthquake, a nuclear blast, or a meteorite impact.

References:

Hennet, C.B. 1997. Spring meeting of the American Geophysical Union. Baltimore.

Further Readings:

Monastersky, R. 1996. Policing the peace. Science News 149(May 11):298.

Articles:

From Soup to Us

Cosmic ripples test inflation

Astronomers are now on the brink of testing whether random subatomic ripples during the first fraction of a second after the Big Bang gave rise to the cosmic structures seen today.

References:

Turner, M.S. 1997. April meeting of the American Physical Society. Washington, D.C.

Further Readings:

Cowen, R. 1993. Looking for lumps. Science News 143(May 8):296.

Guth, A.H. 1997. The inflationary universe. Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley.

Peterson, I. 1990. Cosmological inflation: A budding universe. Science News 137(June 9):358.

Stroh, M. 1992. COBE causes Big Bang in cosmology. Science News 141(May 2):292.

Null Science

Psychology's statistical status quo draws fire

A growing number of psychologists charge that their field needs to wean itself from the mindless application of certain statistical practices, especially a technique known as null hypothesis testing, and pursue different methods of exploring mind and behavior.

References:

Gigerenzer, G. 1993. The superego, the ego, and the id in statistical reasoning. In A Handbook for Data Analysis in the Behavioral Sciences, G. Keren and C. Lewis, eds. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Harris, R. 1997. Special section on significance testing. Psychological Science 8(January):1.

Loftus, G. 1996. Psychology will be a much better science when we change the way we analyze data. Current Directions in Psychological Science 5(December):161.

Richters, J. 1997. The Hubble hypothesis and the developmentalist's dilemma. Development and Psychopathology (June).

Rosenthal, R., et al. 1996. Task Force on Statistical Inference Initial Report (Draft). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.

Further Readings:

Gigerenzer, G., et al. 1989. The Empire of Chance. New York: Cambridge University Press.

Porter, T. 1995. Trust in Numbers. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.