Similarity found with destructive protein behind mad cow. (p. 24)

The findings may point the way toward more targeted treatments for depression in people.

Recent failed trials of a similar approach in humans fuel skepticism that patients will benefit. (p. 11)

Brian Brown can discover a new kind of fly anywhere. He often takes up the search in exotic locales such as New Zealand, Chile or Taiwan, but he’s not picky. Once, he was challenged to find a new species in a Los Angeles backyard. After setting a trap and waiting, he pulled out a winner: “Turns out it was a new species, the first thing I pulled out of there,” he says. And it wasn’t a fluke. The second fly was a member of a species previously known only in Europe. A self-described novophile, Brown says he and fellow fly lovers “are junkies for the new and different.” So far, he has... (p. 32)

Model representing 2.5 million neurons performs calculations, issues instructions for a behavior, and then expands its decision into action. (p. 13)

SN Prime | November 19 & 26, 2012 | Vol. 2, No. 44 At the push of a button, Dr. Josef Parvizi’s face melted. When Parvizi turned on the juice to two electrodes in his patient’s brain, “you just turned into somebody else,” the patient told the doctor from the hospital bed. “Your face metamorphosed. Your nose got saggy and went to the left. You almost looked like somebody I’ve seen before, but somebody different. That was a trip.” Parvizi’s face wasn’t the only one that melted; a technician in the room also had the honor. “The bottom of her face sort of metamorphosiz...

Girls, but not boys, showed later changes in brain regions that regulate emotions. (p. 10)

Activity in two regions helps calculate compatibility with potential mates. (p. 10)