Science News / April 21st, 2001

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In This Issue

Sequencing the dead to save the living: Reviving ancient genomes of long-extinct creatures offers a window into past extinctions—and may help prevent future die outs
No gene is an island: Even as biologists catalog the discrete parts of life forms, an emerging picture reveals that life’s functions arise from interconnectedness
The decider: Informing the debate over the reality of ‘free will’ requires learning something about the lateral habenula
This week's table of contents

April 21st, 2001

Friend or Foe? Old Elephants Know

Older female elephants are far better at telling friends from strangers than are younger matriarchs. (p. 244)
Natural antidepressant has its limits

St. John's wort, a popular ingredient in herbal remedies, may not help people with moderate or severe forms of depression. (p. 244)
Big dam in China may warm Japan

Construction of the Three Gorges Dam across the Yangtze River in China may lead to warmer temperatures in Japan, because any diversion of water for Chinese agriculture could initiate convection in the Japan Sea that brings warmer water to the surface. (p. 245)
Blood markers of clogging arteries emerge

The concentration in blood of one chemically transformed cholesterol-carrying molecule may signal to doctors when a patient's heart disease has dangerously worsened. (p. 245)
The early nerve gets the brain space

Sensory nerves of the star-nosed mole may race to occupy brain space early in development. (p. 246)
Human ancestors made ancient entry to Java

Layers of hardened volcanic ash on the Indonesian island of Java have yielded evidence that Homo erectus reached eastern Asia by 1.5 million years ago and remained there until about 1 million years ago. (p. 246)
Novel fuel cell gets hot, but not by a lot

A new type of fuel cell that works above the boiling point of water—but not too much above it—may lead to improved nonpolluting power sources suitable for cars and portable electronic gadgets. (p. 247)
Vitaminlike compound eases rare disorder

A vitaminlike substance called coenzyme Q10 helps people with familial cerebellar ataxia, a hereditary disorder that damages the spine and the part of the brain responsible for coordination. (p. 247)
Cigarette smoke worsens heart attacks

Breathing in smoke from another person's cigarette causes blood changes that reduce the likelihood that an individual will survive a heart attack. (p. 248)
Pulling antioxidants starves cancers

Realizing that many cancers depend on antioxidants for their survival, researchers have successfully designed a dietary strategy that suppresses breast cancer growth and spread, at least in animals. (p. 248)
Keeping antioxidants may spare gut

Inflammatory bowel disease may initially be triggered by chemical reactions that deplete affected tissues of a key antioxidant. (p. 248)
Anticancer mineral works best in food

Selenium's anticancer benefits may depend on ingestion of the mineral in food, not as a purified dietary supplement. (p. 248)
Isn't It a Bloomin' Crime?

Darwin called them felons, those creatures that take nectar without pollinating anything, but some modern scientists are reopening the case. (p. 250)
Knotty DNA offers cancer-drug target

Agents that bind to knots in the normally linear DNA sequence seem to prevent the expression of cancer-causing genes. (p. 253)
Radioactive antibodies on the mind

Injecting radioactive antibodies directly into the cavity left after a brain tumor is surgically removed lengthened patients' lives by as much as 40 weeks in a recent study. (p. 253)
Fake fossil not one but two new species

A supposed missing link between dinosaurs and birds that was first unveiled in 1999, and revealed to be a forgery soon thereafter, was actually cobbled together from parts of animals from two new species. (p. 253)
Rocks yield clues to flower origins

A distinctive organic chemical related to substances produced by modern flowering plants has been found in ancient fossil-bearing sediments, possibly helping to identify the ancestral plants that gave rise to flowers. (p. 253)
Circle Game

Packing circles within a circle turns a mathematical surprise. (p. 254)

Blogs:

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Columns:

Comment Debates over definition of planet continue and inspire
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Math Trek How to (really) trust a mathematical proof
By Julie Rehmeyer
Mathematicians develop computer proof-checking systems in order to realize century-old dreams of fully precise, accurate mathematics. Nov 14th 2008

Bulletin Board: