Science News / February 10th, 2007

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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

February 10th, 2007

From Bad to Worse: Earth's warming to accelerate

Global warming is real and will continue, and there's strong evidence that people are to blame, an international panel of scientists has concluded. (p. 83)
Fatal Flaw? Antibleeding drug faces new safety questions

The drug commonly used to slow bleeding during heart surgery increases a patient's risk of dying during the next 5 years. (p. 83)
Why So Dry? Ocean temperatures alone don't explain droughts

Evidence from ancient dunes points to three periods of prolonged drought in the U.S. Great Plains, but finding their causes may be more complex than previously supposed. (p. 84)
Ingredient Shuffle: A trans fat substitute might have risks too

A controversial trial of a chemically modified fat called an interesterified fat suggests that it is more harmful than is a trans fat–rich, partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. (p. 84)
Transferred Touch: Sensory rewiring to improve prosthetics

Transferring a lost limb's nerves to other areas of the body might one day permit an amputee to feel the heat of a coffee cup with an artificial hand. (p. 85)
Online Victims: Internet behaviors make targets of some kids

A national telephone survey indicates that one in five kids, ages 10 to 17, encountered instances of unwanted sexual solicitation or harassment online in the past year. (p. 85)
More of the Same: 2008's science budget mirrors 2007's

President Bush's proposed science budget for fiscal year 2008 closely reflects last year's recommended budget. (p. 86)
Well-Tooled Primates

People may have leaned on ancient primate-brain capacities to begin making stone tools by 2.5 million years ago, a transition that possibly spurred the development of language and other higher mental faculties. (p. 88)
Vice Vaccines

Vaccines currently in development could give people a novel way to kick their addictions and lose weight. (p. 90)
Solar craft get into position

With the assist of gravitational boosts from the moon, twin spacecraft have completed a series of maneuvers that will enable them to take three-dimensional images of the sun. (p. 93)
Wrinkle, wrinkle, little polymer

Scientists have developed a cheap and easy way to create specific patterns of tiny wrinkles on the surface of a flexible and commonly used polymer, a technique that could be used to fabricate an assortment of microdevices. (p. 93)
Corn, a new sensor of carbon dioxide

Scientists have developed a way to use corn plants to monitor and map human-generated emissions of carbon dioxide. (p. 93)
Many babies born short of vitamin D

Even in the womb, babies face a high risk of vitamin D deficiency. (p. 93)
An unexpected, thriving ecosystem

A diverse group of creatures beneath an Antarctic ice shelf could give pause to researchers who infer past ecological conditions from fossils found in such sediments. (p. 94)
Glittering male seeks fluorescing female

A tropical jumping spider needs ultraviolet light for courtship. (p. 94)
Food smells reduce diet's life-extending benefits

The scent of food may decrease the life-extending effects of a low-calorie diet. (p. 94)
Do flies eat their sibs before birth?

A tiny fly that parasitizes cicadas could be the first insect species that's recognized to practice prenatal cannibalism. (p. 94)
Letters from the February 10, 2007, issue of Science News

(p. 95)

Blogs:

Science & the Public Is Your Fish Oil Polluted?
By Janet Raloff Nov 20th 2008

Columns:

Comment Debates over definition of planet continue and inspire
By Alan Stern Nov 21st 2008

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: