All Stories
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The Great White Bear: A Natural and Unnatural History of the Polar Bear by Kieran Mulvaney
Starting with the fact that polar bears have black skin, this book offers surprises and up-to-date information about the Arctic’s iconic top predator. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011, 251 p., $26.
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Geographies of Mars: Seeing and Knowing the Red Planet by K. Maria D. Lane
Explore Mars as scientists and the public saw it around the beginning of the 20th century, when canals on the Red Planet seemed a very real possibility. Univ. of Chicago Press, 2010, 265 p., $45.
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Convergence solves problems that don’t fit in one field
In January the American Association for the Advancement of Science hosted a panel in Washington, D.C., on the emerging field of convergence, which integrates engineering, the physical sciences and life sciences to solve problems in health care, energy and other sectors. Speakers described the movement as an integration of disciplines that will require changes to […]
- Life
Pneumonia drugs helped evolve a superbug
As told through DNA from historical samples, a deadly bacterium reveals how it developed the ability to evade antibiotics and a vaccine.
- Humans
Hints of earlier human exit from Africa
New finds suggest surprisingly early migrations by Homo sapiens out of Africa through an oasis-studded Arabia.
- Earth
Dispersants persisted after BP spill
Chemicals used to break up oil remained in the Gulf’s depths months after being released, an analysis shows.
- Tech
Pint-sized Princess Leia nearer reality
Faster but fuzzier holographic 3-D teleconferencing debuts.
- Chemistry
What DNA does when it stretches
The molecule of life has some interesting elastic properties that have scientists scratching their heads.
- Space
A galaxy far, far, far away
The Hubble space telescope has observed what may be the most distant celestial object ever observed 13.2 billion light-years from Earth.
- Humans
Intel Science Talent Search picks top 40
High school researchers to present original work in Washington, D.C.
- Life
Deadly for bugs, perfect for bat naps
A death chamber for insects, the interior of a carnivorous pitcher plant doubles as a cozy daytime roost for small, flying woolly mammals.
- Health & Medicine
Mass vaccination could slow cholera
Immunizing people at the outset of an outbreak would limit the number of cases and deaths, an analysis finds.
