All Stories

Life

Fat cells also linked to prion infection

Disease-causing misfolded proteins at home in a growing list of tissues, organs.

Space

Martian stairs suggest predictable ancient climate

Tilt in Mars' axis could have created stair-stepped rock formations long ago.

Humans

Help NAS and Yourself

A science-backgrounder series for the public is coming, and you can help choose the topics.

Humans

Science Reporting Fallout

Newspaper cutbacks are being linked to diminished science reporting.

Life

Spanish Inquisition couldn’t quash Moorish, Jewish genes

Finding suggests modern history, not just prehistory, can leave a strong mark on a region’s genetic signature.

Life

Funny smell may have split bee species

Among male bees that create their own perfume, a change in the sense of smell might mean a split in species.

Health & Medicine

Men line up for circumcision in Africa

But demand for the operation, shown to guard against HIV and other infections, exceeds availability.

Humans

CNN downsizes science team

The move and timing for greatly restructuring science-and-environment coverage at the nation's all-news cable giant are perplexing.

Humans

Real News: An Endangered Species

Forget Black Monday. What will happen now that it's beome a Black Year for news reporters at papers and other conventional media?

Health & Medicine

Fine-scale structure of egg crucial for fertility

Scientists describe the shape of a protein required for conception. These new molecular details will lead to an improved understanding of how sperm and egg unite.

Earth

Methane even escapes from freezing permafrost

An extended field season reveals that the autumn freeze in the arctic squeezes methane from some high-latitude wetland soils, a match even for summertime methane release.

Earth

Toxicologist to Become an NIH Director

A new director — equal parts scientist and communicator — will take over environmental-health agency.