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  1. Groomed DNA Handles Threats: Mothering styles alter rats’ stress responses

    In rats, mothering styles set the genetic stage for a pup's lifelong responses to stressful situations.

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  2. 19444

    Might donating blood reduce blood concentrations of organochlorines, once the body has time to regenerate blood? Bill WallerDallas, Texas Researchers Catherine Pelletier and Angelo Tremblay of Laval University in Quebec City, Quebec, say this question is interesting but that the small quantity of donated blood wouldn’t significantly affect the overall concentration of organochlorines .—C. Lock

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  3. Health & Medicine

    A Toxic Side of Weight Loss: Pollutants may slow body’s metabolism

    Weight loss releases toxic chemicals into the bloodstream, which may slow the body's metabolism.

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  4. Earth

    Sea Change: Carbon dioxide imperils marine ecosystems

    Almost half the carbon dioxide produced by human activity in the past 2 centuries is now dissolved in the oceans, resulting in chemical changes that, if unchecked, could threaten some marine ecosystems.

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  5. Humans

    Caring for a Historic House

    The National Park Service offers advice on taking care of the exterior—or skin—of an old home. From repairing shingles and fixing chimneys to painting trim and improving site drainage, this online course provides handy pointers about what to do and what not to do to keep an historic house in good shape. Go to: http://www2.cr.nps.gov/tps/roofdown/index.htm

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  6. Humans

    Letters from the July 17, 2004, issue of Science News

    Readers on reading Other librarians and I regularly discuss illiterate, functional, aliterate, and avid readers. I am pleased that research has begun into what happens in readers’ brains (“Words in the Brain: Reading program spurs neural rewrite in kids,” SN: 5/8/04, p. 291: Words in the Brain: Reading program spurs neural rewrite in kids). The […]

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  7. Female brains know how to fold ’em

    Women compensate for the smaller overall volume of their brains by squeezing more folds into some of the space than men do.

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  8. 19443

    Not to detract from this project’s accomplishments or its potential, but does space really need tourists? It’s not a sideshow. It will still be dangerous and expensive. Assuming that space travel will be like today’s airline travel is mistaken, especially in the near term. Let’s remember that this project’s success so far also rests on […]

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  9. Tech

    Outer space on the cheap

    The first-ever private, manned space mission occurred on June 21.

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  10. Physics

    Quantum snare entraps key fifth photon

    By coaxing five quantum particles into a state of entanglement, physicists have taken an important step toward dependable quantum computers and more-versatile schemes for transferring quantum information.

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  11. Earth

    Bacteria found to release arsenic into groundwater

    Arsenic gets into groundwater largely through the action of bacteria residing in aquifer sediments.

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  12. Health & Medicine

    Four die of rabies in transplanted tissues

    Four people who received tissue transplanted from a man who had died from an undiagnosed rabies infection have since themselves died from the same incurable neurological disease.

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