Feature

  1. Health & Medicine

    The Persistent Problem of Cystic Fibrosis

    Ten years after the discovery of the gene that, when mutated, causes cystic fibrosis, researchers are still struggling to understand why deadly lung infections are so common among people with the disease.

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  2. Computing

    Calculating Cartoons

    Thanks to sophisticated computer simulations of the laws of physics, spectacular special effects—plus a zoo of strange but real-looking creatures—increasingly enliven movie screens and computer-game consoles.

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  3. Materials Science

    Flattery for Faience

    By replicating ancient materials with their own hands, researchers are gaining new insights into details of Egyptian faience manufacture that have been lost for thousands of years.

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  4. Planetary Science

    Exploring the Red Planet

    Searching for signs of subsurface water on the Red Planet and analyzing the elemental and mineral composition of surface rock, NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft begins its main mapping mission next month and may shed light on several enduring puzzles about the planet.

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  5. Astronomy

    All Aglow in the Early Universe

    Was the infant cosmos a star-making machine?

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  6. Ecosystems

    Tadpole Science Gets Its Legs . . .

    The amazingly complex tadpole now shines in ecological studies.

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  7. Biological Dark Matter

    The discovery that some genes encode RNA strands instead of proteins has surprised biologists.

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  8. Materials Science

    Getting Out the Thorn

    Researchers are developing new ways to improve the compatibility of implantable biomaterials in the body.

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  9. Earth

    Hormones: Here’s the Beef

    Runoff of the hormones excreted by steroid-treated livestock could subtly harm aquatic life.

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  10. Humans

    Weekly Science Snoop

    WARNING: This fake tabloid contains rumor, humor, and other words that don't rhyme with truth.

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  11. Science News of the Year 2001

    A review of important scientific achievements reported in Science News during the year 2001.

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  12. Astronomy

    Journey through the Universe

    A new permanent exhibit at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum traces the development of tools used to study the heavens and how they have changed our understanding of the universe.

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