Feature
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Joined at the Senses
As evidence accumulates for the existence of brain cells that handle many types of sensory information, some scientists challenge the popular notion that perception is grounded in five separate senses.
- Earth
Dust, the Thermostat
Analyses suggest that dust has profound, complex, and far-reaching effects on the planet's climate.
- Astronomy
When Branes Collide
A controversial new theory proposes that our universe existed as a cold, featureless void for eons, until a parallel universe floating through a hidden fifth dimension crashed into it, igniting the Big Bang.
- Animals
Gimme, Gimme, Gimme!
Hungry chicks cheeping in their nest have inspired a whole branch of scientific inquiry.
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- Animals
Social Cats
Who says cats aren't social? And other musings from scientists who study cats in groups.
- Chemistry
Faster, Better, Cleaner?
Chemists have found that a new class of compounds, called ionic liquids, can substitute for widely used, messy organic solvents while also performing better and producing new products of interest to industry.
- Health & Medicine
Immunity’s Eyes
Proteins called toll-like receptors allow human immune cells to detect microbes.
- Math
Pi à la Mode
A potential link between two disparate mathematical fields—number theory and chaotic dynamics—could lead to a proof that every digit of pi occurs with the same frequency.
- Tech
The Seeing Tongue
Blind people can now use their tongues to see, albeit crudely, thanks to prototype technology that involves licking arrays of electrodes attached to video cameras.
- Chemistry
Chemistry of Colors and Curls
Chemists are using new technology and experiments to discover how hair becomes damaged and how to protect it.
- Ecosystems
Wanted: Reef Cleaners
Nearly 18 years after a near total die-off of algae-grazing urchins in the Caribbean, those herbivores are poised for a comeback—which could help save area corals.
