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Beneath that blazing facade

Researchers revamp ideas about what’s in the sun.

The incredible shrinking solar cell

With lilliputian collectors, almost anything could be sun-powered.

Science Future for July 31, 2010

August 14 – 17The American Sociological Association meets in Atlanta. See www.asanet.org/meetings August 30 – September 3Researchers and policy makers meet in Boston to discuss environmental factors affecting penguin population health. See www.penguinconference.org September 1A psychologist lectures in New York City on the connection between beauty and happiness. See www.nyas.org/events

Science Past  from the issue of July 30, 1960

LIP-SMACKING GRASSHOPPER — A grasshopper with a talent for lip-smacking has turned out to be quite an unusual insect. Paratylotropidia brunneri Scudder is the first insect known to communicate over fairly long distances by producing an audible sound from the mouth — literally smacking its lips…. Produced at the rate of six or seven per […]

Book Review: Wisdom: From Philosophy to Neuroscience by Stephen S. Hall

Review by Rachel Zelkowitz.

Book Review: Voyager: Seeking Newer Worlds in the Third Great Age of Discovery by Stephen J. Pyne

Review by Alexandra Witze.

Bursts: The Hidden Pattern Behind Everything We Do by Albert-László Barabási

Mining digital data reveals patterns in seemingly spontaneous human behavior. BURSTS: THE HIDDEN PATTERN BEHIND EVERYTHING WE DO BY ALBERT-LáSZLó BARABáSI Dutton, 2010, 310 p., $26.95.

Professor Stewart’s Hoard of Mathematical Treasures by Ian Stewart

The math professor returns with more brain teasers, puzzles and facts designed to reveal the fun side of the subject. PROFESSOR STEWART’S HOARD OF MATHEMATICAL TREASURES BY IAN STEWART Basic Books, 2010, 339 p., $16.95.

Quantum: Einstein, Bohr, and the Great Debate About the Nature of Reality by Manjit Kumar

The story of quantum mechanics and the decades-long argument about how to interpret it. QUANTUM: EINSTEIN, BOHR, AND THE GREAT DEBATE ABOUT THE NATURE OF REALITY BY MANJIT KUMAR W.W. Norton & Co., 2010, 448 p., $27.95.

Dogs: Domestication and the Development of a Social Bond by Darcy F. Morey

An anthropologist describes the evolution of the dog and explores how this creature became man’s best friend. DOGS: DOMESTICATION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF A SOCIAL BOND BY DARCY F. MOREY Cambridge Univ. Press, 2010, 356 p., $45.

Growing Patterns: Fibonacci Numbers in Nature by Sarah C. Campbell

Kids can learn about this special set of numbers from color nature photos. GROWING PATTERNS: FIBONACCI NUMBERS IN NATURE BY SARAH C. CAMPBELL Boyds Mill Press, 2010, 32 p., $17.95.

Letters

A placebo’s true nature There is a serious misconception put forth in the letter from William Davis (Feedback, SN: 5/22/10, p. 31). The placebos used for placebo-controlled, double-blind studies of pharmaceuticals are not “sugar pills.” These placebos are made from the same inactive ingredients in the same proportions used to make the dosage form containing […]