Uncategorized
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Darwin: Portrait of a Genius by Paul Johnson
A historian celebrates Charles Darwin’s triumphs and analyzes his weaknesses in the latest biography of the naturalist. Viking, 2012, 164 p., $25.95
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The Universal Sense: How Hearing Shapes the Mind by Seth S. Horowitz
This review of the science of hearing considers how people have learned to create and control music, sonic weapons and other noises. Bloomsbury, 2012, 305 p., $25
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- Earth
West Antarctica warming fast
A reconstructed temperature record from a high-altitude station shows an unexpectedly rapid rise since 1958.
- Humans
Hitting streaks in baseball may be contagious
Teammates of a batter on a streak hit better than their average, a review of baseball records finds.
- Life
Victorian zoological map redrawn
Species distribution patterns that inspired Darwin and Wallace get an update.
- Space
California meteorite a scientific gold mine
Sutter’s Mill rock preserves rare, fresh material from outer space.
- Humans
Man the martial artist
The human hand evolved partly as a tool for fighting, researchers argue.
- Chemistry
Repellent slime has material virtues
Threads isolated from hagfishes' defensive goo demonstrate superior strength and flexibility.
- Space
News in brief: Possible planet looks habitable
Astronomers find a body in the habitable zone of a nearby sunlike star by pushing the limits of detection.
- Health & Medicine
Twin towers dust tied to some cancers, not others
9/11 rescue and recovery workers have higher rates of prostate and thyroid cancers and multiple myeloma, a study shows.
