Vol. 174 No. #4
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More Stories from the August 16, 2008 issue

  1. Health & Medicine

    Asthma oddity

    Helicobacter pylori, a common microbe that colonizes the stomach, might protect against asthma.

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  2. Physics

    Seeing the smallest atom

    Electron microscopes can now image single atoms of hydrogen.

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  3. Health & Medicine

    Against the grains

    People on either a low-carbohydrate or Mediterranean diet fared better over two years than those on a low-fat diet.

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  4. Life

    Magnetic sense linked to molecule

    Fruit fly experiments shed light on animals’ use of Earth’s magnetic field for orientation and navigation.

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  5. Health & Medicine

    Viagra and women

    Viagra eases some sexual problems for women taking antidepressants

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  6. Chemistry

    Quantum physics makes water different

    The length of bonds connecting water molecules could demonstrate quantum effects and help explain some of water’s weirdness.

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  7. Plants

    Parasitic plant gets more than a meal

    The parasitic vine known as dodder really sucks. It pierces the tissue of other plants — some of which are important crops — extracting water and nutrients needed for its own growth. But it also consumes molecules that scientists could manipulate to bring on the parasite’s demise.

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  8. Health & Medicine

    Statin snag

    A gene variant explains why some people get muscle pains from cholesterol-lowering drugs called statins.

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  9. Plants

    Fugitives spread bumblebee diseases

    Pathogens hitchhike on commercial bees that escape from greenhouses. These escapees bring disease to wild bumblebees.

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  10. Health & Medicine

    Protein links metabolism and circadian rhythms

    Scientists have known for ages that metabolism is tied to the body’s daily rhythms. Two new studies suggest how.

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  11. Humans

    Toddlers triumphant

    In new studies, toddlers display dramatic advances in object recognition that may underlie verbal and symbolic achievements.

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  12. Psychology

    Core calculations

    Number words may serve as mental tools for expanding on basic, nonverbal numerical knowledge rather than as determinants of such knowledge.

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  13. Life

    How the snake got its fangs

    A study of snake embryos suggests that fangs evolved once, then moved around in the head to give today’s snakes a variety of bites.

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  14. Health & Medicine

    Nanomagnets tackle cancer

    Under the influence of an external magnetic field, tiny magnets act as highly localized space heaters, warming to temperatures that kill adjacent cancer cells.

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  15. Animals

    Built for Speed

    Animals would prove fierce competitors at the Olympics — if only they would stay in their lanes.

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  16. Health & Medicine

    Neuron Killers

    Misfolded, clumping proteins evade conviction, but they remain prime suspects in neurodegenerative diseases.

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  17. Math

    Welcome to the Quantum Internet

    Quantum encryption is here, but the laws of physics can do much more than protect privacy.

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