More Stories from the March 23, 2013 issue
- Health & Medicine
Nothing to fear but suffocation
People with a rare brain disorder don’t get scared — except when they breathe carbon dioxide.
- Humans
Earlier Neandertal demise suggested by redating
Using an improved radiocarbon method, researchers challenge the notion that the species hung on in Iberia for millennia after modern humans arrived in Europe.
-
- Humans
In research, it matters whether you’re a man or a mouse
A study that compares trauma responses of mice with those in people questions the relevance of mouse research to human disease.
- Health & Medicine
To develop male behavior, rats need immune cells
Research reveals unexpected role for cells called microglia in shaping the brain.
- Animals
Sea slug carries disposable penis, plus spares
A hermaphroditic gastropod sheds its penis after one use, then uncoils another.
- Chemistry
Bitter and sour taste detectors also say, ‘too salty’
Mice that can’t sense the two tastes find high sodium attractive.
- Life
Diversity breeds disease resistance in frogs
Species-rich amphibian communities prove better at fending off limb-deforming parasitic infections.
- Life
Antianxiety drugs affect fish, too
Perch swim more and eat faster when exposed to concentrations of an antianxiety medication found in rivers.
- Life
Melting Arctic may make algae flourish
More sunlight penetrates thinning Arctic sea ice, enabling algal growth.
- Space
Uncertainty at a grand scale
A test of Heisenberg’s principle, on a scale visible to the naked eye, may aid the search for gravitational waves.
- Health & Medicine
A surprise makes memories wobbly
Drug that interferes with recollection works only when people face the unexpected.
- Space
Supernovas are cosmic ray factories
Supernova remnants provide evidence that these intense stellar explosions send cosmic rays hurtling through the galaxy.
- Health & Medicine
Smoking damages mouse brains
Signs of Alzheimer’s disease appear after the rodents breathe cigarette smoke.
- Humans
Radial routes ran outside Mesopotamia
Cold War–era imagery reveals transportation networks extended throughout Middle East.
- Life
Chill turns monarchs north
Temperature manipulation appears to solve mystery of what triggers migratory butterflies’ homeward trip.
- Life
Bees learn the electric buzz of flowers
Floral electric fields could join color and fragrance as cues to pollinators.
- Health & Medicine
Tracing pollution links to asthma, allergy
Excessive exposure to air high in diesel exhaust and wood smoke is tied to disabled immune-regulating cells in children.
-
- Humans
News In Brief: Lipstick smudges reveal their identity
Raman spectroscopy allows forensics researchers to distinguish among dozens of lipsticks.
- Health & Medicine
Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Meeting
Highlights from the annual meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, San Antonio, February 22-26, 2013.
- Life
Scientists race to understand deadly new virus
Emerging virus causes severe illness, but doesn’t spread as quickly as SARS.
- Health & Medicine
Smoking ban cuts preterm births
Belgium sees drop in preterm births after initiating no-smoking policies.
-
-
Upcoming events
From the issue of March 23, 2013.
-
SN Online
EARTH IN ACTION Alexandra Witze ponders Earth’s odds in “When an asteroid heads for Earth, it’s time to reconsider those doomsday plans.” Alessandro Cumbo and Martin Oeggerli MOLECULES Nanoparticles (below, blue) detect viruses (pink) in “Synthetic nanomaterial can recognize viruses.” HEALTH & ILLNESSAllergic people became able to tolerate up to a full glass of milk. […]
-
The White Planet: The Evolution and Future of Our Frozen World by Jean Jouzel, Claude Lorius and Dominique Raynaud
A team of scientists tells the story of ice on Earth, from ice ages to the latest discoveries from ice cores. Princeton Univ., 2013, 306 p., $29.95
-
Underwater Eden: Saving the Last Coral Wilderness on Earth by Gregory S. Stone and David Obura
Amazing photos make visible the reasons behind efforts to save a biological wonder: the coral reefs of the South Pacific’s Phoenix Islands. Univ. of Chicago, 2013, 170 p., $40
-
The Physics of Wall Street: A Brief History of Predicting the Unpredictable by James Owen Weatherall
A physicist explores the growing role of scientists in Wall Street decision making and recent financial abuses. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013, 286 p., $27
-
Mankind Beyond Earth: The History, Science, and Future of Human Space Exploration by Claude A. Piantadosi
This history of the American space program illuminates the obstacles facing future space expeditions. Columbia Univ., 2013, 279 p., $35
- Life
The Lady and Her Monsters
A Tale of Dissections, Real-Life Dr. Frankensteins, and the Creation of Mary Shelley's Masterpiece by Roseanne Montillo.
-
BOOK REVIEW: Visions of Infinity: The Great Mathematical Problems by Ian Stewart
Review by Tom Siegfried.
- Humans
Of Mice and Man
The lab mouse is being remodeled to better mimic how humans respond to disease.
-
-
Letters to the editor
From the issue of March 23, 2013.
-
Vehicle on moon may sink into fluffy stuff
From the issue of March 23, 1963.
-
Science on American Television: A History by Marcel Chotkowski LaFollette
This history of science programs illustrates the shifting line between education and entertainment. Univ. of Chicago, 2013, 306 p., $45
