Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Humans
From the September 14, 1935, issue
Symmetry in electric transmission lines and the chemical composition of a male sex hormone.
- Health & Medicine
Head-to-Head Comparison: Coils top clips in brain-aneurysm treatment
Tiny platinum coils inserted into a ruptured brain aneurysm to seal off the bleeding appear safer in the long run for some patients than traditional brain surgery does.
- Humans
Letters from the September 17, 2005, issue of Science News
Just Feynman A lot of people ask how someone like Richard Feynman, who played the bongo drums, loved practical jokes, and was an amateur safecracker and a bon vivant, could also win a Nobel Prize in Physics (“Dr. Feynman’s Doodles: How one scientist’s simple sketches transformed physics,” SN: 7/16/05, p. 40). Actually, all of Feynman’s […]
- Archaeology
French site sparks Neandertal debate
Radiocarbon analyses of material from a French cave indicate that Neandertal and modern human occupations of the site overlapped around 36,000 years ago, possibly explaining why Neandertals began to employ some new toolmaking techniques around that time.
- Health & Medicine
Lead in spice mixes caused poisonings
Contaminated spices, purchased from poorly regulated sources, can explain some cases of lead poisoning that involve several members of a family.
- Health & Medicine
Oral Exams
Scientists are taking advantage of the components in spit to develop new, saliva-based diagnostic tests.
- Humans
From the September 7, 1935, issue
Lifelike museum exhibits, a vaccine against the common cold, and the functions of genes.
- Humans
Hurricane provisions
We at Science News express our strong concern and extend our deepest sympathy to those who are suffering through the ongoing ordeal caused by Hurricane Katrina.
- Health & Medicine
Critical for Coating: Protein directs nerve-sheath construction
A protein produced by nerve cells is essential for the manufacture of myelin, the fatty sheath surrounding nerve fibers.
- Health & Medicine
Dieting? Don’t Give Up Protein
Dieters will get a weight-loss boost if they make sure both exercise and ample protein are part of their calorie-trimming regimen.
- Humans
Letters from the September 10, 2005, issue of Science News
Pennies in heaven? Why slam a copper impactor into Comet Tempel 1 (“A Grand Slam: In a winning move, NASA probe burrows into a comet,” SN: 7/9/05, p. 22)? Wouldn’t copper vapor contaminate the spray? Why not a high-temperature ceramic? P.M. deLaubenfelsCorvallis, Ore. According to Casey Lisse of the Deep Impact team, copper was chosen […]
- Health & Medicine
Rooting out hidden HIV
A drug called valproic acid, used in combination with other medications, can ferret out HIV that is lying dormant in cells.
