Humans

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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Health & Medicine

    Missed ZZZ’s, More Disease?

    New evidence suggests that chronic lack of sleep may be as important as poor nutrition and physical inactivity in the development of chronic illnesses such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

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  2. Health & Medicine

    Bacteria offer drug for organ recipients

    Korean investigators have identified a compound that suppresses the immune system of animals.

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  3. Health & Medicine

    You’re Feeling Sleepy . . . : Anesthetics activate brain’s sleep switch

    Anesthesia's sedative effect may depend on activating sleep circuits in the brain.

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  4. Health & Medicine

    Flower Power: Corn lily compound stops cancer in mice

    A new study in mice suggests that cyclopamine, a plant derivative that causes birth defects in animals, can inhibit medulloblastoma, a brain cancer in children.

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  5. Health & Medicine

    Lost and found

    Researchers have shown that a drug may shepherd a mutated protein—gone astray in people with cystic fibrosis—into its proper place.

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  6. Health & Medicine

    Processing corn boosts antioxidants

    Cooking sweet corn increases its disease-fighting antioxidant activity, despite decreasing its vitamin C content.

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  7. Health & Medicine

    Inflammatory Ideas

    Researchers are gathering evidence that inflammation precedes and predicts diabetes.

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  8. Health & Medicine

    Hear, Hear

    A 14-year study of twin babies shows definitively for the first time that there's a link between middle ear infections and heredity.

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  9. Archaeology

    Vase shows that ancients dug fossils, too

    A painting on an ancient Corinthian vase may be the first record of a fossil find.

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  10. Health & Medicine

    Marrow Can Hide Breast Cancer Cells

    Breast cancer patients who have stray cancer cells in bone marrow are more likely to die of cancer or have a recurrence of cancer elsewhere in the body than are breast cancer patients not harboring such cells.

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  11. Humans

    From the February 22, 1930, issue

    THE “BARREL” OF CORONA When high voltage surges on electric transmission lines jump an ordinary string of insulators, arcs form from one insulator to the other and destroy them. But when both ends of the string are protected by metal grading shields, the arc jumps through the air from shield to shield and saves the […]

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  12. Health & Medicine

    Surgery Guide

    Designed for patients and their families, physicians, and students, this Web site provides detailed information about a variety of common surgical procedures, ranging from hernia repair to LASIK for vision correction. Illuminating diagrams and cutting-edge animation accompany each description of a type of surgery. Go to: http://yoursurgery.com/index.cfm

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