SciAm Daily Digest

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FEATURES
Zombie Creatures: What Happens When Animals Are Possessed by a Parasitic Puppet Master? [Slide Show]
From fungi to flies, some parasitic species have figured out how to control their host's behavior to get what they need. See what happens when bugs go really bad

OBSERVATIONS
Flu vaccine: A shortage that didn't have to be?
The shortfall persists, even as many people are avoiding the H1N1 vaccine

NEWS
U.S. Lags Behind World with Its Patchwork Approach to Curbing E-Waste
One of the world's largest producers of electronic refuse, the U.S. imposes no federal restrictions on what materials can be used to make electronic devices or how they can be discarded

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Dogs Can't Smell a Liar
A study finds that dogs cannot reliably tell if someone is fibbing to them

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Rational and Irrational Thought: The Thinking That IQ Tests Miss (Preview)
We assume intelligence and rationality go together. But we shouldn't be surprised when smart people do foolish things

BERING IN MIND
Are there asexuals among us?
On the possibility of a "fourth" sexual orientation

NEWS
Slip-Sliding Away: Myrtle Beach Erosion Could Explain Sand Loss along the U.S. East Coast
Sand, sea and surf--a U.S. Geological Survey report takes a holistic approach to studying coastlines to determine how best to save the beaches

OBSERVATIONS
TED MED: Grandma's little robot helper
The TED MED conference looked at TED's (technology, entertainment, design) potential for techniques involved in the field of synthetic life to improve medicine
> Related: TED MED: Bringing medicine home for better care
> Related: Medicine looks ahead at TED MED
> Related: Why your doctor should know where you have lived

OBSERVATIONS
Sick-clop: Ponies with the flu show how virus out-mutates vaccines
Because the equine flu has many similar characteristics to seasonal influenza A, ponies provide a useful controlled experiment to track the virus behavior

GREENWIRE
Coal Gasification and Carbon Capture Increasingly Linked
Industry manufacturers appear to favor the technology combination

SOLAR AT HOME
Prospects for solar: "It's like watching the Internet mature in 1995"
I may be one of the few people in my town to have solar power right now, but if the news I'm hearing from the Solar Power International trade show this week is right, a wave of installations is about to sweep the country
> Related: The albedo effect
> Related: First light! Panels start producing power, but paperwork drags on

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Does Morning Sickness Mean Smart Kids?
Hormone levels link vomiting and intelligence

OBSERVATIONS
Controversial caterpillar-evolution study formally rebutted
A contentious paper suggesting that butterflies and caterpillars descended from different ancestors has been repudiated in the same journal in which the original research appeared

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
A Clunker of a Climate Policy
The recent car-upgrade program is an example of how not to address CO2 reduction prudently

OBSERVATIONS
EPA tests porous pavement to combat contaminated rain runoff
Ordinary pavement tends to collect grease, oil, antifreeze and other chemicals leaked from parked cars, which pollutes rain runoff and contaminates surrounding soil and underground water

VIDEO
Camera tracks alligator movement
Experts track the movements of the endangered Ghariyal alligator in an effort to conserve the species

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FEATURES
How the Brain Reveals Why We Buy
Advances in neuroscience are changing the way some companies position their products, giving birth to the new field of neuromarketing

OBSERVATIONS
Is the nuclear material at Los Alamos safe from an earthquake?
The New Mexico laboratory has long been known to be on a fault line, but recent planning for a new structure revealed that the fault could shift much more than previously assumed

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Does Vitamin D Improve Brain Function?
New studies show low vitamin D levels may impair cognitive function

OBSERVATIONS
Parachute failure before splashdown left Ares 1-X booster badly dinged
The failure of one of the booster's three main parachutes, along with possible collateral damage to another chute resulted in a hard landing in the water

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
The Long-Lost Siblings of the Sun (Preview)
The sun was born in a family of stars. What became of them?

SOLAR AT HOME
Calling all solar enthusiasts: Tell me about your system!
Have you installed a grid-connected solar array on your home? If so, I'd love to hear about your experience
> Related: Prospects for solar: "It's like watching the Internet mature in 1995"

EARTHTALK
Tenuous Times for the Endangered Florida Panther
Since the animals were first listed as endangered, the human population of Florida has more than tripled, and efforts to help the Florida's state animal recover have had limited success

OBSERVATIONS
TED MED: The Power of the Mind over the Body
The TED MED conference looked at TED's (technology, entertainment, design) potential for techniques involved in the field of synthetic life to improve medicine
> Related: TED MED: Grandma's little robot helper
> Related: TED MED: Bringing medicine home for better care
> Related: Medicine looks ahead at TED MED

EARTHTALK
Joining the Energy Underground: Residential Geothermal Power Systems
Homeowners looking to go green and lower their utility bills can install a residential geothermal system

NEWS
Idle Moments Turn into Tons of Air Pollutants at Schools
In New York City alone, idling vehicles emit as much pollution as nine million diesel trucks driving from the Bronx to Staten Island

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NEWS
Emission Impossible?: Is Dark Matter Behind the Hazy Radiation at the Milky Way's Center?
Some unknown astrophysical process, perhaps related to dark matter, may be at work

OBSERVATIONS
Wireless tech taking a toll on Earth science and astronomy
Interference from wireless devices makes it difficult for scientists to gather signals used for radio astronomy and Earth environmental sensing, in some cases rendering these signals unusable

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Apnea Treatment Improves Golf Game
A study presented at CHEST 2009, the meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians, found that golfers with apnea who got treatment lowered their handicaps by as much as three strokes

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SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Dangerous Liaisons: How to Deal with a Drama Queen
The damaging theatrics of drama queens may spring from defects etched in the brain. Yet you can limit the havoc they wreak on your life

OBSERVATIONS
Could we be on the verge of a new drug to treat lupus?
If approved, the drug would be the first new treatment for lupus in nearly half a century

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
How Noise Can Help Quantum Entanglement
What spoils quantum entanglement can also restore it

EXTINCTION COUNTDOWN
IUCN Red List update: 17,291 species are threatened with extinction
Amphibians seem to be facing the greatest threat, with 1,895 of 6,285 assessed species in danger of extinction

MIND MATTERS
The New Science of Temptation
What happens when Harvard scientists use a brain scanner to look for the devil inside?

OBSERVATIONS
Obama lifts U.S. ban on foreign HIV-positive travelers
Due to the ban, no major conferences on AIDS have been held in the U.S. since 1990

GREENWIRE
Mining for Algae: Could Abandoned Mines Help Grow Biofuel?
Missouri researchers aim to grow algae for biofuels in abandoned mines

VIDEO
E.U. agrees on climate
European Union leaders agreed on an offer to put on the table at global climate talks in Copenhagen in December after healing a rift over how to split the bill

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60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Sneezes Provoke Fears Beyond Illness
A study finds that people who hear someone nearby sneezing become more concerned in general, not just about catching a cold or flu

NEWS
An Elemental Solution: Using Zinc to Stave Off Childhood Diarrhea in Developing Countries
A prolific killer of young children worldwide, diarrhea may have met its match with cheap and available zinc tablets. A new study examines how one country has gotten the word out to parents and doctors

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
How You Learn More from Success Than Failure
The brain may not learn from its mistakes after all

60-SECOND PSYCH PODCAST
Hearing Our Heartbeats
Scientists have recently found that there are two brain pathways involved how we perceive our own thumping hearts

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
The Future of Cars (Preview)
Industry leaders look way down the road

SCIENCE TALK PODCAST
Human Evolution II: Recent Evolution; and "Becoming Human" NOVA Preview
Anthropologist John Hawks talks about recent human evolution, especially of our ability to digest lactose. And producer Graham Townsley discusses his three-part PBS NOVA premiering on November 3rd called "Becoming Human"

NEWS
El Nino Cycles Threaten Some New World Monkey Populations
A new study explores how El Nino weather patterns impact fruit- and leaf-eating primates in Central and South America

GREENWIRE
Is BPA Contaminating Your Soup?
A new survey finds the controversial chemical in a wide array of canned foods

OBSERVATIONS
Stellar deal: NASA awards $2 million to X PRIZE winners for helping develop a lunar lander
In a sign of just how much the U.S. space agency has come to rely on public-sector research and development, commercial technology is seen as the best, and perhaps only, option for returning astronauts to the moon

EARTHTALK
How Threatened Are Killer Whales in the Wild?
Due to their voracious appetites and their place at the top of the ocean food chain, orcas are very susceptible to pollution and chemicals

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Sugar Negates Worm's Life-Extending Mutation
A study with roundworms found that a diet rich in sugar offset a mutation that ordinarily doubled the worms' life spans

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IN-DEPTH REPORT
The Dawn of the Green Economy
Can the economy be more green and still grow?
> Related Slide Show: Buying Green: 9 Goods for Sustainable Living [Slide Show]

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
True Love: How to Find It (Preview)
Combing through your social network is the most fruitful—and most common—way of finding the love of your life

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Good Sprinters Have Long Toes
A study finds that successful sprinters have longer toes and Achilles tendons that produce less leverage than non-athletes of similar height

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Will E.T. Look Like Us?
Evolution helps us imagine what aliens might be like

NEWS
Jurassic Start: Fossil Pushes Tyrannosaurs' Origin Back 10 Million Years
Proceratosaurus was quite small compared with T. rex but it extends the tyrannosauroid group back to the middle Jurassic, further than any other known fossil

EXTINCTION COUNTDOWN
Gorillas versus charcoal update: Biomass project reaches halfway point
A project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo aims to save mountain gorillas in Virunga National Park by convincing locals to stop using forest-destroying charcoal as fuel

EARTHTALK
Is the World Outsourcing Its Greenhouse Emissions to China?
Despite its efforts to go green, China still depends on coal, but critics say blaming China for its rampant pollution is unfair, given all the manufacturing the world's developed countries outsource to Chinese companies

OBSERVATIONS
Al Gore advocates for gender equality, political action to slow climate change
The former vice president also addressed the problem of overpopulation, often an uncomfortable subject, which he said should not be ignored

EARTHTALK
Government Incentives Can Help Finance Energy-Efficient Home Improvements
Homeowners can get up to $1,500 back from the federal government for any number of energy-efficient house upgrades

VIDEO
E.U. agrees on climate
European Union leaders agreed on an offer to put on the table at global climate talks in Copenhagen in December after healing a rift over how to split the bill

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NEWS
Colliding White Dwarfs May Mimic Supernovae Used to Gauge Astronomical Distances
A new path to detonate "standard candle" type Ia supernovae further muddles their origins

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Babies Already Have an Accent
A study finds that babies, because they listen in the womb, cry in distinctive ways that reflect the language spoken by their parents

FEATURES
First Look at Carbon Capture and Storage in a West Virginia Coal-Fired Power Plant [Slide Show]
The world's first power facility to capture and store a portion of its carbon dioxide has begun operating in Appalachia

OBSERVATIONS
Google Droid is here
Can it go toe-to-toe with Apple's iPhone?

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Rethinking "Hobbits": What They Mean for Human Evolution (Preview)
New analyses reveal the mini human species to be even stranger than previously thought and hint that major tenets of human evolution need revision

IMAGE GALLERY
Earliest Pollinator?
Mesozoic scorpion flies may have been pollinating plants 60 million years before flowers

OBSERVATIONS
NASA-funded monkey-radiation experiment raises hackles
A nonprofit group that promotes animal rights in medical research has taken issue with a NASA grant funding an assessment of the long-term effects of radiation on monkeys

NEWS
Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite: Pest Management Proves More Effective than Pesticides
A new study shows that so-called integrated pest management can control pests, such as bedbugs, better than powerful pesticides

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Butterfly Shows Speciation Signs
A study in the journal Science looks at Heliconius butterflies in Ecuador, in which a single gene change that influences mate choice may be the first step in the splitting of the population into two species

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
The Color of Sin--Why the Good Guys Wear White
Ancient fears of filth and contagion may explain why we think of morality in black and white

OBSERVATIONS
What will it take to force political action on climate change?
As utilities fire up their "clean coal" machines and international negotiators haggle over the precise definition of a tree, only one entity has the courage to stand and deliver the hot air the world so desperately craves on climate change: the U.S. Senate

VIDEO
Mongolia eyes horse meat amid H1N1
A delay in flu vaccines has prompted Mongolians turn to traditional flu remedies, such as eating horse meat

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OBSERVATIONS
How science helped bring down the Berlin Wall

FEATURES
It's All Semantics: Searching for an Intuitive Internet That Knows What Is Said--And Meant
The National Science Foundation delivers $1.1 million to Rensselaer Polytech researchers to stimulate the Semantic Web

OBSERVATIONS
Are doctors getting slower or are patients getting sicker?
People are going to the doctor's office more often--and for longer visits than nine years before. Has care improved or do people just need more medical attention? It's likely the latter, conclude the authors of a new paper

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Ask the Brains: Why Do We Have Trouble Facing Our Credit Cards the "Right" Way?
Robert O. Duncan, a behavioral scientist at York College, the City University of New York, explains

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Diet and the Brain
One study has found that brain chemicals linked to addiction are in play with a high-sugar diet, and another shows that a high-carb diet had lasting mood-elevation effects

OBSERVATIONS
Sicilian Curse: People Living Near Volcanic Mount Etna Could Face Increased Risk of Thyroid Cancer
Previous studies have found soaring thyroid cancer rates in the volcanic areas of Hawaii and Iceland

OBSERVATIONS
Penile erectile tissue grown in lab
Researchers have engineered full animal replacement corpora cavernosas, the columns of tissue that fill with blood during an erection

NEWS
Natural Gas Drilling Produces Radioactive Wastewater
Wastewater from natural gas drilling in New York State is radioactive, as high as 267 times the limit safe for discharge into the environment and thousands of times the limit safe for people to drink

CLEANTECHNICA
Land of the Rising Sun Power! Japan May Build a Solar Station in Space by 2030
The Japanese space agency has unveiled an incredible new plan to start collecting solar power in space, and zap it down to Earth via microwaves or laser beams

MIND MATTERS
The Mind Is a Mirror
How blind people "see" the actions of others

SOLAR AT HOME
Stories from solarland: What's it like to install a solar array?
I've gotten some great responses to my call for stories about solar installations. In this post, I'll describe the grid-tied photovoltaic arrays that people told me about

GREENWIRE
Can Scrap Paper Save Haiti's Remaining Forests?
Converting waste paper into fuel briquettes might help stop the ongoing destruction of Haiti's remaining trees for charcoal

EARTHTALK
Recreational Boat Motors Get Greener with New EPA Emission Standards
Americans spend 500 million hours zipping around in recreational boats each year. But until recently, their engines were held to much lower efficiency standards than their automotive counterparts

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
50 Years Ago: The Nutcracker Man
Innovation and discovery as chronicled in past issues of Scientific American

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Sewage Industry Fights Phosphorus Pollution
How flushing the toilet can lead to phosphorus for fertilizers

SCIAM EXCLUSIVES VIDEO
Climate change: Madagascar
Reporter Anjali Nayar visited a pioneering project in Madagascar that's aiming to protect one of the country's few remaining forests

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IN-DEPTH REPORT
Adapting to the Freshwater Crisis
Forward-thinking experts are getting a better handle on the growing global water shortage and coming up with innovative approaches to ensuring the security, safety and sustainability of this resource
> Related: Baked Australia: Water Management Lessons for the World from Down Under

NEWS
The Fixed-Wing Is In: America's Cup Sailors Plan to Use Rigid Carbon-Fiber Airfoil on U.S. Entry
The U.S. team for the America's Cup is replacing its boat's mast and cloth mainsail with a hard, fixed wing that is 80 percent larger than a Boeing 747 wing, not to mention difficult and dangerous to maneuver

OBSERVATIONS
Solar sail concept, like a phoenix, may rise again
The Planetary Society estimates that a solar sail could speed a spacecraft to more than 200,000 kilometers per hour in three years' time

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Judging a Book by Its Odor
A study identifies various organic compounds that old books give off and that can be analyzed noninvasively, offering important clues to an historic work's condition and prognosis

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
New Culprits in Chronic Pain (Preview)
Glia are nervous system caretakers whose nurturing can go too far. Taming them holds promise for alleviating pain that current medications cannot ease

OBSERVATIONS
Intolerable beauty: Plastic garbage kills the albatross
Chris Jordan, a photographic artist and cultural activist, recently photographed the albatross's fate
> Related Video: A Plastic Albatross
> Related Blog: Tuna fishing kills an albatross every five minutes

NEWS
Faster Than a Speeding Particulate: Why Powdery Materials Disperse So Fast on Liquids
Hydrodynamic forces propel particles explosively outward on liquid surfaces

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Pollution's Toll on the Brain
Breathing dirty air may have serious effects on cognition, in children and adults

60-SECOND PSYCH PODCAST
Boost Your Creativity with Eye Movement
Recent research finds that people can boost the number and quality of their original ideas when they increase the interaction between the brain's right and left hemispheres

NEWS
What Would Failure at Copenhagen Mean for Climate Change?
The planet's quickening pace toward irreversible climate change grows far more dire if world leaders fail to find a way to stem emissions this December, experts warn
> Related: Invest Trillions Today to Keep Climate Change at Bay: IEA

EARTHTALK
Does Hunting Help or Hurt the Environment?
The answer to this question depends on whom is asked

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NEWS
Out of Africa: The Tobacco War's New Battleground
As nicotine use spreads across Africa, cancer-fighting groups are advocating for stringent smoke-free laws as tobacco companies lobby to expand in a growing continental market

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Finding Room for New Memories
A study shows that the formation of new memories requires the movement of other memories located in the hippocampus to long-term storage in the neocortex

NEWS
Planets May Affect the Chemistry of Their Stars
A stellar survey shows that planet-hosting stars tend to be highly depleted in lithium

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SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Why We Worry (Preview)
Chronic worrying stems from a craving for control. But the more we fret, the less our bodies are able to cope with stress

OBSERVATIONS
New micro-mapping software lets travelers plot points of interest while they walk
Amateur cartographers form a mapmaker social network around OpenStreetMap

FACT OR FICTION
Fact or Fiction: Generic Drugs Are Bad for You
Because of the recession, among other reasons, more people are turning to generic drugs, often manufactured abroad. Is there any cause for concern?

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Recommended: A Shadow Falls
Scientific American recommendations on nuclear proliferation and ancient alcohol

OBSERVATIONS
Study estimates hot air released by the U.S. health care system
The system, especially via hospitals and the pharmaceutical industry, contributes 8 percent of those climate-warming gases, according to a study published this week

NEWS
Engineering the Planet to Dodge Global Warming
Can geoengineering buy time to combat climate change?

EARTHTALK
Searching for Greener Gadgets: How to Size Up Energy Efficiency in Household Appliances
There has never been a better time to upgrade some of those older creaky appliances that are gobbling up far more energy (or water) than they need

IMAGE GALLERY
Saturnian trifecta
The planet, its rings and a moon

NEWS
Can Local Governments Solve Global Warming?
Local governments vow to press ahead with emissions reductions regardless of the outcome at the upcoming international Copenhagen talks. Can those efforts carry the day?

VIDEO
New world food crisis looms
The U.N. is warning the world is on the brink of another food crisis ahead of a major international summit in Rome

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OBSERVATIONS
NASA prepares effort to free stuck Spirit Mars rover
Six months after the Mars rover Spirit became trapped in a patch of soft soil, its controllers are preparing to send a set of commands that they hope will free the robotic explorer

NEWS
Heavy Metal: Researchers Try to Get the Lead out of Piezoelectronics
A team of University of California scientists is experimenting with an alternative to lead-based compounds in piezoelectric systems

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Pick the World's Ugliest Insect
Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University want your vote at askabiologist.asu.edu/uglybugs to help them crown the ugliest insect in the world

BERING IN MIND
Who says love hurts? Romantic partners alter our perception of pain
When two people are in love, the world whittles away to them alone, and as new research findings suggest, a mere reminder of that other person can make everything seem a little more manageable--even physical pain

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Readers Respond on "Grassoline"
Letters to the editor: The Science of God and Left & Right

OBSERVATIONS
Next shuttle mission will carry butterflies to space for classroom science experiments
Stowed away in a biological payload module will be larvae of two species of butterfly, whose development students on the ground will track from their classrooms

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
MIND Reviews: Shaken: Journey into the Mind of a Parkinson's Patient

OBSERVATIONS
NYC Fire Department tech in the hot seat
Firefighters complain about being sent to wrong addresses

CLEANTECHNICA
U.S. Military Veterans Call for Sustainable Fuels

NEWS
Can Alternative Energy Save the Economy and the Climate?
The "new energy" economy rolls forward even as hopes for an international deal to combat climate change at Copenhagen shift into reverse

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Calendar: MIND events in November and December
Museum exhibits, conferences and events relating to the brain

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OBSERVATIONS
LCROSS impact plumes contained moon water, NASA says
A spacecraft that performed a choreographed, two-part dive into the lunar surface in October churned up detectable levels of water ice

NEWS
Nanodevices Bend under the Force of Light
Researchers engineer minute structures that deform ever more appreciably when light passes through them

OBSERVATIONS
In 2012, neutrinos melt Earth's core, and other disasters
Nobody wants to take anything seriously in a movie like this, in which digital mayhem is the draw. But if it were an audience of physicists, the laughter probably would have started in the first five minutes

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
The Will to Power--Is "Free Will" All in Your Head?
Neurosurgeons evoke an intention to act during brain surgery

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Why Bangladesh Water Contains Arsenic
In a study M.I.T. researchers identify what they believe is the sequence of events whereby arsenic trapped in the sediment of the Ganges Delta is finding its way into the drinking water supply of Bangladesh

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Growing Skyscrapers: The Rise of Vertical Farms
Growing crops in city skyscrapers would use less water and fossil fuel than outdoor farming, eliminate agricultural runoff and provide fresh food

FEATURES
Squashing Malaria: Advances in Research and Prevention [Slide Show]
From satellites to bacteria, researchers are searching high and low for the best tools to eradicate malaria

OBSERVATIONS
New recipe looks back for how to feed the world
When it comes to feeding Earth's masses of people who regularly go hungry, a few things are clear: communism's large-scale, collective farms don't work, and breeding for specific traits in staple crops can boost yields, sometimes significantly

EARTHTALK
Eco-Dos: Green Beauty Salons and Hair Products Are a Growing Business
Traditional hair dyes and many shampoos contain harmful synthetic chemicals that are routinely used on customers' scalps and then washed down the drain where they can accumulate in waterways, soils and even our bloodstreams

EXTINCTION COUNTDOWN
Nearly extinct giraffe subspecies enjoys conservation success
After years of being poached and losing habitat to development, only 50 of these animals were left in Niger in 1996, and the subspecies's future seemed bleak

EARTHTALK
No Kidding: Getting Goats to Graze on Tinder Puts a Damper on Fires
Using goats to control forest brush may seem like a novel idea, but it has been around as long as grazing animals have roamed the planet

OBSERVATIONS
New DNA data solves the mystery of the Falklands wolf
A new genetic analysis of five preserved specimens has chased away speculation about these baffling animals that puzzled Darwin when he visited there

SCIAM EXCLUSIVES VIDEO
Climate Change: The Melting Himalayas
With poor countries being the most affected, but the worst equipped to deal with climate change, Anjali Nayar hiked for 21 days in northern Bhutan to see how this tiny Himalayan nation is dealing with rapidly melting glaciers

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NEWS
E-Transportation Jump-Start: Coalition Seeks to Pave the Way for Electric Vehicles
The Electrification Coalition, made up of carmaker Nissan Co., utilities and tech companies, introduced itself and its mission on Monday

OBSERVATIONS
The AMA eases its stance on marijuana belonging in the U.S.'s most restricted drug category
The American Medical Association recommended at an interim meeting in Houston last week that marijuana be removed from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's Schedule I drug list

NEWS
Renewed Hope for an AIDS Vaccine
Despite questions, the Thailand trial spreads optimism

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Darwin in Battle of Wits against Unarmed Man
Antievolutionist Ray Comfort will be distributing copies of the Origin of Species with a new introduction that misrepresents, misunderstands and distorts Darwin's ideas and legacy

OBSERVATIONS
Atlantis lifts off as space shuttle program continues to wind down
The orbiter's six-member crew will deliver some 13 metric tons of parts to the station as NASA wraps up its final scheduled shuttle launches. After this mission only five planned flights remain
> Related Video: Atlantis Lifts Off

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Ask the Brains: Are our Brains Constantly Making Subconscious Calculations?
Computational neuroscientist Terry Sejnowski of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at the Salk Institute and the University of California, San Diego, answers

FEATURES
Grizzly Details: Salmon Collapse Could Be Bad News for Bears [Slide Show]
Scientists are collecting hairs from live bears to prevent population declines as a result of declines in a principal food source: salmon

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
For Sale: Human Eggs Become a Research Commodity
A decision to pay for eggs for stem cell studies sparks debate

60-SECOND PSYCH PODCAST
The Roots of Language
Recent research with chimps provides support for theories of how language evolved in humans

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Putting Madness in Its Place: Can the Environment Explain Schizophrenia's Hereditary Patterns?
Growing evidence points to birthplace as a risk factor for schizophrenia

EXTINCTION COUNTDOWN
Are lower catch limits enough to save the bluefin tuna from extinction?
The possibility of a global ban is on the agenda for a March 2010 meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species

MIND MATTERS
Your Brain on Books
Neuroscientist Stanislas Dehaene explains his quest to understand how the mind makes sense of written language

EARTHTALK
Hive and Seek: Where Have the Honeybees Gone?
Although theories abound, no smoking gun has emerged and the cause of colony collapse disorder remains a mystery

OBSERVATIONS
Qapla'! Christie's Star Trek auction [Re-Post]
Back in October 2006, I watched Christie's auction off the remnants of the original Star Trek franchise. I am re-posting my blog for the DVD release of J. J. Abram's reboot of the iconic epic

GREENWIRE
Climate Treaty Delayed Past Copenhagen Meeting
World leaders agree on one thing: there is not enough time left before the December meeting in Copenhagen to negotiate a binding treaty to combat climate change

NEWS
Fish Kill: Nanosilver Mutates Fish Embryos
Tiny particles of silver--potent anti-microbial agents--are becoming increasingly popular in consumer goods. But nanosilver washes down drains and is discharged into waterways, where fish and other aquatic life are exposed

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SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
Illuminating the Lilliputian: 10 Bioscapes Photo Contest Winners Revealed
A gallery of images captured by light microscopy reveals the high art of the natural world
> Related: BioScapes Photo Contest: 15 Honorable Mentions
> Related Video: Beyond the Still: 6 Bioscapes Contest Videos

OBSERVATIONS
Government panel recommends fewer and later mammograms, no self-exams
The recommendations are an effort to cut the high number of false positives, frequent overdiagnosis and subsequent unnecessary treatment produced with current screening methods

NEWS
Ultrathin, Now Ultraflat: Ripple-Free Graphene May Hold Key to Material's Mysteries
By eliminating graphene's corrugations, researchers hope to find out how much surface texture influences its properties

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Pharaohs Had Heart Disease
A study finds that multiple ancient Egyptian mummies show signs of atherosclerosis

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Ability to Guess Others' Thoughts Tied to Language Proficiency
Advanced language skills may be essential to predicting others' thoughts

OBSERVATIONS
Hackers indicted for 12-hour ATM attack that netted $9 million
Three eastern European men, plus a fourth individual known only as Hacker 3, face dozens of years in prison and millions of dollars in fines

SCIENCE TALK PODCAST
Tree Ring Science and Tomorrow's Water
Kevin Anchukaitis, of the tree ring lab at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, talks about the information available in tree rings. And Colin Chartres, the director general of the International Water Management Institute, talks to Lynn Peeples about water issues

OBSERVATIONS
More important than Copenhagen? A U.S.-China deal on energy and climate
When the leaders of the two nations that are responsible for 40 percent of Earth's climate-changing greenhouse gases sit down to talk, big things can happen

CLEANTECHNICA
100% Wind-Powered Island off Maine Financed Using Electricity Co-op

SOLAR AT HOME
Will solar thermal heat up again?
Many people assume that solar hot water heaters are all well and good for, say, Israel, but ill-suited to cloudy, snowy climes such as the U.S. Northeast. But Scott Wilson of Olney, Md., begs to differ

EARTHTALK
Bumping Off Bedbugs without Poison
Although increased worldwide travel and the rising popularity of second-hand goods may contribute to bedbugs' resurgence, the most likely reason is the rejection of DDT and other harsh chlorinated hydrocarbon insecticides

CLEANTECHNICA
Car Manufacturers Might be Getting Ahead of Themselves in Electric Vehicle Production

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Scientific American Travel: Caribbean Conference Cruise

FEATURES
How Humanlike Was "Ardi"?
A second look a the 4.4-million-year-old primate that has sparked debate about upright walking and what it means to be in the human tribe

NEWS
Researchers Try to Solve the Mystery of HIV Carriers Who Don't Contract AIDS
Are "elite controllers" the key to understanding HIV infection-and do their immune systems offer a new approach to developing an AIDS vaccine?

OBSERVATIONS
Spirit rover's first dash for freedom is a short one
A NASA rover mired in soft soil on Mars made its first escape attempt in months Tuesday, but the maneuver lasted less than a second before safety precautions shut it down
> Related: NASA prepares effort to free stuck Spirit Mars rover

NEWS
Sinking Global Warming: Is There a Reliable Way to Track Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Levels?
CO2 emissions rise as natural sinks slow, but how can scientists precisely track this greenhouse gas, especially in advance of a potential global treaty to reduce its emissions?

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Foreign Afflictions: Mental Disorders across Country Borders
Are non-Western conditions truly distinct from those in the U.S. and Europe?

OBSERVATIONS
Embarrassing security leaks prompt bill to clamp down on government P2P use
The proposed legislation would bar government employees and contractors from downloading, installing or using P2P file-sharing software such as Limewire without official approval

EXTINCTION COUNTDOWN
Skate punk'd: Taxonomic "oops" put rare fish species in danger of extinction
The common skate (Dipturus batis), a type of ray, isn't common at all. The rare fish species is already critically endangered, but now new research indicates that the common skate is actually two species, so both are more at risk than previously thought

NATURE
Antarctic temperature spike surprises climate researchers
Polar region was unexpectedly warm between ice ages

EARTHTALK
Getting Those Varmints to Vamoose without Lethal Measures
Keeping unwanted critters away can be tricky business, and options are somewhat limited

VIDEO
Shuttle arrives at space station
Atlantis arrived at the International Space Station on Wednesday to deliver spare parts needed to keep the outpost operational after the shuttle fleet's retirement next year

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NEWS
Cracked Corn: Scientists Solve Maize's Genetic Maze
Boasting more genes than humans, the corn genome proved difficult to decode

60-SECOND SCIENCE PODCAST
Sound During Sleep Fixes Learning
A study found that sleeping after learning consolidated the acquisition of the new information, especially if sound cues related to the info were played to the sleeper

BERING IN MIND
Why do human testicles hang like that?
External testicles serve as a sort of "cold storage" and production unit for sperm, which keep best at lower body temperatures. They also display some rather elaborate yet subtle temperature-regulating features that heretofore have gone largely unnoticed

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MAGAZINE
War Is Peace: Can Science Fight Media Disinformation?
In the 24/7 Internet world, people make lots of claims. Science provides a guide for testing them

60-SECOND EARTH PODCAST
The Jellyfish Menace
Are humans making the oceans fit only for jellyfish?

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
MIND Reviews: Asylum: Inside the Closed World of State Mental Hospitals
Insane asylum. For many people the phrase conjures up images of desperate patients trapped in concrete fortresses

EARTHTALK
Measuring the Daily Destruction of the World's Rainforests
According to the United Nations's Food and Agriculture Organization, overall tropical deforestation rates this decade are 8.5 percent higher than during the 1990s

SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN MIND
Readers Respond on "Do Parents Matter?"--And More...
Letters to the editor about the July/August 2009 issue of Scientific American MIND

CLEANTECHNICA
Top ARPA-E Funding Goes to Renewable Storage in Liquid "Battery"

NEWS
Can Flywheels Help Balance Electricity Supply and Demand?
Beacon Power hopes to demonstrate the feasibility of the old technology to help balance fluctuating inputs from renewables

VIDEO
Atlantis astros take a spacewalk
Shuttle astronauts spacewalk to attach equipment to the International Space Station