http://www.sciencemag.org The best in science news, commentary, and research American Association for the Advancement of Science Stewart Wills (mailto:swills@aaas.org) Copyright 2009 American Association for the Advancement of Science 2009-11-05T17:08:24-05:00 en http://www.sciencemag.org/icons/banner/title.gif http://www.sciencemag.org http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol326/issue5954/twis.dtl?rss=1 A Horse Is a Horse, of Course | Cluster Electronics and Catalysis | Simulating Surfaces | Missing Mass Explained? | Nitrogen Overload | Entangling Rainbows | Long-Lost Pollinators | Butterfly Apartheid | Slowing Brain Disease with Gene Therapy | Bacterial Trigger of Plant Protection | The Death of Cocco | Goldilocks Immunology | Desert Balancing Act | Small-Molecule Protease Activator | Shivering Viromes | Self-Renewing Macrophages http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol326/issue5954/twil.dtl?rss=1 Astronomy: Gazing Through the Dust | Engineering: Wide Yet Sensitive | Signal Transduction: Single-Molecule Sensitivity | Ecology: Timing Is Everything http://www.sciencemag.org/content/vol326/issue5954/r-samples.dtl?rss=1 Cyclops Mirror | Petri Dish Artists | Scrap Metal Maps | Three Q's http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/771?rss=1 Authors: Rosina M. Bierbaum, Robert B. Zoellick Rosina M. Bierbaum http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/778?rss=1 A shortfall of helium-3, the lighter isotope of the most inert element, threatens several research fields, and the Department of Energy, the major supplier, is releasing the gas, which is used in neutron detectors that help prevent the smuggling of plutonium and other radioactive materials into the country, only to researchers with U.S. funding.<br><br>Author: Adrian Cho Adrian Cho http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/779?rss=1 An analysis of the Department of Homeland Security's $1 billion science and technology directorate has found that very little of its basic science research budget was awarded using peer review.<br><br>Author: Yudhijit Bhattacharjee Yudhijit Bhattacharjee http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/780-a?rss=1 Five years after it launched, the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) last week awarded its first disease-oriented grants—$230 million to 14 teams—intended to speed stem cell therapies to patients.<br><br>Author: Jocelyn Kaiser Jocelyn Kaiser http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/780-b?rss=1 A Stanford University professor is fighting to keep his unpublished book manuscript out of the hands of tobacco company R.J. Reynolds, which subpoenaed it after he testified as an expert witness for smokers who are suing the company.<br><br>Author: Sam Kean Sam Kean http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/781?rss=1 <i>Science</i>NOW this week reported on fellatio among fruit bats, the death toll from a pair of man-eating lions, a primordial nuclear age, and the definition of p-value, among other stories. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/782?rss=1 The World Health Organization has promised to supply developing countries with H1N1 vaccine donated by manufacturers and rich countries. But it has secured only about 200 million doses for 95 countries that together are home to a third of the world's population.<br><br>Author: Martin Enserink Martin Enserink http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/783-a?rss=1 A federal pilot project launched this summer aims not just to improve the tracking of jobs created by the $787 billion stimulus package but also to lay the foundation for a system to measure the impact of research on the U.S. economy.<br><br>Author: Jeffrey Mervis Jeffrey Mervis http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/783-b?rss=1 <i>Science</i>Insider reported this week on the National Institutes of Health's decision to fund 840 of the more than 20,000 applications it received for its vaunted Challenge Grants program and a petition to the United Nations human rights committee to stop the Large Hadron Collider from restarting because of risks that the collisions could create dangerous mini–black holes, among other stories. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/784?rss=1 How and when did religion arise? In the 11th essay in <i>Science</i>'s series in honor of the Year of Darwin, Elizabeth Culotta explores the human propensity to believe in unseen deities.<br><br>Author: Elizabeth Culotta Elizabeth Culotta http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/788?rss=1 The Max Planck Society's expansion into the former East Germany seeded top science into the region, but challenges remain in making sure the successes take root.<br><br>Author: Gretchen Vogel Gretchen Vogel http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/791?rss=1 The reunification of Germany was a mixed blessing for East German scientists. For many, especially the younger ones, it was a great opportunity (see p. <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/summary/326/5954/792">792</a>). But others were set adrift when entire preexisting eastern institutes were closed or cut to a fraction of their original size.<br><br>Author: Gretchen Vogel Gretchen Vogel http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/792?rss=1 An East German family of scientists reflects on life before and after 1989. The Hübners have become a dynamic demonstration of how the lives of scientists in the former East Germany have changed over the past 2 decades.<br><br>Author: Andrew Curry Andrew Curry http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/794?rss=1 A project to sequence 10,000 vertebrates has just been launched, but sequencing technologies are not yet up to the task.<br><br>Author: Elizabeth Pennisi Elizabeth Pennisi http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/797-a?rss=1 <br><br>Author: William E. Howard III William E. Howard III http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/797-b?rss=1 <br><br>Authors: Mats G. Hansson, Karen J. Maschke Mats G. Hansson http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/798-a?rss=1 <br><br>Authors: Kyle B. Brothers, Ellen Wright Clayton Kyle B. Brothers http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/798-b?rss=1 http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/798-c?rss=1 <br><br>Authors: Kristien Hens, John Wright, Kris Dierickx Kristien Hens http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/799-a?rss=1 <br><br>Authors: David Gurwitz, Isabel Fortier, Jeantine E. Lunshof, Bartha Maria Knoppers David Gurwitz http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/799-b?rss=1 <br><br>Author: John Dickey John Dickey http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/800?rss=1 Exploring Gould's science, politics, and their intersections, Prindle holds that they constitute a consistent whole.<br><br>Author: Vassiliki Betty Smocovitis Vassiliki Betty Smocovitis http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/801-a?rss=1 Three ancestral texts and the final wording of the last lines of Darwin's <i>Origin</i>.<br><br>Author: R. W. D. Nickalls R. W. D. Nickalls http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/801-b?rss=1 A <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/feature/data/books/brl5954.dtl">listing of books received</a> at <i>Science</i> during the week ended 30 October 2009. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/802?rss=1 A federally mandated system of test-based accountability for U.S. education can be made even better.<br><br>Author: Eric A. Hanushek Eric A. Hanushek http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/803?rss=1 No Child Left Behind is a poorly designed program, with serious side effects and little evidence of benefit, in need of fundamental changes.<br><br>Author: Daniel Koretz Daniel Koretz http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/805?rss=1 A lentivirus was used as a vector in hemato-poietic stem cells to treat a neurodegenerative disease in a clinical gene therapy trial.<br><br>Author: Luigi Naldini Luigi Naldini http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/806?rss=1 Efforts to elucidate the effect of climate change on biodiversity with detailed data sets and refined models reach novel conclusions.<br><br>Authors: Kathy J. Willis, Shonil A. Bhagwat Kathy J. Willis http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/808?rss=1 Animals pollinated specialized seed plants even before flowering plants evolved.<br><br>Authors: Jeff Ollerton, Emma Coulthard Jeff Ollerton http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/809?rss=1 Two large computational studies describe how theory can better account for the way in which molecules scatter from or react with metal surfaces.<br><br>Author: Eckart Hasselbrink Eckart Hasselbrink http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/810?rss=1 Peatlands can buffer the impact of external perturbations, but can also rapidly shift to a new ecosystem type, with large gains or losses of stored carbon.<br><br>Author: Nancy B. Dise Nancy B. Dise http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/812?rss=1 <br><br>Authors: Pedro G. Ferreira, Glenn D. Starkman Pedro G. Ferreira http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/816?rss=1 When water striders can disperse among groups, females select for reduced male aggression.<br><br>Authors: Omar Tonsi Eldakar, Michael J. Dlugos, John W. Pepper, David Sloan Wilson Omar Tonsi Eldakar http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/817?rss=1 DNA from historical specimens reveals the mutation causing the hemophilia that afflicted the royal families of Europe.<br><br>Authors: Evgeny I. Rogaev, Anastasia P. Grigorenko, Gulnaz Faskhutdinova, Ellen L. W. Kittler, Yuri K. Moliaka Evgeny I. Rogaev http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/818?rss=1 Lentiviral-mediated gene therapy of hematopoietic stem cells delays disease progression in patients with a fatal brain disorder.<br><br>Authors: Nathalie Cartier, Salima Hacein-Bey-Abina, Cynthia C. Bartholomae, Gabor Veres, Manfred Schmidt, Ina Kutschera, Michel Vidaud, Ulrich Abel, Liliane Dal-Cortivo, Laure Caccavelli, Nizar Mahlaoui, Véronique Kiermer, Denice Mittelstaedt, Céline Bellesme, Najiba Lahlou, François Lefrère, Stéphane Blanche, Muriel Audit, Emmanuel Payen, Philippe Leboulch, Bruno l’Homme, Pierre Bougnères, Christof Von Kalle, Alain Fischer, Marina Cavazzana-Calvo, Patrick Aubourg Nathalie Cartier http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/823?rss=1 Three bright light beams of different colors can be entangled.<br><br>Authors: A. S. Coelho, F. A. S. Barbosa, K. N. Cassemiro, A. S. Villar, M. Martinelli, P. Nussenzveig A. S. Coelho http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/826?rss=1 The activity of these model catalysts for carbon monoxide oxidation reflects changes in cluster electronic structure.<br><br>Authors: William E. Kaden, Tianpin Wu, William A. Kunkel, Scott L. Anderson William E. Kaden http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/829?rss=1 Theory accounts for the complex ways in which vibrations and rotations of nitric oxide molecules affect scattering from a surface.<br><br>Authors: Neil Shenvi, Sharani Roy, John C. Tully Neil Shenvi http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/832?rss=1 The use of a fitting parameter produces a much-improved potential energy surface for describing a surface reaction.<br><br>Authors: C. Díaz, E. Pijper, R. A. Olsen, H. F. Busnengo, D. J. Auerbach, G. J. Kroes C. Díaz http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/835?rss=1 Deposition of anthropogenically derived nitrogen can cause phosphorus to become the limiting nutrient of lake phytoplankton.<br><br>Authors: James J. Elser, Tom Andersen, Jill S. Baron, Ann-Kristin Bergström, Mats Jansson, Marcia Kyle, Koren R. Nydick, Laura Steger, Dag O. Hessen James J. Elser http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/837?rss=1 In the Mojave Desert, high surface temperatures cause large amounts of nitrogen to be lost from the soil.<br><br>Authors: Carmody K. McCalley, Jed P. Sparks Carmody K. McCalley http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/840?rss=1 Prior to the coevolution of angiosperms and pollinating insects, scorpionflies may have been pollinating gymnosperms.<br><br>Authors: Dong Ren, Conrad C. Labandeira, Jorge A. Santiago-Blay, Alexandr Rasnitsyn, ChungKun Shih, Alexei Bashkuev, M. Amelia V. Logan, Carol L. Hotton, David Dilcher Dong Ren http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/847?rss=1 Mate selection based on preferences for polymorphic wing color patterns is generating reproductive isolation.<br><br>Authors: Nicola L. Chamberlain, Ryan I. Hill, Durrell D. Kapan, Lawrence E. Gilbert, Marcus R. Kronforst Nicola L. Chamberlain http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/850?rss=1 The bacterial trigger for a rice innate immune response is identified.<br><br>Authors: Sang-Won Lee, Sang-Wook Han, Malinee Sririyanum, Chang-Jin Park, Young-Su Seo, Pamela C. Ronald Sang-Won Lee http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/853?rss=1 Small molecules that promote a procaspase conformation susceptible to activation by proteolysis have been identified.<br><br>Authors: Dennis W. Wolan, Julie A. Zorn, Daniel C. Gray, James A. Wells Dennis W. Wolan http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/858?rss=1 Virus populations in polar freshwater lakes show marked shifts in composition during ice melt.<br><br>Authors: Alberto López-Bueno, Javier Tamames, David Velázquez, Andrés Moya, Antonio Quesada, Antonio Alcamí Alberto López-Bueno http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/861?rss=1 A specific virus encodes membrane components that broadcast cell death and population demise of its coccolithophore host.<br><br>Authors: Assaf Vardi, Benjamin A. S. Van Mooy, Helen F. Fredricks, Kimberly J. Popendorf, Justin E. Ossolinski, Liti Haramaty, Kay D. Bidle Assaf Vardi http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/865?rss=1 The horse genome reveals an evolutionary new centromere and conserved chromosomal sequences relative to other mammals.<br><br>Authors: C. M. Wade, E. Giulotto, S. Sigurdsson, M. Zoli, S. Gnerre, F. Imsland, T. L. Lear, D. L. Adelson, E. Bailey, R. R. Bellone, H. Blöcker, O. Distl, R. C. Edgar, M. Garber, T. Leeb, E. Mauceli, J. N. MacLeod, M. C. T. Penedo, J. M. Raison, T. Sharpe, J. Vogel, L. Andersson, D. F. Antczak, T. Biagi, M. M. Binns, B. P. Chowdhary, S. J. Coleman, G. Della Valle, S. Fryc, G. Guérin, T. Hasegawa, E. W. Hill, J. Jurka, A. Kiialainen, G. Lindgren, J. Liu, E. Magnani, J. R. Mickelson, J. Murray, S. G. Nergadze, R. Onofrio, S. Pedroni, M. F. Piras, T. Raudsepp, M. Rocchi, K. H. Røed, O. A. Ryder, S. Searle, L. Skow, J. E. Swinburne, A. C. Syvänen, T. Tozaki, S. J. Valberg, M. Vaudin, J. R. White, M. C. Zody, Broad Institute Genome Sequencing Platform, Broad Institute Whole Genome Assembly Team, E. S. Lander, K. Lindblad-Toh C. M. Wade http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/867?rss=1 The absence of two transcription factors allows long-term propagation of a differentiated immune cell population that is nontumorigenic.<br><br>Authors: Athar Aziz, Erinn Soucie, Sandrine Sarrazin, Michael H. Sieweke Athar Aziz http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/871?rss=1 Positive selection by a single peptide-MHC complex imparts exquisite specificity to developing T cells.<br><br>Authors: Baomei Wang, Tina M. Primeau, Nancy Myers, Henry W. Rohrs, Michael L. Gross, Lonnie Lybarger, Ted H. Hansen, Janet M. Connolly Baomei Wang http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/875-a?rss=1 A weekly roundup of information on newly offered instrumentation, apparatus, and laboratory materials of potential interest to researchers. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/875-b?rss=1 The show includes an unusual supernova, the origins of religion, your Letters to Science, and more. http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/326/5954/876?rss=1