Literature

Congressman Lamar Smith hopes to ‘improve’ peer review by adding a layer of accountability, but his bill aims at imaginary ideals, argues Daniel Sarewitz.

Categories: Literature

Ecology: Fish mismatch makes bears eat elk

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Ecology: Fish mismatch makes bears eat elk

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497412a

In bringing lake trout to Yellowstone National Park humans may have inadvertently triggered a cascade of changes with consequences for migratory elk.A team led by Arthur Middleton, then at the University of Wyoming in Laramie, looked at the long-distance effects of introducing lake trout

Categories: Literature

Optics: A poor man's hologram

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Optics: A poor man's hologram

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497412b

Three-dimensional films have been a hit at the box office, but making them requires pricey equipment. Baoqing Sun at the University of Glasgow, UK, and his colleagues propose a simpler alternative. Instead of using cameras or lasers to achieve a three-dimensional (3D) effect, they illuminate

Categories: Literature

Ecology: Invasive insect's inner weapon

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Ecology: Invasive insect's inner weapon

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497412c

Ladybirds from central Asia act as a Trojan horse for a microscopic killer.Farmers brought harlequin ladybird beetles (Harmonia axyridis, pictured) to North America and Europe to eat troublesome aphids, but the insects quickly — and mysteriously — began to supplant native

Categories: Literature

Human migrations: Minoans came from Europe

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Human migrations: Minoans came from Europe

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497412d

Ancient DNA from remains found in caves on the Greek island of Crete suggests that the Minoan civilization emerged from farmers who settled on Crete thousands of years beforehand. This challenges an early theory, which held that the Minoans — recognized as being one of

Categories: Literature

Palaeontology: 'Ghost' reptile lived late

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Palaeontology: 'Ghost' reptile lived late

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497413a

The identification of a fossilized reptile indicates that extinct 'fish lizards' called ichthyosaurs were more diverse late in their history than is often thought.Previously, it was thought that only a subset of ichthyosaurs adapted for fast swimming in the open ocean had survived into

Categories: Literature

Molecular biology: Small RNA tunes protein

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Molecular biology: Small RNA tunes protein

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497413b

A small RNA molecule that controls whether bacteria coalesce into biofilms has a surprising mode of action.Small RNAs are known to regulate gene expression by binding to target messenger RNAs, typically blocking their translation into proteins. A team led by Gisela Storz at the

Categories: Literature

Applied physics: Cheap, flexible, white light

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Applied physics: Cheap, flexible, white light

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497413c

Silver nanowires offer a way to solve two problems facing those making light-emitting diodes (LEDs).LEDs tend to be made from inorganic materials. Those based on organic materials are thinner, lighter weight, cheaper to make and more easily spread over large, flexible surfaces. But the

Categories: Literature

Development: Images of a metamorphosis

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Development: Images of a metamorphosis

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497413d

A three-dimensional imaging technique makes it possible to watch butterfly pupae mature within the chrysalis.In most studies of developing insects, seeing means destroying. Researchers must dissect a number of specimens at different time points rather than following the maturation of a single individual. Russell

Categories: Literature

Animal models: Multiplexed mouse mutants

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Animal models: Multiplexed mouse mutants

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497413e

Animals carrying mutations in multiple genes can be engineered in a single step with the help of a bacterial protein and targeted RNA.Introducing a number of mutations to mice is usually tedious and time-consuming. Researchers introduce a genetic change into embryonic stem cells, mix

Categories: Literature

Earth science: Cosmic rays show how boulders move

Nature - Wed, 05/22/2013 - 00:00

Earth science: Cosmic rays show how boulders move

Nature 497, 7450 (2013). doi:10.1038/497413f

Highly read on wiley.com in March 2013Rare isotopes generated by cosmic rays can reveal the timing of events such as megafloods and rock debris flows.Analysis of the isotopes' concentrations can help researchers to estimate a rock's age, a method known as cosmogenic

Categories: Literature