'Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon' game provides clue to efficiency of complex networks

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As the global population continues to grow exponentially, our social connections to one another remain relatively small, as if we're all protagonists in the Kevin Bacon game inspired by "Six Degrees of Separation," a Broadway play and Hollywood feature that were popular in the 1990s.

In fact, classic studies show that if we were to route a letter to an unknown person using only friends or acquaintances who we thought might know the intended recipient, it would take five or six intermediary acquaintances before the letter reaches its intended destination.

New gene-silencing pathway found in plants

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Biologists at Washington University in St. Louis have made major headway in explaining a mechanism by which plant cells silence potentially harmful genes.

New molecular insight into vertebrate brain development

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In the December 1st issue of G&D, Dr. Fred H. Gage (The Salk Institute for Biological Studies) and colleagues reveal a role for the Hippo signaling pathway in the regulation of vertebrate neural development, identifying new factors – and potential therapeutic targets – that may be involved in congenital brain size disorders and neurological tumor formation.

Their paper will be made available online ahead of print on 11/17 at http://genesdev.org.

Pain and itch responses regulated separately

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Historically, scientists have regarded itching as a less intense version of the body's response to pain, but researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have determined that pain and itch actually are regulated by different molecular mechanisms.

Acid soils in Slovakia tell somber tale

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Increasing levels of nitrogen deposition associated with industry and agriculture can drive soils toward a toxic level of acidification, reducing plant growth and polluting surface waters, according to a new study published online in Nature Geoscience.

Drops in blood oxygen levels may be key to sudden death in some epilepsy patients

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(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) — A new study by researchers at UC Davis Medical Center suggests that the sudden unexplained deaths of some epilepsy patients may be a result of their brains not telling their bodies to breathe during seizures.

"Significant drops in blood oxygen levels are more common than we thought in patients with partial seizures," said study senior author Masud Seyal, a professor of neurology at UC Davis Medical Center and director of the UC Davis Comprehensive Epilepsy Program.

NSF/NASA 'Firefly' cubesat to study link between lightning and terrestrial gamma ray flashes

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GREENBELT, Md. - Massive energy releases occur every day in the upper reaches of Earth's atmosphere. Lightning may give rise to these bursts of radiation. However, unlike the well-known flashes of light and peals of thunder familiar to Earth-dwellers, these energy releases are channeled upward and can be detected only from space. Our atmosphere protects us from the effects of this radiation, but the mechanisms at work can impact Earth's upper atmosphere and its space environment.

Scripps research scientists discover new cause of fatal brain injury from acute viral meningitis

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In a November 16 advance, online publication of the journal Nature, the researchers say their discovery revamps common beliefs about how such potentially lethal infections may be ravaging the brain and suggests the possibility of new treatments.

MIT: Safe storage of greenhouse-gas carbon dioxide

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WASHINGTON, DC — To prevent global warming, researchers and policymakers are exploring a variety of options to significantly cut the amount of carbon dioxide that reaches the atmosphere. One possible approach involves capturing greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide at the source — an electric power plant, for example — and then injecting them underground.

Democratic Party control could ban mandatory arbitration, expert says

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CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Democratic Party control in Washington could restore lawsuits as an option for workers and consumers now forced to settle disputes through mandatory arbitration that gives employers and businesses an unfair edge, a University of Illinois labor law expert says.

Michael LeRoy predicts a bill sponsored by Democrats that would bar companies from imposing arbitration will likely be approved next year when Democrats take over the White House and add to their majorities in Congress.