October 2008 FEATURES
Searching for Intelligence in Our Genes
IQ is easy to measure and reflects something real. But scientists hunting among our genes for the factors that shape intelligence are discovering they are more elusive than expected
By Carl Zimmer
Big Bang or Big Bounce?: New Theory on the Universe's Birth
Our universe may have started not with a big bang but with a big bounce—an implosion that triggered an explosion, all driven by exotic quantum-gravitational effects
By Martin Bojowald
Bar Code of Life: DNA Tags Help Classify Animals
Inspired by commercial bar codes, DNA tags could provide a quick, inexpensive way to identify species
By Mark Y. Stoeckle and Paul D. N. Hebert
Birth of an Ocean: The Evolution of Ethiopia's Afar Depression
Formation of an ocean is a rare event, one few scientists have ever witnessed. Yet this geophysical nativity is unfolding today in one of the hottest and most inhospitable corners of the globe. Visit the site in safety through this extraordinary photographic essay
By Eitan Haddok
Neural Light Show: Scientist Use Genetics to Map and Control Brain Functions
A clever combination of optics and genetics is allowing neuroscientists to identify and control brain circuits with unprecedented precision
By Gero Miesenböck
Open-Source Thinking Revolutionizes Prosthetic Limbs
A community of engineers, designers and innovators is collaborating online to make better prosthetic hands and arms for amputees. One of the lead engineers lost his own arm in Iraq
By Sam Boykin
Web Science: Studying the Internet to Protect Our Future
Studying the Web will reveal better ways to exploit information, prevent identity theft, revolutionize industry and manage our ever growing online lives
By Nigel Shadbolt and Tim Berners-Lee
