Features
Replacement Parts
Ed Yong | Aug 1, 2012 | 10+ min read
To cope with a growing shortage of hearts, livers, and lungs suitable for transplant, some scientists are genetically engineering pigs, while others are growing organs in the lab.
Whither Science Publishing?
The Scientist | Aug 1, 2012 | 10+ min read
As we stand on the brink of a new scientific age, how researchers should best communicate their findings and innovations is hotly debated in the publishing trenches.
Editorial
Survival of the Fittest (to print)
Survival of the Fittest (to print)
Science publishing is locked in an evolutionary arms race as it edges further into the digital age.
Speaking of Science
Speaking of Science
Speaking of Science
August 2012's selection of notable quotes
Notebook
The Stuff of Nightmares
The Stuff of Nightmares
Researchers working in war-torn countries find hints to the molecular roots of posttraumatic stress disorder.
Island Disease
Island Disease
People living on islands in the Norwegian Sea suffer from an unusually high rate of certain genetic diseases and health issues, making the population ripe for research.
Some Like It Cold
Some Like It Cold
A hint of green leads researchers to an ocean phenomenon that could counteract the effect of climate change on some corals.
A Scientist Emerges
A Scientist Emerges
At age 16, Alexandra Sourakov has her first scientific publication, on the foraging behavior of butterflies.
Critic at Large
Predatory Publishing
Predatory Publishing
Overzealous open-access advocates are creating an exploitative environment, threatening the credibility of scholarly publishing.
Bring On the Transparency Index
Bring On the Transparency Index
Grading journals on how well they share information with readers will help deliver accountability to an industry that often lacks it.
Modus Operandi
Milling Magic
Milling Magic
Ion beams carve slices in frozen cells, giving biologists an interior view.
Best Places to Work
Best Places to Work Academia, 2012
Best Places to Work Academia, 2012
On the 10th anniversary of The Scientist’s survey of life science academics, institutions are contending with tighter budgets and larger administrative staffs, while working to sustain and inspire their researchers.
The Literature
DNA, Contortionist
DNA, Contortionist
The DNA forms known as G-quadruplexes are finally discovered in human cells.
Lymphatic Lines
Lymphatic Lines
Lymphatic vessels grow towards two chemokines, revealing signals that could be important in cancer metastasis.
Brain Expression
Brain Expression
Researchers map the expression patterns of 1,000 genes in the human brain.
Profiles
Fly Guy
Fly Guy
For Michael Dickinson, Drosophila are more than winged gene holders—they’re sophisticated systems for translating sensory information into flight instructions.
Scientist to Watch
Megan Carey: Cerebellum Prober
Megan Carey: Cerebellum Prober
Group Leader, Neuroscience Program, Champalimaud Center for the Unknown, Lisbon, Portugal; HHMI International Early Career Scientist; Age: 38
Lab Tools
Proteome Portraits
Proteome Portraits
Innovations in mass spectrometry are making quick, comprehensive, and easy proteome mapping more attainable than ever.
Lipids in the Spotlight
Lipids in the Spotlight
A guide to studying lipids using mass spectrometry
Careers
In Times of Trouble
In Times of Trouble
Scientists share their experiences weathering extremely stressful events without letting their careers get completely derailed.
Reading Frames
Life (Re)Cycle
Life (Re)Cycle
Death breeds life in the world’s most diverse and abundant group of animals.
Foundations
Painting the Protein Atomic, 1961
Painting the Protein Atomic, 1961
Irving Geis’s revolutionary painting of sperm whale myoglobin illuminated the nascent field of protein structure.
Slideshows
Best in Academia, 2012
Best in Academia, 2012
Topping this year’s survey of academic researchers is the J. David Gladstone Institutes, a San Francisco-based nonprofit biomedical research organization with a focus on cardiovascular disease, virology and immunology, and neurodegenerative disorders
Painting Macromolecules
Painting Macromolecules
Although originally trained as an architect, Irving Geis dedicated his life to creating images of molecules that taught viewers about their structure and function. Beginning in 1948, Geis illustrated scientific concepts for Scientific American—a job
Capsule Reviews
Capsule Reviews
Capsule Reviews
Gifts of the Crow, What the Robin Knows, The Unfeathered Bird, and America’s Other Audubon
Contributors
Contributors
Contributors
Meet some of the people featured in the August 2012 issue of The Scientist.