Cover Story
Outbreak Observatory
Jyoti Madhusoodanan | Jul 1, 2015
Increasingly precise remote-sensing data are helping researchers monitor and predict cases of infectious disease.
Features
Driven to Extinction
Jef Akst | Jul 1, 2015
The eradication of smallpox set the standard for the global elimination of a devastating infectious disease. Will the ongoing polio and guinea worm campaigns be as successful?
The Sum of Our Parts
Janice Dietert, Rodney Dietert | Jul 1, 2015
Putting the microbiome front and center in health care, in preventive strategies, and in health-risk assessments could stem the epidemic of noncommunicable diseases.
Contributors
Contributors
Contributors
Meet some of the people featured in the July 2015 issue of The Scientist.
Editorial
Intelligence Gathering
Intelligence Gathering
Disease eradication in the 21st century
Speaking of Science
Speaking of Science
Speaking of Science
July 2015's selection of notable quotes
Notebook
The Lies That Scars Tell
The Lies That Scars Tell
Macaque trainers in Bangladesh are often bitten by their monkeys, but rarely infected by a particular simian retrovirus.
Brrrr-ying the Results
Brrrr-ying the Results
Holding laboratory mice at temperatures lower than those the animals prefer could be altering their physiology and skewing experimental results.
Hunting Off the Hook?
Hunting Off the Hook?
Historical data shed new light on the possible causes of southern sea lion decline in the Falkland Islands.
High-Flying Ducks
High-Flying Ducks
Five species of waterfowl have evolved a variety of adaptations to adjust to the high altitude of South America’s Lake Titicaca.
Critic at Large
When Does a Smart Mouse Become Human?
When Does a Smart Mouse Become Human?
Ethical issues attend the creation of animal-human chimeras.
Modus Operandi
How to Make a New Species
How to Make a New Species
Scientists mutate a mating pheromone and its corresponding receptor in yeast to promote speciation.
The Literature
1 + 1 = 1
1 + 1 = 1
Nutrient levels in soil don’t add up when food chains combine.
Sponging Up Phosphorus
Sponging Up Phosphorus
Symbiotic bacteria in Caribbean reef sponges store polyphosphate granules, possibly explaining why phosphorous is so scarce in coral reef ecosystems.
Metazoans in the DNAi Club
Metazoans in the DNAi Club
A chance discovery results in the first report of DNA-based gene silencing in an animal.
Profile
Sold on Symbiosis
Sold on Symbiosis
A love of the ocean lured Nicole Dubilier into science; gutless sea worms and their nurturing bacterial symbionts keep her at the leading edge of marine microbiology.
Scientist to Watch
Shawn Douglas: DNA Programmer
Shawn Douglas: DNA Programmer
Assistant professor, Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, University of California, San Francisco. Age: 34
Lab Tools
Tools for Drools
Tools for Drools
A general guide to collecting and processing saliva
Breaking Down Barriers
Breaking Down Barriers
Finding and recruiting diverse populations for clinical studies
Careers
Staying Active in the Lab
Staying Active in the Lab
Retiring as a professor, and even shutting down your own lab, doesn’t necessarily mean quitting research.
Reading Frames
The War Rages On
The War Rages On
Conflict between science and religion continues, with effects on health, politics, and the environment.
Capsule Reviews
Capsule Reviews
Capsule Reviews
Stoned, Anxious, The Deeper Genome, and Testosterone
Foundations
Half Mile Down, 1934
Half Mile Down, 1934
In his bathysphere, William Beebe plumbed the ocean to record-setting depths.