Notebook

Another Vote To Nix The Pox Four Scientists Get Met-It Pay Help For Insomniacs? Cleaning Up The Cleanup Mullis On HIV: Where's The Beef? Hope For The Heavy Date: February 19, 1996 CONDEMNED: One of the two remaining smallpox stores Like a death-row inmate running out of chances to appeal, the last two remaining stores of smallpox virus have again been condemned to destruction. Late last month the governing board of the World Heath Organization (WHO) in Geneva recommended that the smallpo

| 7 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
7:00
Share

pox CONDEMNED: One of the two remaining smallpox stores

Tanzi FAB FOUR: The 1996 MetLife awardees are, clockwise from left, are Thomas Bird, Gerar Schellenberg, Ellen Wijsman and Rudolg Tanzi

A cluster of brain cells that helps turn on and off sleep may eventually lead to improved treatments for insomnia. Scientists from Harvard Medical School recently reported uncovering a so-called master switch in the brain that controls sleep. According to a report in the New York Times (S. Blakeslee, Jan. 12, 1996, page A18), when the switch is turned on, all brain cells involved in arousal and awareness are turned off. The brain wakes up when the switch is turned off. Clifford Saper, chairman of neurology at Beth Israel Hospital and James Jackson Putnam Professor of neurology and neuroscience at Harvard Medical School, who led the research, notes that the group of cells "is in the perfect position to be a master ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to digital editions of The Scientist, as well as TS Digest, feature stories, more than 35 years of archives, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here
Illustration of a developing fetus surrounded by a clear fluid with a subtle yellow tinge, representing amniotic fluid.
January 2026

What Is the Amniotic Fluid Composed of?

The liquid world of fetal development provides a rich source of nutrition and protection tailored to meet the needs of the growing fetus.

View this Issue
Human-Relevant In Vitro Models Enable Predictive Drug Discovery

Advancing Drug Discovery with Complex Human In Vitro Models

Stemcell Technologies
Redefining Immunology Through Advanced Technologies

Redefining Immunology Through Advanced Technologies

Ensuring Regulatory Compliance in AAV Manufacturing with Analytical Ultracentrifugation

Ensuring Regulatory Compliance in AAV Manufacturing with Analytical Ultracentrifugation

Beckman Coulter Logo
Skip the Wait for Protein Stability Data with Aunty

Skip the Wait for Protein Stability Data with Aunty

Unchained Labs

Products

Sino Biological Logo

Sino Biological's Launch of SwiftFluo® TR-FRET Kits Pioneers a New Era in High-Throughout Kinase Inhibitor Screening

SPT Labtech Logo

SPT Labtech enables automated Twist Bioscience NGS library preparation workflows on SPT's firefly platform

nuclera logo

Nuclera eProtein Discovery System installed at leading Universities in Taiwan

Brandtech Logo

BRANDTECH Scientific Introduces the Transferpette® pro Micropipette: A New Twist on Comfort and Control