Archaeology & Paleontology

Antarctica Served As Climatic Refuge In Earth's Greatest Extinction Event (Terra Daily, Dec. 7)

Remains Of Minoan-Style Painting Discovered During Excavations Of Canaanite Palace (Science Daily, Dec. 7)

Ownership of Adena tablet in dispute (Columbus Dispatch, Dec. 7)

Ancient site reveals signs of mass cannibalism (BBC News, Dec. 6)

State archaeologist says bones found in Gibson are a link to the past (Daily Comet, Dec. 6)

Environment

EPA is preparing to regulate emissions in Congress's stead (Washington Post, Dec. 8) Site requires free registration

CO2 Found to be Even More Important than Thought (ENN, Dec. 8)

Nanofarming Offers a Kinder Way to Get Biofuel from Algae (ENN, Dec. 7)

EPA says greenhouse gases endanger human health (Yahoo!/AP, Dec. 7)

Tar sands mining linked to stream pollution (Nature News, Dec. 7)

Copenhagen summit urged to take climate change action (BBC News, Dec. 7)

Earth More Sensitive to Carbon Dioxide Than Previously Thought (Science Daily, Dec. 7)

'Wired' Irish River Detects Pollution in Real Time (National Geographic News, Dec. 6)

Exploration & Adventure

After Everest, Kalpana targets Mt McKinley (Express Buzz, Dec. 8)

Time to recognise the role of local guides in 19th-century exploration (Guardian.co.uk, Dec. 8)

China's expedition team arrives at Zhongshan station in Antarctica (Xinhua, Dec. 6)

Medicine & Health

Spices Halt Growth of Breast Stem Cells, Study Finds (Science Daily, Dec. 8)

Firm Body, No Workout Required? [New athletic shoe offers a workout in just the wearing.] (N.Y. Times, Dec. 7) Site requires free registration

Personalised vaccines could protect all children (New Scientist, Dec. 7)

Gene absence makes the kid grow rounder (Science Daily, Dec. 7)

Balancing Protein Intake, Not Cutting Calories, May Be Key to Long Life (Science Daily, Dec. 6)

Genes may protect some people from TB infection (Yahoo!/Reuters, Dec. 5)

Peoples & Culture

Postpartum Depression Strikes Fathers, Too (N.Y. Times, Dec. 7) Site requires free registration

The Circular Logic of the Universe [Circles in art and science.](N.Y. Times, Dec. 7) Site requires free registration

Workers Should Turn Off Visual Alerts, Study Finds (Yahoo!/LiveScience, Dec. 7)

Military Rules Said to Hinder Therapy (N.Y. Times, Dec. 7)

Natural Disasters & Weather

This decade 'warmest on record' (BBC News, Dec. 8)

Undocumented Volcano Contributed to Extremely Cold Decade from 1810-1819 (Science Daily, Dec. 7)

Less Nitrogen Oxide In Tropical Weather Than Expected (Terra Daily, Dec. 7)

Melting Himalayan glaciers threaten 1.3 billion Asians (Terra Daily, Dec. 6)

Global and U.S. Hazards/Climate Extremes (updated weekly on Wednesdays)

Earthweek: A Diary of the Planet [pdf] (updated late Fridays)

People & Places in the News

Campaign to Eradicate Guinea Worm in Hard-Hit Nigeria May Have Worked (N.Y. Times, Dec. 7) Site requires free registration

Optimism as Artificial Intelligence Pioneers Reunite (N.Y. Times, Dec. 7) Site requires free registration

South Africa to cut carbon emissions by 34% (BBC News, Dec. 7)

Singapore Zoo breeds rare Komodo dragon (Yahoo!/AFP, Dec. 7)

Planned City "Rawabi" Draws on Palestinian Enterprise and Israeli Experience (ENN, Dec. 6)

Plants & Animals

Bat Ray Detects Weak Electrical Signals from Prey (Yahoo!/LiveScience, Dec. 8)

Ventriloquist Birds Call to Warn Friends and Enemies (Science Daily, Dec. 7)

Boom! Hok! A Monkey Language Is Deciphered (N.Y. Times, Dec. 7) Site requires free registration

Homosexual selection: The power of same-sex liaisons (New Scientist, Dec. 7)

Aggression-Promoting Pheromone Discovered in Flies (Science Daily, Dec. 7)

Why Some Monkeys Don't Get AIDS (Science Daily, Dec. 6)

Iron Curtain kept out alien birds (BBC News, Dec. 5)

'Killer Petunias' Should Join the Ranks of Carnivorous Plants, Scientists Propose (Science Daily, Dec. 5)

Science & Technology

Super Cool Atom Thermometer: New, Reliable Ways of Measuring Extreme Low Temperatures (Science Daily, Dec. 8)

Cheap catalyst can make and break hydrogen (New Scientist, Dec. 7)

Brain Waves Can 'Write' on a Computer in Early Tests, Researchers Show (Science Daily, Dec. 7)

Software models aid gene expression toxin study (BBC News, Dec. 7)

New Buses Bring Silence to the Streets (N.Y. Times, Dec. 6) Site requires free registration

Space

Nasa tests Aberdeenshire find for life on Mars clues (BBC News, Dec. 8)

New NASA Craft, With Infrared Power, Will Map the Unseen Sky (N.Y. Times, Dec. 7)Site requires free registration

Virgin Galactic unveils commercial spaceship (Yahoo!/AP, Dec. 7)

Watery niche may foster life on Mars (New Scientist, Dec. 7)

Superbright Supernova Is First of Its Kind (Science Daily, Dec. 5)

Lectures, Meetings, & Conferences

Sources:

Conference Calendar for Zoology (BIOSIS)

Meridian International Center Events

National Academy of Sciences Events

National Air and Space Museum Events

National Journal Daybook [includes environment-related events in Washington]

National Museum of Natural History Events

National Press Club

Smithsonian Resident Associate Programs