Archaeology & Paleontology

85-Million-Year-Old Sea Monster Re-Explored (TerraDaily/SPX, Aug. 17)

Major archaeological find at site of Civil War prison (CNN, Aug. 17)

Giant turtle's demise the fault of humans, study says (BBC News, Aug. 16)

Retracing the Titanic for posterity: Scientists to create 3-D map of wreck site (Boston Globe, Aug. 16)

Signing, Singing, Speaking: How Language Evolved (NPR, Aug. 16)

Robot to explore Great Pyramid (Christian Science Monitor, Aug. 13)

US firm awarded $110m for salvaging Titanic artefacts (BBC News, Aug. 13)

Tutankhamun excavation archive goes online (Oxford Mail, Aug. 13)

100-year-old Scotch pulled from frozen crate [Belonged to explorer Ernest Shackleton] (Yahoo News/AP, Aug. 13)

`Lucy' species used stone tools, fossil study says (Yahoo News/AP, Aug. 11)

Environment

Final Gulf oil well 'kill' plan on hold amid pressure fears (Yahoo News/AFP, Aug. 17)

Few Chernobyl Radiation Risks From Russia Fires (Planet Ark/Reuters, Aug. 16)

UN fights to save the planet from ever-expanding deserts (TerraDaily/AFP, Aug. 16)

Smithsonian Catalogs Life Before The Gulf Spill (NPR, Aug. 15)

Global CO2 emissions off 1.3 percent in 2009 (ENN/Reuters, Aug. 13)

Exploration & Adventure

Electric vehicles aim for 'longest and greenest' world tour (PhysOrg, Aug. 16)

Climber Conquers Everest and Records Grand Slam (N.Y. Times/AP, Aug. 14) Site requires free registration

Medicine & Health

Preschoolers use statistics to understand others (PhysOrg, Aug. 17)

Marriage and committed romance reduce stress-related hormone production (PhysOrg, Aug. 17)

'Thirdhand Smoke' Especially Harmful For Asthma Sufferers (LiveScience, Aug. 17)

Moose Offer Trail of Clues on Arthritis (N.Y. Times, Aug. 16) Site requires free registration

Only children not so lonely (Nature News, Aug. 16)

Experiencing Teen Drama Overload? Blame Biology (NPR, Aug. 16)

Study suggests boys and girls not as different as previously thought (PhysOrg, Aug. 16)

UN warns of diseases in Pakistan floods (TerraDaily/AFP, Aug. 16)

Deadly Whooping Cough, Once Wiped Out, Is Back (NPR, Aug. 14)

Medical Journal Retracts Jesus Miracle Paper (LiveScience, Aug. 13)

Arguments Are Good for Your Health, Study Suggests (LiveScience, Aug. 13)

Dreams Make You Smarter, More Creative, Studies Suggest (National Geographic News, Aug. 13)

Birth Order Affects Child's Intelligence and Personality (LiveScience, Aug. 12)

Peoples & Culture

Knowing cultural view of virginity, Chinese women try surgical restoration (Washington Post, Aug. 17) Site requires free registration

The Koran through the ages (BBC News, Aug. 17)

High in the Andes, Keeping an Incan Mystery Alive (N.Y. Times, Aug. 16) Site requires free registration

Financially Dependent Men More Likely to Cheat (LiveScience, Aug. 16)

Same-Sex Marriage Debate Has Roots Going Back Centuries (LiveScience, Aug. 15)

Scientist lives as Inuit for a year to save disappearing language (CNN, Aug. 13)

Natural Disasters & Weather

36 killed, hundreds injured in new China flooding (Yahoo News/AP, Aug. 17)

Russia fires caused by global warming? Maybe not, say scientists. (Christian Science Monitor, Aug. 16)

Pakistan Flooding Because of Farms? (National Geographic News, Aug. 16)

Ocean Color Can Deflect Hurricanes, Study Suggests (National Geographic News, Aug. 13)

Haiti quake was caused by previously unknown fault (BBC News, Aug. 12)

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

Desperation Grows in Heart of Flood-Hit Pakistan (N.Y. Times, Aug. 17) Site requires free registration

Questions Linger as Shrimp Season Opens in Gulf (N.Y. Times, Aug. 16) Site requires free registration

Bosnian lab helps Iraq unearth war secrets (Google News/AP, Aug. 16)

Plants & Animals

Massive coral mortality following bleaching in Indonesia (PhysOrg, Aug. 17)

Monkey Business: Fairness Isn't Just A Human Trait (NPR, Aug. 16)

Bacteria can 'smell' their environment, research shows (BBC News, Aug. 16)

Wide Variety of Breeds Born of Few Genes [Dogs] (N.Y. Times, Aug. 16) Site requires free registration

Liger cubs born in Taiwan, Napoleon Dynamite rejoices, zoo keeper could face fines (Christian Science Monitor, Aug. 16)

Peru battles rabid vampire bats after 500 people bitten (BBC News, Aug. 13)

Science & Technology

Lessons From Skipping Stones Could Improve Aircraft Safety (ScienceNOW, Aug. 16)

Government: Carbon-Friendly Coal Plants 'Viable' in Next 5 years (ScienceInsider, Aug. 12)

Space

Giant nets could remove orbiting space junk (PhysOrg, Aug. 17)

Proof of Aliens Could Come Within 25 Years, Scientist Says (Space.com, Aug. 16)

Some Parts of Earth Are Similar to Jupiter's Moon Europa (Space.com, Aug. 16)

Telescope promises new look at universe — if NASA can get it into space (L.A. Times, Aug. 14)

Race to launch Moon landing probe (BBC News, Aug. 12)

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