Features

• The Power of Riboswitches

  Discovering relics from a lost world run by RNA molecules may lead to modern tools for fighting disease

  Jeffrey E. Barrick and Ronald R. Breaker   | January 1, 2007  |

• Better Ways to Target Pain

  Improved understanding of the chemical pathway on which aspirin and Vioxx act may lead to analgesics with fewer side effects

  Gary Stix   | January 1, 2007  |

• Is Ethanol for the Long Haul?

  Ethanol could displace gasoline, but it won't pay off until we find a way to distill cornstalks, not corn

  Matthew L. Wald   | January 1, 2007  | 2

• A Robot in Every Home

  The leader of the PC revolution predicts that the next hot field will be robotics

  Bill Gates   | January 1, 2007  | 7

• The Mississippi's Curious Origins

  A mountain range once separated the continental interior of the U.S. from the Gulf of Mexico. Some clever geologic sleuthing has revealed how that barrier was breached, allowing the river to reach the Gulf

  Roy B. Van Arsdale and Randel T. Cox   | January 1, 2007  |

• Evolved for Cancer?

  Natural selection lacks the power to erase cancer from our species and, some scientists argue, may even have provided tools that help tumors grow

  Carl Zimmer   | January 1, 2007  |

• What Is a Planet?

  The controversial new official definition of "planet," which banished Pluto, has its flaws but by and large captures essential scientific principles

  Steven Soter   | January 1, 2007  | 1