Thirteen of 19 smokers, including a two-pack-a-day fiend, suddenly and easily kicked the habit after they suffered stroke damage to their insulas—a part of the brain linked with emotion and feeling. The results suggest a new target for addiction therapy.
Science, January 26
A nanomachine version of Maxwell's demon, a 19th-century thought-experiment protagonist who sorts faster gas molecules from slower ones, confirms that the second law of thermodynamics holds up.
Nature, February 1
Camera shudder: the Hubble Space Telescope's main camera has stopped working and may be damaged beyond repair; about two thirds of astronomers' observing programs requested to use that device.
NASA announcement, January 29
The mere smell of food undoes the long life attainable from a calorie-restricted diet in fruit flies. Insects genetically engineered to lack a sense of smell did not lose the longevity benefit.
Science online, February 1
