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November

Table of Contents November 2009

Discover Magazine's mission is to enable readers to lead richer lives by explaining and expanding their universe. Each month we bring you in depth information and analysis from various topics ranging from technology and space to the living world we live in.

FEATURES

3 Faces of Eve

by Boonsri Dickinson

Our reporter tries out a trio of genetic tests to find out what they can tell her about her identity and her ancestry.

Darwin's Great Blunder—and Why It Was Good for the World

by Bruno Maddox

The best thing we can do for the theory of evolution may be to bring its creator back down to earth.

Your Digital Privacy? It May Already Be an Illusion

by Elizabeth Svoboda

Between all the scraps of info about you online, players in business, politics, and government may know a lot more about you than you'd think.

The First, and Greatest, Reality Show: Evolutionary Biology

by Carl Zimmer

Sex, death, deception—it's all part of the dances between species.

Lichens: Fungi That Have Discovered Agriculture

by Gordon Grice

The often misunderstood symbiote can poison wolves, break down rocks, and live for thousands of years.

Did We Mate With Neanderthals, or Did We Murder Them?

by Jane Bosveld

In some places, we ate them. More generally, modern humans' more varied lifestyle may have been the key to the survival.

Have We Entered the Stem Cell Era?

by Jeanne Lenzer

Treatments for cancer, blood diseases, and even HIV are finally realizing some of the potential for stem-cell medicine.

DEPARTMENTS

What Is This?

What is This? A Bioluminescent Mushroom?

by Andrew Grant

Hint: It's actually not on the ground, nor in the oceans, but up in the sky—way up in the sky.

The Brain

The Brain: Humanity's Other Basic Instinct: Math

by Carl Zimmer

New research suggests that math has evolved its way right into our neurons—and monkeys', too.

Visual Science

Visual Science: Polishing a Cosmic Spyglass

A tune-up for one of the most sophisticated imaging devices ever made

Visual Science

A Striking Visualization of Hurricane Katrina

Scientists at LSU’s Center for Computation & Technology used the university’s supercomputer to integrate wind, temperature, and sea surge simulations with satellite data.

Big Idea

The Banks That Prevent—Rather Than Cause—Global Crises

by Maggie Koerth-Baker

Seed banks put some much-needed wild vigor back into today's specialized varieties, protecting critical crops from being wiped out.

Future Tech

The 3-D Simulation that Lets Your Surgeon Practice...on You

by Rebecca Day

A new technology lets doctors test out procedures on a simulation of the patient's anatomy.

Hot Science

The Best of Science Culture

by Jennifer Barone, Lindsey Konkel

Yoda on tour, plants using humans, perfect devastation, and more

5 Questions

5 Questions for the Rock'n'Rolling, Sky-Diving Master of Memory

by Amy Barth

Vital Signs

Vital Signs: An Uninvited Guest

by Claire Panosian Dunavan

The young woman carried a baby that wasn't her own—and wasn't even a human.

Discover Q&A

Discover Interview: Miles of Wire, Reams of Print-Outs, and a Giant Discovery

by Douglas Colligan

Jocelyn Bell Burnell worked through old-school equipment and old-school sexism to find the first pulsar—the beginning of an extraordinary life in science.

20 Things You Didn't Know About...

20 Things You Didn't Know About... Computer Hacking

by Rebecca Coffey

What's the connection between Steve Wozniak, the Pope, and Henry Kissinger? That's right, it's hacking.

Think Tech

Think Tech: 4 Hi-Tech Ways to Cook Thanksgiving Dinner—and Store the Leftovers

by Rebecca Day