Studying simple metallic chromium, scientists have discovered a pressure-driven quantum critical regime and has achieved the first direct measurement of a "naked" quantum singularity in an elemental magnet.

A new study suggests that people with ample moral self-worth in one aspect of their lives can slip into immorality or opposite behavior in other areas -- their abundant self-esteem somehow pushing them to balance out all that goodness. Conversely, the study shows, people who engage in immoral behavior cleanse themselves with good work to restore an ideal level of moral self-worth.

NASA's Mars rover Spirit, lodged in Martian soil that is causing traction trouble, is taking advantage of the situation by learning more about the Red Planet's environmental history.

People who eat lots of soy products have better lung function, and are less likely to develop the smoking-associated lung disease COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). A new study has shown that consumption of a wide variety of soy products can be associated with a reduction in the risk of COPD and other respiratory symptoms.

Dolphins are supremely agile swimmers, but it wasn't clear how their fins help them maneuver though water. Building scale models of whale and dolphins' fins, a team of US scientists has found that some dolphins' fins work just like delta wing aircraft.

Scientists have shown that a fully automated procedure called Volumetric MRI -- which measures the "memory centers" of the brain and compares them to expected size -- is effective in predicting the progression from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to Alzheimer's disease. The procedure can be readily used in clinics to measure brain atrophy, and may help physicians to predict decline in MCI patients.

Scientists have found that during the hours before sunrise, freeway air pollution extends much further than previously thought. Pollutants were found 1.5 miles from I-10 in California during early morning hours.

People in very early stages of Alzheimer's disease already have trouble focusing on what is important to remember, psychologists report.

Researchers have discovered a link between copper and the normal functioning of prion proteins, which are associated with transmissible spongiform encephalopathy diseases such as Cruetzfeldt-Jakob in humans or "mad cow" disease in cattle. Their work could have implications for patients suffering from these diseases, as well as from other prion-related diseases such as Alzheimers or Parkinson's.

A variation in a gene that is active in the central nervous system is associated with increased risk for obesity, according to a new study. The research adds to evidence that genes influence appetite and that the brain plays a key role in obesity.