Jay Bradner: Open-source cancer research

How does cancer know it's cancer? At Jay Bradner's lab, they found a molecule that might hold the answer, JQ1 -- and instead of patenting JQ1, they published their findings and mailed samples to 40 other labs to work on. An inspiring look at the open-source future of medical research.

 Find video: http://www.ted.com/talks/jay_bradner_open_source_cancer_research.html

Leonardo’s Rule, Self-Similarity, and Wind-Induced Stresses in Trees

Abstract:
Examining botanical trees, Leonardo da Vinci noted that the total cross section of branches is conserved across branching nodes. In this Letter, it is proposed that this rule is a consequence of the tree skeleton having a self-similar structure and the branch diameters being adjusted to resist wind-induced loads.

For more information: http://prl.aps.org/abstract/PRL/v107/i25/e258101

Mutant Flu

Scientists have created a form of the H5N1 avian flu virus that is transmissible between mammals, raising fears that it could trigger a human pandemic if it escapes from the lab - either through accidental release or as part of a bioterror attack.

For more information:  http://www.nature.com/news/fears-grow-over-lab-bred-flu-1.9692

How friendships and tastes co-evolve on Facebook

Facebook friends share similar tastes not because they influence one another but because this similarity was part of the reason they became and remained friends in the first place, a study reports.
For more information: http://www.pnas.org/content/109/1/68

A long-lived horseshoe companion to the Earth

Astronomers from the Armagh Observatory in Northern Ireland have found that asteroid, 2010 SO16, and the discovery that it is a horseshoe companion of the Earth. The object’s absolute magnitude (H = 20.7) makes this the largest object of its type known to-date.
For more information : http://arxiv.org/abs/1104.0036