Chefs have long used a simple trick to differentiate between a raw and hard-boiled egg. By spinning an egg and watching how it behaves when the spin is disrupted, it's easy to tell whether its interior is solid or liquid.

Applying a similar test to the planet Mercury, astronomers have found strong evidence that the planet closest to the sun has a fluid core. The research, led by Jean-Luc Margot, assistant professor of astronomy at Cornell, appears this week on the Web site of the journal Science.

Scientists at the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease (GIND) have discovered that reducing levels of the protein tau can prevent seizures and neurological deficits related to Alzheimer's disease. The findings, reported today in the journal Science, demonstrate that when tau is removed from mice genetically engineered to simulate Alzheimer's disease, their memory function is retained and they live a normal lifespan. Reducing tau levels also made mice more resistant to epileptic seizures.

Yet some exercise is still better than none.

The old adage "use it or lose it" is truer than ever. People who maintain a vigorously active lifestyle as they age gain less weight than people who exercise at more moderate levels, according to a first-of-its-kind study that tracked a large group of runners who kept the same exercise regimen as they grew older.

Toddlers with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) often have difficulty focusing on people's faces and making eye contact, but a new study by Yale School of Medicine researchers found that these same toddlers do not have difficulty looking at photographs of faces.

Circadian rhythm is the basic 24-hour cycle that involves various behaviors, including sleeping and eating, in all living organisms.

In mammals, the circadian clock is organized hierarchically in a series of multiple oscillators. At the top of this hierarchy, the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a region of the brain that is the body"s main rhythmic regulator, integrates light information from the eyes and coordinates peripheral oscillators throughout the body.

University of Iowa researchers have learned more about a genetic mutation that contributes to autism. The mutation occurred in sperm cells of a father, who does not have autism, but passed the condition on to two of his children.

Solar powered mobility scooters could soon be on the streets thanks to the work of a student at The University of Nottingham. Matt Alvey, who is studying Architecture and Environmental Design, says the photovoltaic (solar electric) recharging system will turn the mobility vehicles truly green.

Save the World Air Inc. makes Zero Emission Fuel Saver (ZEFS) technology that is intended to reduce tailpipe pollutants and increase fuel efficiency in gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.

RAND Corporation has been conducted independent tests and cannot confirm the benefits. "RAND's analysis of laboratory testing data provided by Save the World Air that deals with the performance of the ZEFS device installed in vehicles found at best mixed results from the tests and therefore could not confirm the effectiveness of the technology in actual use," said Michael Toman, director of the Environment Energy and Economic Development program at RAND, which carried out the study.

Addressing a current issue in neuroscience, Aldo Faisal and Simon Laughlin from Cambridge University investigate the reliability of thin axons for transmitting information. They show that noise effects in ion channels in the brain are much larger than previously assumed – meaning the fidelity of transmission is compromised.

Cellular survival relies crucially on the ability to receive and communicate signals from and to the outside world. A major part of this regulation and communication is performed by proteins within the membrane of a cell. How these proteins work is an important topic in biology, and one which these scientists have excellently clarified by computational techniques.

Tristan Ursell and colleagues have examined the elasticity of the membrane, which changes thickness to accommodate the proteins embedded within it. Proteins respond to stimuli by altering their shape to perform specific tasks, such as channel proteins, which allow the flow of ions in only one formation.