Peer Reviewed

The observation and manipulation of single molecules by scanning tunneling microscopy is opening new frontiers in nanoscience

Summaries of newsworthy papers: Ageing: Keeping old mice young at heart; Stem cells: Bolstering bone density; Wheat can’t stand the heat

A one-pot synthesis provides a simpler and faster route to highly efficient solar cells

The transmission quality of an optical fiber can now be tested without the need to take measurements at both ends

Summaries of newsworthy papers: A great nanoscale resolution; Punishment as a defence mechanism; Engineering on-chip quantum devices; Semiconductor prodigies outperform their parents; King penguin chicks prove cool customers

Summaries of newsworthy articles: Cities: Better, Greener, Smarter; Science of Health: Stamping out vaccine fears early

Summary of newsworthy article: Synthetic biologists design suicidal bacteria to fight infection

Summaries of newsworthy papers: Planetary science: Questioning the standard model of lunar formation; Comment: In praise of memory-altering drugs; Fossils: How vertebrates got their jaws; Correspondence: Stem China’s demand for ivory and more

From harnessing microorgansisms in bioactuators to algorithms for Internet-based information analysis, the Toyohashi Tech e-Newsletter describes a diverse range of research projects.

Scientists from Singapore’s Institute of Materials Research and Engineering (IMRE), an institute of the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) have created a new polymer with both high charge mobility and high power conversion efficiency for application in both plastic electronics and organic solar cells.

Summaries of newsworthy papers: Climate Change: Increased leaf litter boosts soil carbon release; Genetics: Map for developmental delay; Cell Biology: Regulating metabolism in stressful conditions; Geoscience: Do planetary waves cause Titan’s downpours?

Plants switch off growth signals by targeting ‘used’ receptor molecules for destruction

Materials made from porous coordination polymers with flexing structures make better traps for harmful gases

Summary of newsworthy article: Similarities between sporadic and familial ALS

Summaries of newsworthy papers: Biology: The genetics of multiple sclerosis *PRESS BRIEFING*; Atmospheric chemistry: Mysterious methane; Comment: ArXiv turns 20; Biotechnology: Reversing the route to biofuels; Quantum mechanics: Ion micro-management; Cod genome reveals unusual immunology

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University recently established the Food Safety and Technology Research Centre with an aim of raising the standard of food safety by providing research, consultancy and training services to food and related industries in Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta Region.

Summaries of newsworthy papers: Predicting the success of fertilisation in mouse eggs **PRESS BRIEFING**; Enhancing rechargeable batteries; Tracking influenza A immunity; Potential new therapeutic targets for Schistosomiasis; Birds have dinosaur digits 1, 2 and 3

Summary of news: Genetic associations for human intelligence differences

Software that can identify the individual components of a chemically complex object can help museums and auction houses to authenticate ancient objects

Highly efficient organic light-emitting diodes are created by optimizing the molecular structure and device configuration

A silicon chip with integrated laser and optical grating offers new possibilities for telecommunications

Summaries of newsworthy papers: Chemical Biology: Natural products reveal new targets for cancer therapy; Methods & Biotechnology: ‘Off-targets’ of zinc-finger nucleases; Genetics: Exome sequencing of hepatocellular carcinoma

Experiments using fruit flies as a model system reveal a molecular mechanism underlying sperm morphogenesis in insects

High-speed laser measurements reveal new insights into rearrangements of light-driven chemical structures with implications for solar-energy conversion and opto-electric devices

Differences in the chemical modification of DNA within neurons from different individuals may hint at new ways of understanding the roots of mental illness

Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Genomic Medicine (CGM), together with colleagues at Kyoto University, Tsukuba University, Harvard University, and other medical institutions have identified three new loci associated with susceptibility to adult asthma in the Japanese population.

A variant of a newly identified gene is linked to increased risk of developing osteoporosis in Japanese individuals

Noise reduction in advanced computing circuits comes a step closer thanks to measurements of the noise spectrum affecting superconducting circuits

What is the legal basis for the Law of the Sea Convention 1982 in building the universal law of the sea? And can the State-Parties Consensus Decision-Making’ be a new law-making technique for the law of the sea? Certainly sea thugs will not like these questions.

Summaries of newsworthy papers: Planetary science: Moon meets moon; Evolution: Early humans out of the woods; Neuroscience: How vampire bats ‘see’ blood; Climate science: CO2 counters warming in grassland productivity and more