"Alzheimer's/Memory Mice" – Researchers have found that mice with induced memory loss are able to retrieve memories either by being put into an enriched environment or by being given a drug that promotes beneficial gene activity in their brains. Such new insights may lead to a better understanding of dementia and other memory-impairment disorders, such as Alzheimer's, in humans.  

 

 

"Hany Farid" – Is seeing believing? In this age of easy photo manipulation, sometimes only a digital detective can tell. Enter Hany Farid, professor of computer science at Dartmouth College. He developed a program that can unmask photo tampering by analyzing light sources and other subtle features in an image – a service that turns out to be in high demand, especially during political campaigns.  

 

 

 

"Wisdom of the Crowd" – Famed British scientist Sir Francis Galton (1822 to 1911), a proud aristocrat, thought he was proving the ignorance of the masses in his observation about a country-fair competition in which entrants were asked to guess the exact weight of an ox. The correct answer was 1,198 pounds; understandably, none of the 800 contestants got it exactly. "See!" said Sir Francis. "Decisions should be left to higher classes" – or sentiments to that effect. However, Sir Francis failed to realize that graphing all the guesses and determining their median produces the right answer and shows the "wisdom of the crowd