Science | WPN World People News

For the first time, scientists have tracked the activity, across the lifespan, of an environmentally responsive regulatory mechanism that turns genes on and off in the brain’s executive hub. Among key findings of the study by National Institutes of Health scientists: genes implicated in schizophrenia and autism turn out to be members of a select club of genes in which regulatory activity peaks during an environmentally-sensitive critical period in development.

South pole of the far side of the moon as seen from the GRAIL mission's Ebb spacecraft.

Computer reconstruction of a virus shell (gray) and inner structure (magenta). In the background, a cryo-electron micrograph of viral particles with inner structures bubbling from radiation damage.

This enhanced-color image shows sand dunes trapped in an impact crater in Noachis Terra, Mars. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona

Former NFL players, Marines and their families watched the New England Patriots take on the Baltimore Ravens at a “Game Day” event hosted by the Real Warriors Campaign Sunday. Hosted at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., the event helped open a dialogue about coping with reintegration, as players shared their own stories about transitioning out of the NFL, and encouraged service members and families to reach out for support when times are tough.

Data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft show that the sizes and patterns of dunes on Saturn's moon Titan vary as a function of altitude and latitude.

The United States and the Russian Federation will send a joint team to inspect foreign stations, installations and equipment in Antarctica from January 23 to January 28, 2012. The inspection will be conducted pursuant to the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 and its Environmental Protocol. The State Department and the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will co-lead the inspection, which is the first joint inspection conducted by either country.

If you heard cheering as the new year kicked off, it wasn't all about the arrival of 2012. Some applause was from developers and data administrators welcoming the arrival of Hadoop 1.0, the open-source software framework from the Apache Software Foundation.

Where does the Denver Broncos' star quarterback Tim Tebow turn to ensure his Websites keep up with user demand and stay secure? He huddles up with Jacksonville, Fla.-based MSP and cloud-solution provider Peak 10.

This artist's concept depicts an itsy bitsy planetary system -- so compact, in fact, that it's more like Jupiter and its moons than a star and its planets.