Can Curiosity Mars Mission Inspire Like Apollo? – 8/28 KQED Science News Roundup

Can Curiosity Mars mission inspire like Apollo?While it did not rise to Armstrong's "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," interest was so high in the rover Curiosity's "seven minutes of terror" approach to the red planet earlier this month that NASA's website crashed after receiving nearly 2 billion hits.

Navy sought to stifle radiation concerns about Treasure IslandShane Shifflett/The Bay Citizen As U.S. Navy officials readied a report this summer acknowledging a broader history of radioactive contamination at Treasure Island, they also sought to prevent California health officials from adding to the written record their concerns that the cleanup had been mishandled, according to internal emails.

UC Davis students work to engineer plastic-degrading bacteria - The Sacramento BeeEvery weekday this summer, 10 students from different departments at UC Davis have come together in the university's Genome Center to work on what they hope will one day be the answer to cleaning up the world's landfills.

Teen pot use linked to later declines in IQStudy participants from New Zealand were tested for IQ at age 13, likely before any significant marijuana use, and again at age 38. Richie Poulton, a study co-author and professor at the University of Otago in New Zealand, said the message of the research is to stay away from marijuana until adulthood if possible.

Prehistoric tiny bugs found trapped in amberWhile older insects have been found in rock fossils, these are different because they are not compressed and better preserved, said study lead author David Grimaldi, curator of the American Museum of Natural History in New York. Except for difference in the mouth and fewer legs, "they're dead ringers for (modern) gall mites," he said.

2nd death from hantavirus in YosemitePark officials are now contacting everyone who has stayed in the tent cabins since mid-June to warn them about the virus and advise them to seek medical attention if they have any symptoms of infection. Hantavirus is a rare viral infection carried by mice and passed to humans by the rodents' feces or urine.

Scientists Study Earthquake Swarm Hitting Southern California | KQEDHundreds of small earthquakes have shaken desert towns east of San Diego in the last few days and geologists are hoping to learn more about why these "earthquake swarms" happen. Most Californians are used to the typical earthquake pattern: one big quake followed by smaller aftershocks.