Under California’s Proposition 65 law, products containing chemicals that may cause cancer, birth defects or reproductive toxicity must carry a warning label at their point of sale. Among such products: pricy balsamic and red-wine vinegars that contain lead. At least some California groceries apparently have taken a conservative approach and post labels suggesting all such vinegars are dangerously tainted. Although they aren't.

Tiny metal nanoparticles can damage DNA, essentially by triggering toxic gossip.

Some cash register receipts offer the potential for relatively large exposures to an estrogen mimic.

Charles K. Kao wins for discoveries enabling fiber-optic communication, and Willard S. Boyle and George E. Smith win for inventing the charge-coupled device (p. 14)

View the question sheet / student exercises at the bottom of this article.When Persi Diaconis was a kid, his favorite hangout was the magic store. He and his friends goofed around, practiced their tricks and longed for the books and tools. Then one day, in walked the world’s greatest living magician. Diaconis, a thirteen-year-old whippersnapper, decided to show off his card tricks. The great magician, Dai Vernon, was so impressed that he decided to teach the teenager a few new things. Each time the pair met in the shop, Vernon taught Diaconis a bit more. And within a year, Vernon offered ...

It took herculean effort, but Madagascar crafters created an extraordinary piece of woven art from spider silk.

An accelerator-based neutron-production system is being designed to cull bombs at risk of exploding prematurely — and make the feedstock for a major isotope used in nuclear medicine.

New model may lead to better treatments for chronic, blood-deprived sores