Cryo-EM visualizes central dogma of molecular biology
Using cryo-electron microscopy, researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have provided the first step-by-step look at the biomolecular machinery of transcription initiation.
Academics
Illinois middle, high schools take 5Essentials survey
Illinois's middle and high school students, parents, teachers, and other school officials are being asked to complete a statewide survey, "5Essentials," that could help guide schools to better student learning.
On same day, meteor hits Earth, asteroid just misses
A meteor hits Russia, injuring hundreds of people, and an asteroid comes closer to Earth than the geosynchronous orbits of most telecommunications satellites.
Md. state bd. member to receive Nat'l Medal of Science
Dr. S. James Gates Jr., a member of the Maryland State Board of Education, will be among 12 outstanding researchers to be awarded with this year’s National Medal of Science, the White House has announced.
Theft of school funds: 2 Chicago-area cases
Two cases of theft of school funds this year lead us to examine the elements of theft, as found in research: a motivated perpetrator, the presence of the target, and favorable conditions at the location of the crime.
The Constitution & a state championship series
Editorial judgement in our ongoing report of a poll about the possibility of an Illinois state championship series in marching band developed by the IHSA requires us to look at a case appealed last year to the Seventh Circuit.
Confused about polar ice cap melting? So were we.
Scientists who study glaciers have come to a consensus about just how fast the great ice sheets are melting, ending years of debate about the exact number.
School's liability in bullying gets another test
Parents of a deceased bullying victim are suing the school, claiming school officials did too little to stop the bullying. The school argues that they're not liable based on a Supreme Court case from 1999.
1st Amendment safe in political patronage jobs
A 3-judge panel on the Seventh Circuit found that a city could demote a commissioner based on his political affiliation. Doing so does not violate the commissioner's 1st-Amendment rights.
Moon near Jupiter for 2nd time in November
We present some photos we took as Jupiter and the moon traversed the evening sky for the second time in the calendar month of November.