Corot-7b, a rocky
exoplanet, suggests
that Earth-like worlds
may be common around
other stars. Insets, from
left: Einstein cogitating,
humans evolving, a
swine flu virus lurking.
A special report on 100
astonishing discoveries from
the past year—the
ideas and breakthroughs
that are reshaping our
understanding of the world.
DISCOVER ON THE
WEB Videos, breaking
news, and more
—the latest is online at
discovermagazine.com
AND AMONG THE REST BIOLOGY Cut calories and extend your life 39,
The smell of fear 66, Chimps plan ahead 70 SPACE Water on the moon
35, A space-junk collision 54, Venus’s secret past 66 EVOLUTION The
next stage in Darwin’s revolution 50, An ancient croc-eating super-
snake 62, The world’s oldest octopuses 77 ASTRONOMY Twin black
holes 53, Titan: cloudy with a chance of storms 57, Jupiter takes a hit 72
ENVIRONMENT Arctic scientist Mark Serreze 60, Species relocation 80
MEDICINE Hope for HIV vaccine 34, Craig Venter’s synthetic biology 40,
Cancer genes go to court 55 ENERGY Smart grid powers up 48,
Building the sun in the lab 68, Microbial batteries 82 MIND Brain shock
therapy 38, Decoding the Jefferson cipher 64 ANTHROPOLOGY Ancient
;utes 54, Lake Huron hides Ancient civilization 82 PHYSICS Black hole
in a lab 70 TECHNOLOGY Theory-generating computer 39 EARTH Origins
of oxygen 77 OBITUARIES 86 . . . and a complete index on page 88.
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
Mail 6
Contributors 7
Editor’s Note 8
Vital Signs 10
An elderly couple visit
their doctor to ;nd out
which one of them has
Alzheimer’s.
By H. Lee Kagan
The Brain 14
Neuroscientists begin
to ;gure out how we
experience fear.
By Carl Zimmer
3
20 Things
You Didn’t Know About
Dwarf Planets 96
