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Some of you know this already: A new report from the U.K. says summers in the city are hotter than ever. And they’re going to get even hotter in the future, thanks to global warming.

Why are cities so much hotter than the surrounding countryside? Climatologist Richard Betts says it’s because the traffic heats them up more and they retain that heat longer. Roads and sidewalks soak up heat during the daytime, which is released gradually at night, which is why they’re called “urban heat islands.” In contrast, fields and forests get rid of their stored heat quickly. If carbon dioxide in the atmosphere doubles, it will TRIPLE the heat island effect.
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A biologist says that some people are genetically programmed to be unfaithful to their partners. He’s found that if one female twin has a history of infidelity, the chances that her sister will too is about 55%, and this is strongest in identical twins, who have the same genes. He studied women instead of men because only about 23% of females are unfaithful. However, another researcher has fond a gene that, when inserted into the brain of a male rodent, can change promiscuous critters into faithful partners.
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If we meet up with aliens, will we be able to talk to each other? We can’t even understand the language of some of the creatures that live right here on Earth with us.

Astronomer Guy Consolmagrio says, “[It’s possible] we find an intelligent civilization and there’s no way in creation we can communicate with them because they’re so alien to us. We can’t talk to dolphins now.”

Scientists have long been studying how chimpanzees, whales, parrots and dolphins communicate. Now they’ve added dogs to the list. “For psychologists, dogs may be the new chimpanzees,” says researcher Paul Bloom. “Dog owners often boast about the communicative and social abilities of their pets, and this study seems to vindicate them.”
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Scientists at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have found mouse traces in 82% of U.S. homes just like yours. Samples were collected from 75 randomly selected areas across the country. The 831 homes tested were in all parts of the U.S. (the northeast, southeast, midwest, southwest, northwest), all housing types, and in urban, suburban, and rural settings.

Researchers looked for evidence in dust samples from kitchen and living room floors, upholstered furniture, beds, and bedroom floors. Kitchen floor concentrations were the highest?enough to cause allergies and asthma. Residents of high-rise apartments and mobile homes had the largest amounts.
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