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Newswise – We’ve written before about clothes that make you invisible. Most of us will never wear these, but lots of female cell phone and PDA users are interested in an invention called the “Power Purse,” which is covered with solar cells that can recharge batteries.

Joe Hynek started out with a hat with solar panels that can either heat or cool the wearer’s head, but not everyone considers it fashionable. He says, “A large problem with putting technology in clothing is that it looks dorky. My goal is to use solar cells in a way that?s unobtrusive to fashion while making something that?s useful.”
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The human brain is still evolving and becoming larger, according to researchers who have analyzed two genes that regulate brain size. These genes, associated with larger brain size, appeared at about the same times as the emergence of culture, agriculture, and written language in human populations. On the other hand, researchers have also discovered that brain size alone does not necessarily determine intelligence, because while bird brains are tiny, parrots are some of the most intelligent creatures on this planet.
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One thing that is consistent about viruses is that they constantly mutate. This is why new flu vaccines have to be produced every year. Now it’s been announced that avian flu has reached Europe?that’s the bad news about viruses. The good news? The virus that causes HIV, which leads to AIDS, is getting weaker.
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Birds are smarter than we think they are, perhaps because they are the descendents of dinosaurs. We think of dinos as having been huge and fairly stupid, but maybe they were actually both huge and SMART. Biologists have recently deciphered the “bee dance” that honeybees do to tell other bees where the honey is. Now they are trying to decipher bird calls.
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