Science, August 8, 2008

Cover
Simulation of a vesicle interacting with a lipid
bilayer (lipid head groups in green and blue, tails in cyan; water is
not shown). The computation uses a coarse-grained model with over 1
million interaction sites, equivalent to more than 10 million atoms.

Special Section: Challenges in Theoretical Chemistry
Not
so long ago, Experiments in the synthetic chemistry lab tended to
proceed without detailed calculations and predictions. Today, most
organic chemists rely on the results of density functional theory (DFT)
calculations to help decide between alternative synthetic routes and to
provide guidance on structure assignments. However, such readily solved
problems are not where theoretical chemists focus their attention for
their own current day-to-day work -- rather, it is on the problems that
still defy solution. This special section highlights some areas where
theorists feel that progress can be made in the near future on problems
that will benefit their experimental colleagues in chemistry and other
disciplines.

Deciphering the Genetics of Evolution
Powerful personalities in evolutionary biology have been tussling over how the genome changes to set the stage for evolution.

Industrial-Style Screening Meets Academic Biology
A
$100-million-a-year-effort to find chemicals for exploring cellular
processes and drug discovery is about to move into production; skeptics
say it is struggling to meet its goals.

Can the Vaquita Be Saved?
Scientists are embarking on
a last-ditch effort to help the world's most endangered marine mammal
avoid the fate of its Chinese cousin, the baiji.

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