Mastering Science: Fluorescent Fruit Flies Shed New Light!

Researchers genetically engineer glow-in-the-dark sperm in fruit flies, revealing much more about sexual selection.

Mastering Science: Geomagic - Expanding Tools for a 3-D World!

What do space shuttle safety measures and modern shoemaking have in common?

Both use a 3-D design and engineering technology that streamlines a wide range of inspection and manufacturing processes.

"Once you digitize something, you can do a lot of manipulation, storing, editing and information sharing. We have already seen it in music, we have seen it in publishing, and what Geomagic is doing is taking it to the next level," said Ping Fu, CEO of Geomagic.

The Research Triangle Park, N.C., company is the industry leader in the technology called digital shape sampling and processing, or DSSP. It starts with scanning an object--from a race car to a human body--with optical beams. A camera inside the scanner transmits millions-up-to-a-billion points to a computer.

Mastering Science: Signing Made Easy!

Nine-year-old Thomas Nelson is playing a video game called "CopyCat," which is a unique and fun way to learn sign language. Thomas was 2 years old when doctors determined he was profoundly deaf. His mother, Cheryl Nelson, says he couldn't hear the sound of a honking horn from an oncoming truck.

Mastering Science: Sleep Deprived Kids!

We all know kids, especially, need a good night's sleep in order to thrive. After studying thousands of children, psychologist Mona El-Sheikh, a professor of child development, says children who don't get enough shut-eye suffer serious consequences.

Mastering Science: Breast Cancer and Body Rhythms!

Could working the night shift alter a woman's body clock enough to cause breast cancer?
"One minute you're a healthy person, the next minute you have breast cancer."

Ettamay (last name withheld) is up early these days. She lives a much different life than she did when she was a nurse working the night shifts. She would be just getting to sleep at this early morning hour.

"I was always exhausted," she says. "I don't know any of the nurses, especially the night shift gals, that weren't exhausted all the time."

She wonders if her crazy work schedule might have contributed to her breast cancer.

Virginia Tech molecular biologist Carla Finkielstein says studies back up Ettamay's suspicions.

Mastering Science: Fascinating Flight!

Using wind tunnels, lasers and high-speed cameras, University of Montana researcher Ken Dial studies ground birds for clues about the origins and mechanics of flight.

Mastering Science: Hidden Oil and Gas Plumes in the Gulf!

Below the surface, thousands of marine creatures are still in danger from Gulf oil disaster. University of Georgia oceanographer Samantha Joye, like most scientists, always has a plan. Especially when it involves complex, expensive research cruises.