Nature: Last August Congress and the White House passed the Budget Control Act, which set a dateâmdash;2 January 2013âmdash;by which either lawmakers figure out a way to reduce the deficit, or automatic cuts will be applied across all programs. If the latter, called “sequestration,” occurs, science programs could be especially hard hit. Because of ambiguity in how the sequestration would be carried out, the House of Representatives recently passed “transparency” legislation requiring that President Obama specify how the cuts are to be applied. If the Senate passes a parallel bill, the administration will need to provide details within 30 days.
The finding that the Saturnian moon may host layers of icy slush instead of a global ocean could change how planetary scientists think about other icy moons as well.
Modeling the shapes of tree branches, neurons, and blood vessels is a thorny problem, but researchers have just discovered that much of the math has already been done.
January 29, 2026 12:52 PM
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