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A picture of a hydra, from the Encyclopedia of Life Upon first glance, hydra seem like remarkably simple creatures. The basic description of a hydra would be a tube closed at one end with tentacles surrounding a mouth on the other, made of fragile tissue that can be as slim as two cells thick.

A popular school of thought, dramatized in the recent TV drama Lie to Me , is that a careful study of facial expressions--especially eye movements--tells investigators if a perp is dissembling. Reality is neither as dramatic nor as decisive. Even experienced investigators average only about a 65 percent success rate, according to researchers.

Three books suggest ways to improve your life.

You are covered with fungus right now. But wouldn't it be cooler if you did it on purpose

Anyone who has ever devoured a triple-chocolate brownie after an intense workout knows how tempting it can be to indulge after behaving virtuously.

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By Susan Guyett and John D. [More]

Is it possible to use more of our brain? [More]

March 1962 [More]

Storms are pushing into the southern Appalachians, bringing the potential for

UPDATE: See our latest skywatching tips to see Mars at opposition here: Mars Visible in Night Sky, But Its 2 Moons Are Hard to Spot [More]

Now's a great time to break out that backyard telescope. Because Saturday, March 3, is the Mars Opposition . It's one of the times that the Earth and Mars pass the closest to one another

By Edwin Cartlidge of Nature magazine The research on which this story is based has now been published in the New Journal of Physics . [More]

After the March 11, 2011, earthquake and tsunami crippled Japan's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, worry about the unfolding nuclear accident quickly commandeered international headlines.

Check out this video, where nine palm-sized