Catalyst

1. Catalyst Attached are the catalyst mini-excerpts from scientific journals that have been or will be used in class up to the quiz on: June 5

2. analyze • autopsy • cloaca • concentration • detox • emission • erratic • ignite • metamaterial • microchimerism • mutualism • parasitic • piezoelectric • Placenta • protozoa • protrusion • psychotropic • trachea • transmit • transparent

3. The first 3D-printed handgun has been fired by hand – proving that a working pistol can be made from plastic, and creating a new nightmare for gun-control advocates. Defense Distributed designed and printed the gun out using an $8000 3D printer bought from eBay. The gun, which uses ordinary ammunition, can only fire a few shots before breaking, but the barrel is easily replaced. All the components are made from plastic, apart from the firing pin, a simple household nail. Blueprints are now online for anyone to download, and do not require this extra piece. It is legal to make guns for personal use in the US, although a license is required to sell them.

4. "This tool might be used to harm people," Defense Distributed founder Cody Wilson told Forbes magazine. "I don't think that's a reason to not put it out there. I think that liberty in the end is a better interest." "Security checkpoints, background checks and gun regulations will do little good if criminals can print plastic firearms at home," said US congressman Steve Israel.

5. Italian city air is nothing to snort at When in Rome, you get a little hit of cocaine with every breath. A study of psychotropic drug levels in ambient air from eight cities found background levels of cocaine, cannabinoids, nicotine, and caffeine in the air. The presence of these pollutants is attributed to the large student populations in the cities. The drug concentrations are much too low to have an effect on humans.

6. A new brain implant can warn of seizures minutes before they occur. Epileptic seizures are triggered by erratic brain activity. Their unpredictability makes them hazardous and disruptive for people with the condition. Scientists have developed a brain implant – a small patch of electrodes that measures brainwaves – to do just that. Over time, the device's software learns patterns of activity that indicate a seizure is about to happen. When it detects such a pattern, the implant transmits a signal through a wire to a receiver implanted under the collarbone. This unit alerts the wearer by wirelessly activating a handheld gadget with warning lights – a red light, for example, signals that a seizure is imminent.

8. Papa’s Pregnancy toughens the kids Male pipefish pregnancy may suit the females, but it’s a real boon for the offspring. In human fetuses, antibodies from the mother’s egg and others that pass across the placenta help build its developing immune system. Sperm are too small to carry antibodies, so males don’t contribute. Not so in pipefish, where the male carries the pregnancy. Scientists studied to see if the immune priming might come from both the mother’s egg and the father’s placenta-like structure. The young had strongest immune response if both parents had been exposed, signaling that both parents helped build their immune system.

11. UP TO a million Facebook accounts could be vulnerable toamethod of email hijacking that requires no programming skills or computer expertise. All you need is someone's expired Hotmail address. Microsoft retires unused Hotmail accounts after 270 days of inactivity and reassigns the email addresses to new users who request them. Facebook, meanwhile, uses an email address as a login. So an attacker can gain access to any Facebook account that uses an expired Hotmail address as a login. To find out if a target's Hotmail address has expired, an attacker can simply send a test email. If a message saying "mailbox unavailable" bounces back, they probably have a viable target.

12. Diabetes link to flu in vulnerable people The flu virus has another trick up its sleeve – it may trigger diabetes. But the good news is that this means a flu vaccination might stop one form of diabetes in people with a genetic tendency to develop it. In diabetes, cells do not take up sugar from the blood. People inherit a genetic predisposition for type 1 diabetes, where the problem stems from the immune system destroying pancreatic cells that produce insulin, the hormone that processes sugar.

13. A Pharmaceutical Treasure Trove The legalization of cannabis in the US states of Washington and Colorado might improve our patchy understanding of the health effects of cannabis, but what about lab experiments on the drug itself? We already know that cannabidiol (CBD) seems to kill breast cancer cells and is in preclinical trials for epilepsy disorders. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is a mood altering ingredient. There are more than 100 other cannabinoids. Further research could unlock the medical potential of this controversial plant.

14. VOCAB quiz TuesdayHOMEWORK due ThursdayMAKEUP WORK after school today or tomorrow