Well

Men’s Use of Testosterone on the Rise

By ANAHAD O'CONNOR

A new report shows that the number of older and middle-aged men prescribed the hormone has tripled since 2001, raising concerns about abuse and mistreatment.

Essay

What Makes a Jewish Mother

By CAREN CHESLER

A spiritual struggle for some women connected to children by birth, but not by DNA.

Plastic Bags to Keep Premature Babies Warm

By DONALD G. M cNEIL J r.

In poor countries, simple plastic bags are an alternative to the sterile plastic wrap used to regulate the body temperature of very premature babies in the United States, a study suggests.

Well

Microsampling Air Pollution

By PETER ANDREY SMITH and MAYETA CLARK

New portable sensors allow users, often citizen scientists, to record minuscule fluctuations in air quality in a neighborhood, on a floor of a building or in a bus.

Throat Cancer Link to Oral Sex Gains Notice

By ANAHAD O’CONNOR

Scientists have documented a steep rise in throat cancers caused by HPV that can be transmitted through oral sex. Now, about 70 percent of all throat cancers are caused by HPV.

Promising New Cancer Drugs Empower the Body’s Own Defense System

By ANDREW POLLACK

The drugs work by unleashing the immune system to attack cancer cells, much as it attacks bacteria or other foreign invaders in the human body

Device From Israeli Start-Up Gives the Visually Impaired a Way to Read

By JOHN MARKOFF

A company has developed a camera-based system intended to give the visually impaired the ability to both “read” easily and move freely.

Polio Virus Discovered in Sewage From Israel

By DONALD G. McNEIL Jr.

The discovery of the virus was the first in the country since 2002, the World Health Organization said, but no newly paralyzed children or adults have been identified.

Growing Left, Growing Right

By CARL ZIMMER

Our bodies start out symmetrical, but then things start moving. How this happens (and how it can go wrong) is a rich field of study.

Books

In the Pursuit of Longevity

By ABIGAIL ZUGER, M.D.

Two new books offer insights on trying to bend mind and matter to stop or reverse the ravages of time.

F.D.A. Scientists Find No Serious Misconduct in Avandia Drug Tests

By KATIE THOMAS

As an F.D.A. advisory panel revisits the debate around the diabetes drug Avandia, a report by staff scientists has found no fraud in its clinical trial.