This week we have stories on what the rogue Parkinson’s protein is doing in the gut, how chimps outmuscle humans, and evidence for an ancient skull cult with Online News Editor David Grimm.

Jen Golbeck is back with this month’s book segment. She interviews Alan Alda about his new book on science communication: If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face?

Sarah Crespi talks to Jeremy Kerr about two huge studies that take a nuanced looked at the relationship between pesticides and bees. Read the research in Science:

Country-specific effects of neonicotinoid pesticides on honey bees and wild bees, B.A. Woodcock et al.
Chronic exposure to neonicotinoids reduces honey bee health near corn crops, Tsvetkov et al.

Listen to previous podcasts.

[Image: webted/Flickr; Music: Jeffrey Cook]

This week we have stories on the new capabilities of science balloons, connections between deforestation and drug trafficking in Central America, and new insights into the role ancient Egypt had in taming cats with Online News Editor David Grimm.

Sara…

A new study showed how a male pheromone in mice enhances sexual behaviors in females — and how it may enhance a different behavior, aggression, in males — by identifying distinct neural circuits and neurons that generate a particular behavioral respo…

Treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) with the commonly prescribed Avodart (Dutsteride) may put men at an increased risk for diabetes, elevated cholesterol levels, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and worsening erectile dysfunction, …

HIV-positive women with CMV in their ***** at the time of labor and delivery are more than five times likelier than HIV-positive women without CMV to transmit HIV to their infants. The research also found that they are nearly 30 times likelier to trans…