Butterflies have taken their colors and flash seriously--into the ultraviolet wavelengths where humans cannot see, but butterflies can. They utilize pigments and nanoscale structures that make human nanofabrication look downright crude, and make female butterflies swoon. (full text in SOLS News)

Many adolescents in the United States are already drinking alcohol or using drugs by the time they are exposed to prevention messages. But new research from ASU social workers shows that it's never too late to intervene. Their findings indicate that prevention messages can reverse the course of alcohol use even after students have started experimenting. --by Debra Palka

Nearly 197,400 Arizona families lack an affordable home. Residents in one of every 10 households live in substandard conditions. Arizona continues to suffer from a substantial shortage of permanent, affordable homes for working families, but the state’s population continues to mushroom at a rapid pace.

Researchers at ASU’s Stardust Center have one major goal: Design and build homes using materials and techniques that are affordable and ecologically friendly. --by Leah Hardesty

By crystallizing and imaging photosystem I, scientists are learning how the 2.5-billion-year-old process of photosynthesis actually works. --by Diane Boudreau

When it comes to the social behavior of honeybees, evolution may have taught old genes some new tricks.--by Dan Jenk

Studying affection may sound fascinating, but how exactly does one measure expressions of fondness or love? --by Diane Boudreau

"A person undergoing a standsill has no breath, no heartbeat, no blood flow, no viable temperature, and most important, no brainwaves or other brain activity that clinically define being alive," writes Edward J. Sylvester in his book on brain surgery, The Healing Blade. In his writing, Sylvester turns complicated science into ordinary language. He also sets a scene, offering his readers a glimpse into the thoughts and feelings of surgeons, patients, and their families. (part three in a three-part series) --by Melissa Olson-Petrie

Stephen J. Pyne doesn’t begin his writings on wildland fires by analyzing his audience, as most writers are advised to do. Likening the "general reader" to the myth of the Sasquatch, this author of nearly 20 books says he focuses on establishing a strong voice instead. (part two in a three-part series) --by Melissa Olson-Petrie

"A flurry of movements in and around the dried flower stalks of the big brittlebush in the middle of the yard catch my eye, and I wander over to see what’s up. There I find a mob of small native bees flying from flower stalk to flower stalk," writes naturalist John Alcock. The author of nine books, Alcock teaches graduate-level "popular science writing," teaching students how to turn the arcane and incomprehensible into something relevant and beautiful. Part one in a three-part series. --by Melissa Olson-Petrie

How does a student find a research position? ASU undergraduate researchers offer some advice. --by Linley Erin Hall

Maintaining the boundary between work and home has always been tricky. Cell phones, PDAs and laptops make the task even more difficult. Blake Ashforth studies the ways in which people maintain their personal/professional boundaries. --by Carrie Barnett

As the world's urban areas grow at an increasingly rapid pace, humankind must find ways to apply theoretical knowledge and scientific research more strategically--and more quickly. --by Jessica McCann

When ASU cell biologist Robby Roberson looks through a microscope, he sees works of art. --by Diane Boudreau