A HEAPING HELPING: As the economy has boomed, so too has the size of a meal at the average restaurant. That's because bigger portions attract customers, according to a recent Wall Street Journal article. Adam Drewnowski, the director of the UW's nutritional science program, said there's a sociological explanation too. Because Americans want to get their money's worth, he told the Journal, "our TV screens have become huge, and so have our muffins."

GENE MACHINE: Among the revelations about our genetic makeup is one that could damage human pride - we're not much more complex than the earthworm. But in a New York Times article, Phil Green, a UW professor of biotechnology, explained the genetic difference this way: "We may have only twice as many genes as the worm but get a much greater increase in complexity from more complex interaction between the components. That saves a little bit of our pride."

CARDBOARD COSMOS: A team of researchers recently described the universe as flat, like a sheet of cardboard. The Los Angeles Times asked Craig Hogan, a physics and astronomy professor, about the team's findings. "It's like looking at the surface of a new world. It's a picture of our own past," he said.

ALCOHOL AILMENTS: Recent news of a genetic link to alcoholism made a big splash in the national media. Todd Thiele, a research scientist in psychology, found mice that lacked a gene involved with the intracellular activity of neurons were voluntarily drinking more alcohol than other mice. And, Thiele told National Geographic, these mice were recovering more quickly from alcohol's effects. "If a link is found between PKA (Protein Kinase A) activity and alcoholism in humans, drugs that modulate PKA signaling could possibly be useful for treating the disease."

TREATMENT CHOICES: Prostate cancer patients have many choices for treatment. In a recent Los Angeles Times article the UW's Paul Lange talked about some of those options. "Radiation is not quite as good as surgery at eliminating the cancer," said Lange, who is the chairman of the urology department. "But it's easier on the patient and better at preserving potency. ¶