Here's today's roundup of science, nature and environment news from the Bay Area and beyond.
Scientists make curing HIV a priorityAn influential group of scientists gathered this week at the International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C., is committing to a goal that just five years ago would have seemed ludicrous: to cure HIV.


Alzheimer's Drug Fails Its First Clinical TrialThe most closely watched experimental treatment for Alzheimer's disease proved ineffective in its first clinical trial, dealing a blow to the field, to a theory about the cause of the disease, and to the three companies behind the drug.

Bill Gates says much more work needed to turn tide of AIDSWASHINGTON | Mon Jul 23, 2012 9:38pm EDT WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Philanthropist and AIDS prevention advocate Bill Gates said on Monday there had been significant advances in the fight against HIV/AIDS, but he was not ready to say the world was "turning the tide" on the disease, the theme of this week's International AIDS Conference.

Leatherbacks return on heels of jelliesMarine biologists expect reports of more sightings as the world's largest sea turtles migrate more than 6,000 miles into their feeding grounds along the California coast from nesting beaches far off in the South Pacific.

Social deprivation hurts child brain development, study findsChildren who grow up in institutions instead of with families have major deficits in brain development, a study of Romanian orphans has shown. The findings, published online Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, underscore the importance of an enriched environment during infancy and childhood and may help explain the increased rates of depression and anxiety disorders known to exist among institutionalized children.
