For the 1.3 million people who suffer renal failure each year, kidney dialysis is a major undertaking. The lengthy out-patient process requires near-daily trips to the doctor’s office to be hooked up for hours to a massive machine; making it difficult to hold a job or have a normal social life. But Victor Gura of UCLA’s Geffen School of medicine has patented and tested the holy grail of nephrology: a portable, wearable dialysis machine.

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Detecting art forgeries is an inexact science—even some certified masterpieces have a cloud of doubt over their authenticity. But in recent years James Z. Wang and his colleague Jia Li have been putting Van Gogh under the microscope to create a database they hope will eventually thwart art fakers and revolutionize the detection of forgeries. Using 23 high-resolution gray scale images known to be by Van Gogh, the Penn State team broke the images down into 2.5 x 2.5 inch squares, analyzing “wavelet” based texture features and the geometric characteristics of the master’s brushstrokes.

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You may already know about the pollution plight of Linfen, China. But how about the heavy metals Pittsburghers breathe in on a daily basis? Or the incomparable smog Milanesi put up with? PopSci has culled an eye-opening selection of some of the world's most problematic cities. From the painfully high cancer rates in Sumgayit, Azerbaijan to the acid rain destroying La Oroya, Peru, writer Jason Daley will walk you through the lowest of the low; and explain why, despite it all, there's still hope for these places.

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Caffeine wakes you up, rock stars die young and long ambulance rides aren't ideal. Sound obvious? You bet. But there's more than meets the eye here. On this week's episode of Cocktail Party Science, the writers and editors of PopSci's "Science Confirms the Obvious," talk to host Chuck Cage about the studies that make you say "duh" and why they're worth a second look.

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Scientists learn that rock stars party hard and teens buy stuff to feel cool. Well, duh. But there's more insight behind these findings than you might think.

Launch the gallery here to learn why exactly materialistic teens are insecure, vacations are better sans cell, loneliness sucks and more.

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