Reading the Mind’s Memories
A computer program that analyzes brain scans was able to tell which of three short films people were thinking about, according to a study in the journal Current Biology. “We were able to predict just from their brain activity which of those memories they were recalling,” says Eleanor Maguire, one of the study’s authors and a professor of cognitive neuroscience at University College London. (Jon Hamilton, NPR)

“Doomsday” Global Seed Vault Hits 500,000 Deposits
“Reaching the half million mark brings mixed emotions because while it shows that the vault at Svalbard is now the gold standard for diversity, it comes at a time when our agriculture systems are really sitting on a knife’s edge,” said Cary Fowler, executive director of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, which partners with the Norwegian government and the Nordic Genetic Resource Center in Sweden in operating the vault. Fowler added, “If crops and agriculture don’t adapt to climate change, neither will humanity.” (Jeanna Bryner, LiveScience)

What Makes Superheroes Compelling?
We resonate with the themes in the stories, with the dilemmas and problems that superheroes face, and we aspire to their noble impulses and heroic acts. We identify—or would like to identify—with them (although sometimes we may identify with the villains). Superheroes are models for us, and they are modeled after us. (Robin Rosenberg, The Superheroes, Psychology Today)

Morality in Manga
Divisions can be found in genre manga, from manga which celebrate sentimentality and human compassion to manga which present the readers, and characters, with terrible moral choices. These grim-and-gritty seinen (adult) manga have roughly the same relation to normal shonen (boys’) manga as revisionist superhero comics, such as Watchmen, do to normal superhero comics. (Jason Thompson, io9)

Debate Over Social Studies Standards Continues in Texas
Republicans on the State Board of Education soundly rejected a Democratic-backed proposal that would have required Texas students to be taught the reasons behind the prohibition of a state religion in the Bill of Rights. The contentious decision in curriculum standards for U.S. government classes appeared to signal the unhappiness of several board members with court rulings that have affirmed the separation of church and state—including a longtime ban on school-sponsored prayer. (Terrence Stutz, The Dallas Morning News)

Global Atheist Convention Brings Together Nonbelievers in Melbourne
There is a determination to avoid what one session calls Atheistic Fundamentalism, says our correspondent. Participants will be urged to avoid “missionary zeal” in their determination to promote their nonreligious message to the world. (BBC News)

“In God We Trust” and “Under God”
An appellate court has upheld references to God on U.S. currency and in the Pledge of Allegiance, rejecting arguments they violate the constitutional separation of church and state. (Terence Chea, Associated Press)