National Briefs (3/12/12)

Locks of Beethoven's Hair Offer New Clues to the Mystery of His Deafness The New York Times

(WASHINGTON) — An American soldier has been arrested in Russia and accused of stealing, according to two U. S. officials. U. S. officials said the soldier, Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, 34, was stationed in South Korea and was in the process of returning home to Fort Cavazos in Texas. Instead, officials said he traveled to Russia. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss personnel details. Cynthia Smith, Army spokeswoman, confirmed that a soldier was detained on Thursday in Vladivostok, a major military and commercial Pacific port, on charges of criminal misconduct.

Israeli leaders have approved a military operation into the Gaza Strip city of Rafah, and Israeli forces are now striking targets in the area, officials announced Monday. The move came hours after Hamas announced it had accepted an Egyptian-Qatari cease-fire proposal, which could end seven months of war in Gaza. However, it’s uncertain whether a deal had been sealed.

New black hole visualization takes viewers beyond the brink Phys.org

How 'Earth's twin' Venus lost its water and became a hellish planet Space.comReason Venus is so dry 'finally discovered' New York Post Scientists May Have Solved Mystery of Venus' Lost Water NewsweekVenus water loss is dominated by HCO+ dissociative recombination Nature.comWhere Did Venus's Water All Go? We Might Have An Idea IFLScience

CRISPR Trial Provides Hope for Inherited Blindness Neuroscience NewsExperimental gene therapy restores some vision in patients with inherited blindness CNNHow CHOP restored two blind children's eyesight with gene editing The Philadelphia InquirerCHOP helps restore vision in 2 children using experimental gene editing treatment CBS NewsPioneering CRISPR Gene Editing Trial: 79% of Participants See Improvement SciTechDaily