Knowing some details about our upcoming issues can make it easier for teachers to make their lesson plans. We will post information as soon as we are alerted by our editorial staff. However, because the field of science changes so rapidly, we reserve the right to change topics and content whenever appropriate -- and we'll post the changes here.

All kids are fascinated by birth, especially their own. This issue will look at embryology; multiple births; pix from the womb (Doppler and ultrasound); girl or boy?; baby in trouble; testing, testing; Dad’s influence on the developing fetus, creature births. (Query deadline, May 30, 2008)

Cities are home to half of the world’s 6.6 billion people. This issue will look at the present and future of cities: traffic, architecture, sprawl, patterns and scale, crowd psychology, noise and other health issues, “eco-cities,” natural disasters and terrorism, vertical farms, “supercities,” cities without us. (Query deadline, June 16, 2008)

Grain is in short supply. Increasing populations, use of farmlands to grow biofuel crops, and increased feed consumption to produce meat for China are all depleting stores. This issue will take a new look at the chemistry of bread-making and the grains and techniques used. New and old grains; “miracle “ wheat; why bread rises; yeast vs. sourdough; the whole-grain advantage; all about gluten and celiac disease; it’s a bake-off! (Query deadline, July 7, 2008)

Carbon dioxide has turned Earth into a greenhouse and is acidifying our oceans. But without carbon-based molecules, life as we know it would not be. This issue will look at carbon as the basis for life and as the culprit that could change our planet forever. Computers made of diamond, flat carbon that’s faster than silicon for electronics, the nanopencil, buckyballs, carbon capture and carbon markets. (Query deadline, August 1, 2008)

Humans have a love/hate relationship with sharks. They are fascinating on a movie screen, but terrifying in the surf. This issue will look at their importance to the ocean ecosystem, their amazing “sixth sense” (electroreception), various species (whale, basking, wobbegong, etc.), declining populations, the shark “superhighway,” shark finning, how to stay safe while swimming, and more. (Query deadline, September 3, 2008)

Scientists are discovering that play is essential for brain development. What is “play”? Why did it evolve? Styles of play: positive (running, chasing, shooting hoops) vs. negative (teasing, hurting, bullying). Is play a thing of the past or here to stay? Is school recess worthwhile or lost time? What are the results of play deprivation; all about playgrounds, the brain, behavior, and play. (Query deadline, October 30, 2008)

Will there ever be hovering cars that lift us off to school and work? Or are we permanently grounded as energy issues dominate transportation? How close are we to hydrogen-powered cars? Automobiles are “smart,” but how smart will they get? A look at Segway and other innovative ways to get around. Commercial rides to space. New Space Shuttle on the drawing board. Progress in teleportation. (Query deadline, Nov. 28 , 2008)

The various fossil species of humans have tongue-twisting names like Australopithecus Africanus. But when did early humans gain language themselves? With more than 20 species and still counting, understanding the origin of humans can be confusing. This issue will look at the earliest species to contemporary homo sapiens and at scientists’ amazing odyssey to discover who we are and where we came from. (Query deadline Dec. 30, 2008)

If science had a saint or all-time superstar, it would be Albert Einstein. This issue will take a fresh look at the man of reason and logic, the pacifist, the musician, his miracle year (1905), the power of the equation; Einstein’s brain; Einstein’s dream: a “theory of everything.”(Query deadline Jan. 29, 2009)

Because the body of scientific knowledge is constantly growing and changing, the topics of ODYSSEY's upcoming issues are not determined far in advance. ODYSSEY's editors and writers work closely with today's leading scientists so that our readers can enjoy the latest developments in the fascinating world of science.