Life
- Life
Crabs left the sea not once, but several times, in their evolution
A new study is the most comprehensive analysis yet of the evolution of “true crabs.”
- Chemistry
‘Most Delicious Poison’ explores how toxins rule our world
In his debut book, Noah Whiteman tours through chemistry, evolution and world history to understand toxins and how we’ve come to use them.
- Life
Bonobos, like humans, cooperate with unrelated members of other groups
Cooperation between unrelated individuals in different groups without clear and immediate benefit was thought to be uniquely human. Its presence in bonobos may help explain its evolution.
- Neuroscience
Brain scans give clues to how teens handle pandemic stress
A study that followed hundreds of teenagers during the COVID-19 pandemic may explain why some people succumb to stress while others are more resilient.
- Health & Medicine
Why Huntington’s disease may take so long to develop
Repeated bits of the disease-causing gene pile up in some brain cells. New treatments could involve stopping the additions.
- Microbes
Evolutionary virologist Daniel Blanco-Melo seeks out ancient pathogens
Daniel Blanco-Melo has reconstructed two viral strains brought to the Americas with European colonizers in the 16th century.
- Animals
How hummingbirds fly through spaces too narrow for their wings
Using high-speed cameras, a new study reveals Anna’s hummingbirds turn sideways to shimmy through gaps half as wide as their wingspan.
- Life
Head lice hitched a ride on humans to the Americas at least twice
The genes of head lice record the story of their human hosts’ global voyages.
- Animals
The mysterious deaths of dozens of Zimbabwe’s elephants has been solved
A bacterium never before identified in elephants or implicated in deadly internal hemorrhaging killed Zimbabwe elephants in 2020, genetic tests show.
- Animals
Here’s how high-speed diving kingfishers may avoid concussions
Understanding the genetic adaptations that protect the birds’ brains when they dive for food might one day offer clues to protecting human brains.
- Neuroscience
In a Jedi-like feat, rats can move a digital object using just their brain
In a new study, rats could imagine their way through a 3-D virtual world, hinting at how brains can think about places that they’re not physically in.
- Physics
How neutron imaging uncovers hidden secrets of fossils and artifacts
The technique can complement X-ray scanning and other tools to uncover details of dinosaur fossils, mummies and more.
