Ecosystems
‘Fen, Bog & Swamp’ reminds readers why peatlands matter
In her latest book, author Annie Proulx chronicles people’s long history with peatlands and examines the ecological value of these overlooked places.
Featured Articles in this Issue
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Cover Story
Has AlphaFold actually solved biology’s protein-folding problem?
An AI called AlphaFold predicted structures for nearly every protein known to science. Those predictions aren’t without limits, some researchers say.
Reviews & Previews
Science Visualized
Life
An award-winning photo captures a ‘zombie’ fungus erupting from a fly
The winner of the 2022 BMC Ecology and Evolution photo competition captures a macabre cycle of life and death in the Peruvian Amazon.
Notebook
Tech
Scientists turned dead spiders into robots
In a new field dubbed “necrobotics,” researchers used a syringe and some superglue to control the dead bodies of wolf spiders.
Features
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A Caribbean island gets everyone involved in protecting beloved species
Scientists on Saba are introducing island residents to conservation of Caribbean orchids, red-billed tropicbirds and urchins.
More Stories from the September 24, 2022 issue
- Neuroscience
COVID-19 gave new urgency to the science of restoring smell
With newfound pressure from the pandemic, olfactory training and a host of other newer treatments are now getting a lot more attention.
- Science & Society
A new seasoning smells like meat thanks to sugar — and mealworms
A spoonful of sugars could help cooked mealworms go down more easily, a potential boon for the planet.
- Animals
News stories have caught spiders in a web of misinformation
Nearly half of news stories about peoples’ interactions with spiders contain errors, according to a new analysis.
- Animals
Whale sharks may be the world’s largest omnivores
An analysis of the sharks’ skin shows that the animals eat and digest algae.
- Anthropology
7-million-year-old limb fossils may be from the earliest known hominid
An earlier report on one of the bones of a 7-million-year-old creature that may have walked upright has triggered scientific misconduct charges.
- Space
Physicists dispute a claim of detecting a black hole’s ‘photon ring’
A thin ring of light around a black hole, which would probe gravity in a new way, has been found, one team claims. Skeptics aren’t convinced.
- Life
Ancient ‘demon ducks’ may have been undone by their slow growth
Mihirung birds grew to more than half a ton and took their time getting there. That slow growth may have been a vulnerability when humans got to Australia.
- Planetary Science
Oort cloud comets may spin themselves to death
How icy objects from the solar system’s fringe break up as they near the sun is a long-standing mystery. One astronomer now thinks he has an answer.
- Earth
The Tonga eruption may have spawned a tsunami as tall as the Statue of Liberty
A massive undersea volcanic eruption in the South Pacific in January created a tsunami that was initially 90 meters tall, computer simulations suggest.
- Health & Medicine
‘Breathless’ explores COVID-19’s origins and other pandemic science
In his new book, David Quammen examines what we’ve learned about SARS-CoV-2 and puts the pandemic in the context of previous coronavirus scares.
