All Stories
- Quantum Physics
Vacuum’s quantum effect on light detected
Light can be polarized through interactions with empty space.
- Genetics
Epigenetic marks may help assess toxic exposure risk — someday
Exposure to things in the environment may change chemical tags on DNA and proteins, but it’s still unclear how to use that data to assess health risks.
- Materials Science
Graphene Silly Putty detects pitter-patter of spider footsteps
Sensor made of graphene and Silly Putty can detect pulse, breathing — and spider feet.
- Life
Early RNA may have used isolation strategy to defeat useless mutants
Temporary barriers help RNA escape shorter, faster-replicating parasites
- Neuroscience
Health official calls on neuroscience to fight mental illness
When it comes to mental health, all countries are developing countries, WHO official says, appealing to neuroscience for help.
- Health & Medicine
Oldest traces of smallpox virus found in child mummy
The oldest genetic evidence of smallpox comes from variola virus DNA found in a child mummy buried in a church crypt in Lithuania.
- Animals
Why crested penguins lay mismatched eggs
After long migratory swims, crested penguins lay one small and one larger egg.
- Earth
Third kind of quasicrystal found in Russian meteorite
A new quasicrystal found inside a Russian meteorite is the first ever found in nature before being synthesized in the lab.
- Life
Having an extra chromosome has a surprising effect on cancer
Extra chromosome copies may protect against, not cause, cancer.
- Ecosystems
Losing tropical forest might raise risks of human skin ulcers, deformed bones
Bacteria that cause Buruli ulcer in people flourish with tropical deforestation.
- Neuroscience
Brain waves show promise against Alzheimer’s protein in mice
Flickers of light induce brain waves that wash amyloid-beta out of the brain, mouse study suggests.
- Animals
Why a mountain goat is a better climber than you
For the first time, scientists have analyzed how a mountain goat climbs a cliff. Big muscles in the shoulder and neck help a lot, they find.
