News
- Planetary Science
Dawn spacecraft maps water beneath the surface of Ceres
Water ice sits just beneath the surface and within some permanently shadowed craters of the dwarf planet Ceres.
- Genetics
Proteins that reprogram cells can turn back mice’s aging clock
Proteins that reprogram adult cells to an embryonic-like state can rejuvenate prematurely aging mice.
- Climate
Arctic kelp forests may create summer refuges from ocean acidification
Long summer daylight revs up carbon capture in Arctic kelp forests, offering a little relief from acidifying ocean water.
- Earth
Earth’s mantle is cooling faster than expected
The thinning of newly formed oceanic crust suggests that Earth’s mantle is cooling much faster than previously thought.
- Ecosystems
Oyster deaths linked to ‘atmospheric rivers’
Atmospheric rivers bring strong storms that could have been behind a 2011 California oyster die-off.
- Health & Medicine
Number of teens who report doing drugs falls in 2016
Drug use is down among teens, survey finds.
- Earth
Fossil microbes show how some life bounced back after dino-killing impact
Pioneering microbes colonized the waters above the Chicxulub crater within hundreds of years following the impact, new research shows.
- Astronomy
Magnetic stars could have created LIGO’s massive black holes
Strong magnetic fields could provide a way for massive stars to create heavy black holes when they die.
- Life
Cells avoiding suicide may play role in spread of cancer
A newly discovered process can pull cells back from the brink of death.
- 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.
- Life
Early RNA may have used isolation strategy to defeat useless mutants
Temporary barriers help RNA escape shorter, faster-replicating parasites
