News
- Earth
Tiny minerals may have shaped Earth’s first plate boundaries
Simulations link weakened rock minerals to the origin of plate tectonics on Earth.
- Genetics
Bank voles provide clue to prion disease susceptibility
A protein from bank voles makes mice susceptible to disorders that wouldn’t otherwise infect them.
- Planetary Science
Subsurface sea hides below ice of Saturn moon
Astronomers add to evidence for a subsurface ocean on Enceladus using subtle variations in the moon’s gravity.
- Neuroscience
Paralyzed mouse legs move with burst of light
Neural patch makes leg muscles twitch in paralyzed mice when blue light shines.
- Anthropology
Bronze Age herders spread farming around Asia
Ancient seeds indicate that Central Asian animal raisers had an unappreciated impact on early agriculture.
- Genetics
Neandertal legacy written in Europeans’ fat metabolism
DNA inherited from Neandertal interbreeding may have helped people adjust to Europe’s environment.
- Animals
Zebra stripes may be mainly defense against flies
The function of zebra stripes may not be for camouflage or cooling, a new analysis finds.
- Materials Science
Light filter lets rays through from only one direction
Angle-sensitive light filter could improve photography, telescopes and solar energy harvesting.
- Neuroscience
Ten thousand neurons linked to behaviors in fly
By studying the wiggles of 37,780 fly larvae, scientists link specific neurons to 29 distinct behaviors.
- Humans
Childhood program improves health 30 years later
A preschool intervention for kids from poor families benefits their health as adults, especially among men.
- Life
First chromosome made synthetically from yeast
Work with yeast marks the first time scientists have synthesized a chromosome from organisms with complex cells and represents a major step toward lab-created eukaryotic life.
- Planetary Science
Icy rings found around tiny space rock
Astronomers discover an icy ring around the planetoid Chariklo, held in place by unseen moons.
