News
- Health & Medicine
Calcium’s possible role in Alzheimer’s
A new study in mice finds that plaques associated with Alzheimer’s wreak havoc on calcium’s role in cell signaling.
- Paleontology
Soft tissue in fossils still mysterious
New research suggests modern biofilms could contaminate ancient fossils.
By Sid Perkins - Health & Medicine
To catch a cheat
Drug test cheaters find quick fixes on the Web, but toxicologists aren’t so easily fooled.
- Life
Nature’s chronic boozers
Tree shrews pub-crawl nightly from flower to flower for fermented palm nectar.
By Susan Milius - Health & Medicine
Statins versus dementia
Statins, developed to fight cholesterol, may also prevent some dementia, a study of older Hispanics finds.
By Nathan Seppa - Computing
Building ‘The Matrix’
Simulating new materials could help in building them — but only quantum simulators could fully model reality. A team reports a first step in realizing quantum simulation.
- Health & Medicine
A chink in flu’s armor
Finding the shape of a protein that enables the flu virus to replicate points to ways to combat the disease.
- Ecosystems
Nomadic ants hunt mushrooms
A species of ants not well understood surprises researchers with a nomadic lifestyle, roaming the rainforest on fungal forays.
By Susan Milius - Psychology
Core calculations
Number words may serve as mental tools for expanding on basic, nonverbal numerical knowledge rather than as determinants of such knowledge.
By Bruce Bower - Humans
Toddlers triumphant
In new studies, toddlers display dramatic advances in object recognition that may underlie verbal and symbolic achievements.
By Bruce Bower - Health & Medicine
Protein links metabolism and circadian rhythms
Scientists have known for ages that metabolism is tied to the body’s daily rhythms. Two new studies suggest how.
- Physics
Watching the northern lights form
Scientists may have solved the mystery of what triggers the events that spark the northern and southern lights.