6,745 results
- Plants
The bladderwort: No ruthless microbe killer
A carnivorous plant called a bladderwort may not be a fierce predator at all but a misunderstood mutualist.
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Infection divides two wasp species
Two tiny wasp species provide the best evidence yet that infection by Wolbachia bacteria can play a role in forming species.
- Health & Medicine
Immunity’s Eyes
Proteins called toll-like receptors allow human immune cells to detect microbes.
- Health & Medicine
Ancient Estrogen
A jawless fish ancestor may have revealed the most ancient of hormones and how current hormones evolved from it.
- Tech
Soaking Up Rays
Although light shines through body parts of a primitive marine sponge much as it does through sophisticated optical fibers for telecommunications, scientists differ on whether sponges hold clues to better fibers for humankind.
- Math
White Narcissus
The elegant, swooping forms carved out of wood by sculptor Robert Longhurst often resemble gracefully curved soap films that span twisted loops of wire dipped into soapy water. Alhough these abstract sculptures bear an uncanny resemblance to mathematical forms known as minimal surfaces, they emerge from Longhurst’s imagination rather than from mathematics. An original design […]
- Astronomy
A Rocky Bicentennial
Mounting evidence that many asteroids aren't solid rock but collections of loosely bound fragments could have far-reaching implications for elucidating their internal structure, understanding planet formation, and developing strategies to mitigate the threat of one striking Earth.
- Health & Medicine
Coming to Terms with Death
Some newly recognized forms of cell death might be harnessed to aid people with cancer and other serious diseases.
- Anthropology
Evolution’s Youth Movement
The fossils of ancient children may provide insights into the evolution of modern Homo sapiens.
- Chemistry
Cosmic Chemistry Gets Creative
By simulating extraterrestrial impacts on Earth, researchers are firing away at the question of how life started.
- Paleontology
The Latest Pisces of an Evolutionary Puzzle
The recent discovery of coelacanths off the northeastern coast of South Africa was the first sighting of the rare fish in that country since the first living coelacanth, a type of fish thought to have been extinct for millions of years, was caught there in late 1938.
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