5,518 results
- Ecosystems
Wildfires launch microbes into the air. How big of a health risk is that?
How does wildfire smoke move bacteria and fungi — and what harm might they do to people when they get there?
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- Paleontology
Fossilized dung from a dinosaur ancestor yields a new beetle species
Whole beetles preserved in fossilized poo suggest that ancient droppings may deserve a closer look.
- Microbes
A sailor’s story captures the impact of rising serious fungal infections
Fungal infections are hard to diagnose, hard to treat and are on the rise. A young sailor is staying positive to navigate the challenges.
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Epidemics and their aftermath
A century’s worth of science has helped us fend off infectious pathogens. But we have a lot to learn from the people who lived and died during epidemics.
- Microbes
Missing Antarctic microbes raise thorny questions about the search for aliens
Scientists couldn’t find microbial life in soils from Antarctica, hinting at a limit for habitability on Earth and other worlds.
- Microbes
Scientists stumbled across the first known manganese-fueled bacteria
A jar left soaking in an office sink helped scientists answer a century-old question of whether bacteria can use manganese for energy.
- Science & Society
What made the last century’s great innovations possible?
Science paved the way for antibiotics, lasers, computers and COVID-19 vaccines, but science alone was not enough.
- Animals
The teeth of ‘wandering meatloaf’ contain a rare mineral found only in rocks
The hard, magnetic teeth of the world’s largest chiton contain nanoparticles of santabarbaraite, a mineral never seen before in biology.
- Health & Medicine
The coronavirus may cause fat cells to miscommunicate, leading to diabetes
Researchers are homing in on a surprising cause of high blood sugar in COVID-19 patients and possibly what to do about it.
- Microbes
These climate-friendly microbes recycle carbon without producing methane
A newly discovered group of single-celled archaea break down decaying plants without adding the greenhouse gas methane to the atmosphere.
- Health & Medicine
Merck’s COVID-19 pill may soon be here. How well will it work?
Once hailed as a potential game changer, more complete data now reveal drawbacks of Merck’s antiviral COVID-19 pill, molnupiravir.
