Anthropology
‘First Face of America’ explores how humans reached the New World
New documentary shows how an ancient teen and an infant have illuminated scientists’ understanding of the peopling of the Americas.
Reviews & Previews
Science Visualized
Animals
Why some birds of paradise have ultrablack feathers
Birds of paradise have superblack feathers because of tilted, spiky microscopic features in their feathers.
Notebook
Animals
Robot fish shows how the deepest vertebrate in the sea takes the pressure
Tests with a robot snailfish reveal why the deep-sea fish has mysterious goo in its body.
Features
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Somewhere in the brain is a storage device for memories
New technology and new ideas spur the hunt for the physical basis of memory.
More Stories from the February 3, 2018 issue
- Earth
A sinking, melting ancient tectonic plate may fuel Yellowstone’s supervolcano
The subduction of an ancient tectonic plate may be the driving force behind Yellowstone’s volcanic eruptions.
- Artificial Intelligence
Ask AI: How not to kill online conversations
Tips on not being a conversation-killer, courtesy of an AI that studied over 60,000 Reddit threads.
- Microbes
These disease-fighting bacteria produce echoes detectable by ultrasound
Ultrasound can help keep tabs on genetically modified bacteria to better fight disease inside the body.
- Oceans
Corals are severely bleaching five times as often as in 1980
Corals are now bleaching more frequently and severely than they were in the early 1980s.
- Anthropology
‘Laid-back’ bonobos take a shine to belligerents
Unlike people, these apes gravitate toward those who are unhelpful.
- Life
A key virus fighter is implicated in pregnancy woes
In mice, activating a key component of the body’s antiviral machinery in response to a Zika infection can cause harm to developing fetuses.
- Animals
Blowflies use drool to keep their cool
Personal air conditioning the blowfly way: Dangle a droplet of saliva and then reswallow.
- Astronomy
White dwarf’s inner makeup is mapped for the first time
The first map of the internal composition of a white dwarf star shows these stellar corpses contain more oxygen than expected, challenging stellar evolution theories.
- Genetics
CRISPR gene editor could spark immune reaction in people
Immune reactions could shut down CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing.
- Particle Physics
Magnets with a single pole are still giving physicists the slip
Using data from particle accelerators and dead stars, scientists eliminate some possible masses for magnetic monopoles.
- Materials Science
This artificial cartilage gets its strength from the stuff in bulletproof vests
One of the key ingredients in this artificial cartilage is a nanoversion of the synthetic fiber in body armor.
- Neuroscience
Protein helps old blood age the brains of young mice
Increased levels of one protein in old blood may contribute to its aging effects on the brain, a mouse study suggests.
- Health & Medicine
Not all strep infections are alike and it may have nothing to do with you
Add-on genes in some bacteria shape the way strains interact with the immune system.
- Astronomy
Trio of dead stars upholds a key part of Einstein’s theory of gravity
A cosmic test fails to topple the strong equivalence principle.
- Astronomy
Spaceships could use blinking dead stars to chart their way
Timing signals from five pulsars allowed scientists to pinpoint an experiment’s place in space.
- Animals
The mystery of vanishing honeybees is still not definitively solved
The case has never been fully closed for colony collapse disorder, and now bees face bigger problems.
- Health & Medicine
50 years ago, IUDs were deemed safe and effective
50 year ago, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration declared intrauterine devices safe and effective, though officials didn’t know how the IUDs worked.
