Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Archaeology
Ancient European households combined the rich and poor
Homes combined “haves” and “have-nots” in a male-run system, suggests a study that challenges traditional views of ancient social stratification.
- Humans
Nepal is reeling from an unprecedented dengue outbreak
As climate change opens new regions to mosquitoes, Nepal suffers an outbreak of the painful viral disease that has sickened more than 9,000 people.
- Health & Medicine
Discovery of how cells sense oxygen wins the 2019 medicine Nobel
Understanding the molecular switch that lets cells cope with oxygen has implications for everything from metabolism to wound healing.
- Health & Medicine
The U.S. narrowly eked out a measles win, keeping elimination status
The risk of measles, while low in the United States, still remains due to undervaccinated areas and international travelers importing the virus.
- Neuroscience
Dueling brain waves during sleep may decide whether rats remember or forget
In a slumbering rat, two distinct kinds of brain waves have opposite jobs.
- Health & Medicine
Men with breast cancer have lower survival rates than women
Men with breast cancer don’t fare as well as women. To expand treatment options, the U.S. FDA is encouraging drug companies to include men in studies.
- Health & Medicine
Seth Shipman recorded a movie in DNA — and that’s just the beginning
Seth Shipman is developing tools that may reveal hidden biological processes.
- Neuroscience
Maryam Shanechi designs machines to read minds
Maryam Shanechi creates computer programs that link brain and machine to one day help patients with paralysis or psychiatric disorders.
- Genetics
Stanley Qi gives CRISPR a makeover to redefine genetic engineering
By adapting CRISPR/Cas9, Stanley Qi has given genetic engineers a plethora of new tools.
- Health & Medicine
Rare eastern equine encephalitis has killed 9 people in the U.S. in 2019
2019 is the worst eastern equine encephalitis outbreak since tracking began in 2003, with 31 cases and nine deaths from the brain infection so far.
- Humans
Human embryos have extra hand muscles found in lizards but not most adults
In developing human embryos, muscles are made, then lost, in a pattern that mirrors the appearance of the structures during evolution.
- Humans
Personalized diets may be the future of nutrition. But the science isn’t all there yet
How a person responds to food depends on more than the food itself. But what exactly is still a confusing mix of genes, microbes and other factors.
