Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Anthropology
Rare books covered with seal skin hint at a medieval trade network
The furry seal skins may have made their way to French monasteries from as far away as Greenland.
- Health & Medicine
The U.S. measles outbreak shows no signs of slowing
As a second Texas child dies from the preventable disease, HHS Secretary Kennedy is now urging measles vaccination yet still touting unproven treatments.
- Archaeology
Ancient Arabian cymbals ring up Bronze Age musical connections
Copper instruments discovered at a 4,000-year-old site in Oman echo ritual influences from South Asia.
- Health & Medicine
How U.S. public health cuts could raise risks of infectious diseases
Deep funding cuts and widespread layoffs impact everything from local public health outreach to global disease surveillance, making us more vulnerable, experts warn.
- Health & Medicine
A shingles vaccine may also help reduce dementia risk
Analysis of a Welsh program offering live-attenuated shingles vaccines to people born after a certain date showed a 20 percent relative drop in dementia risk.
- Health & Medicine
Skin cells emit slow electric pulses after injury
The electric skin cell signals, which move at glacial pace compared to those in nerve cells, may play a role in initiating healing.
- Health & Medicine
A new antifungal drug works in a surprising way
Mandimycin, which targets a different essential fungi cell resource than other antifungal drugs, should harm other cell types as collateral — but doesn’t.
- Archaeology
Neandertal-like tools found in China present a mystery
A style of primitive stone tools named for the French site where they were first discovered have shown up half a world away.
- Artificial Intelligence
AI is helping scientists decode previously inscrutable proteins
A new set of artificial intelligence models could make protein sequencing even more powerful for better understanding cell biology and diseases.
- Microbes
Elite athletes’ poop may hold clues to boosting metabolism
In a small study, mice given fecal transplants from elite cyclists and soccer players had higher levels of glycogen, a key energy source.
- Health & Medicine
Surgeons transplanted a pig’s liver into a human
A genetically modified mini pig’s liver was able to function in the body of a brain-dead patient throughout a 10-day experiment.
- Genetics
What 23andMe’s bankruptcy means for your genetic data
As 23andMe prepares to be sold, Science News spoke with two experts about what’s at stake and whether consumers should delete their genetic data.
