Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
Oldest traces of smallpox virus found in child mummy
The oldest genetic evidence of smallpox comes from variola virus DNA found in a child mummy buried in a church crypt in Lithuania.
- Life
Having an extra chromosome has a surprising effect on cancer
Extra chromosome copies may protect against, not cause, cancer.
- Ecosystems
Losing tropical forest might raise risks of human skin ulcers, deformed bones
Bacteria that cause Buruli ulcer in people flourish with tropical deforestation.
- Neuroscience
Brain waves show promise against Alzheimer’s protein in mice
Flickers of light induce brain waves that wash amyloid-beta out of the brain, mouse study suggests.
- Science & Society
Virtual reality raises real risk of motion sickness
New research confirms anecdotal reports that virtual reality headsets can cause motion sickness, and may affect women more than men.
- Health & Medicine
Database provides a rare peek at a human embryo’s first weeks
A new 3-D atlas charts the growth of each and every organ in the developing human embryo, from the heart to the gut to the brain.
- Psychology
You’ve probably been tricked by fake news and don’t know it
In the fight against falsified facts, the human brain is both the weakest link and our only hope.
- Anthropology
Readers ponder hominid hookups and more
Neandertal evolution, quantum internet and more in reader feedback.
- Astronomy
Scientific success depends on finding light in darkness
Editor in chief Eva Emerson discusses using cleverness and persistence to uncover scientific truths.
- Anthropology
Buff upper arms let Lucy climb trees
Australopithecus afarensis’ heavily built arms supported tree climbing, scans of Lucy’s fossils suggest.
- Life
Mitochondria variants battle for cell supremacy
Some mitochondria are more competitive than others, which could complicate treatments for mitochondrial diseases.
- Health & Medicine
Low social status leads to off-kilter immune system
Low social status tips immune system toward inflammation seen in chronic diseases, a monkey study shows.
