Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- 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.
- Animals
Dogs form memories of experiences
New experiments suggest that dogs have some version of episodic memory, allowing them to recall specific experiences.
- Archaeology
Ancient cemetery provides peek into Philistines’ lives, health
Burial site offers new look at Israelites’ mysterious enemies.
- Archaeology
Glassmaking may have begun in Egypt, not Mesopotamia
Ancient Mesopotamians lagged behind Egyptians as glassmakers.
- Health & Medicine
Old blood carries risks for brain
Young blood may not save the brain, by one measure at least.
- Health & Medicine
A Pap smear can scoop up fetal cells for genome testing
Pap smear during pregnancy could offer an early way to test for fetal genetic disorders.
- Archaeology
For some early monks, impaired hearing amplified sounds of silence
Middle-ear ailments probably had little impact on early Christian monks’ lives.
- Humans
Oldest alphabet identified as Hebrew
Contested study indicates ancient Israelites developed first alphabet from Egyptian hieroglyphics.
- Health & Medicine
This week in Zika: Vaginal vulnerability, disease double trouble and more
Puerto Rico cases of Zika suggest that the virus prefers women. And two new findings reveal more about Zika’s transmission and ability to survive outside the body.
