Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Health & Medicine
A bizarre video of eyeballs illustrates our pupils shrink with age
Pupil size can decrease up to 0.4 millimeters per decade, hinting at why it can be increasingly harder for people to see in dim light as they age.
- Humans
Does social status shape height?
A controversial idea drawing on findings from the animal kingdom suggests there’s more to human stature than genetics and nutrition.
- Archaeology
Ancient Egyptian scribes’ work left its mark on their skeletons
Years of hunching over, chewing pens and gripping brushes left the skeletons of Egyptian scribes with telltale marks of arthritis and other damage.
- Health & Medicine
Honeybees can “smell” lung cancer
Bees can detect the scent of lung cancer in lab-grown cells and synthetic breath. One day, bees may be used to screen people’s breath for cancer.
- Archaeology
A lost civilization’s partial alphabet was discovered in a social media post
In online images of an ancient tablet, an expert spotted previously unnoticed letters — a partial alphabet from the Tartessian civilization.
- Archaeology
A new study challenges the idea that Rapa Nui islanders caused an ‘ecocide’
Rapa Niu islanders farmed and fished enough to feed only a few thousand people, too few to decimate society before Europeans arrived, researchers contend.
- Climate
A heat dome is baking the United States. Here’s why that’s so dangerous
As climate change makes heat waves more frequent and intense, older adults, pregnant people and others are at higher risk for heat-related symptoms.
- Neuroscience
Pain may take different pathways in men and women
Sex differences in the function of nerve cells in mice, monkeys and humans suggest a new way to treat pain conditions.
- Science & Society
‘After 1177 B.C.’ describes how societies fared when the Bronze Age ended
Archaeologist Eric H. Cline’s new book reconstructs ancient examples of societal resilience and fragility that have modern-day relevance.
- Health & Medicine
AI could take medical imaging to the next level
Artificial intelligence in medical imaging is taking off. Experts share what they see as the promise — and potential pitfalls — of AI technology.
- Health & Medicine
A malaria drug could be used to treat PCOS, a common hormone disorder
Artemisinin is known to be effective against malaria, lupus, cancer and now possibly polycystic ovarian syndrome.
- Anthropology
Child sacrifices at famed Maya site were all boys, many closely related
DNA analysis shows victims in one underground chamber at Chichén Itzá included twins, perhaps representing mythological figures.
