Humans
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Psychology
How to walk in circles without really trying
People walk in circles when landmarks and other directional cues are not available.
- Humans
Nostril rivalry
Like the eyes and ears, each nostril vies for the brain’s attention, a new study suggests.
- Health & Medicine
Docs writing fewer scripts
The number of antibiotic prescriptions for respiratory infections has declined since the mid-1990s, a new study shows.
- Health & Medicine
Better BBQ through chemistry
Food chemists reveal their secrets to juicier, tastier barbecue.
- Health & Medicine
Using estrogen to combat persistent breast cancer
Estrogen therapy stymies breast cancer in some patients who have exhausted their other options, a new study finds.
- Health & Medicine
Worm-inspired superglue
Researchers create a material that may one day be used to paste together bones in the body.
- Health & Medicine
Feds won’t cover PET scans during isotope crisis
One alternative procedure for scouting bone cancers is theoretically available, but currently may be an option only for people with deep pockets.
- Tech
How medicine is ‘barely managing’ the isotope crisis
Medicine is managing a prolonged and record shortfall in the principal diagnostic-imaging isotope by triaging the most urgent patients, substituting less effective procedures and working longer hours.
- Chemistry
Drugged money
U.S. greenbacks are especially effective at pocketing tiny traces of cocaine.
- Tech
Isotope crisis threatens medical care
Global production of the feedstock for the leading medical-imaging isotope is low and erratic, putting health care in jeopardy.
- Archaeology
Fire engineers of the Stone Age
New evidence indicates that people used fires to heat stones in preparation for making cutting instruments at least 72,000 years ago in southern Africa.
- Health & Medicine
Brain doesn’t sort by visual cues alone
Blind and sighted people’s brains sort the living from the nonliving in the same way, suggesting this ability may be hard-wired.
