Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Genetics
New hybrid embryos are the most thorough mixing of humans and mice yet
Human-mice chimeras may usher in a deeper understanding of how cells build bodies.
- Humans
A gene variant partly explains why Peruvians are among the world’s shortest people
A gene variant reduces some Peruvians’ height by about 2 centimeters, on average, the biggest effect on stature found for a common variation in DNA.
- Ecosystems
Tapirs may be key to reviving the Amazon. All they need to do is poop
Brazilian ecologist Lucas Paolucci is collecting tapir dung to understand how the piglike mammals may help restore degraded rain forests.
- Animals
Some comb jellies cannibalize their young when food is scarce
Invasive warty comb jellies feast on their larvae after massive population booms in the summer deplete their prey from waters off of Germany.
- Neuroscience
A game based on Simon shows how people mentally rehearse new information
Signs of learning echo through people’s resting brains.
- Ecosystems
Warming water can create a tropical ecosystem, but a fragile one
Tropical fish in a power plant’s warm discharge disappeared with the plant’s shutdown, giving insight into ecosystems’ reaction to temperature shifts.
- Life
Why otters ‘juggle’ rocks is still a mystery
Shuffling pebbles really fast looks as if it should boost otters’ dexterity, but a new study didn’t find a link.
- Animals
Pug-nosed tree frogs use an auditory trick to evade predators and woo mates
A new study finds that some tree frogs exploit what’s known as the precedence effect to get females attention safely.
- Animals
Why mammals like elephants and armadillos might get drunk easily
Differences in a gene for breaking down alcohol could help explain which mammals get tipsy.
- Paleontology
A ‘crazy beast’ from the time of dinosaurs belongs to an obscure mammal group
Paleontologists have finally matched a bizarre fossil, Adalatherium hui, to an obscure group of ancient mammals called gondwanatherians.
- Paleontology
Spinosaurus fossil tail suggests dinosaurs were swimmers after all
Unique among known dinosaurs, Spinosaurus had a finlike tail, which the predator may have used to propel itself through the water.
- Animals
Here’s why a hero shrew has the sturdiest spine of any mammal
The hero shrew’s rigid backbone is among the weirdest mammal spines, its incredible strength aided by fortified vertebrae bones.
