Life

  1. Genetics

    50 years ago, scientists took baby steps toward selecting sex

    In 1968, scientists figured out how to determine the sex of rabbit embryos.

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  2. Oceans

    Shallow reef species may not find refuge in deeper water habitats

    Coral reefs in deep-water ecosystems may not make good homes for species from damaged shallow reefs.

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  3. Animals

    A new ankylosaur found in Utah had a surprisingly bumpy head

    The spiky, fossilized skull of a newly discovered dinosaur species may be a road map to its ancestors’ journey to North America.

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  4. Neuroscience

    This colorful web is the most complete look yet at a fruit fly’s brain cells

    Scientists compiled 21 million images to craft the highest-resolution view yet of the fruit fly brain.

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  5. Health & Medicine

    How a variation on Botox could be used to treat pain

    Drugs that incorporate modified botulinum toxin provide long-term pain relief, a study in mice finds.

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  6. Animals

    New ‘Poké Ball’ robot catches deep-sea critters without harming them

    A machine that gently catches and releases animals underwater could help researchers take a more detailed census of the deep sea.

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  7. Paleontology

    This amber nugget from Myanmar holds the first known baby snake fossil

    Amber preserves the delicate bone structure of a 99 million year old baby snake.

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  8. Paleontology

    An ancient swimming revolution in the oceans may have never happened

    Swimmers may not have suddenly dominated the oceans during the Devonian Period after all: New analyses suggest they took over much more gradually.

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  9. Health & Medicine

    Publicity over a memory test Trump took could skew its results

    Many media outlets reporting on President Trump’s cognitive assessment test could make it harder for doctors to use the exam to spot dementia.

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  10. Health & Medicine

    The brain may clean out Alzheimer’s plaques during sleep

    Sleep deprivation may speed up development of Alzheimer’s disease.

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  11. Neuroscience

    Pregnancy depression is on the rise, a survey suggests

    Women today may be at greater risk of depression during pregnancy than previous generations.

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  12. Animals

    Malaysia’s pig-tail macaques eat rats, head first

    Pig-tail macaques are seen as a menace on Malaysian palm oil plantations, but may be helping to reduce rodent populations.

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