Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Animals
Pregnant bonobos get a little delivery help from their friends
As in humans, female bonobos become helpers for mothers giving birth, data from captive apes suggest.
- Genetics
Genetic sleuthing again IDs a murder suspect in a cold case
The arrest of a second murder suspect with the help of genetic genealogy raises worries that suspicionless searches may be next.
- Genetics
Consumer DNA testing promises more than it delivers
Chances are your DNA doesn’t contain dark secrets. But there may be lots of variety in results from testing company to company.
- Genetics
Special report: Genetic testing goes mainstream
Consumer genetic tests may not tell customers that much about themselves. Science News delves into these tests in a multipart series.
- Genetics
What genetic tests from 23andMe, Veritas and Genos really told me about my health
A Science News reporter tried out three consumer genetic testing companies to see what people really learn about their health.
- Animals
A caterpillar outwits corn defenses by gorging on fattening ‘junk’ food
The crop plants defend themselves with zombie-maker wasps, but one pest has a desperate work-around.
- Earth
Keeping global warming to 1.5 degrees C helps most species hold their ground
Holding global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2100 could help protect tens of thousands of insect, plant and vertebrate species.
- Anthropology
Ancient Chinese farmers sowed literal seeds of change in Southeast Asia
Two waves of ancient migration from China to Southeast Asia spread farming and languages.
- Life
Your blood type might make you more likely to get traveler’s diarrhea
People with type A blood are more likely to develop severe diarrhea from E. coli infections.
- Animals
50 years ago, scientists warned of a sparrow’s extinction
Only 17 dusky seaside sparrows remained in 1968. Today, there are none.
- Animals
Green blood in lizards probably evolved four times
Pigment buildups that would cause jaundice in people are normal for some New Guinea skinks.
- Plants
Meet the speedsters of the plant world
Researchers have recently uncovered a diverse array of mechanisms that allow plants to move — often faster than the blink of an eye.
