Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Neuroscience
Jazz improvisers score high on creativity
Jazz musicians’ creativity linked to brain dexterity.
- Science & Society
Watch our most-viewed videos of 2017
Cassini’s demise, cuttlefish and the Curiosity rover topped our list of most popular videos of 2017.
- Genetics
50 years ago, synthetic DNA made its debut
Synthetic DNA has come a long way since it arrived on the scene half a century ago.
- Animals
2017 delivered amazing biology finds from organisms large and small
From giant African elephants to tiny tardigrades, scientists discovered some surprising biology this year.
- Health & Medicine
The man flu struggle might be real, says one researcher
A researcher reviews the evidence for gender bias among flu viruses in the BMJ’s lighthearted holiday edition.
- Animals
Tiny trackers reveal the secret lives of young sea turtles
Young loggerhead turtles can end up in very different places in the Atlantic depending on when they hatch.
- Life
A deadly fungus is infecting snake species seemingly at random
A fungal disease doesn’t appear to discriminate among snake species, suggesting many of the reptiles may be at risk.
- Neuroscience
Specks in the brain attract Alzheimer’s plaque-forming protein
Globs of an inflammatory protein can spur the formation of amyloid-beta clumps, a study in mice shows.
- Animals
Specialized protein helps these ground squirrels resist the cold
A less active cold-sensing protein explains, in part, why some hibernating ground squirrels are more tolerant of chilly conditions than the animals’ nonhibernating kin.
- Animals
In marine mammals’ battle of the sexes, vaginal folds can make the difference
Patricia Brennan and colleagues found certain female ocean mammals have vaginal folds that give them an advantage in mating
- Neuroscience
Even brain images can be biased
Brain scan studies that are drawn from rich and well-educated groups could lead to biased ideas of how our brains develop.
- Neuroscience
In a tally of nerve cells in the outer wrinkles of the brain, a dog wins
Among some carnivores, golden retrievers rate at the top for numbers of nerve cells, study finds.
