Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Genetics
The Zika epidemic began long before anyone noticed
Zika spread undetected into Brazil and Florida, a genetic study suggests.
- Animals
Petite parrots provide insight into early flight
High-speed video shows that tiny parrots direct their hops to use the least amount of energy necessary.
- Life
How a flamingo balances on one leg
Flamingos’ built-in tricks for balance might have a thing or two to teach standing robots or prosthesis makers someday.
- Life
Mouse sperm survive space to fertilize eggs
Sperm freeze-dried and sent into space for months of exposure to high levels of solar radiation later produced healthy baby mice.
- Life
Mouse sperm survive space to spawn
Sperm freeze-dried and sent into space for months of exposure to high levels of solar radiation later produced healthy baby mice.
- Genetics
Hybrid protein offers malaria protection
Rare hybrid protein that spans red blood cell membranes offers some protection against malaria.
- Health & Medicine
Transplanted stem cells become eggs in sterile mice
Sterile mice that received transplanted egg-making stem cells were able to have healthy babies.
- Animals
Orangutans take motherhood to extremes, nursing young for more than eight years
Weaning in orangutans has been tricky to see in the wild, so researchers turned to dental tests to reveal long nursing period.
- Life
Jumping genes are part of all that makes us human
Ask 10 people what makes humans human and you’ll probably get 10 different answers — and then some.
- Climate
Higher temperatures could trigger an uptick in damselfly cannibalism
Experiments in the lab suggest that increases in temperature could indirectly lead to an increase in cannibalistic damselfly nymphs.
- Animals
Blennies have a lot of fang for such little fishes
Unlike snakes, blennies evolved fangs before venom, through probably not because of any need to hunt big prey.
- Genetics
Jumping genes play a big role in what makes us human
Jumping genes have been a powerful force in human evolution.
