Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Animals
Pygmy slow loris in Asia takes unusual downtime in winter
The pygmy slow loris is the first primate outside Madagascar found to hibernate.
- Health & Medicine
Pregnancy hormone could keep multiple sclerosis at bay
A small trial hints that pregnancy hormone can reduce MS flare-ups.
- Genetics
Scientists consider new genetic power and its impacts
Thanks to CRISPR, scientists’ plans for effective use of gene drives suddenly look feasible.
- Genetics
Gene drives spread their wings
Gene drives may wipe out malaria and take down invasive species. But they may be difficult to control.
- Plants
Pretty flower uses dead arthropods to lure protectors
A sticky columbine from California lures arthropods to their death to lure protectors to the plant, a new study suggests.
- Paleontology
Long-necked monsters roamed more than Scotland’s lochs
The discovery of sauropod footprints in Scotland suggest the dinosaurs lived in lagoons.
- Genetics
Can DNA predict a face?
DNA-based facial sketches are moving into the crime-solving arena. With current science, predictions of some features are better than others.
- Animals
Inside the roaring sex lives of howler monkeys
Listening to the intense roars of howler monkeys in Mexico inspired scientists to decipher how and why calls differ among species.
- Archaeology
Search for fossils from the comfort of home
The citizen science website FossilFinder.org lets anyone with an Internet connection look for fossils and characterize rocks at Kenya’s Lake Turkana Basin
- Animals
Snakes evolved from burrowing ancestor, new data suggest
A new X-ray analysis of inner ears is the latest to weigh in on whether modern snakes descended from a burrowing or a swimming reptile.
- Animals
Mystery deepens for what made tarantulas blue
Blue hair on tarantulas shows what evolution does with iridescence that females probably don’t care about.
- Animals
For a python, every meal is like Thanksgiving
Burmese pythons rarely eat, but when they do, they gorge. Unlike humans, pythons have adaptations that allow them to survive on huge meals.
