Life

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We summarize the week's science breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Life

    Reprieve for reprogrammed stem cells

    A study published in 2011 in Nature found that stem cells produced by reprogramming mouse skin cells get attacked when transplanted back into mice.

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  2. Life

    City lights create sexual early birds

    Male blackbirds exposed to nocturnal illumination are ready to mate sooner in spring.

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  3. Life

    Corals beat heat by being prepared

    Warming waters have little effect on reef-building organisms that activate adaptive genes before the temperature starts to rise.

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  4. Humans

    Language learning may begin before birth

    Newborns show signs of having tracked moms’ speech while still in the womb.

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  5. Genetics

    Contest brings out the biohackers

    Mix one part enthusiasm, two parts engineering and three parts biology — and you’ve got a recipe for do-it-yourself genetic engineering. Every November, college kids from Michigan to Munich descend on MIT, eager to show off their biohacking skills. In the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition, teams battle one another to build the coolest synthetically altered organisms. If you want to create a microbe that will sniff out and destroy contaminants in mining waste ponds, or a cell that will produce drugs right in your body, iGEM is for you.

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  6. Neuroscience

    Hallucinations

    by Oliver Sacks.

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  7. Genetics

    Factory of Life

    Synthetic biologists reinvent nature with parts, circuits.

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  8. Life

    Victorian zoological map redrawn

    Species distribution patterns that inspired Darwin and Wallace get an update.

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  9. Chemistry

    Repellent slime has material virtues

    Threads isolated from hagfishes' defensive goo demonstrate superior strength and flexibility.

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  10. Science & Society

    Cell biologists hone elevator pitches

    Competition challenges scientists to summarize their work for a captive lay audience.

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  11. Life

    Pressure keeps cancer in check

    In lab experiments, physically confining malignant cells prevents runaway growth.

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  12. Life

    Heart telltale

    Engineered cells that flash when they beat may offer a new way to test drugs for cardiac toxicity.

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