Life

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We summarize the week's science breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Life

    Young flies cannibalize the plump

    An evolutionary biologist’s modest proposal shocks colleagues who thought they knew everything about their favorite laboratory organism.

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  2. Life

    Blog: Arsenic-based life gets even more toxic

    With a pair of new papers, scientists have driven two more stakes through the heart of a controversial research finding that its authors won’t let die.

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  3. Paleontology

    Not your typical pterosaur

    A beautifully preserved fossil from Germany displays a wing unlike any ever seen.

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  4. Life

    Trout nose cells follow magnetic fields

    Iron-rich tissue may be at root of a biological compass.

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  5. Life

    Egg production after birth questioned

    A study finds no evidence of stem cells in adult mouse ovaries, suggesting female mammals really are born with all the gametes they’ll ever have.

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  6. Microbes

    Killing with the flip of a switch

    A single genetic transformation turns mild-mannered bacteria into assassins.

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  7. Humans

    Warning to bats: Cuddle not

    Ecologist Kate Langwig of Boston University and her colleagues want Eastern bats to listen up: No more cuddling — at least during hibernation. Just keep those wings to yourselves.

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  8. Life

    Space trek may help worms live long

    After 11 days in orbit, nematodes showed signs of slower aging.

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  9. Life

    All dinosaurs may have had feathers

    Well-preserved fossil sports long, fine plumage and a bushy tail.

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  10. Animals

    Climate adaptation may be a family affair

    Newborn coral reef fish can cope with changed water conditions if their parents have already adjusted.

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  11. Animals

    Mosquitoes Remade

    Scientists reinvent agents of illness to become allies in fight against disease.

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  12. Genetics

    Convenience shoulders tomato taste aside

    Decades of breeding for uniform color in unripe fruit may accidentally have reduced flavor.

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