Life

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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Neuroscience

    Hurt Blocker

    The next big pain drug may soothe sensory firestorms without side effects.

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  2. Animals

    Animals on the Move

    Worldwide — on land, in the sea and in rivers, streams and lakes — wildlife is responding to rising temperatures.

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  3. Life

    Grasshoppers’ terror outlives them

    After an existence plagued by predatory spiders, the insects pass into oblivion, leaving a legacy of impoverished soil.

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  4. Life

    Calcium offers clues in mass extinction

    Ocean acidification during Permian period may have caused the Great Dying.

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  5. Life

    You have grandpa’s chromosome tips

    Older fathers pass more gene-protecting DNA to their paternal grandkids.

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  6. Life

    Invasive mite worsens honeybee viruses

    Once-obscure deformed wing virus swept to prominence in honeybee colonies in Hawaiian islands as invasive pest arrived.

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  7. Life

    Microbes flourish under Arctic sea ice

    Oceanographic expedition surprised to find photosynthetic microorganisms thriving under frozen surface.

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  8. Animals

    How a mosquito survives a raindrop hit

    Lightweight insects can ride a water droplet, as long as they separate from it before hitting the ground.

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  9. Life

    Ancient birds wiped out huge insects

    Competition in the air trumped the advantage of extra atmospheric oxygen.

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  10. Life

    Antiaging protein helps set daily rhythms

    Changing levels of sirtuin in the brain alter activity patterns in mice.

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  11. Earth

    Defying Depth

    How deep-sea creatures, and close relatives, survive tons of water weight.

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  12. Genetics

    Poppies make more than opium

    A 10-gene cluster controls the flowers’ production of a valuable cough suppressant and antitumor compound.

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