Life
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Life
Gene linked to commitment-phobia
A common gene variation in men is linked to marital crises and less bonding in a study of more than 500 long-term couples.
- Neuroscience
New insights on new neurons
Neurogenesis works differently in two parts of the brain. New neurons are necessary for making memories and keep the olfactory bulb’s structure but aren’t needed for smelling, study in mice shows.
- Life
Pollinator manipulators
Manipulating floral chemistry of a type of wild tobacco reveals push-and-pull strategy.
- Life
Live long and alter
Yeast cells fed a calorie-restricted diet live longer and have just as much energy as those fed a normal diet.
- Life
Compass creatures
Herds of grazing and resting deer and cattle tend to align themselves with the Earth’s magnetic field, a hint that the large mammals can somehow sense the invisible field.
- Life
Finding health in fragility
A unifying principle for protein networks' weaknesses could aid development of new drugs.
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- Health & Medicine
How mice smell fear
Mice may use a cluster of neurons known as the Grueneberg ganglion to detect alarm pheromones.
- Earth
Deep sea viruses are an unexpected ringer
Deep-sea vent waters harbor high numbers virus-carrying bacteria. The viruses may actually help the bacteria survive the harsh vent environments.
- Life
Ground squirrels use ‘armpit effect’
Hibernating ground squirrels forget who’s who, so thank goodness for the armpit effect.
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- Health & Medicine
Immune cells show long-term memory
Survivors of the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic still make antibodies against the virus, revealing a long-lived immunity previously thought impossible.
