Life
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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
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LifePollinator manipulators
Manipulating floral chemistry of a type of wild tobacco reveals push-and-pull strategy.
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LifeLive long and alter
Yeast cells fed a calorie-restricted diet live longer and have just as much energy as those fed a normal diet.
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LifeCompass 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.
By Sid Perkins -
LifeFinding health in fragility
A unifying principle for protein networks' weaknesses could aid development of new drugs.
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LifeBisexual cockroach dads
Male hissing roaches with flexible tastes sire more young.
By Susan Milius -
Health & MedicineHow mice smell fear
Mice may use a cluster of neurons known as the Grueneberg ganglion to detect alarm pheromones.
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EarthDeep 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.
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LifeGround squirrels use ‘armpit effect’
Hibernating ground squirrels forget who’s who, so thank goodness for the armpit effect.
By Susan Milius -
AnimalsI, Magpie
Some magpies recognize themselves in mirrors, indicating that a basic form of self-recognition evolved in one family of birds.
By Bruce Bower -
Health & MedicineImmune 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.
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ArchaeologySaharan surprise
A chance discovery in the Sahara leads to the excavation of a Stone Age cemetery containing remains from two lakeside cultures.
By Bruce Bower